News: Michael J. Tarkanian

Learn about MIT's forge and foundry 

November 12, 2019

MIT has offered students hands-on instruction in forge and foundry since the 1800s, learn about this space and activity from this video.  more

2018 MADMEC Results

October 11, 2018

Technology that uses light to clean water filtration systems in real time won the 2018 MADMEC competition on Oct. 9. The team that developed the system, Fiat Flux, received the…  more

How Native Civilizations Innovated to Conquer the Wilderness

June 4, 2018

Did Native Americans wear the world’s first sneakers? Not exactly. “We didn’t invent Chuck Taylors,” says Duane Blue Spruce, a museum project manager. “But we did invent the chemical processes” for making rubber. More than three millennia before Charles Goodyear …  more

Hydrogel that extracts uranium from water wins MADMEC

October 16, 2017

An inexpensive hydrogel that can extract uranium from water to provide more fuel for nuclear power plants took home the grand prize from this year’s MADMEC competition on Oct. 10. A team of MIT materials science and engineering students, named A Salt Solution, won $10,000 for a prototype…  more

10th Annual MADMEC Competition Results

October 13, 2016

The annual MADMEC competition run by DMSE Senior Lecturer Mike Tarkanian recently finished up its 10th year. Five strong teams competed for cash prizes by inventing new and created solutions to sustainability problems. Team PolyClean won first place for its clear, super hydrophobic coating. …  more

Have we built a better engineer yet?

September 26, 2016

Senior Lecturer Mike Tarkanian talked with GrabCAD about engineering education. "He gave us his take on how today’s students are different than those in years past, and how digital mastery is helping some compensate for lack of hands-on experience. And he shared his thoughts on why we may…  more

Unlocking the past with the future of imaging

July 8, 2016

"When the team of researchers investigating a 17th-century postal trunk full of undelivered letters presented at MIT in April, the audience was taken aback — not by the content of the 2,600 letters from all over Europe, but by the team’s approach. The 600 letters that were not only undelivered…  more

Medallion making for commencement

April 23, 2014

In an article for Technology Review, Mike Tarkanian describes the process of making approximately 150 medallions for Commencement each year, a labor of love for all concerned. …  more

Medallion casting

March 11, 2014

Each year, DMSE gives its graduating students (grad and undergrads) a cast bronze medallion of the MIT seal. These medallions are entirely prepared, cast and finished by students in the DMSE Foundry (8-014) using the lost wax/investment casting process. All are welcome to help. We'll…  more

Infinite Mile Awards

April 2, 2012

Please congratulate Mike Tarkanian who has been selected a winner of a School of Engineering Infinite Mile Award for Excellence!  Mike’s service to the Department is widely appreciated by students, staff, and faculty, and this honor is certainly amply deserved.  As Lecturer, Mike works with DMSE…  more