#Engineering systems

[jcmarchi]

Monitoring space traffic

New Post has been published on https://thedigitalinsider.com/monitoring-space-traffic/

Monitoring space traffic

If there’s a through line in Sydney Dolan’s pursuits, it’s a fervent belief in being a good steward — both in space and on Earth.

As a doctoral student in the MIT Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AeroAstro), Dolan is developing a model that aims to mitigate satellite collisions. They see space as a public good, a resource for everyone. “There’s a real concern that you could be potentially desecrating a whole orbit if enough collisions were to happen,” they say. “We have to be very thoughtful about trying maintain people’s access, to be able to use space for all the different applications that it has today.”

Here on the Blue Planet, Dolan is passionate about building community and ensuring that students in the department have what they need to succeed. To that end, they have been deeply invested in mentoring other students; leading and participating in affinity groups for women and the LGBTQ+ community; and creating communications resources to help students navigate grad school.

Launching into new territories

Dolan’s interest in aerospace began as a high school student in Centerville, Virginia. A close friend asked them to go to a model rocket club meeting because she didn’t want to go alone. “I ended up going with her and really liking it, and it ended up becoming more of my thing than her kind of thing!” they say with a laugh. Building rockets and launching them in rural Virginia gave Dolan formative, hands-on experience in aerospace engineering and convinced them to pursue the field in college.

They attended Purdue University, lured by the beautiful aerospace building and the school’s stature as a leading producer of astronauts. While they’re grateful for the education they received at Purdue, the dearth of other women in the department was glaring.

That gender imbalance motivated Dolan to launch Purdue Women in Aerospace, to facilitate connections and work on changing the department’s culture. The group worked to make study spaces more welcoming to women and planned the inaugural Amelia Earhart Summit to celebrate women’s contributions to the field. Several hundred students, alumni, and others gathered for a full day of inspiring speakers, academic and industry panels, and networking opportunities.

During their junior year, Dolan was accepted into the Matthew Isakowitz Fellowship Program, which places students with a commercial space company and pairs them with a career mentor. They interned at Nanoracks over the summer, developing a small cubesat payload that went on the International Space Station. Through the internship they met an MIT AeroAstro PhD alumna, Natalya Bailey ’14. Since Dolan was leaning toward going to graduate school, Bailey provided valuable advice about where to consider applying and what goes into an application package — as well as a plug for MIT.

Although they applied to other schools, MIT stood out. “At the time, I really wasn’t sure if I wanted to be more in systems engineering or if I wanted to specialize more in guidance, navigation, controls, and autonomy. And I really like that the program at MIT has strength in both of those areas,” Dolan explains, adding that few schools have both specialties. That way, they would always have the option to switch from one to the other if their interests changed. 

Being a good space actor

That option would come in handy. For their master’s degree, they conducted two research projects in systems engineering. In their first year, they joined the Engineering Systems Laboratory, comparing lunar and Martian mission architectures to identify which technologies could be successfully deployed both on the moon and Mars to, as Dolan says, “get our bang for the buck.” Next, they worked on the Media Lab’s TESSERAE project, which aims to create tiles that can autonomously self-assemble to form science labs, zero-gravity habitats, and other applications in space. Dolan worked on the controls for the tiles and the feasibility of using computer vision for them.

Ultimately, Dolan decided to switch their focus to autonomy for their PhD, with a focus on satellite traffic applications. They joined the DINaMo Research Group, working with Hamsa Balakrishnan, associate dean of the School of Engineering and the William Leonhard (1940) Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics.

Managing space traffic has become increasingly complex. As the cost to get to space decreases and new launch providers like SpaceX have spun up, the number of satellites has grown over the last few decades — as well as the risk of collisions. Traveling at approximately 17,000 miles per hour, satellites can cause catastrophic damage and create debris that, in turn, poses an additional hazard. The European Space Agency has estimated that there are roughly 11,500 satellites in orbit (2,500 of which are not active) and over 35,000 pieces of debris larger than 10 centimeters. Last February, there was a near-collision — missing by only 33 feet — between a NASA satellite and a non-operational Russian spy satellite.

Despite these risks, there’s no centralized governing body monitoring satellite maneuvers, and many operators are reluctant to share their satellite’s exact location, although they will provide limited information, Dolan says. Their doctoral thesis aims to address these issues through a model that enables satellites to independently make decisions on maneuvers to avoid collisions, using information they glean from nearby satellites. Dolan’s approach is interdisciplinary, using reinforcement learning, game theory, and optimal control to abstract a graph representation of the space environment.

Dolan sees the model as a potential tool that could provide decentralized oversight and inform policy: “I’m largely just all in favor of being a good space actor, thinking of space as a protected resource, just like the national parks. And here’s a mathematical tool we can use to really validate that this sort of information would be helpful.”

