Volume 53, Number 13 TechTalk Wednesday, January 14, 2009 S e r v i n g Th e MIT Co mm u n i t y Going green saves MIT green Week of activities showcases how MIT is awareness of, and engaging the community in, campus energy-saving efforts. implementing energy-efficient practices Some of those efforts are applications of well-known measures, while others are based on insight and analysis David Chandler from members of the MIT community. For example, News Office simply testing steam traps in the campus-wide heating system and replacing those that had failed has already When it comes to changing the ways energy is produced resulted in an estimated annual savings of $800,000 — and used, MIT has long been at the forefront of research. more than the one-time cost of the replacements. Similar- Now, in addition, students, faculty and staff are working ly, a system for continuous monitoring of building systems hard to put improvements in energy efficiency into prac- to identify those that need adjustment or repair has been tice on campus. partly implemented, in the Dreyfus Chemistry building Their efforts are the focus of Energy Futures Week, (Building 18) and in the Zesiger Sports and Fitness Center, an annual set of events coordinated by the MIT Energy IMAGE COURTESY DEPARTMENT OF FACILITIES/MITEI and could ultimately result in annual savings of $500,000. Initiative to educate, inspire and engage the MIT commu- Unveiled this week, the new ‘Greening MIT’ logo is Replacements and improvements of lighting systems nity in all things energy. Built around the theme of aimed at highlighting and encouraging energy-efficient campus-wide could yield savings of $323,000 annually, “Greening MIT,” this year’s events are aimed at raising practices on campus. uPlease see ENERGY, PAGE 6

Institute launching diversity and inclusion site Continues the work begun at the DLC in November

Building on the momentum estab- lished at the Diversity Leadership Congress in November, MIT will launch a new web site dedicated to promoting diversity and inclusion at the Institute. The site, “Diversity and Inclusion,” will be located at web.mit.edu/diver- sity and will debut on Monday, Jan. 19, Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The site will feature proceedings from the diversity congress — includ- ing a compilation of notes from the small-group discussions; a summary of congress feedback drawn from survey data; and an overview from Provost L. Rafael Reif’s diversity report to the Corporation last month. The site will also include a link to a webcast of the congress and slides PHOTOS / ELIZABETH GOLDRING, (I) DONNA COVENEY from a presentation given at last A photo of a plant taken by (inset) Elizabeth Goldring, a senior fellow at MIT’s Center for Advanced Visual Studies, who is month’s Administrative Council in shooting with a camera she developed that allows people who are visually impaired to take and see photos. which executives from General Elec- tric presented their business case for diversity along with specific diversity and inclusion practices. Beyond the mind’s eye The site will also allow users to register to receive e-mails on the Visually challenged MIT poet’s MIT’s Center for Advanced Visual Studies, or desktop computer, Goldring espe- topics of diversity and inclusion and colleagues began work on a “seeing cially enjoys using it with a photo camera. and will encourage suggestions for ‘seeing machine’ allows photos machine” that can allow some people who “When someone has a diminished sense, additional links to expand the new are blind or visually challenged to access the inability to express yourself with that campus-wide diversity site. by the sight-impaired the Internet, view the face of a friend and sense can be frustrating,” she said. By More than 300 academic, admin- much more. taking photos, “I feel I’m able to express istrative and student leaders gathered Elizabeth Thomson The team has progressed from myself visually with my blind eye, and Nov. 18 for the Diversity Leadership News Office Goldring’s inspiration, a large diagnostic there’s value in that, I think.” Congress, which offered an opportu- device costing $100,000, to a $4,000 desk- Further, “it’s light enough that I really nity to accelerate MIT’s long-standing Elizabeth Goldring smiles as she shows top version, to the current seeing machine, want to take it with me when I go for a efforts at promoting diversity and a visitor photos she’s taken — and can see which is portable and inexpensive. “We can walk.” (Goldring, who is visually chal- inclusion by inspiring and supporting — with her blind eye. make one for under $500,” Goldring said. lenged, has enough sight in one eye to those most responsible for creating The demonstration comes more than Although the device can be connected to permit mobility.) such a culture. 20 years after Goldring, a senior fellow at any visual source, such as a video camera uPlease see GOLDRING, PAGE 6

PEOPLE RESEARCH NEWS Beginnings and endings in DUSP Do-it-yourself biology 3 named top young economists

Larry Vale steps down as DUSP head as Biological engineering researchers use “off-the-shelf The Economist names Duflo, Finkelstein and Werning Amy Glasmeier takes over the post. parts” of cells to build a better microbe. as young researchers to keep an eye on.

PAGE 2 PAGE 5 PAGE 7 PAGE 2 January 14, 2009 u PEOPLE MIT Tech Talk

S M T WT Events F S � at MIT

Get ready to getfit@mit Did you resolve to get into better shape in 2009? If so, visit the getfit@mit kick-off event today from noon-1:30 p.m. in Lobby 10 and learn more about the annual MIT community exercise event. During the 12-week challenge, which kicks off Jan. 26, teams of five to eight people work together to meet steadily increasing weekly exercise goals, starting at 150 minutes in the first week. The entire MIT community is eligible. There are T-shirts for all partici- PHOTOS / JUDITH M. DANIELS pants as well as prize drawings and contests. LEFT: Former Department of Urban Studies and Planning head Larry Vale. RIGHT: New DUSP head Amy Glasmeier. All teams must register online by Friday, Jan. 23. Details are on the program’s web site at http://getfit. mit.edu. End (and beginning) of an era

