weather

It’s beginning to feel a lot like winter

A winter chill is finally in the air and it’s officially time to break out those winter jackets, hats, and gloves. The temperature will cool over the next couple days before beginning to warm back up a bit on Sunday, and it’s looking to be pretty windy, so make sure to bundle up. The semester is coming to a close soon and winter break is right around the corner. Best of luck to everyone with their studies, and maybe have a nice hot chocolate while you’re preparing for those final exams! 

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Students gathered in the third floor hallway above the Infinite Corridor to witness MIThenge, a biannual phenomenon where the setting sun aligns perfectly with the corridor, on Saturday, November 9th. Michelle Xiang — The Tech
News

Institute goes tuition free for undergraduates with family income below $200,000 effective 2025-2026

On Nov. 20, MIT announced that it would become tuition free for undergraduates whose families earned below $200,000 starting in the academic year 2025-2026.

News

Four 2025 Rhodes Scholars hail from MIT

Yiming Chen ’24, Wilhem Hector ’25, Anushka Nair ’25, and David Oluigbo ’25 have been selected as 2025 Rhodes Scholars to pursue postgraduate studies at Oxford University beginning next fall.

News

MIT Life Sciences and Health Symposium launch makes call for poster submissions

The inaugural MIT Life Sciences and Health Symposium will take place Dec. 4 on Kresge Lawn from 5:00 to 6:30 P.M. Undergraduates, graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, are encouraged to submit work in the life sciences and engineering for a chance to win cash prizes in the poster categories that include basic scientific discovery, interdisciplinary work, and healthcare applications. 

News

Troy Van Voorhis to step down as Chemistry Department Head

In an email to the MIT Chemistry community, Department Head and Haslam and Dewey Professor of Chemistry Troy Van Voorhis announced that he would be stepping down as Department Head after five years of service effective at the end of the 2024 to 2025 academic year. 

News

Fire erupts in fume hood of Building 18

Shortly before 12:30 P.M. on Nov. 20, a fume hood on the first floor of Building 18 caught fire. Building 18 houses several laboratories belonging to the Institute’s Chemistry Department. Emergency services responded promptly and sections of Ames Street were closed as the building was evacuated. Approximately ten minutes after the fire began, it was extinguished by the Cambridge Fire Department.  

Sports

Both Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Win NCAA Regionals, Advance to the National Championship

Both MIT’s Men’s and Women’s Cross Country teams won the NCAA East Regional Championship and secured spots at the Division III National Championship on November 23rd in Terre Haute, Indiana. 

Sports

MIT Women’s Soccer Shines in NEWMAC Postseason Awards; Barnouw Named Athlete of the Year, Davis and Coaching Staff Also Honored

On November 14, the NEWMAC conference released its Women’s Soccer postseason awards. Voted on by the league’s 12 coaches following the regular season, MIT earned numerous accolades following their largely successful 20-1-1 year. 

Sports

MIT Women’s Soccer Falls to Colby 0-2 in the NCAA Round of 32

Over the weekend, the MIT Women’s Soccer Team hosted games for the first two rounds of the NCAA D-III Women’s Soccer Tournament at Steinbrenner Stadium. MIT won their Round of 64 match 3-1 over SUNY Geneseo, but ultimately fell short to Colby 0-2, knocking them out of the tournament and into the offseason.

Sports

Smith Downs MIT 3-2 in NEWMAC Championship, Ending 31-Game Winning Streak

In a tight, back-and-forth outing, Smith College upset No. 4 MIT on Sunday in five sets, ending their season-long 31 game winning streak and preventing them from claiming their 4th straight NEWMAC title. Smith defeated MIT by set scores of 25-17, 21-25, 25-21, 16-25, and 15-11.

Sports

Four Men’s Soccer Engineers Make All-Conference Team; Montupally Named Rookie of the Year.

On November 15th, the NEWMAC conference released their Men’s Soccer postseason awards, which are determined by the conference’s 9 coaches following the regular season.

Sports

Five Field Hockey Engineers Claim All-Conference Honors; Hussar Selected Co-Rookie of the Year

On November 13th, the NEWMAC conference released their Field Hockey postseason awards. The awards are voted on by the league’s 10 coaches following the regular season. Despite falling short to Babson in the NEWMAC Championship, the Engineers still took home seven distinctions to cap off a productive 14-5 season.

puzzles & games

Crossword: Scientific Literacy

This is a themed lightly challenging puzzle constructed by Charlotte Myers and edited by Manaal Mohammed. Play the online version here.

vivian's reflections

Dear Brother

I have been thinking about you a lot this past week, especially your younger self.

advice

Crushing on my friend’s ex

Auntie's Family addresses the perennial question of when budding romance clashes with existing friendships.

play review

The Huntington’s Sojourners Captivates and Stirs Emotion

In Sojourners by Mfoniso Udofia, we follow the story of Abasiama and her husband Ukpong, a Nigerian couple studying in Houston in the 70s. The play tackles several themes, such as assimilation, betrayal, love, longing, and friendship to create a stunning and emotionally resonant production.

