Research

New chip can protect wireless biomedical devices from quantum attacks

New chip can protect wireless biomedical devices from quantum attacks As quantum computers advance, they are expected to be able to break tried-and-true security schemes that currently keep most sensitive data secure from attackers. Scientists and policymakers are working to design and implement post-quantum cryptography to defend against these future ...

Teaching AI models to say “I’m not sure”

Teaching AI models to say “I’m not sure” Confidence is persuasive. In artificial intelligence systems, it is often misleading.Today's most capable reasoning models share a trait with the loudest voice in the room: They deliver every answer with the same unshakable certainty, whether they're right or guessing. Researchers ...

Plants can sense the sound of rain, a new study finds

Plants can sense the sound of rain, a new study finds The next time you find yourself lulled by the patter of rain outside your window, think how that same sprinkle might sound if you were a tiny seed planted directly below a free-falling droplet. Would you still be similarly soothed?In ...

New study bridges the worlds of classical and quantum physics

New study bridges the worlds of classical and quantum physics When you throw a ball in the air, the equations of classical physics will tell you exactly what path the ball will take as it falls, and when and where it will land. But if you were to squeeze that ...

Why bother with plausible deniability?

Why bother with plausible deniability? Picture this scenario in a business: An employee, Brad, disclosed some information that wound up in the hands of a competitor. He may not have meant to, but he did, and a few people at the firm know this. So, ...

With navigating nematodes, scientists map out how brains implement behaviors

With navigating nematodes, scientists map out how brains implement behaviors Animal behavior reflects a complex interplay between an animal’s brain and its sensory surroundings. Only rarely have scientists been able to discern how actions emerge from this interaction. A new open-access study in Nature Neuroscience by researchers in The Picower ...

Understanding community effects of Asian immigrants’ US housing purchases

Understanding community effects of Asian immigrants’ US housing purchases Asian immigrants are both the fastest-growing and highest-earning immigrant ethnic group in the United States, facts that have caught the attention of many economists interested in how these groups — whether investors or residents — impact housing prices, K-12 education, ...

Light-activated gel could impact wearables, soft robotics, and more

Light-activated gel could impact wearables, soft robotics, and more Consider the chief difference between living systems and electronics: The first is generally soft and squishy, while the latter is hard and rigid. Now, in work that could impact human-machine interfaces, biocompatible devices, soft robotics, and more, MIT engineers and ...

3 Questions: A running shoe that adapts to the runner

3 Questions: A running shoe that adapts to the runner Granular convection takes place everywhere: candy in a box, sand on the beach, foam in a cushion. Often referred to as the “Brazil nut effect,” granular convection occurs when solid, independent, irregularly shaped particles reorder themselves following agitation. One might think, intuitively, ...

A regulatory loophole could delay ozone recovery by years

A regulatory loophole could delay ozone recovery by years Often hailed as the most successful international environmental agreement of all time, the 1987 Montreal Protocol continues to successfully phase out the global production of chemicals that were creating a growing hole in the ozone layer, causing skin cancer and ...

Youth may increase vulnerability to a carcinogen found in contaminated water and some drugs

Youth may increase vulnerability to a carcinogen found in contaminated water and some drugs A new study from MIT suggests that a carcinogen that has been found in medications and in drinking water contaminated by chemical plants may have a much more severe impact on children than adults.In a study of mice, the researchers ...

Waves hit different on other planets

Waves hit different on other planets On a calm day, a light breeze might barely ripple the surface of a lake on Earth. But on Saturn’s largest moon Titan, a similar mild wind would kick up 10-foot-tall waves.This otherworldly behavior is one prediction from a new ...

MIT study reveals a new role for cell membranes

MIT study reveals a new role for cell membranes Cells are enveloped by a lipid membrane that gives them structure and provides a barrier between the cell and its environment. However, evidence has recently emerged suggesting that these membranes do more than simply provide protection — they also influence ...

Multitasking quantum sensors can measure several properties at once

Multitasking quantum sensors can measure several properties at once A special class of sensors leverages quantum properties to measure tiny signals at levels that would be impossible using classical sensors alone. Such quantum sensors are currently being used to study the inner workings of cells and the outer depths ...

Human-machine teaming dives underwater

Human-machine teaming dives underwater The electricity to an island goes out. To find the break in the underwater power cable, a ship pulls up the entire line or deploys remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) to traverse the line. But what if an autonomous underwater vehicle ...

Carbon removal project supports Maine’s blue economy, broader marine health

Carbon removal project supports Maine’s blue economy, broader marine health Oceans absorb roughly 25 to 30 percent of the carbon dioxide (CO2) that is released into the atmosphere. When this CO2 dissolves in seawater, it forms carbonic acid, making the water more acidic and altering its chemistry. Elevated levels of ...

Slice and dice What if the Trojan horse had been pulled to pieces, revealing the ruse and fending off the invasion, just as it entered the gates of Troy?That’s an apt description of a newly characterized bacterial defense system that chops up foreign ...

A philosophy of work

A philosophy of work What makes work valuable? Michal Masny, the NC Ethics of Technology Postdoctoral Fellow in the MIT Department of Philosophy, investigates the role work plays in our lives and its impact on our well-being. Masny sees numerous benefits to work, beyond a paycheck. ...

Learning with audiobooks

Learning with audiobooks Millions of students nationwide use text-supplemented audiobooks, learning tools that are thought to help those who struggle with reading keep up in the classroom. A new study from scientists at MIT’s McGovern Institute for Brain Research finds that many students ...

A new type of electrically driven artificial muscle fiber

A new type of electrically driven artificial muscle fiber Muscles are remarkably effective systems for generating controlled force, and engineers developing hardware for robots or prosthetics have long struggled to create analogs that can approach their unique combination of strength, rapid response, scalability, and control. But now, researchers at ...

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