Scott Campbell Today School of Architecture and Planning Glasmeier named DUSP’s • Energy Efficient Technologies 12th department head at MIT. 2-3 p.m. in E51-335. Harvey The legacy of Larry Vale: Seven years of building DUSP Michaels, DUSP and MITEI; Stephen Amy Glasmeier, who most recently was the E. Samouhos, Mechanical Engineering; As he steps down from what he good-naturedly calls “year seven of my Willard Miller Professor of Economic Geography Walt Henry, Department of Facilities four-year term as department head,” Larry Vale takes satisfaction in what at Penn State, took over this month as the new head will speak on examples of what faculty, everyone in the Department of Urban Studies and Planning agrees has of MIT’s Department of Urban Studies and Plan- staff and students across the Institute are been a most productive term of office. ning, the first woman to do so since its inception in doing to advance demand-side solutions Since his appointment as department head in July 2002, Vale has 1933. to our energy challenges and discuss how strengthened the junior faculty through tenure and promotion cases and Glasmeier replaces Larry Vale, who has headed they are putting this knowledge to work overseen the tripling of the department’s research volume from less than $1 the department for the last seven years — a period at MIT. million to more than $3 million. To supplement the existing multimillion in which the department was twice named the No. dollar financial aid programs for Master of City Planning (MCP) and PhD 1 planning program in North America. Glasmeier • Sustainability in Action: Green- students, he instituted a new program of second-year financial aid for MCP will be DUSP’s 12th department head. ing your Place at MIT. Noon-2 p.m. students — $200,000 was given out last year — and he helped renew the An expert in economic geography, regional plan- ion 68-181. Are you interested in taking growth of the undergraduate program, now admitting 10-12 majors a year. ning and spatial statistics, Glasmeier was previously action in your “place” at MIT to make He centralized and improved computer services and resources, built on the faculty at Penn State and the University of a difference? Come join this interactive administrative staff and organized a hoopla to celebrate the program’s 75th Texas at Austin, and was the John Whisman Scholar lunchtime workshop to learn about strat- anniversary (for which he curated an exhibit and wrote a catalogue provid- of the Appalachian Regional Commission. egies and practices you can employ to ing extensive documentation, available from department headquarters). She holds a BS in Environmental Studies and reduce the environmental impact in your As part of the revamping of the MCP core curriculum, he was also Planning from Sonoma State University and an MA MIT “place” — office, lab, classroom or responsible for the implementation, growth and development of the depart- and PhD in City and Regional Planning from the dorm. ment’s “practicum” requirement, both domestically and internationally, University of California, Berkeley. She has worked and oversaw increased long-term commitments to community building in and traveled all over the world, including Asia, Lawrence, Springfield, New Orleans, Beijing and the Pearl River Delta in Africa, Europe and Latin America, and is currently Thursday, Jan. 15 China. engaged in a retrospective examination of poverty He also oversaw the birth and growth of the MIT-USGS Science Impact • Energy Careers Panel. 3-5 p.m. and poverty policy in the United States, work that Collaborative (MUSIC) to explore new ways of incorporating science is leading to new perspectives on the nature and in E51-335. Considering a job in the in environmental decision making; the growth and consolidation of the energy field? The Energy Careers Panel extent of persistent poverty here. Scheller Teacher Education Program; the emergence and development of In addition to her role as professor of economic will feature MIT alums working in the the China Planning Network and the SENSEable City Lab; the transfor- energy sector with a wide spectrum of geography, Glasmeier has served as director of mation of the Center for Reflective Community Practice into the Commu- Penn State’s environmental inquiry minor; as an experience and perspectives. Learn from nity Innovators Lab; and the birth of the new initiative in Landscape and them about the current job market, their editor of the journal Economic Geography and the Urbanism. Cambridge Journal on Regions, Economy, Society; paths out of MIT, and what they would While handling all that, he also published two books — a new edition have done differently while at MIT had and as director of the Center for Policy Research of “Architecture, Power and National Identity” (Routledge, 2008) and on Energy, Environment and Community. She has they known what they do now. There “The Resilient City: How Modern Cities Recover from Disaster” (Oxford will be time for Q&A. also served as head of the university’s Department University Press, 2005) edited with Thomas J. Campanella — and trav- of Geography. eled widely to give presentations on disaster recovery, comparative housing Her publications consist of more than 50 schol- • Energy, Environment, and redevelopment, urban design and urban security. Sustainability Student Group and arly articles and several books, including “Manu- And during all that? The department was twice named the No. 1 plan- facturing Time: Global Competition in the World Project Showcase. 6-8 p.m. in Lobby ning program in North America, maintaining the ranking it had achieved in 10. This showcase is a mix and mingle Watch Industry, 1795-2000” (Guilford Press, 2000); the mid-1990s, the last time such a survey was conducted. and “From Combines to Computers: Rural Services style poster session at which students This month, Vale begins a one-year sabbatical as a visiting scholar who have been doing research or and Development in the Age of Information Tech- at Harvard’s Graduate School of Design. He says he found the work of nology,” with Marie Howland (SUNY Press, 1995). who belong to groups on campus that department head highly worthwhile, brokering connections and clearing revolve around energy, environment, Her most recent book — “An Atlas of Poverty in away administrative roadblocks to help faculty and students achieve their America: One Nation, Pulling Apart 1960-2003” and sustainability will share and explain goals. their work. This is a great opportunity to (Routledge Press, 2005) — examines the experience “You have to take on the goals of others as your own priorities,” he says. of people and places in poverty since the 1960s, connect with fellow students active in a “But once you do that, it’s very satisfying.” wide array of energy research and proj- looks across the last four decades at poverty in He is, however, eager to return full-time to his own work. There’s a America and recounts the history of poverty policy ects. Light refreshments will be provid- tower of papers in the corner of his office that represents a fraction of the ed. Come and learn about the great since the 1940s. material he’s compiled in preparation for writing two new books — one on See a question and answer session with the new research and student group activities that comparative public housing redevelopment and another on the history of your classmates have been working on! DUSP head on the SA+P web site at http://sap.mit. planning ideas, which he is co-editing with Bish Sanyal, the Ford Interna- edu/resources/portfolio/glasmeier/. tional Professor of Urban Development and Planning. Vale will return to teaching in January 2010.

News Office Staff HOW TO REACH US Writer...... David Chandler Tech Talk is published by the News Office on Wednesdays during term time except for Assistant Director/Photojournalist ...... Donna Coveney most Monday holiday weeks. See Production Schedule at web.mit.edu/newsoffice/ News Office Editor Operations/Financial Administrator ...... Myles Crowley techtalk-info.html. The News Office is in Room 11-400, Massachusetts Institute of Managing Editor, MIT home page...... Susan Curran Technology, 77 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA 02139-4307. Telephone: 617-253-2700 Greg Frost Executive Director ...... Pamela Dumas Serfes Administrative Assistant II ...... Patti Foley Postmaster: Send address changes to Mail Services, Building WW15, Massachusetts E-mail: [email protected] News Manager...... Greg Frost Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA 02139-4307. Editorial & Production Asst...... Patrick Gillooly web.mit.edu/newsoffice Photojournalist Subscribers may call 617-252-1550 or send e-mail to [email protected]. Donna Coveney Web editor...... Melanie Gonick Administrative Assistant II ...... Mary Anne Hansen Tech Talk is distributed free to faculty and staff offices and residence halls. It is also avail- Media Specialist...... Teresa Herbert able free in the News Office and the Information Center. Office of the Arts Communications Assistant...... Jen Hirsch Production Senior designer...... Rebecca Macri Domestic mail subscriptions are $25 per year, nonrefundable. Checks should be made web.mit.edu/arts Patrick Gillooly Director, Media Relations...... Patti Richards payable to MIT and mailed to Business Manager, Room 11-400, MIT, 77 Massachusetts Senior Writer...... Stephanie Schorow Ave., Cambridge, MA 02139-4307. Senior Science & Printed on recycled paper Engineering Editor...... Elizabeth Thomson Periodical postage paid at Boston, MA. Writer...... Anne Trafton MIT Tech Talk u PEOPLE January 14, 2009 PAGE 3

