Inside Stories
This evening series explores the inside stories of research and innovation addressing today’s challenges. Each month we’ll be hosting technologists, innovators, artists, and thinkers in an hour-long conversation on timely issues and areas of innovation. From bend to bedside solutions and advances in disease prevention to urban planning and mobility innovations, the series and its topics will be responding to the moment.
$15 General Public
$5 MIT ID holders
Seating is Limited. Advance registration is recommended.
Gattaca at 25
Twenty-five years ago, Hollywood released the film Gattaca, painting a picture of society in the near future in which the science of genetics is used to predict the life outcomes of every citizen from the day they are born. The nightmarish scenario that ensues forced the movie’s audiences to grapple with the ethical and societal implications of new technologies ranging from gene sequencing to genetic prediction and embryo selection.
Join us for a screening and discussion of Gattaca. We’ll be presenting this program in two parts. Admission covers both sessions, but participants may choose to view the movie on their own.
PLEASE NOTE: THIS EVENT IS BEING RESCHEDULED. PLEASE CHECK BACK FOR A NEW DATE AND TIME.
Past Sessions
Development of the Covid Vaccine in Record Time
The first human cases of COVID-19 were reported in December, 2019. On December 14, 2020, less than a year later the first vaccination shots were being administered in the United States. Today, the race continues to develop new vaccines to combat the ever-evolving variants of the virus.
Join us for an evening with two leaders in the field: Melissa Moore of Moderna and Dan Barouch of Harvard Medical Schools. Both researchers were intimately involved in the development of the first vaccines, and took different paths to get there.
We’ll discuss the stories from behind the scenes of the record-breaking vaccine development process and look to the future of what is next, from new variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus to Monkey Pox. A short reception with our panelists in the museum’s galleries will follow the program.
Moderator: John Durant
Panelist: Melissa Moore
Panelist: Dan Barouch
The James Webb Space Telescope Project
Just one year after its launch, the James Webb Space Telescope is already gathering an astounding amount data from space leading to new discoveries and generating compelling images.
Hear from members of the JWST team as they share all aspects of bringing the complex project from concept to operation.
Moderated by Rutuparna Das of the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, panel members will reflect on the opportunities and challenges associated with a large, collaborative engineering project, explain how JWST images are generated and analyzed, and give insight into how this tool and data might expand our understanding of the Universe.
6:30 – 7:00 PM Explore simulations and create a shared context for the conversation
7:00 – 9:00 PM Panel discussion