Finding a natural fit

Now wrapping up their fifth year, Dolan has been deeply involved in the MIT AeroAstro community since arriving in 2019. They have served as a peer mediator in the dREFS program (Department Resources for Easing Friction and Stress); mentored other women students; and served as co-president of the Graduate Women in Aerospace Engineering group. As a communication fellow in the AeroAstro Communications Lab, Dolan has created and offered workshops, coaching, and other resources to help students with journal articles, fellowship applications, posters, resumes, and other forms of science communications. “I just believe so firmly that all people should have the same resources to succeed in grad school,” Dolan says. “MIT does a really great job providing a lot of resources, but sometimes it can be daunting to figure out what they are and who to ask.”

In 2020, they helped found an LGBTQ+ affinity group called QuASAR (Queer Advocacy Space in AeroAstro). Unlike most MIT clubs, QuASAR is open to everyone in the department — undergraduate and graduate students, faculty, and staff. Members gather several times a year for social events, and QuASAR has hosted academic and industry panels to better reflect the variety of identities in the aerospace field.

In their spare time Dolan loves ultrarunning — that is, running distances greater than a marathon. To date, they’ve run 50-kilometer and 50-mile races, and recently, a whopping 120 miles in a backyard ultramarathon (“basically, run ’til you drop,” Dolan says). It’s a great antidote to stress, and, curiously, they’ve noticed there are a lot of PhD students in ultrarunning. “I was talking with my advisor about it one time and she’s like, ‘Sydney, you’re crazy, why on Earth would you do anything like that?’ She said this respectfully! And I’m like, ‘Yeah, why would I ever want to do a task that has an ambiguous end date and that requires a lot of work and discipline?’” Dolan says, grinning.

Their hard work and discipline will pay off as they prepare to complete their MIT journey. After wrapping up their degree program, Dolan hopes to land a faculty position at a college or university. Being a professor feels like a natural fit, they say, combining their fascination with aerospace engineering with their passion for teaching and mentoring. As to where they will end up, Dolan waxes philosophical: “I’m throwing a lot of darts at the wall, and we’ll see … it’s with the universe now.”

[800db-cloud]

i’m literally shaking buy them brown contacts pls

[stars-obsession-pit]

Following an accident, Danny wakes up in Gotham City in a DC universe. Lacking any forms of ID or possessions beyond the clothes on his back, he’s forced to commit some crimes to survive. Minor crimes, but still.

And then he gets caught.

During the court proceedings, they come to the mistaken conclusion that he’s a Meta suffering from some psychiatric issues such as Cotard’s Syndrome (a real rare condition where a person holds the delusional belief that they’re dead/don’t exist/etc).

Thus, between his “need for mental treatment” and the concerns about housing someone with his unique physical traits, he is sentenced to spend time in Arkham Asylum. He’s under pretty low security aside from the anti-Meta stuff and has more freedoms than some other inmates, but it’s still not a great experience. Even at the best of times, Arkham is hardly a nice place.

Some of his fellow residents are decently chill all things considered, but lots very much aren’t.

[389]

Devon Turnbull, Hifi listening Room Dream No.1, a high performance, handmade sound system with a wall of brutalist speakers is a site specific acoustic experience, described as a “shrine to music” by its creator, artist, designer and audio engineer Devon Turnbull.

[the-worms-in-your-bones]

The thing about the time lords is yeah they’re a super powerful species, it wouldn’t be all that inaccurate to call them gods of time, but you get yourself a time lord and like 70% of the time it’s like oh this is a guy I could kick in the shins really hard and get away with it unscathed

[bacchuschucklefuck]

space sweepers but they're delivery people and are at no point on screen through the entire movie

[7empesticide]

saw au where everything is the same except hoffman isnt an apprentice hes just really fucking weird so strahm is stalking this regular ass guy

[cheriecelestial]

Jacob Black’s Self Saving System and His Shenanigans™️

[chamerionwrites]

Also idk but I feel it is important, for reasons of genre understanding, to recognize that good old fashioned murder is like the least violent thing anybody ever does in a proper spy story

[computer-nerd-girl]

[putuponpercy]

I don't like drawing engines too much these days because they stress me the heck out but @togetherness23 your comment under my post about Edward having a type sent me into a mad frenzy

[jcmarchi]

Global MIT At-Risk Fellows Program expands to invite Palestinian scholars

New Post has been published on https://thedigitalinsider.com/global-mit-at-risk-fellows-program-expands-to-invite-palestinian-scholars/

Global MIT At-Risk Fellows Program expands to invite Palestinian scholars

When the Global MIT At-Risk Fellows (GMAF) initiative launched in February 2024 as a pilot program for Ukrainian researchers, its architects expressed hope that GMAF would eventually expand to include visiting scholars from other troubled areas of the globe. That time arrived this fall, when MIT launched GMAF-Palestine, a two-year pilot that will select up to five fellows each year currently either in Palestine or recently displaced to continue their work during a semester at MIT.

Designed to enhance the educational and research experiences of international faculty and researchers displaced by humanitarian crises, GMAF brings international scholars to MIT for semester-long study and research meant to benefit their regions of origin while simultaneously enriching the MIT community.