Health Sciences and Technology and Cognitive Neurosci- S M T WT ence, was cited for “penetrating analyses of the nature of Events F S Nine from MIT human memory, its neural substrates, its development, and its � problems.” • Martha L. Gray, the Edward Hood Taplin Professor of at MIT named AAAS fellows Medical and Electrical Engineering, was named a fellow for “pioneering contributions to advancing orthopedic science, The American Association for the Advancement of Science and for distinguished leadership in the design and implemen- (AAAS) has awarded the distinction of fellow to 486 members, tation of scholarly programs that integrate science, engineer- including nine members of the MIT community. ing, medicine and business.” Friday, Jan. 16 Fellows are recognized for their efforts toward advancing • Philip S. Khoury, associate provost for the arts and the Ford • BLOSSOMS video contest: meet- science applications that are deemed scientifically or socially International Professor of History, was named for “promoting ing for all participants. Noon-2 p.m. in distinguished. New fellows will be presented with an official the expansion and independent integrity of the social sciences 1-390. The finalists of the BLOSSOM certificate and the society’s gold and blue (representing science at MIT as well as important collaborations with science and video contest will prepare and rehearse and engineering, respectively) rosette pin on Feb. 14 at the associ- engineering.” a proto-script to be performed at this ation’s annual meeting in Chicago. The following MIT individuals • Mriganka Sur, the Paul E. Newton (1965) Professor of meeting. All participants are invited to are new AAAS fellows: Neuroscience and head of the Department of Brain and attend and enjoy a reception celebration • Marcia Bartusiak, visiting professor of science writing, was Cognitive Sciences, was cited for “distinguished contributions afterward. cited for “exceptionally clear communication of the rich to understanding the organization, development and plastic- history, the intricate nature, and the modern practice of ity of the cerebral cortex of the brain, and for leadership in • Keeping Current: Using astronomy to the public at large.” neuroscience at MIT.” RSS Feeds to Stay Ahead in Your • Arup Chakraborty, the Robert T. Haslam (1911) Professor of • Li-Huei Tsai, a professor in the Department of Brain and Research. 4-5 p.m. in 14N-132. What’s Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, and Biological Engineer- Cognitive Sciences and member of the Picower Institute for an RSS feed? How can I use it to keep up ing, was named a fellow for “pioneering theoretical contribu- Learning and Memory, was cited for “outstanding contri- with new information in my field? We’ll tions to understanding of important, complex problems in butions to the understanding of pathogenic mechanisms show you how RSS and other current polymer-metal interfaces, zeolite catalysis, random heteropo- underlying Alzheimer’s disease and the discovery of novel awareness tools can help you stay up to lymers as recognition elements, and immunology.” therapeutic approaches that attenuate learning and memory date! • Charles W. Forsberg, a research scientist in the Depart- impairments.” ment of Nuclear Science and Engineering, was named for • Graham C. Walker, the American Cancer Society Professor “outstanding contributions to the development of innova- of Biology and Howard Hughes Medical Institute Professor, Tuesday, Jan. 20 tive nuclear reactors and waste management systems, and to was named for “characterizing DNA repair mechanisms and advanced low-carbon integration of nuclear, renewable, and DNA damage responses, elucidating Rhizobium functions • Physics IAP Lecture Series — fossil technologies.” necessary for symbiosis, and discovering a missing step in “Seeing the ultra-small and capturing • John D.E. Gabrieli, the Grover Hermann Professor of vitamin B12 biosynthesis.” the ultra-fast.” Speaker: Prof. Nuh Gedik. 1:30-2:30 p.m. in 6-120. In order to understand macroscopic proper- ties of materials, understanding of the Zuber urges Congress to fund events taking place at the atomic scale is necessary. The problem, however, is that typical distances in the atomic world are too small (~a billionth of a meter) science research and education and events take place too fast (on the David Chandler ments will not only create jobs, they will of areas, including health, aerospace and order of a millionth of a billionth of a News Office also have positive effects on the environ- basic science. Toward that end, supporting second) for us to observe these things ment, and on the nation’s technological the purchase of major research instrumen- by conventional means. In this talk, we Funding for research and education in leadership in the world, she said. tation for colleges and universities could will discuss methods of capturing these science and technology should be a major Toward that end, she produce a stimulus for ultra-fast events by using very short laser priority in the economic recovery pack- suggested, the Depart- research while helping pulses to make movies with atomic scale age Congress will soon be talking up, said ment of Energy could to train the scientists and spatial resolution and ultra-fast temporal MIT geophysics professor Maria T. Zuber fund many more of engineers of the future. resolution. in testimony she gave on Jan. 7 before the the 270 applications it In addition, support for Steering and Policy Committee of the U.S. already received for the students in the form of • Make your own hummus at the House of Representatives. creation of Energy Fron- fellowships to sustain Second Annual Hummus Experi- “Energy and climate could be our Sput- tier Research Centers, important research will ence @ MIT. 7-8:30 p.m. in W11, the nik challenge — a new way to infuse our many of which were very help to prepare a new community room. More information at best talent into our science and technology highly rated but were generation of technicians http://web.mit.edu/~itai/www/hummus/. system,” said Zuber, who is the head of not accepted because of and scientists. MIT’s Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary limited funding. In addi- Direct investment in Sciences department. The launching of tion, major upgrades to education by support- Wednesday, Jan. 21 Sputnik by the Soviet Union in 1957 the nation’s electric grid ing the best teachers is • Hummus Taste Off. Noon-1 p.m. spurred major U.S. investment in educa- are needed in order to another key area needed in W20, PDR #1&2. Contestants take tion in science, math and technology and enable greater efficiency to bring about long-term part in the 2nd Annual Hummus Experi- led to a boom in those areas. and wider use of renew- growth in the nation’s ence @ MIT. Zuber emphasized that while direct able energy. technology base, Zuber economic stimulus plans could lead to Citing a recent DoE said. “Investment in • Wind policy and the new adminis- short-term economic benefits, it takes report, Zuber said that highly qualified teachers tration. 6-7 p.m. in the Muddy Charles education and technological innovation to “we must develop the who inspire, encourage Pub. MIT Energy Club Wind Sub- create lasting, long-term economic growth breakthrough energy and challenge students” Community Discussion Series Discus- and job creation. technologies that will is crucial, she said. sion series on wind energy related topics. “We need to bolster existing high- free us of our depen- Zuber, who is the E.A. growth innovation areas, and we will need dence on foreign oil, PHOTO / DONNA COVENEY Griswold Professor of to create new areas,” she said. “One path reduce our carbon Maria Zuber Geophysics, was invited News in brief ahead is clear: the country is on the cusp of emissions and create to testify by House a revolution in energy science and technol- economic growth, but Speaker Nancy Pelosi. ogy.” With the energy sector already at that will only happen with immediate, real Also on the panel were economists Mark Four win NSF $2 trillion in the U.S. economy, “we don’t investments.” M. Zandi and Martin Feldstein, former have to invent a new market, we have to But energy cannot be the whole story, Secretary of Labor Robert Reich, and CAREER awards find new ways to grow and dominate an Zuber said. It’s also essential to increase former Lockheed Martin Chairman and Four MIT researchers are among the existing but nascent market.” Such invest- the funding for research in a wide variety CEO Norman R. Augustine. latest recipients of CAREER awards, the highly selective grants that the National Science Foundation awards to Obituaries junior faculty members who are likely to become academic leaders of the future. Douglas LaMay, EHS officer, 38 Junior Grade. third floor of E23. The awardees are: Jonathan Kelner, Mitch Galanek, LaMay’s supervisor Family and friends are kindly invited assistant professor of applied math- Douglas LaMay, an officer with the at EHS, described him as “a caring and to attend a Memorial Gathering at 1 p.m. ematics; Jing Kong, the ITT Career Office of Environment, Health & Safety, dedicated person who served MIT in an today in the Duffy-Poule Funeral Home, Development Assistant Professor of died unexpectedly on Sunday, Jan. 4. He exemplary manner,” adding that he was 20 Peck St., Attleboro. In lieu of flow- Electrical Engineering; Levi Retsef, was 38. well respected and liked by his colleagues ers, and for those wishing to remember the Robert Noyce Engineering Career LaMay, of Halifax, Mass., began working and was always quick to volunteer to work LaMay in a special way, memorial contri- Development Assistant Professor in the at EHS in 2002, providing radiation safety on any activity that would help the EHS butions may be made to: MSPCA-Metro MIT Sloan School of Management; and support and services at the Nuclear Reac- office and the Institute. He also served on South Animal Care & Adoption Center, Mehmet Yanik, the Robert J. Shillman tor Laboratory. In 2006, he moved to the the Institute’s Training Alignment Team 1300 West Elm St. Ext., Brockton, MA Career Development Assistant Professor Campus Radiation Protection group where where he was able to share his passion for 02301 and/or Nine Lives of Norton Feline of Electrical Engineering. Kelner, Kong he was responsible for radiation safety learning. Rescue Shelter, P.O. Box 548, Norton, MA and Yanik received their awards effective services for many Institute departments, He is survived by his wife, Margaret E. 02766. Jan. 1; Retsef’s begins on Feb. 1. labs and centers, as well as at the White- (O’Brien) LaMay, and a son, Kieran Liang- A memorial service at MIT is current- head Institute for Biomedical Research. dong LaMay. ly being planned, and details will be LaMay received a bachelor’s degree in Members of the community who feel announced when they are finalized. A No Tech Talk until Feb. 4 nuclear engineering from Rensselaer Poly- affected by the loss of LaMay are encour- memorial fund has also been established at technic Institute and a master’s from the aged to contact MIT Medical’s Mental MIT and donations may be made to: The On Feb. 4, Tech Talk will resume University of Massachusetts-Lowell. He Health Service. Call 3-2916 anytime and Douglas LaMay Memorial Fund, c/o MIT its normal publication schedule. For served four years in the U.S. Navy during ask to speak with the clinician on call. EHS Office, Room N52-496, 77 Massa- up-to-date news and information, the Persian Gulf War era and was honor- The service also offers walk-in counseling chusetts Ave., Cambridge, MA 02139, Attn: go to web.mit.edu/newsoffice. ably discharged at the rank of Lieutenant between 2-4 p.m. every weekday on the Nadia Morrison. PAGE 4 January 14, 2009 u RESEARCH MIT Tech Talk MIT provides in-depth look at exploded star

