In the News | 2024
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In the NewsNovember 18, 2024Elections in the US and Europe and the Transatlantic security relationshipBoston UniversityWhat do the 2024 electoral shake-ups mean for the transatlantic security relationship? SSP Stanton Nuclear Security Fellow Lauren Sukin and SSP Russian Foreign & National Security Policy Fellow Polina Beliakova were among the panel exploring the question. |
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In the NewsNovember 16, 2024MISTI GTL students named 2025 Rhodes ScholarsMIT NewsYiming Chen, Wilhem Hector, and Anushka Nair are among the four selected as the 2025 Rhodes Scholars at MIT. All three are involved with MISTI Global Teaching Labs with placements in Italy, Spain, and Scotland. |
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In the NewsNovember 14, 2024Samurai in Japan, then engineers at MITMIT NewsA new exhibit, "From Samurai into Engineers," explores MIT's first Japanese students and their history. The exhibit was developed in collaboration with Christine Pilcavage, managing director of the MIT-Japan program.
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In the NewsNovember 12, 2024BRICS in transition: From the Kazan Summit to Brazil’s 2025 presidencyMihaela PapaEnsured EuropeMihaela Papa, director of research and a principal research scientist at CIS, discusses how BRICS could evolve as Brazil takes on the BRICS presidency in 2025. |
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In the NewsNovember 7, 2024Kelly Greenhill on the weaponization of migrationAdrian BurtinVox EuropeKelly Greenhill, faculty director of the Center’s Seminar XXI program, speaks on the weaponization of migration, a tactic used by autocratic governments to influence neighbouring countries.
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In the NewsNovember 7, 2024MIT Global Seed Fund enables German-American project for new modeling methodsUniversity of StuttgartIn a collaborative project, researchers from the Institute of Automotive Engineering in Stuttgart and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) aim to enhance vehicle models. This German-American partnership has been made possible through the MIT Global Seed Fund. |
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In the NewsNovember 6, 2024Has Trump's win cost Ukraine the war? What geopolitics experts thinkNewsweekWith Trump's election, the notion of reversing Russian gains seems utterly implausible. Ukraine may be able to continue to defend most of its remaining territory, with the help of its other allies, but it will get only modest help from the US, says Barry Posen, Ford International Professor of Political Science and a member of the Center’s Security Studies Program. Read more. |
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In the NewsNovember 4, 2024Empowering systemic racism research at MIT and beyondScott MurrayResearchers in the MIT Initiative on Combatting Systemic Racism are building an open data repository to advance research on racial inequity in domains like policing, housing, and health care. Fotini Christia, Ford International Professor of Social Sciences in the Department of Political Science and faculty affiliate at CIS, directs the MIT Institute for Data, Systems, and Society (IDSS) and co-leads the Initiative on Combatting Systemic Racism (ICSR). |
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In the NewsNovember 1, 2024Israel's latest escalation in Middle East stokes fears of larger regional conflictWBURJim Walsh, senior research associate at the Security Studies Program (SSP), discusses Israel's recent airstrikes towards Iran and its implications for the region. |
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In the NewsOctober 28, 2024Areg Danagoulian, faculty co-director of the MIT-Eurasia program, is among the recipients of an academic fellowshipAreg Danagoulian, the faculty co-director of the MIT-Eurasia program, received the 2024 Forum on Physics and Society Fellowship “for seminal technological contributions in the field of arms control and cargo security, which significantly benefit international security.” |
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In the NewsOctober 25, 2024Stopping the bombKunal Singh, political scientist of the Security Studies Program, identifies a suite of strategies states use to prevent other nations from developing nuclear weapons. |
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In the NewsOctober 24, 2024World Business Report: The 2024 BRICS SummitMihaela Papa, director of research and principal research scientist at CIS, discusses the 2024 BRICS summit and the group's progress on moving away from the dollar and managing internal conflicts. |
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In the NewsOctober 24, 2024Can Europe really build its own DARPA?Fiona Murray and FrølundEuropean leaders, from Emmanuel Macron to Mario Draghi, have called for the European Union to create its own version of the United States government’s Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. But this is not a new idea, and attempted clones on the continent have failed to achieve their full potential. Read the latest from Fiona Murray, faculty director of MIT-United Kingdom. |
