Technology and society

Writing for Forbes, Joseph Coughlin, director of the Age Lab, explores some of the surprises that Millennials, Gen X’ers, and younger Boomers have learned living at home for an extended period during the Covid-19 pandemic. "While Covid quarantine is certainly not entirely like retirement, there are more than a few similarities,” writes Coughlin. “The friction and complexities it has added to daily life are enough for many to question brochure-based thinking of what retirement might be.”

A study by researchers from MIT, Yale and Purdue finds that leaving the camera on during video meetings is a contributor to carbon dioxide emissions, reports Hannah Smothers for Vice. “Just one hour of videoconferencing or streaming, for example, emits 150-1,000 grams of carbon dioxide (a gallon of gasoline burned from a car emits about 8,887 grams), requires 2-12 liters of water and demands a land area adding up to about the size of an iPad Mini,” the researchers write.

Through his art and information-based work, Prof. Ekene Ijeoma “finds the humanity in data points,” writes Cate McQuaid for The Boston Globe. Ijeoma hopes his work - including “A Counting,” a sonic poem featuring recordings of people from around the world counting to 100, and the virtual Black Mobility and Safety Seminar hosted by his research team - bridges “the gap between facts and feelings. It gets to ‘what are the things being felt when experiencing this?’”

Prof. Ekene Ijeoma has been collecting video recordings of people counting to 100 in different languages and dialects for the past year as part of his project “A Counting,” and is now soliciting videos of people counting to 100 in sign language, writes Sophie Haigney for The New York Times. Ijeoma explains that he hopes the artwork will constantly evolve “into a more whole representation of society.”

Prof. Jessika Trancik speaks with the BBC Newshour about her new study analyzing the dramatic decline in the costs of lithium-ion batteries. Trancik explains that the reduced price, “opens up markets for electric vehicles for more people. The battery makes up a substantial portion of the total cost of an electric vehicle and the fact that costs have fallen by 97% over the last few decades means that these cars are no longer just for the wealthy.”

Gizmodo reporter Victoria Song spotlights how CSAIL researchers have developed a new type of smart material that can measure movement. “The researchers have created a special type of fiber that can tell how a person is moving by sensing pressure and turning that pressure into electrical signals,” Song explains.

New York Times contributor Vivian Gornick reviews “The Empathy Diaries,” a new memoir by Prof. Sherry Turkle in which “she seeks to tell the story of her own formative years and how she became the distinguished social theorist that she is today.”

Prof. Sherry Turkle speaks with Fast Company reporter Alex Pasternack about her memoir, “The Empathy Diaries” and the role of technology in society.

Prof. Gio Traverso speaks with CNN’s Jeanne Moos about his new study examining how comfortable patients were interacting with Dr. Spot, a robotic dog outfitted with a computer tablet that allows ER doctors to engage with patients remotely. “The robot looks like a dog, and dogs are endearing to many, so actually, the reception was very positive,” said Traverso.

NY Post reporter Asia Grace writes that MIT researchers have found that patients are comfortable with allowing robotic assistants perform medical evaluations, as part of an effort to help reduce the spread of Covid-19. “People are very positive and accepting of robotic systems in health-care settings, particularly during the pandemic,” says Prof. Giovanni Traverso.

Writing for Time, Prof. Sherry Turkle explores whether the sense of displacement caused by the pandemic will allow people and the U.S. the opportunity to see “our country anew.” Turkle writes, “I came to a new state of mind because I could see my country anew. And although our country was at war with itself, I felt a deeper connection with other people who were also seeing anew. On the Zoom screens of the pandemic, I found the exhilaration of new connections.”

Al Chen '00, SM '02, a NASA systems engineer, speaks with NBC Boston about the hidden surprises that NASA engineers hid on the Perseverance rover for NASA fans and science enthusiasts to uncover. “I was at MIT for six years, we loved coding things, Mystery Hunt is a big deal,” says Chen. “I think it's a little bit of a chance to bring the art and the engineering together.”

"You remember when we go to election polls, the voting booth, during elections, we get a little sticker that says 'I Voted'" says Prof. Sinan Aral of a new study that finds hearing about people who have received the Covid-19 vaccine can increase vaccine acceptance rates. "You should think of this as a very similar type of strategy. The reason we get that sticker that says 'I Voted' is that social proof motivates people to join in. And so if we got a sticker or put out a video or put out a message that said, 'I got vaccinated,' it would have the same effect for the same reasons."

Prof. Sherry Turkle speaks with Dave Davies of Fresh Air about her new book and how her childhood experiences helped shape her work.

Prof. Alex “Sandy” Pentland emphasizes the need for improving speaking/hearing systems on laptops by incorporating better microphones in an article for The Wall Street Journal. “Research shows that the audio quality is just as important as video quality when judging the overall “quality” and “presence” of the conference experience,” Pentland writes.