The Covid pandemic has well demonstrated that the tools of 21st century statistics and machine learning have critical parts to play in the future of public health policy. There are many interesting applications of these tools to areas of health and biology — we've highlighted a few below, from understanding how our bodies respond to illness to optimizing doses of anesthesia drugs.

As we develop and apply these tools, it is critical to understand their impacts on real people, and to ensure they do not perpetuate existing inequities, or create new ones. Policy impact and equity are issues that IDSS research is increasingly working to address. Last spring, IDSS co-organized the AI for Health Care Equity Conference (hosted by MIT's Jameel Clinic), and our Technology and Policy Program's Research to Policy Engagement Initiative now has support from Biogen through their "Healthy Climate, Healthy Lives" initiative.

I know the transition back to MIT feels familiar and strange to many. MIT has been my home for many years, through many changes, and I'm inspired to see this community coming together to follow the science, keep each other safe, and get back to some of the aspects of on-campus life that we missed. Best wishes for a healthy, happy fall!

Munther Dahleh, Director

William A. Coolidge Professor, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science