Experimental Study Group (ESG)

WMBR builds community from the basement of Walker Memorial with James Rock ’26 at the helm

One of MIT’s best-kept secrets lives in the Institute’s basement MIT's hidden gem Walker Memorial Basement Radio (WMBR 88.1 FM) is a high-fidelity radio station with a rich 80-year history. Learn how MIT students and community members maintain this volunteer-run station, offering diverse programming and building strong community ties.

Isabella Witham '24 named 2024 Fulbright Fellow.

Eleven from MIT awarded 2024 Fulbright fellowships MIT students and alumni April Cheng, Grace McMillan, Ryan McTigue, Keith Murray, Maaya Prasad, Anusha Puri, Olivia Rosenstein, Jennifer Schug, Vaibhavi Shah, Charvi Sharma, and Isabella Witham have been awarded fellowships for 2024-25 cycle of the Fulbright U.S. Student Program.

Study demonstrates efficacy of Brave Behind Bars, cofounded by Marisa Gaetz ’20

Study demonstrates efficacy of MIT-led Brave Behind Bars program A new study demonstrates the efficacy of Brave Behind Bars, an MIT-led web programming course aimed at reducing recidivism by teaching incarcerated individuals digital skills, with significant improvements in self-efficacy and digital literacy noted.

Sabrina Hu '25 named 2024 ESG-PKG Center Fellow. She will work on her Solar Cap project designed to supply solar-powered water purifiers during emergencies. We look forward to seeing the progress she makes over the coming months!

PBS documentary features three ESGers - Fidelis Chimombe ’15, Billy Ndengeyingoma ’15, and Sante Nyambo ’15. You can also catch glimpses of ESG instructors Patti Christie and Dave Custer and the ESG space as well.

Brief Tender Light - POV At MIT, an alum follows four African students striving to become change agents for home.

Congratulations to 2024 Burchard Scholars Miguel Buitrago '26, Esther Kinyanjui ’25, Ariel McGee '26, and James Rock '26 for excellence in humanities, arts, or social sciences!

Thirty-five outstanding MIT students selected as Burchard Scholars for 2024 The Burchard Scholars program selected 35 MIT undergraduates from across STEM disciplines for the competitive designation. It features a seminar series and conversations over dinners with distinguished faculty.

Kevin McComber '05, PhD '11 sparks interest in STEM and advanced manufacturing with integrated photonics

Teaching students about photonics to build up the US workforce The Spark Photonics Foundation, co-founded by MIT alumnus Kevin McComber, incorporates a project-based photonics curriculum into K-12 classrooms to get students interested in STEM fields, especially advanced manufacturing and semiconductors.

TEJI continues to break new ground for the future of higher education for incarcerated individuals

Expanding higher education for incarcerated students The Educational Justice Institute at MIT and the New England Board of Higher Education released a report that aims to expand access to higher education in New England prisons. The report outlines 15 prison-based and community-based recommendations, as well as actions that others can advocate for.

Elaheh Ahmadi ’20 named to Forbes 30 Under 30 in Boston

30 Under 30 Local 2023: Boston From the youngest Medicare insurance company founder to the engineer breaking barriers in deaf-blind communication, here are the young people from Boston reshaping biotech, healthcare and venture capital.

Two ESGers, Audrey Gatta '23 and Duha Syar '23, are part of the MIT Spokes team this year. Check out their adventure!

Home | MIT Spokes 2023 7 Students. 7 bikes. 4,000 miles. 80 days. MIT Spokes is an effort to rethink STEAM education.

Congratulations to Cristine Chen '26, Jyotsna Nair '25, and Mercy Oladipo '23 - winners of 2023 Ilona Karmel Writing Prize!

Winners of the Ilona Karmel Writing Prizes – MIT Comparative Media Studies/Writing Recent winners of the Ilona Karmel Writing Prizes, including for sci-fi, poetry, short story, technical writing, visual arts, essay, and first-year writing.

Pam Stark '23 named 2023 Knight-Hennessy Scholar

Three from MIT named 2023 Knight-Hennessy Scholars Three from MIT have been named 2023 Knight-Hennessy Scholars. Bhav Jain, Pam Stark, and Sreya Vangara will commence funded studies at Stanford University this fall.

Mercy Oladipo '23 and Michael Sutton '23 win Fulbright Fellowships

Thirteen from MIT win 2023 Fulbright fellowships Thirteen MIT undergraduates, graduate students, and alumni have won fellowships from the U.S. State Department's Fulbright U.S. Student Program to pursue grants overseas in 2023-24. For four years in a row, MIT has been named a Fulbright Top-Producing Institution.