Using views captured by several orbit- changed over time, are rich resources for ing and ground-based telescopes, an science. The two teams are trying to get MIT researcher and her colleagues have a much more complete understanding of produced the first fully three-dimensional how this famous supernova explosion and reconstruction of the remains of a star that its remnant work. exploded in a cosmic cataclysm called a The new 3-D model of Cas A provides supernova. researchers with unique ability to study The complex supernova remnant, called this remnant. With this new tool, DeLaney Cassiopeia A (or Cas A for short), consists and colleagues found two components to of a set of intertwined bubble-like shells the explosion, a spherical component from of debris that were spewed out by a star the outer layers of the star and a flattened undergoing its death throes 330 years ago. component from the inner layers of the Tracey DeLaney, a postdoctoral star. researcher in MIT’s Kavli Institute for Notable features of the model are high- Astrophysics & Space Research, and her velocity plumes from this internal material colleagues used data from the Chandra that are shooting out from the explosion. orbiting X-ray Plumes, or jets, of telescope, along silicon appear in with NASA’s Spitzer the northeast and Space Telescope ❞ southwest, while that detects infra- We have always wanted to know plumes of iron are red light, and seen in the south- ground-based how the pieces we see in two east and north. optical telescopes, Astronomers had to produce the first dimensions fit together with each known about the three-dimensional plumes and jets fly-through of a other in real life. before, but did not supernova remnant. Tracey DeLaney know that they all The computer MIT postdoc came out in a broad, reconstruction was disk-like structure. unveiled last week The implication at the American of this work is that Astronomical Society meeting in Long astronomers who build models of super- Beach, Calif. nova explosions must now consider that “We have always wanted to know how the outer layers of the star come off spheri- the pieces we see in two dimensions fit cally, but the inner layers come out more together with each other in real life,” said disk-like with high-velocity jets in multiple DeLaney. “Now we can see for ourselves directions. with this ‘hologram’ of supernova debris.” Cassiopeia A is the remains of a star This ground-breaking visualization thought to have exploded about 330 years of Cas A was made possible through a ago, and is one of the youngest remnants collaboration with the Astronomical Medi- in the Milky Way galaxy. The study of Cas cine project based at Harvard. The goal A and remnants like it help astronomers of the project is to bring together the best better understand how the explosions that techniques from two very different fields, generate them seed interstellar gas with astronomy and medical imaging. heavy elements, heat it with the energy of “Right now, we are focusing on improv- their radiation, and trigger shock waves ing three-dimensional visualization in both from which new stars form. astronomy and medicine,” said Harvard’s Lawrence Rudnick of the University Alyssa Goodman, who heads the Astro- of Minnesota led the Spitzer part of the IMAGES / NASA/CXC/D.BERRY; MODEL: NASA/CXC/MIT/T.DELANEY ET AL. nomical Medicine project. “This project DeLaney study. NASA’s Marshall Space This series of still illustrations depicts a fly-through of Cas A based on the 3-D with Cas A is exactly what we have hoped Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., manages representation constructed from Chandra and Spitzer data. New features unseen would come out of it.” the Chandra program for NASA’s Science in traditional 2-D data sets are visible, including details of how the parent star While these are stunning visuals, the Mission Directorate in Washington. The exploded. The green region is mostly iron observed in X-rays; the yellow region 3-D model from DeLaney, along with Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory is mostly argon and silicon seen in X-rays, optical and infrared; the red region is another new reconstruction of Cas A by controls Chandra’s science and flight cooler debris seen in the infrared and the blue region is the outer blast wave, most a team at Harvard that shows how it has operations from Cambridge, Mass. prominent in X-rays.

