News From SHASS

Economists Ben Olken of MIT and Clare Balboni are authors of a new review paper examining the “revolution” in the study of deforestation brought about by satellites, and analyzing which kinds of policies might limit climate-altering deforestation. Pictured is deforestation occurring in Mato Grosso, Brazil.

How to tackle the global deforestation crisis

Peter Dizikes | MIT News

September 19, 2023

Vital forest is cleared every day, with major climate effects. Satellites have revolutionized measurement of the problem, but what can we do about it?

Encouraging immigrants to visit primary care doctors creates a striking decline in costly emergency room use, according to a new study co-authored by an MIT economist.

How to keep people out of the emergency room

Peter Dizikes | MIT News

September 19, 2023

Help for immigrants in arranging primary care visits leads to substantial drop in ER visits and costs, a new study shows.

Co-authored by interdisciplinary teams of faculty and researchers affiliated with all five of the Institute’s schools and the MIT Schwarzman College of Computing, the 27 selected proposals represent a sweeping array of perspectives for exploring the transformative potential of generative AI, in both positive and negative directions for society.

MIT scholars awarded seed grants to probe the social implications of generative AI

MIT News

September 18, 2023

The 27 finalists — representing every school at MIT — will explore the technology’s impact on democracy, education, sustainability, communications, and much more.

Yunqing/Isaac Han from Claremont McKenna College (wearing white and yellow mask) was one of the Alain Locke Fellows who attended PIKSI-Boston this summer.

Empowering the next generation of philosophers through diversity and inclusion

Michael Brindley | School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences

September 12, 2023

Held annually at MIT, the PIKSI-Boston program brings together students from groups underrepresented in the field of philosophy.

Appreciation dinner with class 21G.320 (Introduction to French Literature). Left to right: Ishan Ganguly, Sara Modiano, Professor Bruno Perreau, Naomi Kirimi, Abraham Corea Diaz, and Nghi Nguyen.

In new French class, MIT students serve as jury members of US Goncourt Prize

Stephen Oakes | School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences

September 11, 2023

MIT French+ Initiative named Center of Excellence in French Studies.

Top row, left to right: Isaiah Andrews, Joshua Bennett, Nathaniel Hendren, Crystal Lee, and Eli Nelson. Bottom row, from left to right: Ashesh Rambachan, Nina Roussille, Jessica Ruffin, Caitlin Talmadge, and Miguel Zenón.

School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences welcomes 10 new faculty

Michael Brindley | School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences

September 7, 2023

New professors join Comparative Media Studies/Writing; Economics; Literature; Music and Theater Arts; Science, Technology, and Society; and Political Science.

Students collaborate with the MIT-Israel Zuckerman STEM Seed Fund awardee Leo Anthony Celi, a principal research scientist at MIT. The students "took part in a datathon [at the Technion in Haifa, Israel] and actively worked with their teams for two days. The teams were very diverse both in terms of skill sets as well as cultural backgrounds,” says Celi, who adds that the project would not have been possible without funding from the Global Seed Fund program.

Unlocking global research potential

MIT Center for International Studies

September 7, 2023

Center for International Studies Global Seed Funds program fosters collaboration and innovation.

J-WEL grant recipients

MIT researchers win grants to develop and test 14 innovative ideas to improve education

Shauna Billings Delano | Abdul Latif Jameel World Education Lab (J-WEL)

September 6, 2023

The Jameel World Education Lab awards more than $900K in Education Innovation Grants to researchers across MIT.

Juliet Liao '23 (left) and junior Amina Abdalla (right) found that their social impact internships, at the World Wildlife Fund and MassHealth, gave them a broader perspective on potential career paths.

Putting public service into practice

Elizabeth Durant | Office of the Vice Chancellor

September 1, 2023

Through the PKG Public Service Center’s social impact internships, MIT students leverage their analytical, technical, and creative problem-solving skills for public good.

“All insurgents operate in, recruit from, and depend on communities where half the population is female,” says Apekshya Prasai, a member of the MIT Security Studies Program. “I find that when organizing rebellion, some insurgents strictly adhere to patriarchal gender norms while others challenge these norms in radical ways.”

Apekshya Prasai: Up in arms

Leda Zimmerman | Department of Political Science

August 30, 2023

New research shows how female activists resist patriarchy on the battlefield and beyond.

Stefan Helmreich is the author of “The Book of Waves,” published by Duke University Press.

Dreaming of waves

Peter Dizikes | MIT News

August 30, 2023

Stefan Helmreich’s new book examines the many facets of oceanic wave science and the propagation of wave theory into other areas of life.

Africa, MENA, and South Asia are on the front lines of global air and water crises.

New clean air and water labs to bring together researchers, policymakers to find climate solutions

Sarah DiCioccio | Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL)

August 29, 2023

Labs in Africa, the Middle East and North Africa, and South Asia will be led by J-PAL with support from Community Jameel.

“As I embark on this new journey,” says Denzil Streete, “my commitment is to further [graduate students’] aspirations by fostering an environment where [they] can thrive and are made visible, where ideas are valued, and where the pursuit of knowledge knows no bounds.”

Denzil Streete named senior associate dean and director of the Office of Graduate Education

Office of the Vice Chancellor

August 25, 2023

“Natural collaborator and advocate for students” will oversee the educational experience of the Institute’s 7,000 graduate students.

MIT HASTS PhD candidate Steven Gonzalez, who writes under the name E.G. Condé, has published his first book, "Sordidez.”

Q&A: Steven Gonzalez on Indigenous futurist science fiction

Michael Brindley | School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences

August 21, 2023

The HASTS PhD candidate describes his new book, “Sordidez,” a science fiction novella on rebuilding, healing, and indigeneity following civil war and climate disaster.

“Political Rumors,” a new book by MIT political scientist Adam Berinsky, examines how misinformation spreads in politics, and what we can do about it.

When rumors take flight

Peter Dizikes | MIT News

August 15, 2023

Professor Adam Berinsky’s new book examines the political misinformation that threatens the US system of government.

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