MIT will not divest, announces climate change 'action plan' with key role for industry partners
MIT said Wednesday it would not divest from fossil fuels, instead announcing efforts to strengthen collaboration with industry — seeking $300 million in new energy research at MIT over five years — as part of a much-awaited “plan for action on climate change.”
Class council election had posters, free candy, and strong victor in end
By a wide margin, John S. Brown ’19 was elected president of the class of 2019 last week. Trevor L. McMichael ’19 was elected vice president.
Up and down end-of-week weather
There will be a lot of variability in Cambridge’s weather through the weekend as we experience a few different frontal passages. A warm front passing through will bring very warm weather this afternoon, with the high reaching into the low 70s °F. The warmth will be short-lived, however, as a cold front moves through tomorrow, dropping the high down to the mid 50s °F and the overnight low to around freezing. There is a chance of rain this evening and the possibly more rain on Sunday.
Next House rebuilds and redesigns haunted house escape challenge
For the second year in a row, the Next Haunt student group will host a Halloween-themed escape-the-room challenge.
Can MIT divest while accepting oil money? An activist weighs in.
In anticipation of President L. Rafael Reif’s upcoming announcement about MIT’s climate action plan, The Tech spoke with Geoffrey Supran, a graduate student in materials science, about his work on the MIT Climate Change Conversation Committee and student group Fossil Free MIT. We asked about his expectations for the announcement, his thoughts around divestment, his own research, and how he became a climate change activist.
Hearing procedures to change as reports of sexual assault rise
A year after MIT released the results from its first community sexual assault survey, the Institute has implemented many of its accompanying recommendations and has begun launching new initiatives.
Course 16 alumna named director of MIT Medical
Cecilia Warpinski Stuopis ’90 will assume her new role as director of MIT Medical before the end of the year, MIT announced Oct. 13.
Brace for a brief blast of cold
The Institute will get its first real dose of chilly fall weather this weekend as an Arctic air mass ushers in some of the coldest temperatures this area has seen in months. The frigid air will begin to make its intrusion after the passage of a cold front tomorrow afternoon. The frontal passage will be accompanied by a shift in the wind from southwesterly to westerly, and an increase in wind speed. After the front moves out, a mass of anomalously cold air will make its way down from Canada through New England over the course of the weekend. The result will be that by Sunday, low temperatures will be below 40°F (4°C) and the high may not even reach 50°F (10°C). The last times that low and high temperatures that cold were recorded in Boston were May 2 and June 2, respectively. By Sunday night, temperatures could even threaten to break the freezing mark for the first time since April 2. The predicted temperatures are also particularly low compared to the normal high and low of 61°F (16°C) and 46°F (8°C) for this time of year. It will likely take until Tuesday of next week to return to warmer, more seasonable temperatures.
Alumna runs for city council seat, joins slate
Mariko Davidson MCP ’13, who earned a master’s degree in city planning at MIT, is running for Cambridge City Council. Two other MIT alumni are currently up for reelection.
Dissolve 'Unconference' seeks to address inequality
The Dissolve “Un-conference” — which despite the name is hosted in collaboration with the ongoing Solve — will tackle questions of global inequality Thursday.
Clear Columbus Day weekend in store
Just over a week ago, forecast models remained uncertain about an intensifying Category 3 hurricane near the Bahamas. Luckily, Joaquin scooted harmlessly into the Atlantic and out of our weather forecast. By now the former hurricane has weakened into a non-tropical system, and it is expected to bringing gusty winds and rain to Spain.
MIT alum awarded Nobel Prize for work on DNA repair
Paul L. Modrich ’86, who earned his bachelor’s in biology from MIT, was awarded the 2015 Nobel Prize in chemistry on Wednesday for his work on DNA mismatch repair.
Solve conference gathers ‘change agents,’ takes on global problems
Leaders from academia and business alike gathered this week for the Solve conference, hosted by MIT to address key challenges in four fundamental areas: education, healthcare, energy, and infrastructure.
New MIT master's program will be half online, half on campus
MIT introduced a pilot program Wednesday in which professionals can receive a master’s degree in supply chain management (SCM) by taking the online equivalent of a semester’s worth of classes and following it up with a semester on campus.
MIT Connect uses algorithm to pair grad students for lunch
MIT Connect is a new initiative aimed at strengthening the sense of community among graduate students. Each week, the program pairs graduate students for one-on-one platonic lunches and provides each student with a $10 TechCash deposit they can redeem at local restaurants or on-campus dining halls.
Climate rally unfurls banner near MIT board meeting
The MIT Climate Countdown ended Oct. 2 with a rally attended by more than 100 MIT students, staff, faculty, alumni, and local community members.
Random will seek new housemaster
Nina Davis-Millis, Random Hall’s housemaster, announced Monday that she and her husband, Chris Millis, will be leaving the dorm at the end of this academic year. Davis-Millis, who has been housemaster at Random for more than two decades, is also Director of Community Support and Staff Development at MIT Libraries. In an email to the dorm, she called her experience at Random “amazing” and “transformative.”
Hurricane Joaquin developing but not likely to affect MA this weekend
Mild temperatures and a chance of rain will be the norm through the end of the weekend. It will be noticeably cooler than the beginning of the week was, with rain likely at some point over the weekend.