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A I-designed proteins may help spot cancer

Sangeeta Bhatia, SM ’93, PhD ’97, a senior author of a paper on the work with her former student Ava Amini ’16, a principal researcher at Microsoft Research, led the MIT team... Read more »

A new way to rejuvenate the immune system

As people age, their immune function weakens. Owing to shrinkage of the thymus, where T cells normally mature and diversify, populations of these immune cells become smaller and can’t react to pathogens... Read more »

A retinal reboot for amblyopia

Bear’s team, which has been studying amblyopia for decades, had previously shown that this effect could be achieved by anesthetizing both eyes or the non-­amblyopic eye, analogous to having a child wear... Read more »

Just pull a string to turn these tile patterns into useful 3D structures

The algorithm uses a two-step method to find the optimal path through the tile pattern for a string that can be tightened to actuate the structure. It computes the minimum number of... Read more »

The Download: radioactive rhinos, and the rise and rise of peptides

Every year, poachers shoot hundreds of rhinos, fishing crews haul millions of sharks out of protected seas, and smugglers carry countless animals and plants across borders. This illegal activity is incredibly hard... Read more »

Why conservationists are making rhinos radioactive

But establishing these reserves is just one step. Enforcing their protection is another matter. And for many marine reserves—especially those in the Global South—there is no real way to do that, says... Read more »

We’re putting more stuff into space than ever. Here’s what’s up there.

Earth’s a medium-size rock with some water on top, enveloped by gases that keep everything that lives here alive. Just at the edge of that envelope begins a thin but dense layer... Read more »

Peptides are everywhere. Here’s what you need to know.

Matt Kaeberlein, a longevity researcher, first started hearing about peptides a few years ago. “At that point it was mostly functional medicine doctors that were using peptides,” he says, referring to physicians... Read more »

The human work behind humanoid robots is being hidden

The implication—fueled by new demonstrations of humanoid robots putting away dishes or assembling cars—is that mimicking human limbs with single-purpose robot arms is the old way of automation. The new way is... Read more »

The Download: Chicago’s surveillance network, and building better bras

Chicago has tens of thousands of surveillance cameras—up to 45,000, by some estimates.  That’s among the highest numbers per capita in the US. Chicago boasts one of the largest license plate reader... Read more »