Volume 50 – Number 9 Wednesday – November 16, 2005 TechTalk S ERVING T HE M I T C OMMUNITY Solar power has shining moment Sarah H. Wright News Office As the autumn sun set, MIT celebrated the completion of its third and largest solar installation at Hayden Memorial Library on Monday, Nov. 14. President Susan Hockfield seized the moment of natural beauty to affirm the Institute’s commitment to innovations in energy use. Thanks to the MIT Community Solar Power Initiative and to those who installed the 42 solar panels on the library’s roof, much of the sun’s “energy is being cap- PHOTO / DONNA COVENEY tured and converted to electricity to help Cambridge Mayor Michael Sullivan joined power a portion of the essential functions President Susan Hockfield in the ribbon- of this library,” Hockfield said. cutting ceremony for the new installation. The president noted that the installation of the system atop the library represented ect off the ground and for investing in the the successful culmination of a project to Massachusetts innovation economy.” promote sustainable energy on campus The library roof was selected for the and facilitate education and research in solar installation by the Department of solar power as well as to reduce MIT’s Facilities for its southern exposure. The emissions footprint. 12,000-watt system on the library’s roof is Jamie Lewis Keith, senior counsel and comprised of 42 panels, each measuring 2 managing director for MIT Environmen- feet by 5 feet and containing 72 photo vol- tal Programs, noted that Hockfield had taic cells. The system will generate around charged MIT with applying its multidisci- 15,000 kilowatt hours a year — roughly plinary creativity to addressing the world’s equivalent to the energy needed to power enormously complex energy challenges two homes for a year. The production of when she was inaugurated last May. the electricity will result in zero green- Keith’s remarks at Monday’s ribbon house gas emissions and will supplement cutting pointed to MIT’s goals – leadership power provided by MIT’s co-generation in energy and environmental research and plant on Vassar Street. education – and its environmental policies, Solar panels are also installed at the which commit the Institute to environmen- MIT Museum (N52) and at the Student tal stewardship on campus, regionally and Center; those panels generate a combined globally. total of 11,500 kilowatt hours. Keith welcomed Cambridge Mayor The MIT Department of Facilities and Michael Sullivan; Ann Wolpert, director of the Laboratory for Energy and the Envi- the MIT Libraries; and Mitchell Adams, ronment (LFEE) received the initial grants executive director of the Massachusetts to launch 40 solar installations on campus Technology Collaborative (MTC). as well as at schools, homes and business- MTC administers the Renewable es in Cambridge, Watertown, Arlington, Energy Trust, which provided $455,700 in Lexington and Waltham. funding to launch MIT’s Community Solar To learn more about the MIT Commu- PHOTO / DONNA COVENEY Power Initiative in 2002. nity Solar Power Initiative and view pho- Solar panels on top of the Hayden Memorial Library soak up the afternoon sun on Monday, Hockfield thanked Adams and MTC for tos of solar power panel installations go to Nov. 14, the day MIT celebrated the completion of its largest solar installation. the “financial incentives to get this proj- solarpower.mit.edu. Vice President Stowe to retire OCW draws attention at world summit MIT President Susan Hockfield has announced that — which is based on shared val- Barbara G. Stowe, vice president for resource develop- ues and trust.” Jon Paul Potts ment, will retire at the end of the academic year, after 11 Noting that Stowe had post- MIT OpenCourseWare years as vice president and nearly 25 years at MIT. poned her retirement plans for In making the announcement at the annual meeting several months, Hockfield said, of the Corporation Development Committee on Tues- “Barbara very kindly agreed to At the World Summit on the Information Society this day, Nov. 15, Hockfield said, “Barbara’s vision of MIT’s stay on for a longer period than week in Tunis, Tunisia, MIT OpenCourseWare co-hosted fund-raising aspirations has transformed our place in the she had originally intended, to a half-day event with the United Nations University, “Wid- philanthropic universe. She has done so with a deep insti- introduce me to fund raising at Barbara Stowe ening Access to Knowledge Through Open Sharing: The tutional and personal wisdom that has guided senior offi- MIT, including visits with some Growing OpenCourseWare Movement.” cers and the resource development staff in setting strate- of our most generous benefac- More than 100 people attended the Nov. 14 forum, gies and making the best possible case for the Institute. tors. I am extraordinarily grateful for her willingness to which