MIT research digest

Neuroscientists ID source of through drug intervention or changes in on the work that appeared as the cover diseases commonly treated with more than diet or cardiovascular fitness could offer story of the Jan. 5 issue of the Journal of one drug, according to the researchers. cognitive decline in aging brains a new approach to countering some of Controlled Release. “With a lot of diseases, especially cancer the cognitive declines that are typical of The paper explains that stents affect the and AIDS, you get a synergistic effect As people age, memory and the ability advanced age, said Ziegler, who works in fluid dynamics of blood flowing past them with more than one drug,” said Kimberly to carry out tasks often decline. Scientists the laboratory of Suzanne Corkin, profes- and cause drugs to accumulate in certain Hamad-Schifferli, assistant professor of looking for ways to lessen that decline sor of behavioral neuroscience. areas. Too much drug buildup promotes biological and mechanical engineering often have focused on the “gray matter” clot formation. and senior author of a paper on the work — the cortical regions where high-level Model predicts how to The MIT model shows that the dynam- that recently appeared in the journal ACS functions such as memory are located. ics of blood flowing around a stent is Nano. But there are signs that the search may build a better stent similar to whitewater rapids, said Edelman. When gold nanoparticles are exposed to need to be expanded: A new study by MIT When water in a river flows over a boulder, infrared light, they melt and release drug neuroscientists has found that memory and Researchers have been puzzled in recent some of the water strikes the base of the payloads attached to their surfaces. Deliv- cognitive impairments were more associat- years by observations that drug-releasing boulder, flies up in the air and comes back ery devices already exist that can release ed with loss of brain “white matter,” which stents (mesh-like tubes implanted to hold down, instead of flowing over the rock. two drugs, but the timing of the release forms connections within and between patients’ coronary arteries open) can This water continuously recirculates in the must be built into the device — it cannot brain regions. increase the likelihood of blood clots and same area. be controlled from outside the body. The “Historically a lot of people have put heart attacks. Now, a mathematical model new system is controlled externally and their eggs in the gray matter basket. This developed by MIT engineers can predict Gold particles deliver theoretically could deliver up to three or study suggests that what might really be whether particular types of stents are likely four drugs. important are the connections and the to cause life-threatening side effects. more than just glitter integrity of the connections,” said David The model “helps explain why some Ziegler, a graduate student in the Depart- stents are better than others, and could Using tiny gold particles and infrared ment of Brain and Cognitive Sciences and predict which stents are predisposed to light, MIT researchers have developed a lead author of a paper on the work that cause clotting,” said Elazer Edelman, drug-delivery system that allows multiple See longer stories on appeared in the online edition of Neurobi- the Thomas D. and Virginia W. Cabot drugs to be released in a controlled fash- these advances at ology of Aging in December. Professor of Health Science and Technol- ion. Such a system could one day be used web.mit.edu/newsoffice Enhancing white matter in older people ogy (HST) and senior author of a paper to provide more control when battling MIT Tech Talk u RESEARCH January 14, 2009 PAGE 5 Do-it-yourself biology: Learning to build a better microbe GRAPHIC / PATRICK GILLOOLY