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In the NewsOctober 18, 2024Ukraine’s bold Kursk offensive: A turning point or bargaining chip?Carol R. SaivetzFor the Ukrainian president, the Kursk offensive is the first step toward a possible end-game more favorable to Ukraine. With all the unknowns, it is unclear whether his gambit will succeed. |
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In the NewsOctober 15, 2024BRICS and multilateralism: Four dynamics to watch at the Kazan SummitMihaela PapaThe upcoming BRICS summit, which will take place in the Russian city of Kazan from October 22 to 24, 2024, will be a critical test of the group’s capacity to sustain its growth and work toward uniting the countries of the "global majority." To understand the implications of the enlarged BRICS group for Western global governance agendas, Mihaela Papa, director of research and a principal research scientist at CIS, describes the key dynamics to watch |
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In the NewsOctober 9, 2024Expanded BRICS needs to innovate to show its influenceDirector of research and principal research scientist, Mihaela Papa, discusses how the economic integration of emerging market nations within the expanded BRICS group will be enhanced by advancements in proposals like a payments system and grain exchange. |
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In the NewsOctober 8, 2024Wars are not accidents: Managing risk in the face of escalationErik Lin-GreenbergForeign AffairsIsrael’s assassination of a top Hamas leader in Tehran in July, Ukraine’s incursion over the summer into Russia, and a recent series of increasingly assertive Chinese air and maritime interceptions in the South China Sea have fanned fears that long-simmering conflicts could escalate into broader wars. In the wake of these provocations, analysts fret about the heightened risk of military accidents and strategic misperceptions. |
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In the NewsOctober 2, 2024Can the US stop Israel from attacking Iran's nuclear sites?US President Joe Biden said he would not support any Israeli strike on Iran’s nuclear sites in response to its ballistic missile attack. Jim Walsh, a senior research associate at the MIT’s Security Studies Program who was with the Iranian president last week, says it needs to ‘be tested’ whether Biden can be persuasive 30 days shy of an election. |
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In the NewsSeptember 27, 2024Q&A: David Singer on strengthening democracyMIT NewsCIS research affiliate and head of the political science department David A. Singer discusses a new Strengthening Democracy initiative focused on the rigorous study of elections, public opinion, and political participation. |
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In the NewsSeptember 16, 2024Three SSP PhD students selected to receive fellowships from USIPThree PhD students of the Security Studies Program (SSP) received the 2024-2025 Peace Scholar Dissertation Fellowships from the U.S. Institute of Peace for demonstrating the greatest potential to advance the peacebuilding field and the strongest likelihood to inform policy and practice. |
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In the NewsSeptember 9, 2024Do record gold prices open the door for BRICS+ dedollarisation?Quoted: The demand of BRICS+ central banks for gold is "undeniably a significant factor" contributing to higher prices, says Mihaela Papa, director of research and a principal research scientist at CIS. That demand is coming together with other factors that make gold more attractive as a safe-haven asset, including rising geopolitical risk, fluchuations in US interest rates, and concerns about inflation, she says. |
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In the NewsSeptember 5, 2024Malaysian PM meets Putin in Russia to expand collaboration despite US sanctionsQuoted: For Mihaela Papa, director of research and principal research scientist at CIS, Malaysia’s move towards BRICS “… reveals a more Moscow-friendly and Beijing-friendly stance.” |
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In the NewsSeptember 4, 2024Enabled by a significant gift, MIT’s Security Studies Program launches the Center for Nuclear Security PolicyWith $45 million in support from the Stanton Foundation, the program will expand its longstanding leadership in a critical area of global security. |
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In the NewsSeptember 3, 2024Nurturing successJody MouMariya Grinberg, assistant professor of political science and a faculty member of SSP, was one of the professors honored as "Commited to Caring" for their support of graduate students. |
