Physics and the machine-learning “black box”
In 2.C01, George Barbastathis demonstrates how mechanical engineers can use their knowledge of physical systems to keep algorithms in check and develop more accurate predictions.
Understanding air pollution from space
Arlene Fiore uses satellite data paired with ground observations to refine our understanding of ozone smog and interactions with meteorology and climate.
Making computation come alive
A new course teaches students how to use computational techniques to solve real-world problems, from landing a spacecraft to placing cell phone towers.
Seeing the plasma edge of fusion experiments in new ways with artificial intelligence
MIT researchers are testing a simplified turbulence theory’s ability to model complex plasma phenomena using a novel machine-learning technique.
Helping to make nuclear fusion a reality
MIT PhD student Rachel Bielajew is taking on plasma turbulence, and helping make a better world — through science and community action.
Perfecting pitch perception
Computational modeling shows that both our ears and our environment influence how we hear.
Design’s new frontier
Mechanical engineers are using cutting-edge computing techniques to re-imagine how the products, systems, and infrastructures we use are designed.
Electrochemistry, from batteries to brains
Professor Bilge Yildiz finds patterns in the behavior of ions across applications.
Radio-frequency wave scattering improves fusion simulations
By incorporating the scattering of RF waves into fusion simulations, MIT physicists improve heating and current drive predictions for fusion plasmas.
Mark Vogelsberger: Simulating galaxy formation for clues to the universe
“In astrophysics, we have only this one universe which we can observe,” the physics professor says. “With a computer, we can create different universes, which we can check.”
Artificial intelligence sheds light on how the brain processes language
Neuroscientists find the internal workings of next-word prediction models resemble those of language-processing centers in the brain.
Study: Global cancer risk from burning organic matter comes from unregulated chemicals
The researchers hope scientists and regulators will consider a broader class of compounds in evaluating cancer risk due to PAH exposure.
Astronomers nail down the origins of rare loner dwarf galaxies
The results provide a blueprint for finding such systems in the universe’s quieter, emptier regions.
Climate and sustainability classes expand at MIT
MIT offers over 120 undergraduate classes related to sustainability, a sign of growing student and faculty interest in the environmental impacts of their fields.
System trains drones to fly around obstacles at high speeds
New algorithm could enable fast, nimble drones for time-critical operations such as search and rescue.