A new study co-authored by Prof. Xavier Giroud finds that startups that receive more attention from their investors tend to be more innovative, reports Eilene Zimmerman for Forbes. The researchers found that those startups that investors could reach via a direct flight “produced higher quality innovation and were more likely to go public or be acquired.”
Prof. Hugh Herr speaks about his work developing bionic limbs on Popular Science’s Futuropolis podcast. When asked about what sort of capabilities bionics may be able to give humans in the future, Herr explains his view that, “If something is possible given physical law, given the laws of nature, then I think ultimately humans will explore it.”
In an article for The New York Times, Phyllis Korkki writes about a new study co-authored by Prof. Christian Catalini that examines how free time impacts innovation. The researchers found innovation “requires time to carry out execution-oriented tasks that are not particularly creative but still necessary to transform an idea into a product.”
BetaBoston reporter Curt Woodward writes about RapidSOS, a startup founded by graduates from MIT and Harvard that is aimed at improving 911 service. “RapidSOS’ system is designed to be a digital communications middleman that can harvest key information from an app user’s smartphone and route it into a 911 dispatcher’s system,” Woodward explains.
Catherine Pearson writes for The Huffington Post about the Gala Pump, a compression breast pump designed by Kohana Inc. at MIT’s “make the breast pump not suck” hackathon: “Kohana has run a small clinical trial with 30 moms and says the majority of those women preferred The Gala to their vacuum pumps.”
Kim Yi Dionne writes for The Washington Post about Professor Clapperton Chakanetsa Mavhunga’s book ‘Transient Workspaces: Technologies of Everyday Innovation in Zimbabwe’: In it, Mavhunga “paints a vivid picture of hunting in Zimbabwe from the pre-colonial period to the present as he demonstrates how innovation is driven by ordinary people.”
Professor Dina Katabi was among the attendees showcasing startup ideas at the White House’s Demo Day, writes Jessica Geller for BetaBoston. “Demo Day promotes diversity,” said Katabi. “Women and people of different backgrounds are something that I think would be great to add to the startup community.”
MIT researchers are using Kumbh Mela — India’s largest religious festival — to help policymakers and planners develop smarter cities, writes Krishna Pokharel for The Wall Street Journal. “It’s about helping the smart citizens make their cities smart,” says John Werner of the MIT Camera Culture group.
In an article for Fortune, Leena Rao writes about MIT startup Ginkgo Bioworks, which has developed a technique that uses yeast to create a multitude of different substances. “The technique opens the door to using new biochemical foundations for things like perfume, cosmetics and even sweeteners,” Rao writes.
New York Times reporter John Markoff writes about Alias, a new system aimed at augmenting human pilots on flights. The system is being developed by Auroa Flight Sciences, which grew out of an MIT project, and with the assistance of researchers from MIT and Duke University.
In an article for Fortune, Katie Fehrenbacher writes about how startups such as Transatomic Power, which was founded by MIT nuclear scientists Leslie Dewan and Mark Massie, could revive the field of nuclear technology. Fehrenbacher writes that companies like Transatomic “are passionate about how tech innovation can lift the industry out of its nuclear stalemate.”
MIT startup LiquiGlide has announced that they are partnering with the international food packaging company Orkla to use their non-stick coating inside mayonnaise bottles, reports Katie Palmer for Wired. Palmer explains that LiquiGlide has “created an algorithm to optimize the thermodynamic relationships between a textured solid on the inside of the bottle, its liquid 'lubricant,' and the product in question.”
Klint Finley writes for Wired about the Cybersecurity Factory, a startup accelerator founded by two MIT graduate students to help new cybersecurity companies get off the ground. Jean Yang, a PhD candidate at MIT and co-founder of the Cybersecurity Factory, explains that her goal “is simply to bring more security companies into existence.”
MIT spinout LiquiGlide has signed a deal with Orkla that will allow the company to use LiquiGlide’s non-stick coating in their mayonnaise bottles, reports Chris Foxx for the BBC. Foxx explains that a customized version of the LiquiGlide “coating is created for each product, resulting in a "permanently wet" surface inside containers that helps the product slip out.”
In an article for The Guardian, Purvi Thacker writes about how researchers from MIT are examining the Kumbh Mela festival, one of the largest public gatherings in the world, to find solutions to problems often found in cities. Prof. Ramesh Raskar explains his goal “to create a prototype ecosystem with the broader vision of game-changing innovation at its core.”