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In the NewsSeptember 2, 2024China’s defense spending: the $700 billion distractionArthur and Ruth Sloan Professor of Political Science and director of the Security Studies Program M Taylor Fravel, CIS research affiliate George J Gilboy, and CIS principal research scientist and co-director of the Wargaming Lab at SSP Eric Heginbotham discuss the flawed estimates of China's annual defense spending and its widespread use in Congress, the media, and defense circles. |
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In the NewsAugust 8, 2024Pathways to Political Science Summer Research Program hosts second cohort of internsIn June and July, the Global Diversity Lab hosted its second cohort of Pathways to Political Science Summer Research interns. Pathways@GDL is sponsored in partnership with the MIT Summer Research Program (MSRP) and funded by the Department of Political Science, the Center for International Studies and MIT-Africa. |
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In the NewsJuly 31, 2024How the US and its allies can rebuild economic securityEdlyn V. Levine and Fiona MurrayFor the US and, especially, its allies in NATO, a particular problem has emerged: a “missing middle” in technology investment. ... Without this middle-ground commitment, the United States and its partners lack the production know-how that will be crucial for tomorrow’s batteries, the next generation of advanced computing, alternative solar photovoltaic cells, and active pharmaceutical ingredients. Read the latest from Fiona Murray, who is the William Porter (1967) Professor of Entrepreneurship at MIT Sloan and the faculty director of the Center's MIT-UK Program. |
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In the NewsJuly 31, 2024With tensions rising in the Middle East, what role can the US play?Jim Walsh, SSP senior researcher associate, discusses tensions in the Middle East after the death of a Hezbollah commander in Lebanon and a Hamas political leader in Iran. Both countries are blaming Israel for the attack. Concerns abound globally that an all-out war could occur in the region soon. The US is among those nations concerned, he says. |
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In the NewsJuly 26, 2024When learning at MIT means studying thousands of miles awayZach WinnMIT NewsSome lessons can’t be taught in the classroom. That’s the reasoning behind the MISTI Global Classrooms program. Led by MIT faculty members, some Global Classrooms focus on grand challenges such as climate, sustainability, and health, while others deal with language, culture, and society. But all Global Classrooms benefit from their location: MIT students gain a unique perspective on the topics they study by engaging with the local community. |
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In the NewsJune 24, 2024The rules of the gameLeda ZimmermanMIT Political ScienceRaymand Wang, SSP PhD candidate, writes on how rising superpowers like China are “cautious opportunists” in global institutions, and the US should avoid overreaction. |
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In the NewsJune 5, 2024The World at MIT: Mai HassanMITThe experience of growing up in the Sudanese diaspora drew Mai Hassan to political science and a desire to examine topics related to authoritarianism. Hassan is associate director of political science and leads the Center's MIT-Africa Program and MISTI Africa. Learn more about her work in this video. |
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In the NewsMay 28, 2024In international relations, it’s the message, not the mediumPeter DizikesMIT NewsResearch by SSP's Leo Marx Career Development Assistant Professor of the History and Culture of Science & Technology, Erik Lin-Greenberg, and PhD candidate in Security Studies and International Relations, Benjamin Norwood Harris, show warnings issued by world leaders are taken equally seriously whether issued on social media or through formal statements. |
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In the NewsMay 20, 2024Trying to make the gradePeter DizikesMIT NewsBen Ross Schneider’s new book examines why improving public education has been so difficult in Latin America. Schneider is the faculty director of the MIT-Chile Program and Ford International Professor of Political Science. |
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In the NewsMay 17, 2024Vipin Narang promoted to acting assistant secretary of defense for space policyUS Department of DefenseCIS is pleased to announce that Vipin Narang, Frank Stanton Professor of Nuclear Security and Political Science, was promoted from principal deputy assistant secretary of defense for space policy to acting assistant secretary of defense for space policy, effective Monday, May 20. |
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In the NewsMay 16, 2024Scientists use generative AI to answer complex questions in physicsAdam ZeweMIT NewsIn a new study partially funded by the 2022 Switzerland Lockheed Martin Seed Fund at CIS, a new technique that can automatically classify phases of physical systems could help scientists investigate novel materials. |
