| Cough Screening | | | | | | Researchers have found that asymptomatic Covid-19 patients may have distinctive coughs. Indecipherable to the human ear, the differences can be picked up by artificial intelligence. Coughs recorded through a cellphone app could serve as a convenient screening tool. Full story via MIT News → |
| Angelika Amon, cell biologist who pioneered research on chromosome imbalance, dies at 53 Professor and mentor for more than 20 years at MIT redefined scientists’ understanding of the biology of cell division and proliferation. Full story via MIT News → | |
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| Study helps explain why motivation to learn declines with age Research on mice suggests aging affects a brain circuit critical for learning to make some types of decisions. Full story via MIT News → | |
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| 3 Questions: Adam Berinsky on how to assess election polls MIT political scientist explains the responsibilities leaders have for shaping and sharing factual, truthful information in the nation's political discourse. Full story via MIT News → | |
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| A wearable sensor to help ALS patients communicate Researchers have designed a skin-like device that can measure small facial movements in patients who have lost the ability to speak. Full story via MIT News → | |
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| Testing sewage to home in on Covid-19 Letting an algorithm decide which maintenance holes to test for evidence of coronavirus could improve pandemic containment efforts. Full story via MIT News → | |
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| Meet MIT’s first Black female student body president // The Kelly Clarkson Show |
Danielle Geathers, president of the MIT Undergraduate Association, joins Kelly Clarkson to discuss her goals for her presidency. Full story via The Kelly Clarkson Show→ |
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| This startup wants to get you hooked on a fancy instant coffee alternative // Fast Company Cometeer, an MIT startup, offers a new way to deliver and consume craft coffee at home. It arrives in frozen pucks to retain “all the complex flavors of the bean, as if a coffee expert had brewed it for you.” Full story via Fast Company→ |
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| Opinion: A brief, intense shutdown would give the U.S. a second chance against the virus // The Washington Post Professor Scott Sheffield argues that “circuit breakers” — strict closures for limited periods of time — could be used to help reduce Covid-19 infections. Full story via The Washington Post→ |
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| Why science labs love older scientists // Next Avenue |
Institute Professor Sallie “Penny” Chisholm and her work investigating Prochlorococcusare featured in a piece highlighting scientists over age 65 who are making “enormous contributions to their fields of expertise.” Full story via The Boston Globe → |
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| Harvard joins MIT in backing $250 million venture fund targeting hard-sell startups // Forbes Katie Rae, CEO and managing partner of The Engine, discusses the second round of funding raised by The Engine and how the venture is looking to help support tough tech ideas. Full story via Forbes→ |
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| | | Happy Halloween! For your pumpkin-carving pleasure, the MIT Alumni Association has developed a set of Institute-themed stencils for use by the community. They and other fun resources are included in a party kit created for the recent MIT Family Weekend. Get your stencils→ |
| | | What does queuing theory say about managing polling places at the confluence of the U.S. elections and the Covid-19 pandemic? Here are six big takeaways about lines for voting, from the MIT Election and Data Science Lab. Read the post→ |
| Race, Ethnicity, and Politics | | |
| | | As we near Election Day, MIT OpenCourseWare is offering past MIT course materials for free relating to U.S. politics and government. Course 17.269 (Race, Ethnicity, and American Politics), for example, explores race and representation, measurement of racial and ethnic identities, voting rights and electoral districting, protest and other forms of political participation, and the meaning and measurement of racial attitudes. Learn more via MIT OCW→ |
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