Valerie Chen ’22 to solo with the Boston Pops Orchestra at Tech Night at Pops

Tech Night at Pops to Spotlight Cello Soloist An MIT Alumni Association Publication slice Topics Research Alumni Life Campus Culture Video Podcast About Search | Slice of MIT Keywords Sort by Research Alumni Life Campus Culture Video Podcast About Breadcrumb alum.mit.edu Alumni Life Tech Night at Pops to Spotlight Cello Soloist Tech Night at Po...

Duha Syar ’23 and Melissa Stok ’23 tackle real world climate challenges as Climate and Sustainability Scholars

Exploring new sides of climate and sustainability research The yearlong MCSC Climate and Sustainability Scholars Program engages MIT undergrads in developing and implementing research projects. The program includes a classroom component combined with experiential learning opportunities and mentorship, all centered on climate and sustainability topics.

Desmond Edwards ’20 awarded 2023 Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowship for New Americans

Six from MIT awarded 2023 Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans MIT graduate students Kat Kajderowicz and Shomik Verma, alumni Desmond Edwards and Steven Truong, and Vaibhav Mohanty, an MD-PhD student in the Harvard-MIT Program in Health Sciences and Technology, are among 30 recipients of this year’s Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans.

Congratulations to ESG’s winners of the 2023 Isabelle De Courtivron Writing Prize – Alex Nwigwe ’23 and Sophie Vulpe ’26!

2023 de Courtivron Writing Prize announced | MIT Global Languages All participants’ unique and strong voices in the 2023 de Courtivron Prize impressed the selection committee. Entries included essays, short stories, chronicles, and poems. Some authors masterfully challenged definitions of home, ancestry, gender, and identity. Others tenderly described language a...

Malhaar Agrawal '24 named 2023 Truman Scholar. Congratulations Malhaar!

MIT student Malhaar Agrawal named 2023 Truman Scholar MIT junior Malhaar Agrawal has been selected as a 2023 Truman Scholar. The distinguished fellowship recognizes public service leadership and provides funding for graduate school.

Aperiodic monotiles spotted outside Dave Custer's office

Andi Qu '25 immortalizes his Catsby as a solar cell

Solar Catsby | MIT Admissions Turning my little ray of sunshine into a solar cell

Former ESG Director Kim Vandiver on the high speed photography of Doc Edgerton

The High Speed Photography of Prof Harold (Doc) Edgerton 1903-1990 The Edgerton Center is named after ‘Doc’ Edgerton, who arrived at MIT for graduate study in Electrical Engineering in 1926. His perfection of short duration ...

Adam Sachs ’13 applies his MechE learning to minimally invasive surgery

Mechanical engineer-led startups offer healthcare solutions | MIT Department of Mechanical Engineering MIT's Department of Mechanical Engineering (MechE) offers a world-class education that combines thorough analysis with hands-on discovery. One of the original six courses offered when MIT was founded in 1865, MechE's faculty and students conduct research that pushes boundaries and provides creative....

Sheila Xu '13 investigates accessibility in zero gravity

Making space accessible for all Fourteen disabled crew members took trip on a Zero-G flight, conducting research with the hope of making space accessible for all.

Harry Heiberger ’24 uses machine learning to determine the magnetic structure of materials

The task of magnetic classification suddenly looks easier Researchers have found a way to streamline predicting magnetic structures and assigning magnetic classification by employing tools of machine learning, like equivariant Euclidean neural networks.

Aaron Ashley ’16 launches Indigenous Alumni of MIT (IAMIT)

A Rocket Launch for Indigenous Alumni Group Aaron Ashley ’16 is an MIT-trained rocket scientist, but his time outside the classroom at the Institute is what ultimately helped him get the Indigenous Alumni of MIT (IAMIT) off the ground.

Skylar Larsen '23 is reaching for the stars (and the digital art brush too)

Expanding horizons through astronomy and art Whether spending late nights at the observatory or working on animated films, MIT senior Skylar Larsen is reaching for the stars.

ESG Director Leigh Royden's work in geophysics ...

Geophysicist Leigh Royden looks at Earth from the top down MIT geophysicist Leigh “Wiki” Royden combines geophysics and geology to study subduction zones to understand how they create mountain belts. She first studied geophysics after a sports injury led her to the subject.

Amelia Trainer ’19 models neutron behavior in nuclear reactors

Simulating neutron behavior in nuclear reactors MIT graduate student Amelia Trainer’s work in modeling and simulating complicated neutron behavior in reactors is fundamental to understanding how nuclear reactors operate and helps forecast the behavior of reactors.

Elaheh Ahmadi ’20, MNG ’21, breaks down bias with her start-up Themis AI

Breaking down bias in AI applications | STEX Applications built on machine learning algorithms are entrenching themselves everywhere, but they often bring major weaknesses that aren't discovered until after they are deployed. Some of the most obvious examples of faulty or unfair AI applications crop up in the news, such as when autonomous cars...