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In the NewsMay 15, 2024Q&A: Exploring ethnic dynamics and climate change in AfricaLeda ZimmermanMIT NewsDirector of the Center for International Studies and professor of political science, Evan Lieberman, discusses his research into perceptions among African and American citizens about the climate crisis and how their governments are responding. |
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In the NewsMay 14, 20243 Questions: Technology roadmapping in teaching and industryMarisa DemersMIT NewsFaculty director of the Center's MIT-Switzerland Program, Olivier de Weck's approach combines quantitative engineering analysis and strategic thinking to drive innovation. de Weck is the Apollo Program Professor of Astronautics and professor of engineering systems at MIT. |
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In the NewsApril 22, 2024Twenty-three MIT faculty honored as “Committed to Caring” for 2023-25Office of Graduate EducationMIT NewsAmong the honored faculty are three of the Center's faculty, including Kenneth Oye; Erik Lin-Greenberg; and Mariya Grinberg. The honor recognizes professors for their outstanding mentorship of graduate students. Congratulations! |
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In the NewsApril 20, 2024China rebukes US deployment of missiles in Indo-PacificNew Delhi TimesQuoted: “The deployment of these ground-based missiles into the Pacific is a significant development,” says Eric Heginbotham, a principal research scientist at CIS. “For example, in an invasion of Taiwan, a Chinese amphibious fleet would effectively have to anchor off a landing area in Taiwan. Its location would be known. And these maritime strike Tomahawks could go to work, target the fleet, and sink part of it,” he tells VOA. |
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In the NewsApril 11, 2024Surviving without the bomb: Extended deterrence and the strategic use of non-nuclear military power by US alliesHarvard Kennedy School Belief Center for Science and International AffairsOn April 11, Jung Jae Kwon, a PhD candidate in the Security Studies Program, will be speaking on his research into how non-nuclear allies of the US try to generate deterrence without their own nuclear arsenal, and a theory to explain and predict their behavior. |
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In the NewsApril 10, 2024MIT-Mexico Program fosters cross-border collaborationLisa CaponeMIT NewsFor two decades, MIT-Mexico has funded student internships and teaching, as well as faculty research collaborations. |
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In the NewsApril 2, 2024Internationalization as a catalyst for academic excellence and economic growth in PakistanMuhammad Suleman TahirPakistan TodayMISTI is referenced in this article on how "encouraging faculty to collaborate with scholars from around the world on research projects, securing funding for international research initiatives, and participating in global research networks can enhance the visibility and impact of research conducted by Pakistani universities. MIT’s International Science and Technology Initiatives (MISTI) programme facilitates research collaborations between faculty and researchers abroad, leading to innovations with global significance."
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In the NewsMarch 31, 2024The false promise of nuclear deterrence for postwar Ukrainian securityMatthew EvangelistaLawfareFord International Professor of Political Science Barry Posen was referenced in this Lawfare article on how postwar Ukraine should avoid tying its security to nuclear weapons—its own or NATO’s—and instead ensure its conventional forces are robust and defensively oriented. |
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In the NewsMarch 26, 2024How a ‘murder’ in Boston that didn’t happen made national news in IndiaAnjana SankarBoston GlobeReporting from our 2024 Elizabeth Neuffer Fellow. |
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In the NewsMarch 25, 2024Podcast: Social science of war: Why defense reform in Ukraine is crucialAlexandra ChinchillaModern War Institute at West PointPolina Beliakova, Russian Foreign and National Security Policy Fellow at the Security Studies Program, discusses the war in Ukraine with Alexandra Chinchilla on the Social Science of War podcast. |
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In the NewsMarch 25, 2024Building operations for Africa’s most valuable fintechAndrew HusbandMIT Sloan School of ManagementFormer MISTI-Africa student, Awa Koné, always wanted to get involved in Africa’s bustling business ecosystem. Since early 2020, she has been doing just that at the fintech startup Flutterwave. |
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In the NewsMarch 24, 2024What would you have Israel do to defend itself?David BrooksThe New York TimesFord International Professor of Political Science, Barry Posen, was quoted: "Hamas’s strategy could be “described as ‘human camouflage’ and more ruthlessly as ‘human ammunition.'" |