featured presentations by prominent leaders The extraordinary success of the Campaign for MIT is do so, and for her guidance in this and many other facets from the global education community. The proceedings an example of how she helped us raise the bar and then exceed even that goal. Perhaps most importantly, she See STOWE See OCW has kept us true to the underlying spirit of philanthropy Page 2 Page 4 RESEARCH NEWS ARTS A REALLY COOL TRIP LOW PRICE HIGH TECH INSPIRING CAMPUS A team of MIT researchers visits the Arctic to test The first working Three artists use MIT buildings as the inspiration for technologies that could prove useful in outer space. prototype of the $100 their work, exhibited this week in Cambridge. Page 3 laptop will be unveiled Page 7 COVER STORIES tonight at the World Summit JUST FOLK on the Information Society MIT researchers have been highlighted on the cover in Tunis, Tunisia. Bring an instrument and play along with folk of the prestigious journal Nature four times in recent performer Jeff Warner at a free concert/demonstration months. Page 4 next week. Page 4 Page 7 PAGE 2 November 16, 2005 NEWS MIT Tech Talk World AIDS Day event planned DIGITALK: WHERE IT’S AT In observance of World AIDS Day, the MIT Women’s Visitors to Lobby 10 will be able to see several panels Podcasts at MIT League will be raising funds and awareness in Lobby 10 from the AIDS Memorial Quilt. There will also be tables According to the Oxford Eng- on Thursday, Dec. 1. of information about the Boston Living Center, Cambridge lish Dictionary, a podcast is “a digi- World AIDS Day is an international day of coordinat- Cares About AIDS, the Center for Health Promotion and tal recording of a radio broadcast ed action against AIDS — a day for bringing messages Wellness at MIT Medical, the Children’s Hospital AIDS or similar program, made available of compassion, hope, solidarity and understanding about Program, the Latin American Health Initiative, the LBGT on the Internet for downloading AIDS to every country in the world. The theme for this Issues Group, Massachusetts Asian & Pacific Islanders for to a personal audio player.” IS&T year’s event is “Stop AIDS, keep the promise.” Health, the MIT African Students Association, the Names recently launched a Podcasts at MIT A centerpiece of the event will be the league’s annual Project Boston and the SPARK Center. page (web.mit.edu/ist/podcasts/) to Chocolate Buffet and raffle fund-raiser. Chocolate des- The Women’s League, a social and service organization encourage members of the community to contribute serts donated by local bakeries, hotels, restaurants, open to all women in the MIT community, initiated MIT’s podcasts. Especially relevant are submissions from catering services and members of the MIT community annual observance of World AIDS Day in 1999 and has departments, labs and centers, as well as MIT-spon- will be on sale. Proceeds will benefit the Boston Living coordinated this event for the Institute every year since. sored events such as lectures and forums. Individu- Center, a nonprofit organization that provides support Volunteers are still needed to donate baked goods and als can add informal content directly via the IS&T and services to the HIV/AIDS community of Greater to staff the buffet. If you would like to help, contact Sis de Podcast Wiki at istwiki.mit.edu/istwiki/podcasts. Boston. Bordenave at x3-3656 or [email protected]. All submissions must be free of copyright infringement. IS&T recommends that contribu- tors look into getting a Creative Commons license, which enables copyright holders to grant some of STOWE their rights to the public while retaining others. Continued from Page 1 For details, visit creativecommons.org/. IS&T plans to roll out a more robust podcast of MIT.” indexing service and is working on standards for Stowe joined MIT in 1981 as direc- tagging to make content easily accessible and tor of health sciences development, searchable. after several years of fund-raising work at research universities and Theses in DSpace health-care organizations. In 1986 she became assistant dean for resource The MIT Libraries have added more than 11,000 development in the School of Humani- MIT theses to DSpace — doubling the content of the ties, Arts and Social Sciences. digital archive and providing worldwide exposure to In 1988, she became director of the work of MIT scholars. The MIT thesis collection foundation relations for the Institute, contains the theses of many well-known MIT alumni, during which time she strengthened including several Nobel Prize winners. and enhanced the overall program To find theses in DSpace, go to libraries.mit. of identifying, cultivating and raising edu/mit-theses. Current MIT students, faculty donations from foundations — with a and staff can print PDF files of theses (certificates particular focus on matching MIT’s required).