IDSS News June 2023
Munther Dahleh photo by Lillie Paquette MIT School of Engineering
Last week, we celebrated the achievements of our hard-working graduates! I extend my warmest congratulations to all of our graduates — you have completed something remarkable and should be very proud.
 
This year, the Social and Engineering Systems program minted six new PhDs working to address societal challenges with an interdisciplinary set of tools that includes domain knowledge, science and engineering, the social sciences, and cutting-edge computing and data analysis. One of these students also earned a PhD in Statistics through our interdisciplinary program; he is joined by three others from other departments at MIT. I remain inspired by the continued growth and success of these programs.
 
Meanwhile, the Technology and Policy Program saw the graduation of another class of students (25 this year) working at the intersection of sociotechnical issues and policy solutions. They join nearly 1,500 TPP alumni worldwide, a vibrant community of thinkers and leaders whose various endeavors we follow with interest!
 
The students of IDSS are the beating heart of our community, driving its energy and vitality. They have earned their accolades through their own remarkable achievements. While it is their individual efforts and dedication that deserve recognition and praise, it brings great pride and satisfaction to know that their achievements contribute to a positive perception of IDSS.

Munther Dahleh, Director
William A. Coolidge Professor, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science

Congrats to the IDSS graduates of 2023, from our PhDs in Social & Engineering Systems (SES) and Statistics (IDPS), Master's students in the Technology and Policy Program (TPP), and undergrads who minored in Statistics and Data Science.
Spotlight on IDSS Students
SES student Amir Tohidi’s research combines economic and psychological insights with advanced computational methods to address interesting real-world problems.
Philipp Zimmer TPP '23 connects the dots between his humanitarian work in Uganda and his research into social media’s varying impacts on different societies and regimes.
IDSS News
“Ways of Seeing” project, led by IDSS core faculty Fotini Christia, documents endangered Afghan heritage sites through digital imaging, virtual reality, and hand-drawn professional renderings.
ICSR Healthcare vertical lead Marzyeh Ghassemi examines how the increasing use of artificial intelligence could impact medical care.
When is a bot not a bot? When it likes a tweet, according to a new paper by researchers including IDSS postdoc Zachary Schutzman that pokes holes in bot detection methodology.
Subscribe to the IDSS podcast Data Nation to hear conversations with MIT faculty about how data can be used to analyze complex, high-impact systems in society, and to lead, mislead, manipulate, and inform the public’s viewpoints and decisions on societal level challenges.

New episode: Can you steal an election? with Charles Stewart