Referring to the ongoing war and humanitarian crisis in Gaza, GMAF-Palestine Director and MIT Professor Kamal Youcef-Toumi says that “investing in scientists is an important way to address this significant conflict going on in our world.” Youcef-Toumi says it’s hoped that this program “will give some space for getting to know the real people involved and a deeper understanding of the practical implications for people living through the conflict.”

Professor Duane Boning, vice provost for international activities, considers the GMAF program to be a practical way for MIT to contribute to solving the world’s most challenging problems. “Our vision is for the fellows to come to MIT for a hands-on, experiential joint learning and research experience that develops the tools necessary to support the redevelopment of their regions,” says Boning.

“Opening and sustaining connections among scholars around the world is an essential part of our work at MIT,” says MIT President Sally Kornbluth. “New collaborations so often spark new understanding and new ideas; that’s precisely what we aim to foster with this kind of program.”  

Crediting Program Manager Dorothy Hanna with much of the legwork that got the fellowship off the ground, Youcef-Toumi says fellows for the program’s inaugural year will be chosen from early- and mid-career scientists via an open application and nominations from the MIT community. Following submission of applications and interviews in January, five scholars will be selected to begin their fellowships at MIT in September 2025.

Eligible applicants must have held academic or research appointments at a Palestinian university within the past five years; hold a PhD or equivalent degree in a field represented at MIT; have been born in Gaza, the West Bank, East Jerusalem, or refugee camps; have a reasonable expectation of receiving a U.S. visa, and be working in a research area represented at MIT. MIT will cover all fellowship expenses, including travel, accommodations, visas, health insurance, instructional materials, and living stipends.

To build strong relationships during their time at MIT, GMAF-Palestine will pair fellows with faculty mentors and keep them connected with other campus communities, including the Ibn Khaldun Fellowship for Saudi Arabian Women, an over 10-year-old program that Youcef-Toumi’s team also oversees. 

“MIT has a special environment and mindset that I think will be very useful. It’s a competitive environment, but also very supportive,” says Youcef-Toumi, a member of the Department of Mechanical Engineering faculty, director of the Mechatronics Research Laboratory, and co-director of the Center for Complex Engineering Systems. “In many other places, if a person is in math, they stay in math. If they are in architecture, they stay in architecture and they are not dealing with other departments or other colleges. In our case, because students’ work is often so interdisciplinary, a student in mechanical engineering can have an advisor in computer science or aerospace, and basically everything is open. There are no walls.”

Youcef-Toumi says he hopes MIT’s collegial environment among diverse departments and colleagues is a value fellows will retain and bring back to their own universities and communities.

“We are all here for scholarship. All of the people who come to MIT … they are coming for knowledge. The technical part is one thing, but there are other things here that are not available in many environments — you know, the sense of community, the values, and the excellence in academics,” Youcef-Toumi says. “These are things we will continue to emphasize, and hopefully these visiting scientists can absorb and benefit from some of that. And we will also learn from them, from their seminars and discussions with them.”

Referencing another new fellowship program launched by MIT, Kalaniyot for Israeli scholars, led by MIT professors Or Hen and Ernest Fraenkel, Youcef-Toumi says, “Getting to know the Kalaniyot team better has been great, and I’m sure we will be helping each other. To have people from that region be on campus and interacting with different people … hopefully that will add a more positive effect and unity to the campus. This is one of the things that we hope these programs will do.”

As with any first endeavor, GMAF-Palestine’s first round of fellowships and the experiences of the fellows, and the observations of the GMAF team, will inform future iterations of the program. In addition to Youcef-Toumi, leadership for the program is provided by a faculty committee representing the breadth of scholarship at MIT. The vision of the faculty committee is to establish a sustainable program connecting the Palestinian community and MIT.

“Longer term,” Youcef-Toumi says, “we hope to show the MIT community this is a really impactful program that is worth sustaining with continued fundraising and philanthropy. We plan to stay in touch with the fellows and collect feedback from them over the first five years on how their time at MIT has impacted them as researchers and educators. Hopefully, this will include ongoing collaborations with their MIT mentors or others they meet along the way at MIT.”

[unrestedjade]

ART, visibly on the edge of a meltdown because SecUnit replied to a message from Holism with "k": i'm going to puke stop talking to Holism i swear to god. baby you're everything to me please please don't fuck Holism

[rogerrrroger]

DRAW EMESIS BLUE GOOD ENDING

Arg I’m so sorry this took a whole seven days to complete because other stuff was kicking my ass but here

Basically the motto is blu Engi is so cracked that he fixed the respawn machine enough to heal every possible bad thing that happened 👍

god please if you can’t read my artist’s handwriting feel free to ask for image id

[goshyesvintageads]

Western Electric Co, 1953

[dreamdancerdotfile]

Don’t cry now, all the wheels will turn

There‘ll be bluebirds over you and I

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