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In the NewsMarch 20, 2024Optimizing nuclear fuels for next-generation reactorsPoornima ApteMIT NewsWhile working to nurture scientific talent in his native Nigeria, Assistant Professor Ericmoore Jossou is setting his sights on using materials science and computation to design robust nuclear components with help from a Global Seed Fund grant. |
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In the NewsMarch 19, 2024Visting scholars from Ukraine kick off Global MIT At-Risk Fellows ProgramLisa CaponeMIT NewsUkrainian researchers and faculty will spend a semester at MIT during the two-year pilot program. |
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In the NewsMarch 16, 2024Policymakers must confront weaponized migration to address border crisisBethany BlankleyKPVIQuoted: "The United States is... being targeted by foreign adversaries through 'weaponized migration,' Kelly Greenhill, a senior research scholar at MIT Center for International Studies, director of Seminar XXI, and author of 'Weapons of Mass Migration,' wrote in an analysis." |
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In the NewsMarch 6, 2024Verschuren shares research at MIT’s Security Studies ProgramBoston University Frederick S Pardee School of Global StudiesLast month, Sanne Verschuren, Assistant Professor of International Security at the Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University, presented her latest research, “Imagining the Unimaginable: War, Weapons, and Procurement Politics,” at the MIT Security Studies Program Wednesday Seminar. |
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In the NewsMarch 1, 2024A careful rethinking of the Iraq WarPeter DizikesMIT NewsThe Arthur and Ruth Sloan Professor of Political Science Roger Petersen's new book details military operations and political dynamics in Iraq, shedding new light on the challenges of state-building. |
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In the NewsMarch 1, 2024Developers got backing for affordable housing. Then the neighborhood found out.Jason DeParleThe New York TimesQuoted: “A lot has changed in American life over the past 50 years, but the hostility to affordable housing has remained surprisingly durable,” said Justin Steil, associate professor of law and urban planning and steering member of the Inter-University Committee on International Migration. |
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In the NewsMarch 1, 2024Climate change and military power: Hunting for submarines in the warming oceanAndrea Gilli, Mauro Gilli, Antonio Ricchi, Aniello Russo, Sandro CarnielTexas National Security ReviewQuoted: "In his prominent work Restraint: A New Foundation for US Grand Strategy, Barry Posen summarizes a widespread view among traditional security studies scholars, noting that there 'might be an argument that such problems [like climate change] strongly affect the sovereignty, territorial integrity, power position, and safety of the United States…[but] this needs to be demonstrated, not assumed.'" |
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In the NewsFebruary 28, 2024Learning and listening in AmazoniaTalia KhanMIT Technology ReviewTalia Khan, a former MISTI MIT-Brazil student, documented their experience returning to the Amazon rainforest with 80 fellow MIT musicians. |
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In the NewsFebruary 28, 2024'Tech Titan' aims to serveJulie FoxMIT Technology ReviewSudhakar Kesavan spent nearly 40 years at consulting firm ICF, serving as CEO from 1999 to 2019, and recently created the MIT-IIT Kanpur Seed Fund to foster more collaboration between India and MIT. |
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In the NewsFebruary 27, 2024Japan’s national security strategy: The role of alliance and partnershipsStimsonChikako Kawakatsu Ueki, visiting scholar at the MIT Security Studies Program, will discuss on the impacts of Japan’s National Security Strategy on Tokyo’s security cooperation with Washington and other like-minded partners. |
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In the NewsFebruary 23, 2024Nourishing the mind, hand, and stomachAngelina ParrilloMIT NewsMIT senior Branden Spitzer explains how his love of food and cooking unlocked his interest in materials science and engineering. Through MISTI, Branden has spent time in the UK, Brazil, and South Africa, and is studying in Denmark this semester. |
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In the NewsFebruary 23, 2024How misinformation and disinformation spread, the role of AI, and how we can guard against themTaylor McNeilTufts NowDirector of the Seminar XXI program, Kelly M Greenhill, shows how to tell the true from the false, and what it means for politics. |
