A celebration of creativity and community at MITArtfinity is a new festival of the arts at MIT featuring 80 free performing and visual arts events, celebrating creativity and community at the Institute. Artfinity launches with the opening of the new Edward and Joyce Linde Music Building on February 15, 2025, continues with a concentration of events February 28-March 16, and culminates with the Eugene McDermott Award in the Arts public lecture by 2025 recipient artist and designer Es Devlin on May 1, 2025, and a concert by Grammy-winning rapper and Visiting Professor Lupe Fiasco on May 2, 2025. Artfinity embodies MIT’s commitment to creativity, community, and the intersection of art, science and technology. We invite you to join us in this celebration, explore the diverse events, and experience the innovative spirit that defines the arts at MIT.About the Artists Artfinity features the innovative work of MIT faculty, students, staff, and alumni, alongside guest artists from the Greater Boston area and beyond.About the Activities & Events All 80 events are open to the public, including dozens of concerts and performances plus an array of visual arts such as projections, films, installations, exhibitions, and augmented reality experiences, as well as lectures and workshops for attendees to participate in. With a wide range of visual and performing arts events open to all, Artfinity embodies MIT’s commitment to the arts and the intersection of art, science, and technology.About the Presenters Artfinity is an institute-sponsored event organized by the Office of the Arts at MIT with faculty leads Institute Professor of Music Marcus Thompson and Professor of Art, Culture and Technology Azra Akšamija. Departments, labs, centers, and student groups across MIT are presenting partners.Visit arts.mit.edu for more information about the arts at MIT.

Time:Location: Philadelphia, PA / University of Pennsylvania

Choose to Reuse!Join us at Choose to Reuse in Lobby 13Event Details: • Location: Lobby 13 • Drop-off Time: Starting at 8:00 AM • Pick-up Time: 11:00 AM - 1:00 PMHow It Works: • From 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM, you can take up to five items per person. After 12:00 PM, there’s no limit, and you’re welcome to come back for more. • Items can be dropped off until 12:15 PM, so there will be new items available throughout the event. • You don’t need to donate in order to pick something up, and you don’t have to take back what you dropped off. • There is no charge, but an MIT ID is required to attend.What is Choose to Reuse? Since 2010, the Working Green Committee and the Department of Facilities have sponsored this monthly event during the academic year. The goal is to reduce our environmental impact and positively affect the community by sharing items instead of buying new ones.What Will You Find? It depends on the donations! We’ll have books, office supplies, housewares, clothes, and more. There may even be toys and stuffed animals. Stop by and see what’s available!Are There Any Restrictions on Donations? Yes. All items should be clean and in working condition. Items should be light enough to carry easily. Food items must be unopened and unexpired. Opened packages are not acceptable. Large items, such as furniture, can be posted on Rheaply, an online marketplace for exchanging items within the MIT community.What Happens to Leftover Items? • All clothing is donated to on-campus thrift or reuse events or goes into textile recycling. • Some housewares are donated to the Furniture Exchange. • Volunteers will sort through everything else to determine what is recyclable.Data Collection: Choose to Reuse volunteers count every person and item that comes to the event. Last year, we had over 1,500 attendees!Have more questions?Email: staffrecycles@mit.edu

All kids from newborn age to 3.5 years old are welcome! You can bring siblings as well.It's a chance for kids to have fun while parents can chat, share parenting tips, and socialize.Please register if you plan to attend the group. Contact Maria at mwiegandl@udd.cl if you have any questions.This group is sponsored by the Executive Committees of Westgate and the Graduate Tower at Site 4, and MIT Spouses & Partners Connect, a dedicated network for the significant others of MIT students, postdocs, staff and faculty who have relocated to the Boston area.

February 26, 2025 - July 17, 2025Hidden within MIT’s Distinctive Collections, many architectural elements from the earliest days of the Institute’s architecture program still survive as part of the Rotch Art Collection. Among the artworks that conservators salvaged was a set of striking windows of gypsum and stained-glass, dating to the late 18th- to 19th c. Ottoman Empire. This exhibition illuminates the life of these historic windows, tracing their refracted histories from Egypt to MIT, their ongoing conservation, and the cutting-edge research they still prompt.The Maihaugen Gallery (14N-130) is open Monday through Thursday, 10am - 4pm, excluding Institute holidays.

Learn about the Grand Paris Express, the massive transit project that will improve access and connectivity throughout the Ille de France region and Paris. We will hear from Bernard Cathelain, who oversees the design and construction program for the Grand Paris Express transport project, as well as the industry, purchasing and environmental strategy functions, and Pierre-Emmanuel Becherand, Head of Design, Arts and Urban Development for the project.The Grand Paris Express comprises four new lines for the Paris Métro, plus extensions of the existing Lines 11and 14. A total of 200 kilometres (120 mi) of new tracks and 68 new stations are to be added, serving a projected 2 million passengers a day.

