Advancing Human Understanding
Daron Acemoglu on the crisis of liberal democracy
The real question behind the trolley problem
World-class
research
Without human understanding, there is no understanding. We are home to scholars and artists doing transformative work in fields vital to addressing the world’s most important challenges. Our faculty develop the values, vision, and ethical compass of tomorrow’s leaders.
Our faculty are among the world’s leading experts in their fields. Here you’ll find a selection of recent publications from SHASS scholars.
Some democracies are struggling to ensure safe drinking water
New research co-authored by MIT political scientist Evan Lieberman shows that across nearly 100 countries with developing economies, democracies are falling behind non-democracies when it comes to having safe water on tap.
The long history of vaccine hesitancy
Comparative Media Studies/Writing professor Tom Levenson’s new book, “A Pox on Fools: The True Believers, Grifters, and Cynics Who Convinced Us to Reject Vaccines,” shows how arguments against vaccination reach back to the beginning of the technology itself.
MIT graduates share how their SHASS education prepared them to take on the world’s greatest challenges.
Meicen Sun PhD ’22
Political Science
“SHASS provided the crucial resources and flexibility needed to investigate how we can approach the social sciences from the perspective of information science.”
Cara Lai ’16
Mechanical Engineering (Course 2A)
Literature (Course 21L)
“MIT has always had a tradition of interdisciplinary learning and I felt that the questions we tackled in the Literature Section helped me think about the real-world applications of my engineering and product design courses.”
Music & Theater Arts gives students the opportunity to explore these disciplines as artistic practices and as cultural, intellectual, and personal avenues of inquiry and discovery.
Jazz in the key of life
Grammy-winning saxophonist and MIT Music professor Miguel Zenón creates a distinctive blend of jazz and traditional Puerto Rican music. “What I discovered, when I first encountered jazz, was this idea that you were using improvisation to portray your personality directly to your listeners,” he explains.
Bringing the stage to the classroom
21T.100 (Theater Arts Production) gathers MIT students, faculty, staff, and other professionals to produce feature-length performances. “What’s explored in our studios is put to the test in production — lighting design, scenography, performance, projection — and shared with the community,” says Jay Scheib, section head for MIT Music and Theater Arts and the Class of 1949 Professor.
Broadening student minds
If you want to make the world a better place, you need to understand how it works. SHASS plays an essential role at MIT, ensuring our students have a deep understanding of the human implications of the world’s biggest challenges.
Latest news from SHASS
Our work has broad impact at MIT and across the globe. Read the latest about new ideas coming out of SHASS.
The mystery of the Chinese tea chest label
MIT historian Tristan Brown uncovers the true origins of an artifact once thought to be a relic of the Boston Tea Party.
Using reason, again and again
Philosopher Brian Hedden studies decision-making over time — and recently chose to return to alma mater MIT, where he is now connecting ethics and computing.
MIT honors employees with 2026 Excellence Awards, Collier Medal, and Staff Award for Distinction in Service
The MIT community celebrated the talent, dedication, and impact of its staff.
In the media
Flawed audit did not find 228,000 invalid Mamdani votes
Dry texting: The meaning behind teens’ short texts
Nobel laureate Daron Acemoglu says AI and liberal democracy share the same crisis: ‘there is a tendency to escalate everything’
Trump turns to containing the fallout from setbacks in Iran
SHASS videos
Weaving economic narratives: A cross-disciplinary collaboration inspired by jamdani
