Prof. Asegun Henry has been named a 2024 Grist honoree for his work developing a “sun in a box,” new and cost-effective system for storing renewable energy, reports Grist. Based on his research, Prof. Henry has founded Fourth Power, a startup working to build a prototype system that will hopefully “allow us to decarbonize electricity,” says Henry.
Prof. Michael Strano joins “Somewhere on Earth” podcast host Gareth Mitchell to discuss how he and his colleagues developed tiny batteries that could be used to power cell-sized robots. Roughly the thickness of a human hair, the new battery can create a current by capturing oxygen. “I would say we're making the LEGOs, the building blocks that go into robots,” Strano says. “We’re building the parts and it's an exciting time for the field.”
During an interview with Lisa Mullins of WBUR’s Here & Now, graduate student Emelie Eldracher '22 shares the excitement she felt after winning the 2024 Paralympics silver medal win in the mixed-four crew and delves into her research at MIT focused on developing a low-cost system to gather biomechanical feedback for athletes and help improve their performance. “I really hope to contribute to the sphere and hopefully we can use AI in a way that influences athletes to help them get that one-hundredth of a second, as our coach likes to say,” Eldracher explains. “Because if you add up all the one-hundredths of a second in a race, that could be the difference between a medal or not.”
New Yorker reporter Dhruv Khullar spotlights how researchers from across MIT are using AI to advance drug development. Khullar highlights the MIT Jameel Clinic, the Broad Institute and various faculty members for their efforts in bridging the gap between AI and drug research. “With AI, we’re getting that much more efficient at finding molecules—and in some cases creating them,” says Prof. James Collins. “The cost of the search is going down. Now we really don’t have an excuse.”
Graduate student Emelie Eldracher '22 has won a silver medal in the Mixed PR3 Coxed Four A Final at the 2024 Paris Paralympics, reports Brendan Kurie for The Boston Globe. “It was the third consecutive silver medal for the United States in the event, but this year’s boat was filled with first-time medalists,” explains Kurie.
TechCrunch reporter Kyle Wiggers spotlights Codeium, a generative AI coding company founded by MIT alums Varun Mohan SM '17 and Douglas Chen '17. Codeium’s platform is run by generative AI models trained on public code, providing suggestions in the context of an app’s entire codebase. “Many of the AI-driven solutions provide generic code snippets that require significant manual work to integrate and secure within existing codebases,” Mohan explains. “That’s where our AI coding assistance comes in.”
David Rush '07 pursues numerous challenges to promote STEM in education, but his role as the “globe’s most prolific Guinness World Record setter” stems from early sibling rivalry, reports Ramon Antonio Vargas for The Guardian. The thrill and accomplishment of beating his older brother at swimming led to attempting record breaking, which Rush uses as a metaphor for life’s trials. “If you set your mind to a goal, believe in yourself, pursue it with a passion, you can accomplish virtually anything,” he said.
David Rush '07 shares his quest to break as many Guinness World Records as possible, conquering everything from setting a record time for juggling blindfolded to catching 59 marshmallows in his mouth in less than one minute and balancing 101 toilet paper rolls on his head, reports Cathy Free for The Washington Post. Rush now holds more than 181 world records. “I love the challenge and the training — it helps get me out of bed in the morning,” Rush says. “It’s a great feeling of accomplishment every time I can add another record to the list.”
Graduate student Emelie Eldracher '22 will complete in the Paris Paralympics as a coxswain in the PR3 Mixed Coxed Four race, reports Henry Dinh-Price, Alexa Podalsky and Aiden Sprole for The Boston Globe. “While studying at MIT, Eldracher designed the first AI-powered heated jacket,” they write.
Anurag Bajpayee MS '08, PhD '12 and Prakash Govindan PhD '12 founded Gradiant, an MIT startup “trying to reduce both costs and energy while eliminating chemicals” in water, reports Diana Olick for CNBC. “We take highly contaminated wastewater which contains solvents, which contains dissolved salt, which contains organics, and we eliminate the entire liquid waste,” says Govindan.
Associated Press reporter Bernie Wilson spotlights Christina “Chris” Birch PhD '15 and her quest to reach outer space after conquering many miles as a competitive cyclist. “Birch’s resume is staggering,” Wilson notes. “In cycling, she has 11 national championships as well as multiple Pan American and World Cup medals. She has degrees in mathematics, biochemistry and molecular biophysics, and a doctorate in biological engineering from MIT.” Of her outer space aspirations, Birch explains: “While I would love to be a scientist on the moon, doing research, collecting samples, just to be a part of our return to the moon would be incredible, because we are asking such interesting scientific questions.”
Writing for The Hill, graduate student Shomik Verma explores the potential impact of the Climate Superfund Act, a bill that would require “fossil fuel companies who have emitted more than 1 billion tons over the past 20 years to pay into a superfund for their climate damages.” “With the saturated field of climate policies nowadays, this unique bill has the potential to be truly impactful,” writes Verma. “We need to make sure it is.”
Falmouth’s Ben & Bill’s Chocolate Emporium has unveiled a new chocolate candy named Dr. Bob’s Dark Chocolate Maple Syrup Cream – inspired by Prof. Bob Langer’s love of maple, reports Jon Chesto in The Boston Globe. “To make the Dr. Bob’s candy, the staff takes the maple cream chocolates and then drizzles maple syrup over them as a topping,” writes Chesto.
Edwin Olson '00, MEng '01, PhD '08 founded May Mobility, an autonomous vehicle company that uses human autonomous vehicle operators on its rides, reports Gus Alexiou for Forbes. “May Mobility is focused above all else on gradually building up the confidence of its riders and community stakeholders in the technology over the long-term,” explains Alexiou. “This may be especially true for certain more vulnerable sections of society such as the disability community where the need for more personalized and affordable forms of transportation is arguably greatest but so too is the requirement for robust safety and accessibility protocols.”
Researchers at MIT have developed tiny batteries capable of powering cell-sized robots that can “execute tasks as varied as targeting drug delivery inside the human body to checking pipelines for gas leaks,” reports Brian Heater for TechCrunch. “Despite the barely visible size, the researchers say the batteries can generate up to 1 volt, which can be used to power a sensor, circuit or even a moving actuator.”