Nobel Prize + solar desalination + cancer treatment

[view in browser]( MIT Weekly [MIT Logo] October 12, 2024 Greetings! Here’s a roundup of the latest from the MIT community.  Want a daily dose of MIT in your inbox? [Subscribe to the MIT Daily](. New Nobel Laureates #[Victor Ambros, left, and Gary Ruvkun]( MIT alumnus Victor Ambros ’75, PhD ’79 (pictured, left) and Gary Ruvkun (right), a former MIT postdoc, have won the 2024 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for work on microRNA. “Their groundbreaking discovery revealed a completely new principle of gene regulation that turned out to be essential for multicellular organisms, including humans,” the Nobel committee said in its announcement. [Full story via MIT News →]( Top Headlines Solar-powered desalination system requires no extra batteries Because it doesn’t need expensive energy storage for times without sunshine, the technology could provide communities with drinking water at low costs. [Full story via MIT News →]( [News thumbnail]( Cancer biologists discover a new mechanism for an old drug Study reveals the drug, 5-fluorouracil, acts differently in different types of cancer — a finding that could help researchers design better drug combinations. [Full story via MIT News →]( [News thumbnail]( Bubble findings could unlock better electrode and electrolyzer designs A new study of bubbles on electrode surfaces could help improve the efficiency of electrochemical processes that produce fuels, chemicals, and materials. [Full story via MIT News →]( [News thumbnail]( The way sensory prediction changes under anesthesia tells us how conscious cognition works A new study adds evidence that consciousness requires communication between sensory and cognitive regions of the brain’s cortex. [Full story via MIT News →]( [News thumbnail]( Institute Professor Emeritus John Little, a founder of operations research and marketing science, dies at 96 The MIT Sloan scholar was a part of the Institute community for nearly eight decades. [Full story via MIT News →]( [News thumbnail]( Jane-Jane Chen: A model scientist who inspires the next generation A research scientist and internationally recognized authority in the field of blood cell development reflects on 45 years at MIT. [Full story via MIT News →]( [News thumbnail]( #ThisisMIT #[Instagram selfie of Victor Ambros and Rosalind Lee. Text via @‌mit: It’s not every day two MIT alumni wake up to a Nobel Prize! First moments as a Nobel laureate for Victor Ambros ’75, PhD ’79 with Rosalind “Candy” Lee ’76. Repost @‌nobelprize_org: Congratulations to our 2024 medicine laureate Victor Ambros. This morning he celebrated the news of his prize with his colleague and wife Rosalind Lee, who was also the first author on the 1993 'Cell' paper cited by the Nobel Committee.]( [Follow @mit on Instagram→]( In the Media Why even a PhD isn’t enough to erase the effects of class // Financial Times Assistant Professor Anna Stansbury discusses her recent research on the class ceiling, which finds that an individual’s family circumstances can hold them back, even if they have earned a PhD. [Full story via The Financial Times→]( Opinion: Combating misinformation runs deeper than swatting away “fake news” // Scientific American Professor David Rand and University of Pennsylvania postdoc Jennifer Allen highlight new challenges in the fight against misinformation. [Full story via Scientific American→]( Opinion: Why the dockworker strike was really an aging-workforce issue // Market Watch Joseph Coughlin, director of the MIT AgeLab, emphasizes that the dockworker strike was “emblematic of broader shifts in the American workforce and the integration of technology in the workplace. As older generations retire and younger ones seek more flexible, technology-driven careers, traditional industries must adapt or be left behind.” [Full story via Market Watch→]( Watch: Connecting to the health care of tomorrow // CNN Associate Professor Canan Dagdeviren and Professor Hugh Herr discuss their work aimed at empowering patients and doctors. [Full story via CNN→]( Nano Day #[Three by three grid of travel-poster style illustrations showing scientists and engineers “traveling” to the nanoscale by using different types of equipment at MIT.nano]( Oct. 9 was National Nanotechnology Day, celebrating the scale of a nanometer, 10⁻⁹ or one billionth of a meter. Each year, we celebrate 10/9 to shine a light on the potential of nanoscale discoveries and innovations to help solve some of the biggest challenges facing society. For Nano Day 2024, MIT.nano invited all to “travel” to the nano age using its facilities with these printable posters. [Learn more via MIT.nano →]( Watch This #[Hashim Sarkis headshot]( In this installment of the “[World at MIT]( video series, MIT School of Architecture and Planning Dean Hashim Sarkis describes how the physical landscape of his hometown of Beirut, Lebanon, and his experience with rug arts shaped an early interest in art and architecture. While studying architecture history, Sarkis remembers seeing photos of MIT’s modernist buildings before knowing anything else about the Institute. He believes that “the world is made by us and therefore can be transformed by us.” [Watch the video→]( MIT on… Hurricanes #[Satellite image of Hurricane Milton in the Gulf of Mexico]( What are MIT scholars working on in hurricane science, prediction, engineering, and recovery? Browse the MIT News archives to learn more. [Hurricane articles on MIT News →]( [“] [Scientists] must have some kind of ability to stick it out when there are long droughts. When I started my PhD work in the field I eventually went into … the first 23 experiments didn’t work. But the 24th worked! And that ended up being my thesis. —Institute Professor Ann Graybiel and 2024 Citation Laureate in neuroscience [Learn more→]( This edition of the MIT Weekly was brought to you by [learning by doing at MIT](. 🪚 Have feedback to share? Email mitdailyeditor@mit.edu. 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