concert review

A rich soundscape: Hiromi’s Sonicwonder is a seamless fusion of genres

On Nov. 9, she returned to Berklee, captivating the audience with her latest album release, Sonicwonderland.

theater review

Galileo’s Daughter tries too much and delivers too little

Through these parallel journeys, Director Reena Dutt attempts to explore the themes of female identity, freedom versus constraint, the danger of truth, and one’s relationship with work. Galileo’s Daughter is ripe with fresh ideas and interesting concepts, but ultimately fails to deliver telling something meaningful about any of them.

concert review

The BSO Ignites with Lisiecki on Mozart and Tchaikovsky’s Stunning Pathetique

A sensational performance of one of Mozart's piano concerti and Tchaikovsky at the BSO.

movie review

The tragicomedy of America’s urban underbelly in Anora, Sean Baker’s glossiest film yet

Baker has spent a career imbuing genuine, flawed humanity in characters from all walks of life. Anora is yet another notch in a celebrated belt for thoughtfully telling the stories of sex workers, but also offers an optimistically complex, humanizing take on all sorts of other tropes.

Science

Seeing is Believing, Hearing is Revealing

A MIT and Northwestern study finds humans are more adept at spotting political deepfakes than previously thought.

Science

Meet Nergis Mavalvala PhD ’97, Dean of the School of Science

Learn about Dean Mavalvala’s journey to MIT from Pakistan, her “Mind Blown” notebook of ideas, the Life Sciences and Health Collaborative, and her perspectives on how MIT has evolved.

Science

realtalk@MIT: Using AI to bring human conversation to life

A new Media Lab program uses AI to create audio medleys from small group conversations. The goal is to build trust and understanding in the MIT community.

Science

Digital simulations help robots learn real-world tasks

A novel approach to training robots using 3D scans of real environments paves the path for robust and accessible home robotics.

News

in-short-v144-n19

Wednesday Nov. 20. was the drop deadline, the last day to cancel full-term subjects from registration.

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The 2024 Election: The Institute Reacts

MIT Human Insight Collaborative holds launch event on Oct. 28.

The Institute launched the MIT Human Insight Collaborative (MITHIC), an initiative seeking to promote intersectionality between faculty in the humanities, arts, and social sciences and their peers across MIT in a formal kickoff event on Oct. 28. 

Opinion
10746 trump wins 1   copy

What now?

A New, Greener Leaf for MIT Committees on Climate?

On Friday, September 13th, 2024, Professor Richard Lester announced the formation of the Ad Hoc Committee on Climate-Related Industry Engagements, charged with examining the question of whether or not President Kornbluth’s new Climate Project – an initiative to address the challenges of climate change—should accept funding from the fossil fuel...

Daniela Rus, The People Demand: No More Research for Genocide

Today, MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) conducts research funded by the Israeli Ministry of Defense (IMoD), with direct applications to the ongoing genocide in Gaza. We, the MIT Coalition for Palestine, whose tuition and labor support CSAIL, call on CSAIL Director Daniela Rus to lead by example...

Arts

40 years of naysayers were right about Megalopolis, Coppola’s visually ugly and thematically inept magnum opus

For a movie this personal, its failure singularly lies in the hands of its director. However, it doesn't help that the leading actors are all in over their heads, including phoned-in performances that are neither camp or serious enough from a cast led by Adam Driver.

Boston Ballet Stuns in the 2024 Fall Experience Premiere

Boston Ballet combines phenomenal dancing, music, and creativity within four contemporary dance pieces.

Beyond the keys in Schubert: a dynamic between instrument and concert hall

A pianist’s instrument is both the piano and the hall, and the interplay of these was challenged at Paul Lewis’s all-Schubert Celebrity Series recital in NEC Jordan Hall. Known to be an expert in Schubert’s music, Paul Lewis made it clear that there were voices he wanted the audience to...

Sports

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SPORTS BLITZ

Women’s Club Soccer Loses 0-3 at Regionals

MIT’s Women Club Soccer traveled to Stony Brook University this past weekend to compete in the NIRSA Region 1 Club Soccer Tournament. They entered the tournament as the No. 21 seed, and were slated to face fourth-seeded RIT, ninth-seeded Temple, and sixteenth-seeded Brown in pool play.

Upcoming (and ongoing) NEWMAC Championship Tournaments

With the regular season in the books, many of MIT’s fall athletic teams are slated to compete in their respective NEWMAC Championship Tournaments. At the time of publication, many are still ongoing. Here is a recap of how MIT’s teams stand.

Campus Life

MIT Runs on Dunkin’

Donuts, dollars, and dismissals: The Student Center Dunkin’ encounters friction between management, ownership, and MIT.

For Your Thoughts: American Healthcare

Each time I make a visit to a hospital, I am austerely reminded, no niceties spared, that our glorious nation’s top-of-the-line medical system is in complete and utter shambles.

On Freshman Fall: Fears and the Firehose

Auntie Matter provides advice to a freshman facing the fall firehose.