Parking reform could reenergize downtowns – here's what happened when Buffalo changed its zoning rules

When Buffalo, New York, changed its zoning code so that developers no longer had to provide specified amounts of parking, space was freed up for public transit and people.

Jeffrey Rehler, Adjunct Assistant Professor, Department of Urban and Regional Planning, University at Buffalo • conversation
June 10, 2021 • ~9 min

How we showed bamboo cricket bats could usher in a new, more sustainable epoch for the sport

Bamboo bats could make cricket more accessible, more sustainable – and more exciting.

Darshil U. Shah, Lecturer in Materials, Centre for Natural Material Innovation, University of Cambridge • conversation
May 10, 2021 • ~7 min

How we showed bamboo cricket bats could usher in a new, more sustainable epoch for cricket

Bamboo bats could make cricket more accessible, more sustainable – and more exciting.

Darshil U. Shah, Lecturer in Materials, Centre for Natural Material Innovation, University of Cambridge • conversation
May 10, 2021 • ~7 min

With a zap of light, system switches objects’ colors and patterns

“Programmable matter” technique could enable product designers to churn out prototypes with ease.

Daniel Ackerman | MIT News Office • mit
May 4, 2021 • ~5 min

How a professor learned to bring compassion to engineering and design

A mechanical engineer brings her personal experiences to address human-centered problems and encourage 'compassionate design.'

Tahira Reid, Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Purdue University • conversation
April 28, 2021 • ~5 min

Treated like dirt: urban soil is often overlooked as a resource

The earth our towns and cities are built on is teeming with potential. It is under threat too

Roisin O'Riordan, PhD Candidate, Soil and Ecosystem Services, Lancaster University • conversation
April 26, 2021 • ~8 min

Prince Philip's funeral hearse is a modified Land Rover Defender – symbolic of a pioneering, practical Britain

The Defender's modifications were partially designed by the duke himself.

Aamer Mahmud, Associate Professor in Automotive Design, Coventry University • conversation
April 16, 2021 • ~7 min

The human genome at 20: how biology's most-hyped breakthrough led to anticlimax and arrests

The achievement didn't live up to the hype, but it has illuminated new areas of 'genetic dark matter'.

Andreas Kolb, Senior Research Fellow, The Rowlett Institute, University of Aberdeen • conversation
Feb. 19, 2021 • ~10 min

Less-wasteful laser-cutting

Fabricaide, developed at MIT CSAIL, provides live design feedback to help users reduce leftover material.

Adam Conner-Simons | MIT CSAIL • mit
Feb. 17, 2021 • ~4 min

A universal influenza vaccine may be one step closer, bringing long-lasting protection against flu

You need a new shot every year because current flu vaccines provide limited and temporary protection. But researchers' new strategy could mean a one-and-done influenza vaccine is on the way.

Patricia L. Foster, Professor Emerita of Biology, Indiana University • conversation
Jan. 27, 2021 • ~10 min

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