The principles involved in morphogenesis and the determination of complex cellular patterns are examined using examples from animal systems in which the tools of genetics, molecular biology and cell biology have been applied to reveal mechanism. This graduate and advanced undergraduate level lecture and literature discussion course covers the current understanding of the molecular mechanisms that regulate animal development. Evolutionary mechanisms are emphasized as well as the discussion of relevant diseases. Vertebrate (mouse, chick, frog, fish) and invertebrate (fly, worm) models are covered. Specific topics include formation of early body plan, cell type determination, organogenesis, morphogenesis, stem cells, cloning, and issues in human development.

This class surveys developmental entrepreneurship via case examples of both successful and failed businesses and generally grapples with deploying and diffusing products and services through entrepreneurial action. By drawing on live and historical cases, especially from South Asia, Africa, Latin America as well as Eastern Europe, China, and other developing regions, we seek to cover the broad spectrum of challenges and opportunities facing developmental entrepreneurs. Finally, we explore a range of established and emerging business models as well as new business opportunities enabled by developmental technologies developed in MIT labs and beyond.

Considers molecular control of neural specification, formation of neuronal connections, construction of neural systems, and the contributions of experience to shaping brain structure and function. Topics include: neural induction and pattern formation, cell lineage and fate determination, neuronal migration, axon guidance, synapse formation and stabilization, activity-dependent development and critical periods, development of behavior.

Role of the engineer as patent expert and as technical witness in court and patent interference and related proceedings. Rights and obligations of engineers in connection with educational institutions, government, and large and small businesses. Various manners of transplanting inventions into business operations, including development of New England and other US electronics and biotech industries and their different types of institutions. American systems of incentive to creativity apart from the patent laws in the atomic energy and space fields. For graduate students only; others see 6.901.

This course takes a 'back to the beginning' view that aims to better understand the end result. What might be the developmental processes that lead to the organization of 'booming, buzzing confusions' into coherent visual objects? This course examines key experimental results and computational proposals pertinent to the discovery of objects in complex visual inputs. The structure of the course is designed to get students to learn and to focus on the genre of study as a whole; to get a feel for how science is done in this field.

This is the first semester of a two-semester sequence on Differential Analysis. Topics include fundamental solutions for elliptic; hyperbolic and parabolic differential operators; method of characteristics; review of Lebesgue integration; distributions; fourier transform; homogeneous distributions; asymptotic methods.

In this course, we study elliptic Partial Differential Equations (PDEs) with variable coefficients building up to the minimal surface equation. Then we study Fourier and harmonic analysis, emphasizing applications of Fourier analysis. We will see some applications in combinatorics / number theory, like the Gauss circle problem, but mostly focus on applications in PDE, like the Calderon-Zygmund inequality for the Laplacian, and the Strichartz inequality for the Schrodinger equation. In the last part of the course, we study solutions to the linear and the non-linear Schrodinger equation. All through the course, we work on the craft of proving estimates.

Fall: Fundamental solutions for elliptic, hyperbolic and parabolic differential operators. Method of characteristics. Review of Lebesgue integration. Distributions. Fourier transform. Homogeneous distributions. Asymptotic methods. Spring: Sobolev spaces. Fredholm alternative. Variable coefficient elliptic, parabolic and hyperbolic linear partial differential equations. Variational methods. Viscosity solutions of fully nonlinear partial differential equations. The main goal of this course is to give the students a solid foundation in the theory of elliptic and parabolic linear partial differential equations. It is the second semester of a two-semester, graduate-level sequence on Differential Analysis.

The laws of nature are expressed as differential equations. Scientists and engineers must know how to model the world in terms of differential equations, and how to solve those equations and interpret the solutions. This course focuses on the equations and techniques most useful in science and engineering.

This course is an introduction to differential geometry. The course itself is mathematically rigorous, but still emphasizes concrete aspects of geometry, centered on the notion of curvature.

Digital Anthropology is a Spring 2003 applied social science and media arts seminar, surveying the blossoming arena of digital-artifact enabled experimental sociology/anthropology.ĺĘWe will emphasize onĺĘboth (a) Technology Testbeds -- systematically deploying research lab prototypes and corporate pre-production products in a sample human organizational population and carefully observing the social consequences, and (b) Sociometrics -- using digital artifacts to better observe and measure the complex social reality of interesting human systems.

This course will guide graduate students through the process of using rapid prototyping and CAD/CAM devices in a studio environment. The class has a theoretical focus on machine use within the process of design. Each student is expected to have completed one graduate level of design computing with a full understanding of solid modeling in CAD. Students are also expected to have completed at least one graduate design studio.

