The real promise of synthetic data

MIT researchers release the Synthetic Data Vault, a set of open-source tools meant to expand data access without compromising privacy.

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Tags: machine-learning artificial-intelligence data research laboratory-for-information-and-decision-systems-lids edx mit-schwarzman-college-of-computing

Some bees are born curious while others are more single-minded – new research hints at how the hive picks which flowers to feast on

New research suggests individual bees are born with one of two learning styles – either curious or focused. Their genetic tendency has implications for how the hive works together.

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Tags: genetics insects bees biology food colonies communication group-dynamics drones queen-bees information curiosity foraging nectar

Evaluating battery revenues for offshore wind farms using advanced modeling

MIT researchers reveal inadequacies in current battery models.

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Tags: energy research wind batteries laboratory-for-information-and-decision-systems-lids mit-energy-initiative energy-storage mit-schwarzman-college-of-computing

Street vendors make cities livelier, safer and fairer – here's why they belong on the post-COVID-19 urban scene

After trying to remove street vendors from its cities for years, China is supporting them to help jump-start its economy. An urban scholar explains why other cities should do the same.

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Tags: cities covid-19 china immigrants informal-economy jobs new-york-city urban-policy farmers-markets postpandemic-future markets

MIT Energy Initiative awards eight seed fund grants for early-stage MIT energy research

Annual MITEI awards support research on battery storage, smart grids, and carbon emissions reduction.

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Tags: funding architecture research school-of-engineering faculty laboratory-for-information-and-decision-systems-lids civil-and-environmental-engineering materials-science-and-engineering dmse mit-energy-initiative chemical-engineering grants eaps electrical-engineering-and-computer-science-eecs mit-schwarzman-college-of-computing

A data-driven response to a pandemic

Isolat, a volunteer collaboration organized by the Institute for Data, Systems, and Society, informs coronavirus policy by analyzing data associated with the pandemic.

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Tags: machine-learning covid-19 pandemic policy statistics data research mechanical-engineering school-of-engineering technology-and-society laboratory-for-information-and-decision-systems-lids eaps analytics aeronautics-and-astronautics electrical-engineering-and-computer-science-eecs technology-and-policy mit-schwarzman-college-of-computing systems and-society institute-for-data statistics-and-data-science-center

The lack of women in cybersecurity leaves the online world at greater risk

Women are underrepresented in technology fields, but especially so in cybersecurity. It's not just a matter of fairness. Women are better than men at key aspects of keeping the internet safe.

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Tags: cybersecurity gender women stem computer-security recruitment information-technology gender-bias hiring