|Deepak Jagannathan uses toys to mix concrete for some serious
research in associate professor Krystyn Van Vliet’s lab at MIT.
(David L. Ryan/Globe Staff)| The search to unravel concrete’s
‘DNA’ MIT researchers aim to make it more versatile,
environmentally friendly CAMBRIDGE - To most people, it is
utterly mundane: the stuff of humble sidewalks, bridge supports,
and building foundations. But intrigued by the sheer complexity
of concrete, Massachusetts Institute of Technology researchers
have been leveraging the tools of statistical physics, materials
science, chemistry, and civil engineering to find ways to make
the most widely used man-made material on earth more
environmentally friendly. This week, about 600 people from
industry, academia, and government will flock to Cambridge for a
symposium that tackles the big questions about this seemingly
ordinary material, with sessions on the science of concrete,
insights from the architecture and design community, and updates
on efforts to measure and decrease its