Study: As a population gets older, automation accelerates

Economists find companies’ adoption of robots is partly due to shortages in middle-aged labor.

Peter Dizikes | MIT News Office • mit
Sept. 15, 2021 ~7 min

Engineers create 3D-printed objects that sense how a user is interacting with them

Advance incorporates sensing directly into an object’s material, with applications for assistive technology and “intelligent” furniture.

Adam Zewe | MIT News Office • mit
Sept. 14, 2021 ~6 min


What happens when your foot falls asleep?

An exercise physiologist explains how it’s a problem of communication between your brain and your body.

Zachary Gillen, Assistant Professor of Exercise Physiology, Mississippi State University • conversation
Sept. 13, 2021 ~5 min

HPV vaccines will reduce cancer, but not until 2045

HPV vaccines will yield significant reductions in throat and mouth cancers in the US, but not for about 25 years, a new study shows.

Barbara Benham-Johns Hopkins • futurity
Sept. 7, 2021 ~6 min

Comparing seniors who relocate long-distance shows where you live affects your longevity

Analysis of Medicare data finds location matters, not just past health behavior.

Peter Dizikes | MIT News Office • mit
Sept. 1, 2021 ~9 min

Skull simulation reveals how ‘Hobbits’ chomped on food

Exceedingly hard or tough foods might have given Homo floresiensis (nicknamed the Hobbit) a sore jaw. But stone tools may have made chewing easier.

Robin Smith-Duke • futurity
Aug. 26, 2021 ~7 min

Social media messages from health care workers help reduce travel-related Covid-19 spread

Large-scale video campaign allowed physicians and public health messengers to encourage staying home over the 2020 holidays.

J-PAL North America • mit
Aug. 23, 2021 ~4 min

The fertility industry is poorly regulated – and would-be parents can lose out on having children as a result

An unknown number of people have lost their dreams of parenthood because of storage disasters at fertility clinics. These experts note poor government oversight and the need for stronger regulation.

Dena Sharp, Guest lecturer, University of California, Hastings • conversation
Aug. 23, 2021 ~8 min


Bat pups babble and bat moms use baby talk, hinting at the evolution of human language

Vocal imitation is a key part of how humans learn to speak. New research shows that bats babble to learn and use baby talk to teach, just like people do.

Ahana Aurora Fernandez, Postdoctoral Researcher in Behavioral Ecology and Bioacoustics, Museum für Naturkunde, Berlin • conversation
Aug. 19, 2021 ~10 min

Magnets could offer better control of prosthetic limbs

System uses tiny magnetic beads to rapidly measure the position of muscles and relay that information to a bionic prosthesis.

Anne Trafton | MIT News Office • mit
Aug. 18, 2021 ~6 min

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