TV

Prof. Gregory Rutledge speaks with The Ringer reporter Claire McNear about the science behind nanofibers and whether it's possible to create ultrathin and ultrastrong nanofibers that are invisible to the human eye, as shown in the science fiction series “3 Body Problem.” Rutledge explains that: “Given that a human hair is about 50 micrometers in diameter, a fiber 100 times smaller would be about 500 nanometers in diameter. Such fibers are routinely made by electrospinning, as well as by a couple of other technologies. Metal wires can also be drawn that small.”

Writing for The Conversation, Prof. Heather Hendershot explores the growth of politically-biased news coverage, comparing Ted Baxter of “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” - a fictional news anchor more interested in personal fame than journalistic standards - to today’s pundits. “Ted Baxter thus embodied the ego of the pundit, but without the opinions that often make such a person dangerous,” writes Hendershot. “For all his incompetence, it never occurred to him to air his own political views.”

Wall Street Journal reporter John Anderson spotlights a new PBS special “Fast Forward: Look Into Your Future,” which explores the many facets of aging and was developed with input from researchers at the MIT AgeLab.

Emily Calandrelli SM ’13 speaks with STAT reporter Pratibha Gopalakrishna about her work aimed at getting children interested in science, the importance of representation in the STEM fields, and her new Netflix show. “I don’t shy away from the science because I think kids are very clever and know way more than a lot of people give them credit for,” says Calandrelli.

Jane Borden of The Washington Post highlights research by Prof. Edward Schiappa in an article about the idea that TV can help tackle prejudice. According to the 2006 study, viewers of the TV show Will and Grace have “the strongest potential influence on reducing sexual prejudice.”

As part of their “This Day in History” series, The Boston Globe highlights how on April 24, 1962, MIT researchers “achieved the first satellite relay of a television signal, using NASA’s Echo 1 balloon satellite to bounce a video image from Camp Parks, Calif., to Westford, Mass.”

In an NPR piece about diversity in sci-fi, Jeff Young highlights a study by Prof. Edward Schiappa that found TV viewers became more accepting after watching shows that introduce them to different cultures. "At this point, it's a pretty unequivocal finding that TV can affect how people feel and think about others," says Schiappa. 

Comparative Media Studies research affiliate Sam Ford writes for The Boston Globe about former Daily Show host Jon Stewart’s recent professional wrestling appearances. “I’m guessing Stewart finds something refreshing about a world where the performance comes with a wink and where fans are invited to be in on the con,” writes Ford. 

David Szondy reports on how the MIT Camera Culture Group has developed a new 3-D project system that doesn’t require glasses. Szondy writes that the team sees their system, “as a transitional system that sits between current technologies and true holographic video.”