Amit Chowdhry | December 19, 2011 | 290 views | Add a Comment
Categorized under Anant Agarwal, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MIT, Rafael Reif

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is developing software that simulates labs for students to interact with professors and other students. Students can also earn certificates through the simulated labs.

Amit Chowdhry | December 4, 2011 | 335 views | Add a Comment
Categorized under David Heckerman, Jonathan Carlson, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Microsoft Corporation, Ragon Institute

The security research team at Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) has found out something very interesting when developing a tool to fight against e-mail spammers. Microsoft researchers discovered that tools that they have developed for detecting spammers’ efforts to avoid anti-spam filters also works very well for spotting mutations in the HIV virus.

Amit Chowdhry | November 11, 2011 | 672 views | 1 Comment
Categorized under Derrick Kuzak, Ford, Ford Escape, Ford Motor Company, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) has revealed some new technology that will be built into the 2013 Ford Escape, which will be unveiled at the 2011 LA Auto Show next week. Microscopic cells will be used to cut the weight of the new Escape, which will lead to fuel-saving capabilities. This technology, known as MuCell, was invented by scientists at M.I.T.

Riley Kennysmith | July 21, 2011 | 376 views | Add a Comment
Categorized under Assaf Biderman, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MIT Backtalk, MIT SENSEable City Lab, MoMA

MIT’s Backtalk project, now preparing for display at New York’s Museum of Modern Art, asks the question “what if our devices kept talking back to us after we disposed of them?” and demonstrates visually where our abandoned tech goeswhen we leave it behind. The MIT SENSEable City Lab team used GPS tracking to trace the journey of discarded gadgets, from printer cartridges and batteries to cellphones and netbooks. The associate director of the lab, Assaf Biderman, calls the forgotten electronics “both a toxic liability and a potentially valuable resource.” The MoMA exhibit, which opens on the 24th of this month, will give consumers some idea of the future of the technology we own, and how we could handle tech we’re ready to abandon. [Engadget]
Riley Kennysmith | July 19, 2011 | 772 views | 1 Comment
Categorized under Aaron Swartz, Carmen M. Ortiz, JSTOR, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Reddit

Reddit cofounder Aaron Swartz has been charged for data theft by Carmen M. Ortiz, the US Attorney for the District of Massachusetts. He is charged with stealing more than 4 million documents from MIT and academic archive JSTOR. The charges could result in up to 35 years in prison and a fine of $1 million. Swartz’s charges include computer fraud, wire fraud, criminal forfeiture and obtaining information from a protected computer. [The New York Times]
Amit Chowdhry | March 13, 2011 | 820 views | Add a Comment
Categorized under Brian Halligan, Dharmesh Shah, General Catalyst Partners, Google Ventures, Hubspot, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Matrix Partners, Salesforce.com, Scale Venture Partners, Sequoia Capital

Brian Halligan and Dharmesh Shah founded HubSpot Inc. in 2006 and they have recently raised $32 million in Series D. The funding was provided by new investors Google Ventures, Sequoia Capital, and Salesforce.com. Existing investors General Catalyst, Matrix Partners, and Scale Venture Partners also participated in this round. HubSpot has raised a total of $65 million thus far.

Amit Chowdhry | December 2, 2010 | 573 views | Add a Comment
Categorized under Bezos Expeditions, Charles River Ventures, Heartland Robotics, Highland Capital Partners, iRobot, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Rodney Brooks, Sigma Partners

Heartland Robotics is a company that was founded in 2008 by Rodney Brooks. Brooks was an iRobot co-founder and was the former director of MIT’s Computer Science and A.I. Lab. Heartland has raised $20 million in Series B funding led by Highland Capital Partners. The Series B was joined by existing investors Charles River Ventures and Bezos Expeditions along with new investor Sigma Partners. [TMCNet]
Amit Chowdhry | November 25, 2010 | 1,426 views | Add a Comment
Categorized under DepthJS, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Microsoft Xbox 360 Kinect, MIT Media Labs

Students at the MIT Media Lab Fluid Interface Group hacked the Xbox 360 Kinect and made it work with the Windows 7 operating system. These students are controlling their Windows screen using just their hands. The students were able to set up the hack using DepthJS, a system that can make JavaScript work with the Microsoft Kinect to navigate around websites. Check it out in the demo videos below:
