PinnedAtlas of the Senseable City(An excerpt from the new book by Antoine Picon and Carlo Ratti) Introduction: Mapping the Future of Cities Digital urban maps are everywhere. They are not limited — far from it — to geographic information systems used by professional cartographers and planners. They punctuate city life for everyone, popping up…Urban Planning10 min readUrban Planning10 min read
Sep 153 Questions: How are cities managing record-setting temperatures?MIT David Hsu explains what municipal governments are doing as climate change accelerates. July 2023 was the hottest month globally since humans began keeping records. People all over the U.S. experienced punishingly high temperatures this summer. In Phoenix, there were a record-setting 31 consecutive days with a high temperature of…Climate Change5 min readClimate Change5 min read
Sep 12Student interns reflect on their time at the MIT Summer Research ProgramAfter the nine-week program, undergraduates from across the globe share their experiences and academic goals. By Olivia Mintz Summer at MIT is not just for current MIT students. Since 1986, the MIT Summer Research Program (MSRP) has created opportunities for underrepresented college students to attend MIT, conduct research and learn…Summer Internships7 min readSummer Internships7 min read
Aug 29Growing IslandsArchitecture’s Skylar Tibbits says the key to better designing our cities may be spending more time working and playing with sand. An exhibit now on view at the MIT Museum offers visitors a new way to reflect on the dynamics of beach erosion and possible approaches to combating sea-level rise…Architecture4 min readArchitecture4 min read
Jul 19Facing up to democratic distrustStudy: False assumptions about election malfeasance could create a “death spiral” for democracy — but also provide some hope for bipartisan repair. In October 2020, two rival candidates for office in Utah made an unusual television ad together. Incumbent Republican Gov. Spencer Cox and his Democratic challenger, Chris Peterson, appeared…Democracy5 min readDemocracy5 min read
Jun 9Will the charging networks arrive in time?MIT Mobility Forum considers whether startups can provide the infrastructure for electric vehicles, or if more automakers must step in. For many owners of electric vehicles (EVs), or for prospective EV owners, a thorny problem is where to charge them. Even as legacy automakers increasingly invest in manufacturing more all-electric…Electric Vehicles5 min readElectric Vehicles5 min read
May 24The Consumed CityRethinking urban tourism in Venice through big data By Carmelo Ignaccolo Once the heart of a powerful maritime republic, Venice’s historic city has lost more than 120,000 residents since the early 1950s, driven away by myriad issues, including, more recently, 21st-century mass tourism. …Venice4 min readVenice4 min read
May 23Greening roofs to boost climate resilienceRoofscapes, a startup founded by three MIT students, is planning to build green spaces on pitched roofs in Paris, to decrease temperatures while improving quality of life. When the historic cities of Europe were built hundreds of years ago, there were open green spaces all around them. …Paris5 min readParis5 min read
May 1MIT Center for Real Estate advances climate and sustainable real estate research agendaProjects, publications, and academia-industry networks produce pathways for the real estate industry to address the climate crisis. Real estate investors are increasingly putting sustainability at the center of their decision-making processes, given the close association between climate risk and real estate assets, both of which are location-based. This growing emphasis…Real Estate4 min readReal Estate4 min read
Apr 21Low-cost device can measure air pollution anywhereOpen-source tool from MIT’s Senseable City Lab, in the School of Architecture and Planning, lets people check air quality, cheaply. Air pollution is a major public health problem: The World Health Organization has estimated that it leads to over 4 million premature deaths worldwide annually. Still, it is not always…Air Pollution4 min readAir Pollution4 min read