Anne Trafton News Office

uilding a cell from scratch is a lot do your bidding, you could have it spit out 12 students develops its own custom-built “Many fields have huge amounts of more complicated than building drugs really quickly, or spit out biofuels,” bacteria and presents the results at MIT in potential but never get going. This is Ba computer. But that’s just what Kuldell said. “It would be wonderful to November. one where we already have 1,000 people synthetic biologists, including many at replace refineries with small microbial iGEM is built around the Registry of working on it and they are making new MIT, are trying to figure out how to do. factories.” Standard Biological Parts, a catalog of all and interesting things, and a fair amount Using engineering principles, research- Before that can happen, biologists and the “parts” (DNA sequences) that partici- of it is working,” said Rettberg, a principal ers and students in MIT’s Department of biological engineers need to figure out pants have developed. Students design research engineer in the Department of Biological Engineering are building a set whether engineering approaches can be bacteria for specific functions by assem- Biological Engineering. of “off-the shelf parts” for cells, cataloging practically transferred to the life sciences, bling various parts, including protein- Kuldell also teaches several classes in and assembling bacterial DNA sequences which tend to be much more unpredict- coding sequences (genes), promoters, synthetic biology, including one for fresh- to produce microbes tailored for a specific able, Kuldell said. ribosome-binding sites, etc. men (Course 20.020) in which students task. Such bacteria could have numerous Such efforts have been underway at Past prize-winning projects have design solutions to problems they identify applications in medicine, energy and envi- MIT for several years, launched by engi- included an arsenic detector for drinking on their own. She tells her students they ronmental cleanup. neers Randy Rettberg and Tom Knight. water, artificial blood (“Bactoblood”), and are pioneers in an emerging field, and they MIT biological engineering instructor An IAP course in synthetic biology they bacteria that can digest lactose in the intes- are eager to tackle the challenge, she said. Natalie Kuldell and recent PhD recipient started in 2003 with Drew Endy, now at tines of lactose-intolerant people. “Electrical engineering students should Reshma Shetty will discuss the possibilities Stanford University, has grown into the Though some iGEM projects turn out be able to program a computer and build of and obstacles facing synthetic biology at iGEM (international Genetically Engi- to be impractical or would meet consid- some of the hardware, so it makes sense a Soapbox talk, “Do-It-Yourself Biology,” neered Machine) competition, which now erable regulatory hurdles, Rettberg is that biological engineering students should at 6 p.m. Wednesday at the MIT Museum. attracts more than 1,000 students from encouraged by the early successes he’s seen be able to genetically program and build a “If you could really program a cell to around the world. Each team of eight to so far. cell,” Kuldell said. Robo-forklift keeps humans out of harm’s way Could allow military to handle that truck,” for example. But to ensure that it can always carry out the necessary supplies without risk to people tasks, if there’s ever a problem with the automated system the machine reverts to a conventional manned forklift David Chandler whenever someone climbs into the operator’s cabin. News Office Tests under way Researchers in MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Research began with a small test platform rigged with Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) are working on a better forklift tines and a variety of sensors and computers that way to handle supplies in a war zone: a semi-autonomous was used for a series of indoor tests and is now continuing forklift that can be directed by people safely away from the with a full-scale prototype being tested outdoors on the dangers of the site. MIT campus. Currently, when supplies arrive at military outposts in The work is part of several projects at CSAIL focused war zones such as Iraq, people driving forklifts unload the on “the development of situational awareness for pallets and put them into storage, and later load them onto machines,” explains Seth Teller, professor of computer trucks to take the material to where it’s needed. These science and engineering and project lead. Situational forklift operators must often scramble for cover, slowing awareness, Teller says, involves the use of sensing, the work and putting them at risk. motion, inference and memory to acquire “a model of When completed, the new robotic device will provide the spatial layout of the world and its contents, to allow a safer way to handle pallet-loaded supplies of every- us to plan and move purposefully in the world.” Humans thing from truck tires to water containers and construc- develop these internal maps of their surroundings with- tion materials, says Matt Walter, a CSAIL postdoctoral out even thinking about it, but “machines can’t yet do it researcher with a lead role in the project. The device is automatically.” designed to operate outdoors on uneven terrain such as In developing the robotic system, the CSAIL research- gravel or packed earth. ers have made extensive use of computer code developed In Iraq, it has not been uncommon for workers to “have for other projects, including the autonomous vehicle MIT to abandon the forklift three or four times a day because entered in the 2007 DARPA Grand Challenge auto race, they come under fire,” Walter says. “A lot of the work in which unmanned cars navigated roads without human could be automated,” thus alleviating people’s exposure to intervention, Teller says. That work has been reported in danger, “but it’s a very difficult task.” papers in the Journal of Field Robotics, and the forklift Heavy lifting in hostile territory project itself is the subject of a paper being submitted for PHOTO / JASON DORFMAN publication at an upcoming robotics conference. The forklift is designed to operate autonomously with Among the tasks the robot must carry out automatically Researchers at CSAIL have been testing a system high-level direction from a human supervisor who could is avoiding unexpected obstacles, especially people who be physically nearby, or safely ensconced in a remote designed to load and unload trucks autonomously or may be walking around in the area. That turned out to be bunker. In an initial training phase, the forklift learns the by remote control, for use in dangerous places. less of a challenge than expected: “It is possible to detect basic layout of the storage depot facility, such as where the linked to the forklift, displays the view from the forklift’s moving people using laser range scanners,” Walter says. reception area ism where incoming supply trucks arrive forward-looking video camera. Using stylus gestures on “Things get much harder if people are trying to trick the with a load of pallets ready to be stored, and where the the image, the supervisor indicates the truck to be unload- system by hiding or standing very still,” Teller notes. storage areas are for those pallets to be deposited. The ed, the pallet to be engaged next, and perhaps where on The forklift project has involved about 30 faculty, forklift can then be commanded to transport pallets from the pallet to insert the forklift tines. staff and students (including postdocs, PhD and MEng one place to another within the depot. The supervisor also speaks to the tablet, indicating the students, and UROPs) from MIT’s CSAIL, LIDS, and Determining which pallets to pick up and where they desired destination of the target pallet. As the system gets Courses 2, 6 and 16, as well as from Lincoln Laboratory, need to go requires guidance from a human supervisor, at more sophisticated, the supervisor would need to do less Draper Laboratory and BAE Systems. It has been funded least for now. The supervisor’s tablet computer, wirelessly and less, eventually simply gesturing and saying “unload by the U.S. Army Logistics Innovation Agency. PAGE 6 January 14, 2009 u NEWS MIT Tech Talk GOLDRING: Beyond the mind’s eye Continued from Page 1 ENERGY: MIT Energy Futures Week showcasing Goldring’s idea for the seeing machine began with a visit to her how going green can also save the Institute green optometrist. At the time, she was completely blind. To determine if she had any healthy retina left, technicians Continued from Page 1 peered into her eyes with a scanning laser opthalmoscope, or SLO. and initial implementation in just three areas is use, and similar personal measures can have a big With the machine they projected a simple image directly onto the already saving $45,000 a year. These are just some overall impact if enough people do them. retina of one eye, past the hemorrhages within the eye that contrib- of the improvements that have been identified and “We know that these kinds of things work, we uted to her blindness. implemented by a committee called the Campus know they’re doable,” Stone said. “The ques- She was indeed able to see the test image. So she asked if they Energy Task Force, established by the MIT tion is how can we build this awareness across the could write the word “sun.” “And I was amazed that I was able to Energy Initiative, whose goal is to help MIT “walk campus.” read a word!” Goldring said. the talk” on energy use. But it’s not enough just to make the changes She went on to use the device for other visual experiences. For MIT Executive Vice President and Treasurer in buildings and behavior, Stone added. “This example, video of her doctor was transmitted through the SLO, Theresa Stone, co-chair of the task force with is MIT, and we need to be very responsible as and for the first time she saw his face. Professor Leon Glicksman, said the group, work- far as the measurement techniques.” Whenever But although the SLO held promise for the broader blind public, ing in collaboration with students from the MIT changes are being made, in order for them to have it had serious drawbacks — including its prohibitive cost. Goldring Sloan School of Management and the Department the maximum impact not only here but on other determined to develop a more practical, accessible machine. of Facilities, identified a series of measures whose campuses and in the nation at large, results need She began collaborating with people such as Rob Webb, the total cost would be about $14 million, which have to be quantified and “the measurements need to SLO’s inventor and a senior scientist at the Schepens Eye Research the potential to pay back their be as clear and defensible as Institute, Harvard University, and dozens of MIT students. Those costs in the form of energy possible,” she said. involved in the current machine are Yifei Wu, an MIT senior savings within three years or Jason Jay, a Sloan graduate who began the work as a freshman and has been instrumental in less. student and member of the developing the seeing-machine camera; Brandon Taylor, a graduate At an Energy Futures Week Campus Energy Task Force, student at the MIT Media Lab; and Quinn Smithwick, a postdoc- kickoff event on Monday, pointed out that in some cases, toral associate in the same lab. Stone emphasized that a official policies were found to The portable device is relatively inexpensive in part because it variety of other measures encourage energy waste. For replaces the laser of the SLO with light-emitting diodes (LEDs), can make a big difference in example, custodians had been another source of high-intensity light that is much cheaper. campus energy use but depend instructed that when check- Further, “everything in it is already mass-produced for other on changes in personal habits. ing offices after hours, lights purposes,” said Taylor. He also noted that since the seeing-machine For example, studies of the were to be left as they were project began, “LCDs and other components have gotten much use of fume hoods on campus, PHOTO / DONNA COVENEY found. Now, the Department smaller and are readily available.” initiated by students a few Leon Glicksman and Theresa Stone of Facilities is consulting with The portable seeing machine is about five inches square and years ago, found that a single key occupants to consider mounted on a flexible tripod that makes it easy to carry. A digital fume hood can use up as much whether, as a policy, custodi- camera is attached to the top. The visual feed from the camera energy as two single-family houses — and there ans should instead turn the lights off unless there travels into the seeing machine to a Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) are more than 1,000 fume hoods on campus. was a specific reason not to. “We need to make illuminated by LEDs. (This is the same kind of LCD common in Simply getting people to remember to lower doing the right thing easier and more obvious,” he cameras and TVs.) the fume hood sash when it’s not in use can make said. The visual data is then focused into a single “point” that travels a significant dent in energy use. As part of the The Energy Futures Week activities include a into the eye. “This is not magnification,” said Smithwick. “What Greening MIT initiative, activities to raise aware- workshop today from noon to 2 p.m. (with a light makes this work is focusing the data into a tiny spot of light.” ness of the savings opportunity will be deployed lunch included) called “Sustainability in Action: What’s next? Goldring aims to show the new machine to other across campus including offering signs that can be Greening Your Place at MIT,” which will help visually challenged people and looks forward to their feedback. posted next to fume hoods reminding people of members of the MIT community identify ways to Plans are underway to test it at the Low Vision Clinic at the Joslin this. Similarly, encouraging people to use revolv- reduce the energy footprint of their own offices, Diabetes Center’s Beetham Eye Institute in Boston. ing doors instead of swinging doors (which let out labs, dorms and classrooms. This work was supported by NASA and by MIT’s School of eight times as much heated air), to use two-sided A complete list of the week’s activities is avail- Architecture and Planning, Center for Advanced Visual Studies, printing whenever possible to reduce waste, turn able on the MIT Energy Initiative web site, at Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program, and Council for off lights and computers when they are not in web.mit.edu/mitei. the Arts.

MIT Alert testing text-message system Be on the lookout this month for a test of the MIT Alert text-messaging service, a key component of the Institute’s emergency notification program. In the event of a major life-safety or public-health emergency on campus, MIT Alert will notify and advise students, faculty and staff via a number of communication channels, including text message, Institute phone and e-mail, SMART UROP as well as through MIT’s emergency web site. This month, the office of Security and Emergency Management (SEMO) The Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology (SMART) is pleased to sponsor paid is working closely with staff in IS&T to test the MIT Alert text-messaging summer undergraduate research opportunities in Singapore. This research opportunity will service. Members of the community who have signed up to receive a text enable undergraduates to participate in an MIT’s faculty member’s Singapore research project message by providing their cell phone number are being contacted to vali- and, through an international experience be exposed to a foreign culture and interact with date that information. Later in the month, randomly selected individuals will students and faculty from diverse backgrounds. Each undergraduate will have an MIT faculty receive test text messages on their cell phone or other mobile device. member as a mentor/supervisor and conduct research within the faculty member’s Singapore Bill VanSchalkwyk, co-director of SEMO, hopes that individuals who research program. The undergraduate will have access and use of the faculty’s laboratory and receive a test text message will acknowledge receipt by visiting MIT’s emer- equipment. gency web site, http://emergency.mit.net/. For more information about the MIT Alert emergency communications program, please visit http://web.mit. Eligibility: edu/mitalert.

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Bay windows, light, open modern 306-0636 or michaelstuarts@hotmail. kitchen, dish washer, garbage disposal, com. beautiful hard-wood floors, washer+dryer MIT Tech Talk u PEOPLE/NEWS January 14, 2009 PAGE 7 Awards Lander named to Obama’s science team &Honors Alumni Summers, Romer on he will continue as Broad director while devastating diseases,” Obama said in his serving with the group. radio address. economic team “[The appointment] is an honor, of Lander added, “It is exciting to have an course, but it’s more the responsibility administration that deeply understands Dewey, Greitzer named President-elect Barack Obama recently to serve right now,” Lander said. “I can’t the importance of science and scientific named Eric Lander, the founding direc- think of a time when the problems and thinking.” Royal Academy of tor of the Broad Institute, a co-chair of challenges facing the country — envi- Two MIT alums are also part of the President’s Council of Advisors on ronment and energy, health care, educa- President-elect Obama’s economic team. Engineering fellows Science and Technology (PCAST), a tion — had more to do with science and Lawrence H. Summers, Obama’s pick Britain’s Royal Academy of Engineering group that assists the president in making technology than they do today.” to lead the National Economic Coun- (RAEng) named Forbes Dewey, professor science and technology policy decisions. In announcing his science policy advi- cil, graduated from MIT with an SB in of mechanical engineering and bioengi- Lander, widely renowned as one of the sors, Obama described Lander’s work as economics in 1975. Christina Romer, neering, and Ed Greitzer, the H.N. Slater principal leaders of the Human Genome “one of the greatest scientific achieve- whom Obama named to lead the Council Professor of Aeronautics & Astronautics, Project, is also a professor of biology at ments in history.” of Economic Advisers, received her PhD as fellows for 2008. Including the two MIT MIT and a member of the Whitehead “I know [Lander] will be a powerful in economics from MIT in 1985, and is professors, 44 new fellows were elected to Institute for Biomedical Research. His voice in my administration as we seek also a parent of a 2008 graduate and a the RAEng in 2008. position on the PCAST is part-time, and to find the causes and cures of our most current freshman. The academy brings together the coun- try’s most eminent engineers from all disci- plines to promote excellence in the science, art and practice of engineering. McKernan wins Frank Nelson Cole Prize James McKernan, a professor in the Department of Mathematics, was named one of two recipients of the 2009 Ameri- can Mathematical Society’s Frank Nelson Cole Prize in Algebra. Presented every three years by the AMS, the Cole Prize is one of the highest distinctions in algebra. The prize was awarded on Tuesday, Jan. 6, at the Joint Mathematics Meetings in Washington. Economics professor wins TIAA-CREF award The TIAA-CREF Institute recently presented the 13th annual TIAA-CREF Paul A. Samuelson Award for Outstanding Scholarly Writing on Lifelong Financial Security to Amy Finkelstein, a professor in the Department of Economics, and a colleague for their ground-breaking paper, “The Interaction of Public and Private Insurance: Medicaid and the Long-Term Care Insurance Market.”

Stewart wins German PHOTOS / DONNA COVENEY research award From left to right, Esther Duflo, Amy Finkelstein and Iván Werning, who were named among the top eight young economists Physics Professor Iain Stewart has recently by The Economist. been selected as a recipient of a Friedrich Wilhelm Bessel Research Award from the out randomized trials of development projects, such as fertilizer Humboldt Foundation, which works to Three from MIT named subsidies and school recruitment. promote academic cooperation between Finkelstein, MIT professor of economics, was singled out for scientists and scholars from abroad and her work studying annuities in Britain. Economics professor and from Germany. The award is conferred among world’s top eight macroeconomist Werning was described by the magazine as “an in recognition of lifetime achievements economist’s economist” and an “elegant theorist whose early in research, and the awardee is invited young economists contributions provided streamlined proofs that other thinkers to carry out research projects of his or could make use of.” her own choosing in cooperation with Survey by The Economist magazine Department of Economics Head Ricardo Caballero said The colleagues in Germany. Economist “confirms that we are doing something right. We put highlights department’s strength an enormous effort in our PhD program and in hiring the best Wodiczko to represent young people around. Relative to other top places in economics, Poland at Venice Biennale Stephanie Schorow who tend to hire already established people, our growth strategy News Office has always been to bring the best young minds to the place and Krzysztof Wodiczko, a professor of foster their development. This makes ours a very dynamic and architecture, was named recently by Three MIT economists — Esther Duflo, Amy Finkelstein and exciting place to be in, where a disproportionate share of the new Poland’s Minister of Culture to represent Iván Werning — have been singled out by The Economist maga- and exciting research is done.” Poland at the 53rd Venice Art Biennale zine as among the world’s eight best young economists, who are Glenn Ellison, the Gregory K. Palm Professor of Economics 2009. Wodiczko, who is also the director of “making a big splash in their discipline and beyond.” and the associate department head, who was himself singled out the Center for Advanced Visual Studies, is The magazine compiled the list of the top eight, who all as a promising young economics by the magazine 10 years ago, known worldwide for his large-scale, politi- received their PhDs in the past 10 years, by soliciting recom- said it was no surprise that the three MIT professors worked in cally charged slide and video projections mendations from leading economists. very divergent areas. on architectural facades and monuments. Duflo, the Abdul Latif Jameel Professor of Poverty Allevia- “Besides being leaders in the profession as a whole, the three In receiving this honor, Wodiczko becomes tion and Development Economics at MIT and the director of faculty members the Economist identified are people we’ve the third member of the Visual Arts faculty the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab, “received more worked hard to attract and keep because they are also great to represent his native country at the oldest recommendations than any other economist,” according to the internal leaders who contribute so much to the intellectual atmo- and world’s most prestigious Art Biennale. Dec. 30 article on the selection. Duflo was lauded for carrying sphere in their respective groups,” Ellison said.