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In the NewsFebruary 23, 2024Video: Can Ukraine keep up the fight against Russia, two years after the invasion?GBH NewsCarol Savietz, senior advisor for MIT's Security Studies Program, joined Gautam Mukunda to discuss the state of the war after nearly two years, hundreds of thousands of deaths, and hundreds of billions in foreign aid from the US. |
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In the NewsFebruary 19, 2024Video: Navalny's widow to carry on his work in RussiaCTV NewsFaculty co-director of MIT-Ukraine program Elizabeth Wood speaks on the future of the Russian president election and European sanctions in the context of Alexei Navalny's death. |
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In the NewsFebruary 15, 2024New York’s congestion pricing is a good start, but Boston can do betterCarlo RattiBoston GlobeMIT-Italy faculty director Carlo Ratti explains how Boston could adopt and improve on New York's congestion pricing to reduce traffic. |
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In the NewsFebruary 9, 2024Death dust: The rise, decline and future of radiological weapons programsJames Martin Center for Nonproliferation StudiesMiddlebury Institute of International Studies at MontereyThis seminar focuses on the findings of the recently published book Death Dust: The Rise, Decline and Future of Radiological Weapons Programs, co-authored by SSP Stanton Nuclear Security Fellow Sarah Bidgood, William Potter, Samuel Meyer, and Hanna Notte. The speakers discuss the evolution of radiological weapons, the key incentives for and impediments to their development and deployment, and the future prospects for their proliferation and use. |
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In the NewsFebruary 6, 2024Reflecting on COP28—and humanity’s progress toward meeting global climate goalsOffice of the Vice President for ResearchMIT NewsAt a debrief hosted at CIS, MIT delegates share observations and insights from the largest-ever UN climate conference. |
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In the NewsFebruary 2, 2024Scene at MIT: Learning ikebana during IAPSchool of Humanities, Arts, and Social SciencesMIT NewsDuring an IAP course offered each year by the MIT-Japan Program, Hiroko Matsuyama works with MIT students on the basics of the ancient art of Japanese flower arrangement. |
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In the NewsJanuary 25, 2024MIT’s UN Climate Change Conference delegation reflects on proposed resolutionsThe TechMIT delegates participated in the United Nations Climate Change Conference, held in 2023 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. They discussed with fellow interational attendees major resolutions like new zero energy systems and reducing reliance on fossil fuels. |
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In the NewsJanuary 24, 2024Calculating the costs of warKathryn M O'Neill MIT Technology ReviewSecurity Studies Program alum Neta Crawford works to reveal the full cost of military activity to show that the only way to prevent war is through society rejecting armed conflict as an acceptable way to resolve disputes. |
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In the NewsJanuary 18, 2024Podcast: The weaponization of migrationWorld Affairs Council of New HampshireKelly M Greenhill, director of the MIT-Seminar XXI Program, discusses the how and why of migration as a "hybrid warfare tactic." |
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In the NewsJanuary 18, 2024AXIAN Telecom partners with the MIT-Africa Program’s education initiative in Ivory CoastAXIAN TelecomZawyaThe MISTI MIT-Africa program has partnered with AXIAN Telecom to launch a new and empowering Global Teaching Labs initiative in Ivory Coast. |
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In the NewsJanuary 18, 2024Pakistan and Iran launch airstrikes at each other, raising regional tensionsPeter O'DowdWBURPeter O'Dowd speaks with SSP senior research associate Jim Walsh about what's at stake in the greater Middle East as Pakistan and Iran take military action against each other. |
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In the NewsJanuary 8, 2024Planting the seeds of change: How UAE rulers fuelled mangrove growth in the 90sAnjana SankarThe National2024 Neuffer Fellow Anjana Sankar discusses Abu Dhabi's long-standing commitment to mangrove conservation and how Australian researcher Ronald Loughland, who played a key role in studying and planting mangroves in Abu Dhabi, highlighted the emirate's significant efforts in increasing mangrove forest area by about 50% between 1990 and 2021. |
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In the NewsJanuary 4, 2024Inclusive research for social changeKaitlin Provencher | Institute for Data, Systems, and SocietyMIT NewsThe MIT Student Research Program pairs underrepresented students with opportunities to examine inequity through the IDSS Initiative for Combatting Systemic Racism. Fotini Christia, Ford International Professor of the Social Sciences is the associate director of IDSS and a co-organizer of the initiative. |
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