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Tech Connection - A monthly e-newsletter for MIT Alumni

November 2006

	SPOTLIGHTS
		Fundamentals of Cancer Research: 10 Online Videos MIT Credit Card Offers Low Rate, No Fee 'Your Name in Space' Funds Student Biosatellite

In This Issue:

MIT Team Proposes Silent, Eco-Friendly Plane

MIT and Cambridge University researchers unveiled the conceptual design for a silent, environmentally friendly passenger plane in November. "Public concern about noise is a major constraint on expansion of aircraft operations," says MIT Professor Edward M. Greitzer. "The 'silent aircraft' can help address this concern and thus aid in meeting the increasing passenger demand for air transport."

Quick Take: Modern Geekhood

Wearable computing, fractal art, robot and programming contests, and favorite sci-fi books spell one thing: modern geekhood. Find out how MIT students have a geeky good time.

RESEARCH & DISCOVERY

• Wireless Energy Could Power Consumer, Industrial Electronics
  Recharging your laptop computer, your cell phone, and a variety of other gadgets may one day be as convenient as surfing the web--wirelessly. Learn about the physics of non-radiative energy transfer and the possible design of wireless-power systems.

• MIT Survey: Climate Change Tops Americans' Environmental Concerns
  Americans now rank climate change as the country's most pressing environmental problem - a dramatic shift from three years ago, when it ranked sixth.

• Periwinkle Serves as Tiny Chemical Plant
  "Plants are really nature's best chemists," says an MIT researcher who is studying how to manipulate the periwinkle's complicated biosynthetic pathways to produce novel compounds, including some with pharmacological benefits.

OPPORTUNITIES FOR ALUMNI

• Alumni Invited to Coauthor Collaborative Business Book
  MIT alumni are invited to collaborate on the first networked book on business, titled We Are Smarter than Me. The book project, founded by Sloan and Wharton School faculty, focuses on how the emergence of community and social networks will change the future rules of business.

• Wanted: Challenging Assignments for Engineering Students
  Sign up to host a student from the School of Engineering's Undergraduate Practice Opportunities Program (UPOP) and you'll get fresh insights from MIT classrooms about engineering, biotech, financial services, and more. Info? Email ronda@mit.edu or call 617.452.2856.

• Sedona and the Grand Canyon: Walk through Time, March 11-17, 2007
  Dust off those hiking boots and join fellow MIT alums on a walk through the awe-inspiring scenery of Sedona and the Grand Canyon. With local experts, examine fossil evidence of early life, travel the evolution of species, witness the striking effects of eons of wind and weather erosion, and learn about tribal history, culture, and art.

Is Giving to MIT Part of Your Holiday Cheer?

Please consider including MIT among your priorities for year-end giving. Making a gift by Dec. 27 will insure processing in the 2006 tax year. Visit the Giving to MIT Web site to learn more about ways you can give to MIT including via credit cards online, gifts of stock, and new opportunities through the Pension Protection Act of 2006.

KEEP LEARNING ONLINE

• Learn About Stem Cells, Entrepreneurship, Angel Investing by Podcast
  Interested in stem cell research? How about global entrepreneurship or angel investing? Then download the MIT Enterprise Forum's most recent global broadcasts as video podcasts. Don't have an iPod? No problem. Anyone can watch the programs on their computer via iTunes or QuickTime. Go to the MIT Enterprise Forum Web site for available programs.

• Tune in. Learn More on Technology Review Online
  MIT's alumni magazine offers online features beyond the print version, including new articles and multimedia. Go to Technology Review for fresh stories on self-repairing robots, a statistical approach to translating Chinese and Arabic, Special Reports on topics from living longer to tomorrow's cars, and video logs on events such as the annual Emerging Technologies conference.

EVENTS

• France: Wine Week in Bandol, Dec. 1-3
  Join fellow alumni during the annual wine festival in Bandol in the south of France. Visit wine cellars, wine museums, and enjoy a wine-tasting dinner.

• Cambridge: Biofuels—Flash in the Pan or a New Energy Era? Dec. 13
  Join creative entrepreneurial minds who are addressing the triple challenge—to lessen dependence on foreign petroleum, clean up the environment, and make money doing it.

• Coast to Coast: Holiday Parties, December
  Many MIT clubs celebrate the winter holidays in December. Visit the Alumni Association events calendar to find out when a nearby group is gathering.

About Tech Connection

Tech Connection, a monthly e-newsletter for alumni and friends of MIT, is available in HTML and text-only formats. Please email mitalum@mit.edu to request the text-only format or to subscribe.

Please email comments to:
Nancy DuVergne Smith
Editorial Director
MIT Alumni Association