Seven Must-Read Stories (Week ending December 26, 2015)

Another chance to catch the most interesting and important articles from the previous week on MIT Technology Review.

MIT Technology Reviewarchive page

December 25, 2015

The 6 Most Important Things That Happened in Virtual Reality in 2015
A lot happened in virtual reality this year; here are the key things to remember.
A Giant Leap (Backward) for Space Travel
By successfully returning one of its rockets to Earth, SpaceX has shown a way to revolutionize the space industry.
In the Future, Magnets May Track Your Fingers in Virtual Reality
Oculus and university researchers are working on a project that relies on electromagnets to keep an eye on all your fingers in virtual space.
Hot and Violent
Researchers have begun to understand the economic and social damage caused by climate change.
Early Intervention
We need therapies to help those with Down syndrome reach their potential.
A Master Algorithm Lets Robots Teach Themselves to Perform Complex Tasks
One researcher has developed a simple way to let robots generate remarkably sophisticated behaviors.
Brain Scars Detected in Concussions
A closer look at the brains of soldiers who have suffered concussions reveals evidence of injuries that were invisible to conventional imaging methods.

Keep Reading

Large language models can do jaw-dropping things. But nobody knows exactly why.

And that's a problem. Figuring it out is one of the biggest scientific puzzles of our time and a crucial step towards controlling more powerful future models.