MIT

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--Most discussions about where computing is and where it's going end up touching on three big themes: mobility, big data, and cloud computing. Yesterday's MIT Sloan CIO Symposium was no exception, whether those precise terms were used or not.

Perhaps the most striking example of just how rapidly mobile devices are forcing IT organizations to adapt came from Scott Griffith, the CEO of Zipcar, who said that "60 percent of interactions are now through an Android or an iPhone." He also noted that essentially BlackBerry's entire share had shifted to Android over a … Read more

Researchers are tapping into the brain's signals to ease the downsides of multitasking and information overload, a worsening problem in digital lifestyles.

A group of researchers at MIT, Indiana University, and Tufts University last week presented the Brainput computer interface device at last week's Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI 2012) which explores new human-machine interface designs.

Brainput seeks to address the problem of people getting overloaded when working on machines and to improve people's ability to multitask. It's geared primarily at complex control systems, but its makers say the technique could eventually spill … Read more

Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology today launched an initiative to make its education material available online for free.

Through an initiative called edX, the two storied learning institutions will develop an open-source software platform and offer some of their courses online starting this fall. Harvard and MIT will govern the not-for-profit joint venture and dedicate $30 million each in grants and institutional support.

With edX, Harvard and MIT are seeking to learn about online education to enhance how they offer classes online, both to remote students and students on campus, university officials said at a press conference … Read more

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- MIT's famed Media Lab is like a playground for really smart techies and artists.

The Lab hosted its annual Inside Out conference this week where speakers from a dizzying number of projects talked about the future of technology and design.

Unpacking all the work there would take months, but even a few quick tours give a hint at some of the trends in research which could spill over into mainstream consumer electronics.

A recurring theme is that more everyday objects, whether they are cars or buildings, are becoming digital and that shift opens up new ways … Read more

Humanity seems hell bent on creating machines that will one day rise up and have no problem whatsoever hunting us all down.

If it's not some researcher conducting experiments in how robots can evolve behaviors such as cooperation and hunting (gulp), it's some misguided engineer developing spiderlike 'bots that will one day surely have no trouble outrunning humble little bipeds like ourselves.

And now we have a robot that can spin a web or a cocoon. … Read more

This DIY cell phone created at MIT manages to have something for just about every major contemporary subculture or hipster subset I can think of.

Nerds and tinkerers? Check. Wooden case for the steampunk set? Check. Huge antenna for the retro, skinny-jeans-wearing set? Check. Big buttons for the fat-thumbed and Luddite crowd? Check. Rugged design for outdoorsy types? Check.

The folks at the MIT Media Lab created this prototype with an SM5100B GSM Module that takes a standard SIM card and a custom circuit board. The screen will take you back to the last century at 160x128 pixels and the laser cut wood and veneer enclosure is just one of many possible exteriors, given the availability of 3D printing. While far from a smartphone, voice, texting, and other slightly old-school functionality is possible. All told, the parts cost between $100 and $150.… Read more

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--An MIT Media Lab project called WristQue offers a way to interact with smart buildings and computers in an unobtrusive way.

Researchers at the Media Lab recently completed the first prototype of WristQue wearable sensor and described some of its potential uses yesterday here.

The first application of the wristband device is to automatically set heating and lighting controls to the wearer's preferences. It could also be used as an interface with public displays in buildings, showing the user personal information, such as a daily calendar, according to PhD student Brian Mayton who is working on the … Read more

Hackers overrode the tallest building in Cambridge, Mass., last week, turning the 21-story Green Building at MIT into a giant Tetris puzzle game controllable from a nearby joystick attached to a podium.

The successful attempt comes after a glitch-filled try to run Tetris on the same building in September of last year. Hackers used 153 wirelessly controlled color-changing LED lights for the giant game on a building that hosts MIT's Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Science facilities.

The MIT-hosted Hack Gallery notes, "MIT hackers have long considered 'Tetris on the Green Building' to be the Holy Grail of hacks, as the side of the building is a wonderful grid for the game." … Read more

In the future, you may go to a "Robo Kinkos" store to have your robots printed.

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology today announced a five-year research initiative to let people design personalized robots and have them made with three-dimensional printers.

The ambitious project envisions a day where individuals choose from a set of templates to create a robot to solve a specific task, be it playing with a pet or measuring radon levels in a basement. It is funded by a $10 million National Science Foundation grant and includes the University of Pennsylvania and Harvard University.

"This … Read more