The digital revolution powered by advanced computing technologies is reshaping every facet of our contemporary existence. From transforming how we live and work to revolutionizing education and social interactions, computing innovations have become integral to diverse academic fields while simultaneously evolving through these interdisciplinary connections.
In a groundbreaking move to bridge computing with other disciplines in tackling global challenges, the prestigious MIT Stephen A. Schwarzman College of Computing has announced the creation of 25 innovative shared faculty positions. These roles will be jointly appointed between the College and various MIT departments or schools, with hiring strategically focused on six cutting-edge research areas. This initiative aims to strengthen MIT's capabilities in crucial computing domains that transcend traditional academic boundaries, fostering cross-departmental collaboration through research and teaching that delivers mutual value to both the College and home departments.
"These revolutionary shared faculty positions represent an unprecedented opportunity to develop critical areas at MIT where computing intersects with other disciplines," explains Daniel Huttenlocher, dean of the MIT Schwarzman College of Computing. "Through coordinated hiring efforts between the College and departments across MIT, we anticipate creating significant impact with multiple touch points throughout the Institute."
The six strategic focus areas and their associated academic schools include:
Social, Economic, and Ethical Implications of Computing and AI Networks. Associated schools: School of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences and MIT Sloan School of Management.
Recent years have witnessed remarkable advances in digital platforms and AI algorithms that have fundamentally transformed our economic, social, and political landscapes. However, the future societal implications of these technologies, along with the consequences of utilizing and misusing vast social data sets, remain poorly understood. This creates exciting opportunities to build upon growing intellectual connections between computer science, data science, social sciences, and humanities to develop better conceptual frameworks for understanding the social and economic implications, ethical dimensions, and regulatory approaches to these powerful technologies.
This strategic hiring initiative will focus on faculty members examining the complex relationship between computing systems and our understanding of individuals and societal institutions. Research will explore the broader consequences of our evolving digital environment, market design, digital commerce, competition, and economic and social networks. Key areas of interest include how AI and computing technologies are transforming the future of work; how social media platforms have reshaped political campaigns and social movements; challenges in determining information reliability and authenticity; privacy concerns and algorithmic fairness; and the impact of new technologies on democratic governance and institutions.
Computing and Natural Intelligence: Exploring Cognition, Perception, and Language. Associated schools: School of Science; School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences; and School of Architecture and Planning.
Intelligence—understanding its nature, how the brain produces it, and how we can engineer it—represents one of the most compelling questions in natural science and the most significant engineering challenges of our era. Recent breakthroughs in computing and machine learning have enhanced our understanding of the brain and mind, while neuroscience and cognitive science have begun providing valuable insights to guide AI development. Despite these advances, substantial gaps remain in connecting the scientific and engineering aspects of intelligence research.
This strategic area aims to bridge these gaps by integrating science, computing, and social sciences to drive transformative advances in AI while deepening our understanding of natural intelligence. Faculty hired in this domain will advance a holistic approach to understanding human perception and cognition through projects such as studying the computational properties of language by connecting linguistic theory, cognitive science, and computer science; reimagining music through machine learning and new interfaces for musical expression; exploring how artificial systems can help explain natural intelligence and vice versa; and developing computing applications that enhance human expression, communication, health, and meaning-making.
Revolutionary Computing Applications in Health and Life Sciences. Associated schools: School of Engineering; School of Science; and MIT Sloan School of Management.
Computing technologies have become indispensable tools in modern health and life sciences research. A critical focus area involves developing new approaches to identifying molecular and biomolecular agents with specific functions, as well as discovering innovative medications and diagnostic methods. Machine learning offers unique opportunities in molecular discovery by enhancing physics-based models or potentially replacing them entirely, promising a revolution in molecular science and engineering. Another major area is healthcare delivery, where advanced algorithms, high-performance computing, and machine learning present new possibilities to transform health monitoring and treatment planning, improve patient care, and enhance disease prevention strategies.
This strategic hiring initiative aims to recruit faculty who will develop transformative computational methods in health and life sciences while complementing MIT's existing research strengths through new interdisciplinary connections. The scope ranges from computational approaches to fundamental problems in molecular design and synthesis for human health; to revolutionizing healthcare delivery and personalized medicine; to understanding radiation effects and optimizing dose delivery; to enhancing tracing, imaging, and diagnostic techniques through artificial intelligence and machine learning.
Computing Innovations for Planetary Health and Sustainability. Associated schools: School of Engineering; School of Science; and School of Architecture and Planning.
