Programmable matter + new Institute Professors + honoring nurses

MIT Weekly May 8, 2021 Greetings! Here’s a roundup of the latest from the MIT community.  Want a daily dose of MIT in your inbox? [Subscribe to the MIT Daily](. Programmable Matter # When did you last repaint your car? Redesign your coffee mugs? Give your shoes a colorful facelift? You likely answered: never, never, and never. But a color-shifting “programmable matter” system from MIT CSAIL could change that with a zap of light. [Full story via MIT News →]( Top Headlines Paula Hammond and Arup Chakraborty named Institute Professors The two chemical engineers are awarded MIT’s highest faculty honor. [Full story via MIT News →]( [MIT Heat Island]( Cynthia Barnhart to step down as MIT’s chancellor In seven years of service, the engineering professor led groundbreaking efforts to improve student well-being and success. [Full story via MIT News →]( [MIT Heat Island]( On course to create a fusion power plant How an MIT engineering course became an incubator for fusion design innovations. [Full story via MIT News →]( [MIT Heat Island]( Josh McDermott seeks to replicate the human auditory system Computer models that mimic humans’ extraordinary hearing abilities could improve treatments for hearing loss. [Full story via MIT News →]( [MIT Heat Island]( Innovations in water accessibility Mechanical engineering senior Flora Klise is pursing her passion for water research and preparing to launch a career in water innovation. [Full story via MIT News →]( [MIT Heat Island]( #ThisisMIT # [Follow @mitlibraries on Instagram→]( In the Media Negotiating salary? Here’s a simple yet powerful trick // HuffPost A study by Associate Professor Jared Curhan finds there are positive benefits to pausing during negotiations. “There is often this romantic view that great negotiators are these very slick people and they always know exactly what to say,” Curhan says. “But in fact, if someone uses a difficult tactic on you ... oftentimes it’s better to say, ‘I’ll get back to you on that.’” [Full story via The HuffPost→]( The art of mathematics in chalk // Scientific American In a forthcoming book, photographer Jessica Wynne spotlights the chalkboards of mathematicians including Professor Alexei Borodin and Associate Professor Ankur Moitra. [Full story via Scientific American→]( Opinion: India’s problem is now the world’s problem // The New York Times “The world needs to look beyond India and avoid yet another mistake of timing,” write professors Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo of the importance of helping other countries avoid a repeat of the coronavirus surge India is facing. [Full story via The New York Times→]( A Boston-based company’s wheelchairs help athletes find a whole new range of motion // The Boston Globe MIT startup Global Research Innovation and Technology has developed an all-terrain wheelchair that “can go where regular wheelchairs can’t — including grass, mud, or rocky terrain. [Full story via The Boston Globe →]( Honoring Nurses # On National Nurses Day, MIT honored the 46 nurses who serve our community at [MIT Medical](. At times when people feel alone or vulnerable, “it is the nurse who can really make that connection, and make them feel comfortable,” Maureen Johnston says. [Watch the video→]( Remember This # The transportation sector is the leading contributor to carbon emissions, but the U.S. is not yet at “peak car,” as purchase and use of private cars continues to rise. Millennials, for example, own cars at the same rate as older generations, driving 2,200 more miles per year than baby boomers. What will it take to reverse this trend? In a recent episode of the [MIT Energy Initiative (MITEI) Podcast]( Joanna Moody of MITEI’s Mobility Systems Center and David Keith, a professor in the MIT Sloan System Dynamics Group, address three important questions about how to shift the U.S. away from private car ownership. [Listen to the episode]( Culinary Offerings # [MIT COOK]( (Culinary Offerings from Our Kitchens) is a new community offering from MIT Endicott House, MITAC, and the MIT Women’s League. The project seeks recipes from around the MIT community along with brief descriptions of why these recipes are special to you. Submissions will be complied for a printed recipe book whose proceeds will to go to a Cambridge-area charity. And MIT Endicott House’s executive chef will select three recipes from among those submitted to prepare during a live cooking demonstration. [Learn more and submit your recipe→]( This edition of the MIT Weekly was brought to you by [a blessing in disguise](. 🚥 Have feedback to share? Email mitdailyeditor@mit.edu. Thanks for reading, and have a great week! — MIT News Office [Forward This Email]( [Subscribe]( [MIT Logo] Massachusetts Institute of Technology This email was sent to {EMAIL} because of your affiliation with MIT, or because you signed up for our newsletters. [subscribe]( [update preferences]( [unsubscribe]( [view in browser]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Youtube]( [Instagram]( MIT News Office · 77 Massachusetts Avenue · Cambridge, MA 02139 · USA