Skip to content

Academic Programs

Explore engineering undergraduate majors and programs.
Undergraduate Studies
Discovery & Experiential Learning

Where research and hands-on experiences accelerate learning.
Entrepreneurship & Leadership

Gain the skills and experience to lead, innovate, and excel in any career.
Admissions & Scholarships

Understand the admissions process and learn about scholarships for current students.
Apply to MIT
Fields of Study

Explore engineering research fields and advanced degree programs.
Graduate Studies
Fellowships & Awards

Discover funding opportunities that support graduate research and discovery.
Entrepreneurship & Leadership

Gain the skills and experience to lead, innovate, and excel in any career.
Apply

Understand the graduate admissions process.
Apply to MIT
Research

Accelerate discovery across every field of engineering.
Meet Our Faculty
Innovation & Impact

Transform ideas into real-world solutions.
Postdoctoral Programs

Supporting postdoctoral scholars who are shaping the future of engineering.
Featured Topics
About

Understanding MIT's largest school and those who lead it.
Give to MIT
People & Community

Meet and celebrate the people driving our discovery, innovation, and impact.
Outreach & Education

Inspiring learners of all ages through engineering education.
News
All News

One pull of a string is all it takes to deploy these complex structures

Departments & Institutes

Aeronautics & Astronautics

Biological Engineering

Chemical Engineering

Civil & Environmental Engineering

Electrical Engineering & Computer Science

Materials Science & Engineering

Mechanical Engineering

Nuclear Science & Engineering

Institute for Data, Systems & Society

Institute for Medical Engineering & Science
Undergraduate Studies Graduate Studies

Departments

Departments & Institutes

Aeronautics & Astronautics
Biological Engineering
Chemical Engineering
Civil & Environmental Engineering
Electrical Engineering & Computer Science
Materials Science & Engineering
Mechanical Engineering
Nuclear Science & Engineering
Institute for Data, Systems & Society
Institute for Medical Engineering & Science

Undergraduate Studies Graduate Studies

Undergraduate

Discovery & Experiential Learning

Undergraduate Research
Makerspaces
Certificate Programs

Entrepreneurship & Leadership

Innovation & Entrepreneurship
Professional Development and Leadership
Student Advisory Group

Admissions & Scholarships

Admissions
Student Awards
Barry Goldwater Scholarship
Henry Ford II Scholarship

Graduate

Fellowships & Awards

Graduate Student Fellowships
MathWorks Fellowships
Extraordinary Teaching and Mentoring Award

Entrepreneurship & Leadership

Innovation & Entrepreneurship
Professional Development and Leadership
Graduate Student Advisory Group

Apply

Admissions Information
Student Awards
Graduate Blog
Office of Graduate Education

Research

Research

Research Areas & Priorities
Centers & Labs
Programs & Initiatives
Internal Funding Opportunities

Meet Our Faculty

Innovation & Impact

Innovation & Entrepreneurship
Industry Collaborations
Makerspaces

Postdoctoral Programs

Engineering Postdoctoral Opportunities
MIT-Novo Nordisk AI Postdoc Fellows Program
Postdoctoral Program for Engineering Excellence

Featured

AI & Machine Learning
Climate & Energy
Health & Life Sciences
Design & Manufacturing

About

About

About Us
Leadership
Dean’s Advisory Council
History

People & Community

Faculty
Faculty Awards
Faculty Openings
Dean’s Office Staff
Staff Awards
Staff Advice & Implementation Committee

Outreach & Education

K-12 Programming
Professional Education
Ask an Engineer

Four 3D structures, pictured on bottom, were transformed from flat configurations made of interconnected tiles (top) with a single pull of a string. The middle row shows, in red, the optimized string path and lift points for each object.

One pull of a string is all it takes to deploy these complex structures

All News

77 Massachusetts Ave. Cambridge, MA, USA 
Room 1-206
+1-617-253-3291

Ask an Engineer

Giulio Alighieri

Ask an Engineer

Home
People
Giulio Alighieri

Giulio Alighieri

Chemical Engineering

Staff

Related People

Bruke Kifle
Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Constantine Tzouanas
Health Sciences and Technology
Harini Suresh
Electrical Engineering and Computer Science

Are Santa’s reindeer used for propulsion or navigation?

Ask an Engineer

77 Massachusetts Ave. Cambridge, MA, USA 
Room 1-206
+1-617-253-3291

Facebook X Instagram YouTube LinkedIn

Select light or dark mode to change visual contrast:

Dark Light

Give to MIT

Academics

Undergraduate
Graduate
Industry Collaborations
K-12 Programming

About

About Us
Leadership
Meet Our Faculty
Dean’s Office Staff

Connect

Campus Tours
Newsletter
Contact Us
UG Admissions
Grad Admissions

Subscribe to our newsletter

Email Address