This is a small group discussion based on themes found in the New York Times best-seller book Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle by Emily Nagoski, PhD and Amelia Nagoski, DMA. People who have not read the book but are interested in the discussion are welcomed and encouraged to participate. Lunch will be provided.This event is open to the MIT Community only. Please use your MIT email to register.More information about the book:Burnout is for those who have felt overwhelmed and exhausted by everything they have to do, yet still worried they weren’t doing “enough.” This groundbreaking book explains why women experience burnout differently than men—and provides a roadmap to minimizing stress, managing emotions, and living more joyfully. Sisters Emily Nagoski, PhD, and Amelia Nagoski, DMA, are here to help end the all-too-familiar cycle of feeling overwhelmed and exhausted. They compassionately explain the obstacles and societal pressures we face—and how we can fight back.

Have some fun(nel) on a tunnel or sun(nel) walk! Join us for a 30-minute volunteer-led walk either through MIT’s famous tunnel system or around Killian Court. As the weather gets warmer, walk leaders may choose to take the group outside. Is the weather warm and you missed the start? Find the group on Killian Court and join in!Location details: Meet in the lobby with the big mirror, right inside the Collier Memorial entrance to Stata. Location photo below.Sun(nel) Walk Leaders will identify themselves by holding a white flag at the meeting location.Prize Drawing: Attend a walk and scan a QR code from the walk leaders to be entered into a drawing for a getfit canvas boat tote bag at the end of the getfit challenge. The more walks you attend, the more entries you get. Winner will be drawn and notified at the end of April. Winner does not need to be a getfit participant.Disclaimer: These walks are led by volunteers. In the rare occasion when a volunteer isn’t able to make it, we will do our best to notify participants. In the event we are unable to notify participants and a walk leader does not show up, we encourage you to walk as much as you feel comfortable doing so. We recommend checking this calendar just before you head out!Getfit is a 12-week fitness challenge for the entire MIT community. These walks are open to the entire MIT community and you do not need to be a current getfit participant to join.

MIT Free English Class is for international students, sholars, spouses. Twenty seven years ago we created a community to welcome the nations to MIT and assist with language and friendship. Join our Tuesday/Thursday conversation classes around tables inside W11-190.

Be inspired by creative community connections in libraries! Sign up for the MIT Public Library Innovation Exchange (PLIX) Community Showcase!Join us to hear from our exceptional PLIX Creative Learning Ambassadors, library professionals from Massachusetts to Hawaii, in rural to urban areas, who have implemented PLIX activities this year. They'll share their approaches to designing and facilitating creative STEAM learning experiences for audiences in their local communities, and they'll answer your questions about their library programs.Open to everyone! Please register here to attend!This showcase will be like a mini virtual conference:We will have 3 breakouts sessions, with 4 rooms to choose from during each session.Within each room, there will be a facilitator, a pair of presenters, and time for discussionThe presentation will be recorded, but the discussion won’t be recorded so you can speak up with ease.Each pair presents twice, so you’ll have 2 opportunities to hear from presenters you may be interested in!About PLIXThe MIT Public Library Innovation Exchange (PLIX) develops creative STEAM learning experiences based on MIT research and designed for the public library setting. PLIX programs support learners as:Designers—rather than consumers—of technologyCreators—rather than recipients—of knowledgeScientists and artists—rather than one or the otherPLIX connects library professionals and MIT researchers to co-design learning experiences, develop and share facilitation practices, and integrate creative learning into public library programming. PLIX strives to increase equitable access to and broaden participation in STEAM programming.

How does believing in a higher power intersect with ways of knowing in science and engineering? Here, we discuss seeking support for what Roz Picard has called “the hardest tests” in life, where faith and community might be an option for spiritual support. Join us as we explore these questions and others together. Attendance is limited to 8 graduate students/post-docs.Speaker Bio: Rosalind Picard, Sc.D., is a scientist, inventor, entrepreneur, author, and engineer. She is the Grover M. Hermann Professor of Health Sciences and Technology at the MIT Media Lab. Picard is best-known for her book, Affective Computing, which proposed and described how to give skills of emotional intelligence to computers — including voice assistants, robots, agents, and many kinds of interactive technologies.

Have some fun(nel) on a tunnel or sun(nel) walk! Join us for a 30-minute volunteer-led walk either through MIT's famous tunnel system or around Killian Court. As the weather gets warmer, walk leaders may choose to take the group outside. Is the weather warm and you missed the start? Find the group on Killian Court and join in!Location details: Meet in the lobby under the “Belonging + Community” banner. Location photo below.Sun(nel) Walk Leaders will identify themselves by holding a white at the meeting location.Prize Drawing: Attend a walk and scan a QR code from the walk leaders to be entered into a drawing for a getfit canvas boat tote bag at the end of the getfit challenge. The more walks you attend, the more entries you get. Winner will be drawn and notified at the end of April. Winner does not need to be a getfit participant.Disclaimer: Tunnel walks are led by volunteers. In the rare occasion when a volunteer isn’t able to make it, we will do our best to notify participants. In the event we are unable to notify participants and a walk leader does not show up, we encourage you to walk as much as you feel comfortable doing so. We recommend you check this calendar just before you head out!Getfit is a 12-week fitness challenge for the entire MIT community. These tunnel walks are open to the entire MIT community and you do not need to be a current getfit participant to join.

