News

Professor Emeritus John Deutch discusses how renewable energy and storage will be economically competitive with natural gas in the near future.

Professor Sergey Paltsev and others comment on the profound impact that renewable energy could have on the geopolitical and socioeconomic landscape.

Ashley Nunes and Kristen Hernandez present their research on self-driving cars, which investigates whether or not having a taxi-based system as opposed to a personal-ownership system would allow lower-income populations to reap the safety benefits of the vehicles. Their answer, in short, is no.

MIT researchers comment on the current cost barriers of autonomous vehicles.

Demand for electric vehicles in Norway has exceeded supply—MITEI research scientist Apurba Sakti explains why it matters.

In an op-ed in Science Magazine, members of MITEI's Future of Nuclear Energy study team discuss the importance of nuclear power for decarbonizing global energy systems.

MITEI researchers review the current and emerging regulatory landscape for energy storage.

In a conversation with Marketplace, Future of Nuclear Energy study co-author Prof. Jacopo Buongiorno explores how nuclear could be an important carbon-free energy source — but first, he says, we need to tackle some key challenges.

MITEI Senior Research Engineer Howard Herzog explores the newest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in an article for The Conversation. Herzog discusses negative emissions, including carbon capture and storage technology, in relation to the IPCC’s recommendations to prevent catastrophic climate change.

In an article for Forbes, contributor Jeff McMahon speaks with David Petti of the Idaho National Laboratory, one of the study authors on The Future of Nuclear Energy. They discuss the key barriers to cost reductions in the nuclear energy industry, and ways to overcome those challenges.

In a report for WBUR, Barbara Moran discusses how the recent Merrimack Valley natural gas explosions are adding to local concern over a proposed compressor station in Weymouth, where residents have been protesting construction. Moran interviews MITEI Director of Research Francis O’Sullivan, who explains how noise and pollution, in addition to safety, should factor into decisions concerning the station.

In an article for Ars Technica, reporter Megan Geuss explores the ways nuclear energy has been struggling — there’s little new reactor construction, and old reactors are shutting down following disasters like Fukushima. Citing MIT’s new nuclear energy study, she writes about how nuclear can overcome these challenges and play a vital role in decarbonization.