Shana Lebowitz writes for Forbes about a study co-authored by Dr. Sara Ellison that determined that gender-diverse teams are more productive than their single-gender counterparts: “[R]esearchers estimated that transitioning from a single-gender office to an office evenly split between men and women would translate to a whopping 41% revenue gain.”
Susan Adams writes for Forbes about research coauthored by Dr. Sara Ellison that indicates that single-sex teams are less productive than their co-ed counterparts. “The authors say their research shows that switching from a single-sex group to a co-ed team could increase revenues by a whopping 41%,” Adams writes.
Washington Post reporter Jeff Guo examines new findings from MIT graduate student Manasi Deshpande concerning how the Supplemental Security Income influences a person’s decision to work. Deshpande found that people who were on disability as children “do not have great work prospects as adults,” but parents of disabled children” do have excess capacity to work.”
Research by Dr. Sara Fisher Ellison indicates that co-ed teams are more productive, but have lower job satisfaction, writes Rachel Emma Silverman for The Wall Street Journal. “The researchers posit that shifting an all-female or all-male team to a coed one would increase revenues by 41%.”
Professor Clapperton Mavhunga speaks with Jasmine McNealy of New Books in Technology about his childhood, the history of innovation in Africa, and his new book, “Transient Workspaces: Technologies or Everyday Innovation in Zimbabwe.”
Russell Platt writes for The New Yorker about Professor Keeril Makan’s music. “The work’s brave exploration of expressive territory makes it memorable. It’s lulling, thrilling, and, at times, downright eerie,” writes Platt of Makan’s piece “Resonance Alloy.”
Professor Mildred Dresselhaus speaks with NPR’s Audie Cornish about receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Cornish explains that Dresselhaus got her nickname, the Queen of Carbon, based on her work with carbon, which “paved the way for the rise of nanotechnology.”
MIT alumnus Noam Angrist and seniors Anisha Gururaj and Elliot H. Akama-Garren were among 32 Rhodes scholars selected from the U.S. this year, reports Jennifer Smith for The Boston Globe. “The American scholars will join an international group of students chosen from 14 other global jurisdictions, according to the Rhodes Trust,” Smith reports.
Two MIT seniors and alumnus Noam Angrist have been named Rhodes Scholars, reports Dave Collins for the Associated Press. “It’s a total dream come true,” says Angrist. “The skills I will get at (Oxford) are just incredible, and I’ll come back into the world fully equipped to do what I love to do.”
Nidhi Subbaraman of BetaBoston writes that Institute Professor Mildred Dresselhaus has been honored with a Presidential Medal of Freedom. Subbaraman explains that Dresselhaus conducted early research into the electric properties of graphite, “and her work led to the discovery of graphene, the atom-thin carbon sheets that are expected to revolutionize the way we work with electronics.”
David Jackson of USA Today writes about the recipients of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, including two MIT honorees, Institute Professors Mildred Dresselhaus and Robert Solow. Dresselhaus was honored for “deepening our understanding of condensed matter systems and the atomic properties of carbon,” while Solow was recognized for “laying the groundwork for much of modern economics.”
Three new works composed by MIT lecturer Elena Ruehr are premiering over the coming weeks, reports David Weininger for The Boston Globe. “The next two weeks constitute a sort of bicoastal mini-festival of new works by Ruehr,” he writes. “It’s an enviable burst of activity for any composer.”
Keith Powers writes for WBUR about the upcoming premieres of three new works by MIT lecturer and composer Elena Ruehr. “Most composers are happy to have one premiere of a major work every year. Elena Ruehr has three in November alone,” explains Powers.
Washington Post reporter Philip Bump writes about the average voter waiting time in states across the U.S., citing Professor Charles Stewart’s work examining voting lines. Stewart and his colleagues found that in 2012 Florida voters had to wait on average 45 minutes, Bump reports.
Salon reporter Allegra Kirkland reports on a study co-authored by MIT Professor Chris Warshaw that examined the political leanings of cities across America. The researchers found that “ideology has tangible effects on policy at the municipal level,” Kirkland writes.