Topic: The Economics of Tropical Forests: the case of Amazon

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: Dun Tang (University of California, Berkeley)Title: A Dijkgraff-Witten type reconstruction formula for g=1 quantum Κ-invariantsAbstract: Quantum Κ-invariants are defined as holomorphic Euler characteristics on the moduli space of stable maps, incorporating products of universal cotangent bundles and virtual bundles pulled back from the target space. These invariants enumerate the dimensions of sheaf cohomology. In this talk, I will present a reconstruction formula for general genus-one quantum Κ-invariants, expressing them in terms of genus-zero invariants and genus-one invariants with at most one marked point carrying a universal cotangent line bundle.

Mark your calendars! Join us on Thursday, April 24 at 4pm in room 6-120 for the third seminar in the Colloquium Series: Research on the Mind featuring keynote speaker Luana Marques, PhD, who will be presenting “Bold Move: How to Thrive Through Uncertainty”. Dr. Marques is a global speaker, author, scientist, and innovator, currently an Associate Professor at Harvard Medical School. She’s the former President of the Anxiety & Depression Association of America and the Founder & Director of Community Psychiatry PRIDE, a premier research lab at Massachusetts General Hospital. Check out one of her talks: Here. To learn more about Dr. Marques, visit: https://drluana.com/.This event is open to everyone, and we encourage all to attend! Light refreshments will be served before the event (~3:40pm).

Recreational swims provide a fun and engaging way for children and parents to practice new skills, stay active, and enjoy quality time together in the pool with the MIT community.No Z Center (MIT Recreation - Zesiger Sports and Fitness Center) membership is required to participate.A parent or caregiver must accompany children in the water. Per Z Center policy, each adult may supervise up to two children at a time.Children must be at least 6 months old to join. If younger, they must be able to hold their head up comfortably. Registration is here. Only for MIT Spouses and Partners Connect members.

The Rising Stars Award in MIT's Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences (BCS) is awarded to 3 postdoctoral scholars per year. Recipients are awarded based on their outstanding research accomplishments and their extraordinary potential to succeed as independent research faculty. This award also aims to enhance diversity and representation in the brain and cognitive sciences. Awardees receive a cash prize and are invited to present their research in the BCS Colloquium Series.Title: Control Systems for Speech, Language, and IntelligenceSpeaker: Carmeen Amo AlonsoAbstract: Control theory is fundamental in the design and understanding of many natural and engineered systems, from cars and robots to power networks and bacterial metabolism. In the context of the brain, one of the most prominent application of control theory is the field of motor control. In this talk, we explore how the principles of control —formalized with control theory— have a much broader set of applications in neuroscience, cognitive science, and intelligent behavior. We focus on language applications, particularly language processing and grounding in technology, as well as speech processing in the human brain. We discuss three applications that exemplify the importance of control across a broad range of settings and research questions. First, we discuss how to leverage language embeddings with control to ground natural language commands in robot actions. We demonstrate how, using these insights, natural language commands can be used to directly instruct a robotic arm to perform a wide range of tasks while preserving safety guarantees. Then, we illustrate how control-theoretic principles can be used to steer the generation of foundation models. We illustrate how, by actively controlling per-layer activations, it is possible to steer a language model away from toxic content, or towards personalized responses. We discuss the potential of this work in both enhancing language models during post-training and its connection to in-context learning, as well as implications for mechanistic interpretability of embedding spaces in the context of Natural Language Processing. Lastly, we present how control-theoretic models of the brain’s auditory-articulatory system can be used to explain existing experimental results in a unifying framework.Bio: Carmen Amo Alonso is a Schmidt Science Fellow affiliated with the Computer Science Department at Stanford University. Her research lies at the intersection of control theory, machine learning, and optimization, with a focus on understanding and improving language processing and generation in both humans and machines. Carmen’s work aims to uncover the control mechanisms underlying language processing and intelligence, and leverages control-theoretic principles to develop safer, more controllable AI technologies. At Stanford, Carmen was named an Emerson Consequential Scholar for the potential of her research to positively impact society. Prior to joining Stanford, she held a postdoctoral fellow position at the Artificial Intelligence Center at ETH Zurich. Carmen earned her Ph.D. in Control and Dynamical Systems from Caltech in 2023, where she was advised by Prof. John Doyle. Her thesis on the optimal control of distributed systems under local communication constraints was awarded the Milton and Francis Clauser Doctoral Prize, which recognizes the best Ph.D. dissertation of the year across all disciplines at Caltech. During her Ph.D., her research received two best paper awards, was partially funded by Amazon and D. E. Shaw fellowships, and earned her the title of Rising Star in both EECS and Cyber-Physical Systems. Besides her research collaborations across academia and industry, Carmen is committed to education for all. As a member of Clubes de Ciencia, she travels to Mexico in the summer to teach underserved students.Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89002014229?pwd=bzZuZGh6cVhOSjJ6TlNZVHgrRnNaQT09Followed by a reception with food and drink

Time: 3:30 PMLocation: Cambridge, MA