Cambridge, Boston and region

“SPACE,” a theater production from The Catalyst Collaborative at MIT and Brit d’Arbeloff Women in Science, will premiere at the Central Square Theater and run through February 23, reports Jacquinn Sinclair for The Boston Globe. The production “centers on the Mercury 13, a group of women who passed the same tests as men to be eligible to join the astronaut program in the 1960s, but ultimately were not granted access to the NASA space program in 1962,” explains Sinclair. “The story meshes fiction with historical records to amplify the work of trailblazing pilots, engineers, and activists who fought to ascend past the glass ceiling of gender discrimination in aviation.” 

The MIT Museum is hosting an event with Harvard University Prof. Cass Sunstein about his new book, “Climate Justice: What Rich Nations Owe the World – and the Future,” reports Adelaide Parker for The Boston Globe. The event will explore “our obligations to our fellow humans – and how climate change means our actions have global consequences,” writes Parker. 

Writing for The Boston Globe, Prof. Karilyn Crockett explores the history of the Home for Aged Colored Women and its residents, noting that “uncovering the stories of these women, many of whom worked for decades as domestic servants for wealthy Boston families, has been a revelation." Crockett explains that: “using US Census records, Ancestry.com, and materials from the Massachusetts Historical Society and National Park Service, students painstakingly sifted through newspapers, birth certificates, and cursive-laden archival records to bring these women to life.” 

Georgina Campbell Flatter SM '11 has been named the chief executive of Greentown Labs, the “nation’s largest clean-tech incubator,” reports Jon Chesto for The Boston Globe. “This is a pretty critical time for energy and climate, and we all need to lean in,” says Flatter. 

Joseph Coughlin, director of the MIT AgeLab, speaks with Boston Magazine reporter Jaci Conry about research and initiatives underway in the greater Boston area that could make the region a “longevity hub.” Coughlin explains: “Few people are prepared for how long retirement will be. We want them to consider what their social portfolio might entail as they age, along with mobility and seeing their home as a service platform with sensors and devices that can help you age in place.”  

Prof. Jonathan Gruber speaks with Boston Globe reporter Camilo Fonseca about the housing and rental market in Massachusetts. “The big picture here is not whether rents go up a bit less than expected,” says Gruber. “It is that rents are generally unaffordable for so many families. The solution is simple: we need to build more affordable housing.”

Boston Globe reporter Mark Feeney spotlights the “Moving Objects” exhibit at the MIT Museum, which features 50 or so items from the museum’s permanent collection. “Over the course of five years, 140 truckloads got moved when the museum transferred its holdings from several sites to a new storage facility, in Medford,” Feeney writes. “The items in the show were chosen because in one way or another the movers found themselves affected by them. They were amusing or beautiful or unexpected or otherwise unusual.”

Gloria L. Fox, the longest-serving Black woman representative in the Massachusetts Legislature who completed the MIT Community Fellows program, has died at the age of 82, reports Tiana Woodard for The Boston Globe. Fox is remembered as a “superwoman, a legend, and a lifelong advocate of Boston’s black communities,” writes Woodard. “Fox held the seat, representing parts of Roxbury, Dorchester, Mission Hill, and the Fenway for more than 30 years… she championed legislation that addressed health disparities, foster care, criminal justice, and disinvestment, no matter what opposition she faced.” 

The MIT Museum is hosting an “After Dark: Made in the ‘90s” event on December 12, reports Claudine Bellanger for The Boston Globe. The event “will feature retro games, a discussion of the decade’s space exploration pursuits with former astronaut Jeffrey Hoffman,” and more, writes Bellanger. 

Boston Business Journal reporter Hannah Green spotlights the MIT Health and Life Sciences Collaborative, a new effort designed to connect researchers, medical professionals, and industry leaders in a shared mission to address some of the most pressing health challenges of our time. Green notes that the collaborative aims to “spur high-impact discoveries and health solutions through interdisciplinary projects across engineering, science, AI, economics, business, policy, design, and the humanities.” 

Writing for The Boston Globe, Prof. Joshua Angrist, Prof. Parag Pathak and Amanda Schmidt of Blueprint Labs examine the effectiveness of Boston’s school assignment system and transportation policy. “Boston schools have improved greatly since 1974: Dropout rates for all students have declined, and gaps by race, while still present, have narrowed,” they write. “School assignment plans originating in 1974 may therefore be less useful today. It’s time to consider changing transportation policy in light of these changes in the city’s education landscape.” 

Mayor Michelle Wu has named Prof. Kairos Shen as Boston’s new city planning chief, reports Kelly Garrity for Politico. “Shen previously served as city planner under the late Mayor Tom Menino, and touts more than two decades of experience at the Boston Redevelopment Authority on his resume,” explains Garrity. 

Mayor Michelle Wu has named Prof. Kairos Shen as Boston’s new Chief of Planning, reports Boston Herald. “I’m thrilled to welcome Kairos into leadership of Boston’s Planning Department and all the critical functions shaping the built environment for affordability, equity, and resilience,” says Wu. “As a longtime friend and advisor, Kairos brings an unparalleled knowledge and expertise of this work and our communities.”

Prof. Kairos Shen has been named Boston’s new Chief of Planning, reports Jon Chesto for The Boston Globe. Shen, who previously served as Boston’s top city planner for two decades, “brings tremendous design expertise and a deep understanding of Boston’s distinct neighborhoods and factions,” writes Chesto. “I love the city and I spent many years serving it,” says Shen of his appointment. “I think being able to be more reflective and having experience outside of City Hall and looking at cities all over the world, I hope I can bring [a] kind of greater wisdom that I didn’t have when I left City Hall.”

The MIT Museum is hosting “Game On!” – a free event aimed at providing gamers of all ages an opportunity to “face off against a robot in Connect 4, pick up skills from Doom-playing bacteria, see if a hacked oscilloscope can hit a 30-note streak on Guitar Hero,” and more, reports Emily Wyrwa for The Boston Globe. The event, which is part of the Cambridge Science Festival, will be held on September 26, 2024.