Planetary health represents one of the most pressing challenges facing humanity today. Rapid industrialization has created serious threats to human and ecosystem wellbeing, including climate change, dangerous levels of air and water pollution, coastal erosion, and agricultural land degradation. Addressing these complex challenges requires an interdisciplinary approach that connects scientific understanding, engineering solutions, and socioeconomic considerations with advanced computational methods to develop data-driven models and solutions for ensuring clean air, usable water, resilient food systems, efficient transportation, and sustainable energy sources.
This strategic hiring area will facilitate essential collaborations by bringing together expertise to advance understanding of low-carbon energy solutions, earth-climate modeling, and sustainable urban planning through high-performance computing, innovative numerical methods, and cutting-edge machine learning techniques. Faculty in this domain will contribute to developing computational solutions that address critical environmental challenges and promote planetary sustainability.
Computing and the Evolution of Human Experience. Associated schools: School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences and School of Architecture and Planning.
Computing and digital technologies are fundamentally challenging how people perceive reality and understand their place within it. These technologies are deeply embedded in daily life worldwide, and while often highly beneficial, they reflect cultural assumptions and technological heritage despite being frequently viewed as neutral tools. As becomes increasingly evident, these technologies can significantly alter individual and societal perceptions and behaviors in ways that are neither fully understood nor intended. Moreover, while typically developed for efficiency or utility, they also offer opportunities for less utilitarian purposes such as supporting introspection and personal reflection.
This strategic hiring area will expand the community of scholars in social sciences, humanities, and computing who examine technology designs, systems, policies, and practices addressing the dual challenges of limited understanding of these technologies and their implications. This includes developing systems that help mitigate rather than exacerbate social inequalities. The initiative also aims to create techniques and systems that help people interpret and gain insights from societal and historical data, including applications in humanities disciplines such as comparative literature, history, and architectural history.
Quantum Computing: The Next Frontier. Associated schools: School of Engineering and School of Science.
Quantum mechanics represents one of the most promising avenues for continuing advances in computing power. In the coming years, new hardware, algorithms, and discoveries offer the potential to dramatically enhance quantum computing capabilities far beyond current limitations. Achieving these advances presents challenges spanning multiple scientific and engineering fields, from quantum hardware development to quantum computing algorithm design. Potential quantum computing applications span numerous fields, including chemistry, biology, materials science, atmospheric modeling, urban systems simulation, nuclear engineering, finance, and optimization, requiring deep expertise in both quantum algorithms and specific application domains.
This strategic hiring area aims to build upon MIT's extensive quantum research activities to catalyze transformative advances in quantum computing and quantum information across the Institute. Faculty recruited in this domain will contribute to studying quantum materials; developing robust, controllable quantum devices and networks capable of reliably transmitting quantum information; and creating innovative algorithms for machine learning, AI, optimization, and data processing to fully harness quantum computing's revolutionary potential.
A Coordinated Strategic Approach
Over recent months, the MIT Schwarzman College of Computing has conducted a comprehensive strategic planning process to identify key areas for hiring the new shared faculty. Led by Huttenlocher, with MIT Provost Martin Schmidt and the deans of the five schools—Anantha Chandrakasan (Engineering), Melissa Nobles (Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences), Hashim Sarkis (Architecture and Planning), David Schmittlein (MIT Sloan), and Michael Sipser (Science)—the process began with extensive input from departments across the Institute.
This input took the form of interdisciplinary computing area proposals solicited from department heads, resulting in 29 comprehensive proposals. Over a six-week period, the committee collaborated with proposing departments to identify strategic hiring themes, ultimately selecting the six areas that represent several critically important research directions.
"These areas not only bring together computing with numerous departments and schools but also involve multiple modes of academic inquiry, offering unprecedented opportunities for new collaborations in research and teaching across a broad range of fields," says Schmidt. "I'm excited to see us launch this critical component of the college's mission."
The College will also coordinate with each of the five schools to ensure that diversity, equity, and inclusion remain central considerations throughout all hiring processes.
2020-21 Academic Year Hiring Plans
While the number of searches and participating schools will vary annually, the plan for the upcoming academic year includes five searches—one with each school—focusing on three of the six strategic hiring areas:
Social, Economic, and Ethical Implications of Computing and Networks will feature two searches: one with the Department of Philosophy in the School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences, and another with the MIT Sloan School of Management.
Computing and Natural Intelligence: Cognition, Perception and Language will include one search with the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences in the School of Science.
Computing for Health of the Planet will encompass two searches: one with the Department of Urban Studies and Planning in the School of Architecture and Planning, and another with a department to be identified in the School of Engineering.