The "Digital Lab Techniques Manual" is a series of videos designed to help you prepare for your chemistry laboratory class. Each video provides a detailed demonstration of a common laboratory technique, as well as helpful tips and information. These videos are meant to supplement, and not replace, your lab manual and assigned reading. In fact, you will most benefit from watching the videos if you have already read the appropriate background information. To be a great experimentalist, you must understand both theory and technique! If you have questions about what you see, make sure to ask your TA or your instructor. WARNING NOTICE: The experiments described in these materials are potentially hazardous and require a high level of safety training, special facilities and equipment, and supervision by appropriate individuals. You bear the sole responsibility, liability, and risk for the implementation of such safety procedures and measures. MIT shall have no responsibility, liability, or risk for the content or implementation of any of the material presented.

This is an advanced subject in computer modeling and CAD CAM fabrication, with a focus on building large-scale prototypes and digital mock-ups within a classroom setting. Prototypes and mock-ups are developed with the aid of outside designers, consultants, and fabricators. Field trips and in-depth relationships with building fabricators demonstrate new methods for building design. The class analyzes complex shapes, shape relationships, and curved surfaces fabrication at a macro scale leading to new architectural languages, based on methods of construction.

This course was developed in 1987 by the MIT Center for Advanced Engineering Studies. It was designed as a distance-education course for engineers and scientists in the workplace. Advances in integrated circuit technology have had a major impact on the technical areas to which digital signal processing techniques and hardware are being applied. A thorough understanding of digital signal processing fundamentals and techniques is essential for anyone whose work is concerned with signal processing applications. Digital Signal Processing begins with a discussion of the analysis and representation of discrete-time signal systems, including discrete-time convolution, difference equations, the z-transform, and the discrete-time Fourier transform. Emphasis is placed on the similarities and distinctions between discrete-time. The course proceeds to cover digital network and nonrecursive (finite impulse response) digital filters. Digital Signal Processing concludes with digital filter design and a discussion of the fast Fourier transform algorithm for computation of the discrete Fourier transform.

An introduction to the cross-cultural study of bio-medical ethics. Examines moral foundations of the science and practice of western bio-medicine through case studies of abortion, contraception, cloning, organ transplantation and other issues. Evaluates challenges that new medical technologies pose to the practice and availability of medical services around the globe, and to cross-cultural ideas of kinship and personhood. Discusses critiques of the bio-medical tradition from anthropological, feminist, legal, religious, and cross-cultural theorists.

This course introduces principles and technologies for converting heat into electricity via solid-state devices. The first part of the course discusses thermoelectric energy conversion and thermoelectric materials, thermionic energy conversion, and photovoltaics. The second part of the course discusses solar thermal technologies. Various solar heat collection systems will be reviewed, followed by an introduction to the principles of solar thermophotovoltaics and solar thermoelectrics. Spectral control techniques, which are critical for solar thermal systems, will be discussed.

Enzymes, nature's catalysts, are remarkable biomolecules capable of extraordinary specificity and selectivity. Directed evolution has been used to produce enzymes with many unique properties, including altered substrate specificity, thermal stability, organic solvent resistance, and enantioselectivity--selectivity of one stereoisomer over another. The technique of directed evolution comprises two essential steps: mutagenesis of the gene encoding the enzyme to produce a library of variants, and selection of a particular variant based on its desirable catalytic properties. In this course we will examine what kinds of enzymes are worth evolving and the strategies used for library generation and enzyme selection. We will focus on those enzymes that are used in the synthesis of drugs and in biotechnological applications. This course is one of many Advanced Undergraduate Seminars offered by the Biology Department at MIT. These seminars are tailored for students with an interest in using primary research literature to discuss and learn about current biological research in a highly interactive setting. Many instructors of the Advanced Undergraduate Seminars are postdoctoral scientists with a strong interest in teaching.

In recent years, the redistribution of risk has created conditions for natural and technological disasters to become more widespread, more difficult to manage, and more discriminatory in their effects. Policy and planning decision-makers frequently focus on the impact that human settlement patterns, land use decisions, and risky technologies can have on vulnerable populations. However, to ensure safety and promote equity, they also must be familiar with the social and political dynamics that are present at each stage of the disaster management cycle. Therefore, this course will provide students with: 1) An understanding of the breadth of factors that give rise to disaster vulnerability; and 2) A foundation for assessing and managing the social and political processes associated with disaster policy and planning.

Discrete stochastic processes are essentially probabilistic systems that evolve in time via random changes occurring at discrete fixed or random intervals. This course aims to help students acquire both the mathematical principles and the intuition necessary to create, analyze, and understand insightful models for a broad range of these processes. The range of areas for which discrete stochastic-process models are useful is constantly expanding, and includes many applications in engineering, physics, biology, operations research and finance.