Bioengineering at MIT: Building Bridges Between the Sciences, Engineering and Health Care (Part One
In Doug Lauffenburger’s view, MIT’s new bioengineering degree program is not merely justified, it is essential. Revolutionary changes in biological sciences—specifically, in molecular biology and genomics—have given scientists the means to understand and control both the building blocks and larger systems of
Bioengineering at MIT: Building Bridges Between the Sciences, Engineering and Health Care (Part Two
Glycomics, the study of sugars’ role in living systems, is a relative newcomer to the revolution in molecular biology. In fact, Ram Sasisekharan remembers how colleagues told him “not to work on carbohydrates -- that it was useless.” But his research has shown that glycans, observed as long chains or intricat
Innovation in Post-Launch Surveillance and Pharmaco-Vigilance
(Part Two)
These panelists describe struggling to transform their approach to drug safety, while acknowledging the need to regain public trust after troubling episodes involving drug side effects.
Névine Zariffa points out that “no clinical trial program known to man will ever help predict every single instance of ev
Innovation in Manufacturing and Distribution Systems (Part Three)
Genzyme is a leader in personalized medicine, as Mark Bamforth demonstrates. For instance, the company collects cartilage from a single patient, grows it in the lab, and sends it back securely to that same patient. The system, says Bamforth, tolerates “no mix ups.” But the company also deals in drugs sen
Innovation in Bio-Safety Testing from Pre-Clinical to Product Launch
(Part Four)
“To me, systems biology is the religion you switch to when target-based drug discovery doesn’t work,” Noubar Afeyan states boldly. He claims that after losing billions of dollars, the pharmaceutical industry and academia are beginning to see the value in testing drugs by measuring outcomes in biological networks. He
Change Your Mind: Memory and Disease
How do we distinguish our friends from foes? How does dementia destroy memory? And how can past experience invade the present with destructive force? Scientists are closing in on the biochemical roots of these neurological puzzles.
Thomas Insel describes the profound impact of a small group of neuropeptides on
The Implications of Synthetic Biology
There’s no mistaking Drew Endy’s profession: “I like to make things -- that’s what I do.” From his engineer’s perspective, the slow and painful methods of bioengineering demand a solution. Endy hopes to refine the tools necessary to move the field forward. “We’re going from looking at the living world as only c
The Phoenix Mars Lander and Its Mission
This video chronicles the Phoenix mission, from landing day on Mars to the end of its prime mission. It is brief but give a broad overview of the mission and its objectives.
Basic Math: Operations on Numbers
Illustrates Absolute Value and Order of Operations. This video is in lecture format with an instructor using a dry erase board. Run time 30:34.
History of Christopher Columbus
This is a short slide show with sound about the voyage of Christopher Columbus.
Battle of Pea Ridge, Arkansas - CSA tribute (Heritage not Hatred)
The battle at Pea Ridge, Arkansas is shown from the Confederate viewpoint. Basically a slide show with music narration. May be too intense for younger students. A map of the battle location would help students. Also, the fact they mention the battle was with Abe Lincoln's men instead of the United States of America is worth noting.
Passing and Receiving (6 Steps to Soccer Success - 3)
This video, part of a six-part series on the foundational skills of soccer, deals with passing and receiving. Run time 02:10.
Housing the Lowest Income Americans: The Past, Present and Future of Public Housing
Vale provides a historical overview of public housing in America and shares insights from his most recent book Reclaiming Public Housing. He shows provocative images from early advertisements to demonstrate some of society’s long held attitudes toward public housing and those who live in public housing. He analyses government pol
ME++ The Cyborg Self and the Networked City
Throughout history, humans have created unique physical spaces in which to live, work and socialize. But the digital age has completely transformed the places in which we conduct our affairs, according to William J. Mitchell. We don’t congregate at the town bank any more for financial transactions. We visit ATMs or bank online.
The University as Patron of Cutting Edge Architecture
(Part Two)
William Mitchell opens this session by describing MIT as an “enormously critical place.” The Stata Center, during its design and construction, fed the campus “attitude of not taking anything for granted and rethinking premises.” So it’s no surprise that debate and some sparring ensue during this spirited panel.
The University as Patron of Cutting Edge Architecture
(Part One)
The opening of The Ray and Maria Stata Center, MIT’s latest innovative building, inspires this panel’s historical review of collegiate architecture projects. James Ackerman provides the longest lens, focusing first on the earliest, national trends, when buildings served as both residences and classrooms. In the 18th century
The Art of Structural Design: A Swiss Legacy
Bridges serve a utilitarian purpose, but they should also please the eye. David P. Billington celebrates an influential group of Swiss structural engineers who forged a tradition of bridge-building in the 20th century that united form and function with unprecedented grace. His lecture describes the offerings of an exhibit at the MIT Museu
(eco)Logical: Greening the 21st Century City
Without much national fanfare, Chicago has transformed itself into a paragon of green virtue. The remarkable achievements cited by Mayor Daley include: converting nearly every inch of the city’s 26 miles of lakefront to public use, including parks, fountains, bike paths, theatre and concert space; planting 1.6 mi
Voices from New Orleans: Design and Planning Diaspora
There is general agreement that to call New Orleans home means “living with danger, dangerously,” as William Barry put it. You’re “relieved when you dodge the big one, but the big one was always going to come,” says Lawrence Jenkens.
So now that it has come, what next?
There’s a consensus here that m
Rebuilding New Orleans: An Opportunity to Re-Energize the Planning Profession?
There’s no love lost between Kristina Ford and New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin; he made it clear that she was not welcome as the city’s main planner when he assumed office. The bone Ford has to pick is not merely with the current mayor and his notion of a casino- and hotel-dominated New Orleans, but with a wrongheaded plan
