Join us for a rejuvenating 30-minute meditation session led by an experienced Buddhist monk.This weekly session is open to the MIT community and offers a peaceful break to manage stress, ease frustration, and enhance focus. By practicing mindfulness meditation, you'll not only boost your compassion, energy, and productivity but also connect with like-minded peers who share a passion for mental wellness. Sessions feature light meditation guidance and time for silent practice.Whether you're new to meditation or an experienced practitioner, this session provides a supportive space to cultivate inner peace and resilience. Don't miss this opportunity to recharge and foster a mindful community.

"The Impacts of Employee Recognition Programs on Workers and Firms: The Role of Managerial Discretion vs. Worker Voting" | Namrata Kala (MIT Sloan)

Speaker: Qiwei Yu (Princeton)Title: Nonequilibrium Physics of Biological Functions: Bacterial Chromosome Segregation and Chemotaxis Signaling as ExamplesAbstract:Living systems operate far from equilibrium. Continuous dissipation of free energy is required to fulfill a wide range of biological functions—from error correction and environmental sensing to collective behaviors. The close connection between dissipation and function raises two physics questions: (1) How can we quantify dissipation in a complex biological system, especially when only mesoscopic degrees of freedom are accessible? (2) What is the mechanism by which nonequilibrium dynamics is harnessed to execute specific functions?This talk will cover our progress on both fronts. To address the first question, we developed a renormalization-group-type analysis in coarse-grained nonequilibrium systems, which revealed a scaling law for energy dissipation. I will then focus primarily on the second question and present our recent work on two nonequilibrium processes in Escherichia coli: how nonequilibrium polysome dynamics couples chromosome segregation to cell growth, and how dissipative interactions in the chemosensory array enhance signaling speed, sensitivity, and robustness. These examples illustrate the importance of nonequilibrium processes in living systems.

Ten minutes for your mind@2:50 every day at 2:50 pm in multiple time zones:Europa@2:50, EET, Athens, Helsinki (UTC+2) (7:50 am EST) https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88298032734Atlantica@2:50, EST, New York, Toronto (UTC-4) https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85349851047Pacifica@2:50, PST, Los Angeles, Vancouver (UTC=7) (5:50 pm EST) https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85743543699Almost everything works better again if you unplug it for a bit, including your mind. Stop by and unplug. Get the benefits of mindfulness without the fuss.@2:50 meets at the same time every single day for ten minutes of quiet together.No pre-requisite, no registration needed.Visit the website to view all @2:50 time zones each day.at250.org or at250.mit.edu

Speaker: Izzet Coskun (UIC)Title: Brill-Noether for moduli spaces of sheaves on surfacesAbstract:In this talk, I will discuss recent work on Brill-Noether theory for moduli spaces of sheaves on surfaces. I will first discuss the cohomology of the general stable sheaf on surfaces such as K3 and abelian surfaces. If time permits, I will describe some recent results on the cohomology jumping loci. This talk is based on joint work with Jack Huizenga, Howard Nuer, Neelarnab Raha and Kota Yoshioka.

Join MIT Health’s Chief Health Officer, Dr. Cecilia Stuopis, for an introduction to healthcare proxies. In this webinar, you will learn how healthcare proxies work, why they matter, and how to make sure your wishes are honored. Whether you’re making decisions for yourself or supporting a loved one, this webinar will provide valuable guidance on navigating healthcare choices.Attendees should register in advance at: https://wellness.gosignmeup.com/public/Course/browse?courseid=6220Learning objectives:Understanding the importance of advance care planning and healthcare proxiesDefining the decisions you want to make clear to your proxyLearning how to select a proxy that is right for youThe MIT Health Seminar Series are open to members of the MIT community, along with patients who get their care at MIT Health.This seminar will take place in webinar format over Zoom.