academic excellence and exceptional economic value. that private institutions are out of their financial reach, MIT named one Using data from more than 600 institutions provided but they will be surprised by our findings,” said Janet by Peterson’s and additional reporting, the magazine Bodnar, editor of Kiplinger’s. “Most of the top-notch rated the top 100 private universities and liberal arts schools on the Kiplinger 100 offer generous financial aid of 100 best values colleges for academic quality and affordability. packages. And, for those who earn too much to qualify MIT’s inclusion on the list reflects the Institute’s long- for need-based aid, many of the colleges on our list standing efforts to open its doors to students of every offer hefty scholarships to a few outstanding students or among private schools background — including “need blind” admissions and a smaller merit awards to a bigger pool.” commitment to meet the full need of all undergraduates. Criteria included admission rates, SAT scores, Stephanie Schorow For 2008-2009, the California Institute of Technol- student-faculty ratios and graduation rates; this informa- News Office ogy topped the list of the 50 private universities with the tion is then correlated with tuition, room and board fees, best value, with Yale and Princeton rounding out the financial aide and average debt a student accumulates MIT was ranked number eight among the nation’s top top three. MIT was ranked eighth, while the Institute’s before graduation. 50 private universities in Kiplinger’s Personal Finance’s Cambridge neighbor, Harvard was deemed sixth. The rankings appear in the magazine’s February issue annual assessment of schools that combine outstanding “Families hit by the economic downturn may feel and at www.kiplinger.com/money/collegevalues/. PAGE 8 January 14, 2009 u RESEARCH MIT Tech Talk

PHOTOS COURTESY OF ARNE BOMBLIES ABOVE: Civil and environmental engineering (CEE) graduate student Arne Bomblies installs instruments to monitor soil moisture in Niger. LEFT: CEE student Mustafa Dafalla ‘09 gathers water samples at a pond in Niger to check for malaria larvae.

Fighting malaria

by changing the PHOTO / environment ISTOCKPHOTO

Leveling land can help control disease’s focused on the human side, such as attempts to devel- Eliminating pools of standing water, or increasing op a vaccine, Eltahir said that efforts to control envi- drainage so that such pools last less than the seven to spread, computer modeling finds ronmental factors — such as working to eliminate the 10 days it takes for the mosquitoes to mature, can be low spots where pools of water collect during the rainy an effective strategy, the analysis shows. In addition, David Chandler season, or applying locally grown plant materials to it allows comparison of different methods. Filling in News Office limit the growth of mosquitoes — can have a dramatic the low spots using shovels, it turns out, is as effective effect on controlling malaria’s spread. And unlike at controlling the disease as plowing the land so that Modifying the environment by using everything importing expensive medicines, such an approach can water more rapidly percolates down into the soil. from shovels and plows to plant-derived pesticides rely on local efforts as simple as having people with That is not a new idea, but the new software may be as important as mosquito nets and vaccinations shovels fill in the low spots in the terrain. provides a quantitative way to compare its impact with in the fight against malaria, according to a computer- “By using local tools and local labor, our approach other approaches, and to develop specific strategies for ized analysis by MIT researchers. relies less on high-technology equipment from outside a given region. Filling in low spots “is an established The researchers have developed a new computer the region, which tends to make the local people more technique,” said Bomblies, who has spent a total of 13 model for analyzing different methods of trying to dependent,” he said. months leading the fieldwork in Niger. “But it hasn’t control the spread of malaria, one of the world’s most- In addition, the new comprehensive computer been specifically applied in the region in which we’ve devastating diseases. Among their findings using the model will provide a tool for analyzing how different been working.” model is that environmental measures such as level- areas’ vulnerability to malaria will be affected by a And unlike other approaches such as vaccinations ing the land to eliminate depressions where pools changing climate. or mosquito nets, it has a relatively permanent impact. can form can be an important part of the strategy for To validate the accuracy of the computer modeling “Once a breeding site is gone, it’s gone” Bomblies controlling the disease. of conditions, the team has been working for the last said. Reports on the work, carried out by Professor of four years in a remote area of Niger, which lies in the Other methods the team has studied include spread- Civil and Environmental Engineering Elfatih Eltahir Sahel desert region of northern Africa. “Africa is the ing ground up seeds from the neem tree, which grows and graduate students Arne Bomblies and Rebecca hot spot for malaria in general,” Eltahir explained, so locally, in the ponds, which can reduce the mosquito Gianotti, were presented in December at a meeting of this fieldwork provides substantial validation of the population by about 50 percent. the American Geophysical Union in San Francisco. model. “For the first time, we have a detailed computer Malaria, Eltahir explained, is “a significant global In the field, Bomblies and others have monitored model” of all the different factors in the disease’s health challenge” that accounts for one-third of all every aspect of malaria’s lifecycle, including doing spread, Eltahir said. By making it possible to run deaths of children under 5 worldwide. By develop- counts of mosquito larvae and adult mosquitoes, detailed simulations of a wide variety of strategies, “we ing new software to analyze the impacts of different identifying the exact species of mosquitoes (since can do a lot of things, in this region or elsewhere, that methods of attempting to limit malaria’s spread, which only specific varieties carry the malaria parasite), and we could never do in the past. It can allow you to do involves a complex chain of transmission between mapping the topography and monitoring the size things in a more cost-effective way.” larvae, mosquitoes and humans, “we have made and duration of pools of water where the mosquitoes This project has been funded by the ocean and significant progress” toward better control of the breed. “We gathered data that would serve as valida- human health program of the National Oceanographic disease, he said. tion for the model that we were developing,” Bomblies and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the While most efforts at dealing with malaria have said. National Science Foundation.