Northeast
Who was Nuno Loureiro? MIT professor gunned down in apartment near university
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
BROOKLINE, Mass. — A world-renowned Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) professor and fusion-energy physicist was shot and killed inside his home earlier this week, an attack that has rattled one of the country’s most elite scientific communities.
Nuno F. Gomes Loureiro, 47, was a professor of nuclear science and engineering and the director of MIT’s Plasma Science and Fusion Center. Loureiro was a renowned figure in fusion-energy research, a field that seeks to recreate the power of the sun inside fusion reactors on Earth. His theories and models helped guide major fusion experiments in the United States and Europe.
Loureiro was rushed to a hospital with “apparent gunshot wounds” Monday evening and pronounced dead Tuesday morning, according to the Norfolk District Attorney’s Office in Massachusetts. A homicide investigation is underway.
NEIGHBORS OF SLAIN MIT PROFESSOR STUNNED BY KILLING
Undated file photo of Nuno Loureiro, a professor of nuclear science and engineering and of physics at MIT. (Jake Belcher for MIT)
No suspect has been identified and the motive for the killing is still unknown.
The shooting in Brookline occurred two days after an attack at Brown University left two dead and nine injured on Saturday.
While investigators in both cases, at prestigious universities less than 50 miles apart, are sharing intelligence, the special agent in charge of Boston’s FBI office, Ted Docks, said at a news briefing Tuesday that authorities don’t think they’re connected.
Originally from Portugal, Loureiro studied in his home country, in the United Kingdom and in the United States, where he researched topics including the phenomenon behind solar flares. He also focused on plasma — a super-hot form of matter found in stars and in experimental fusion reactors.
Fusion is the process that makes the sun burn and Loureiro’s work explored how that power could be bottled on Earth and controlled inside those reactors. If fusion ever becomes a real source of cheap, clean electricity, it will rely on the kind of physics he helped explain.
MIT Professor Nuno F.G. Loureiro speaks in an undated photo. (rafaelmgrossi via X)
“Nuno was not only a brilliant scientist, he was a brilliant person,” Dennis Whyte, a fellow MIT professor, said in an obituary posted by the university. “He shone a bright light as a mentor, friend, teacher, colleague and leader and was universally admired for his articulate, compassionate manner. His loss is immeasurable to our community at the PSFC, NSE and MIT, and around the entire fusion and plasma research world.”
Allen Taylor, a Tufts University professor of biomechanical and molecular nutrition who lives in the area, told Fox News Digital outside Loureiro’s home on Wednesday that the shooting rocked the tight-knit community, which is also home to several Brown University students, where another shooting claimed two lives over the weekend.
“I’m concerned because he was a human being, first, and secondly, because he’s a scientist, and I know how much we invest in training people so they can make major contributions to our society, and then when they’re murdered, it’s a tremendous compromise to our community and to the world at large,” Taylor said.
MIT PROFESSOR SHOT, KILLED IN BROOKLINE HOME: WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT BOSTON-AREA ATTACK
The Brookline apartment building where MIT professor Nuno F. G. Loureiro was shot earlier this week is seen Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2025, as investigators continue to search for leads in the homicide case. (Michael Dorgan/Fox News Digital)
Loureiro obtained an undergraduate degree from the Instituto Superior Tecnico in Lisbon before getting a Ph.D. in physics at Imperial College London.
He went on to do post-doctoral work at Princeton University in New Jersey and UKAEA Culham Centre for Fusion Energy in the U.K. and returned to research in Lisbon before joining MIT’s faculty in 2016. He became a full professor in 2021 and was later named the director of the school’s Plasma Science and Fusion Center.
His research has earned him a half-dozen awards since 2015, most recently honored with the U.S. government’s Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers, which he received earlier this year.
MIT PROFESSOR SHOT DEAD IN BROOKLINE HOME, MASSACHUSETTS STATE POLICE LAUNCH HOMICIDE INVESTIGATION
A crowd of people holding candles gather outside the home of Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor Nuno F.G. Loureiro in Brookline, Mass., Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Leah Willingham)
In a 2019 interview, Loureiro likened complicated science to an art form.
“When we stimulate theoretically inclined minds by framing plasma physics and fusion challenges as beautiful theoretical physics problems, we bring into the game incredibly brilliant students — people who we want to attract to fusion development,” he said.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
In an earlier lecture on accepting and overcoming failure, he urged students to set their goals high and not be afraid of falling short.
“If you’re not failing all the time, you’re aiming too low,” he said.
Read the full article from Here
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
The shooting at Brown University exposed a major gap for a recently opened “real time crime center” in Providence that costs over $1 million, but didn’t include surveillance video from the college campus.
Two people were killed and nine others were injured during a shooting at Brown University at around 4 p.m. Saturday at the Barus and Holley engineering building. Officials said a person of interest was initially taken into custody, but was later released after evidence didn’t indicate he was involved.
Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov and Ella Cook were killed in Saturday’s shooting. Cook, 19, was the vice president of the Brown University College Republicans.
In August, the City of Providence, where Brown University is located, announced it had launched a “real time crime center” that has access to hundreds of surveillance cameras — but none at the Ivy League institution.
PERSON OF INTEREST IN CUSTODY FOLLOWING DEADLY SHOOTING AT BROWN UNIVERSITY
This combo image made with photos provided by the FBI and the Providence, Rhode Island, Police Department shows a person of interest in the shooting that occurred at Brown University on Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025. (FBI/Providence Police Department via AP)
“Since my first year as Mayor, elevating public safety in every neighborhood has been my top priority. This investment in Providence’s Real Time Crime Center strengthens our ability to protect neighborhoods and improve quality-of-life for everyone in Providence,” Mayor Brett Smiley said when he announced the center’s launch.
The “real time crime center” was funded with a $1 million grant from the federal government. Providence also agreed to pay Axon Fusus $750,000 to run the system through 2028, which could be extended, according to the Rhode Island Current.
Providence Police Department Detective Maj. David Lapatin told the Providence Journal that the newly built center didn’t include any video feeds at Brown University when the shooting took place.
BROWN UNIVERSITY WAS ‘SOFT TARGET’ FOR SHOOTER WHO REMAINS AT LARGE, CRIMINAL PROFILER SAYS
A law enforcement official walks past articles of clothing on a sidewalk near an entrance to Brown University, Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025, in Providence, Rhode Island, during the shooting investigation. (Steven Senne/AP Photo)
Police gather outside an entrance to Brown University on Saturday, during the investigation of the shooting. (AP Photo/Mark Stockwell)
Additionally, Lapatin said the crime center didn’t have access to any camera feeds from homes located close to the shooting.
Eric O’Neill, a cybersecurity expert and former FBI operative, told Fox News Digital it would have been helpful if Brown University allowed the crime center to use their security camera feeds.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
A police vehicle rests at an intersection near crime scene tape at Brown University, Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025, in Providence, Rhode Island, following the shooting at the university. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
“It certainly would have been nice if Brown had subscribed to the data center because my understanding is that there’s real-time monitoring, which would have meant that someone would have seen the activity on the cameras and perhaps law enforcement could have been alerted earlier,” O’Neill said.
Police have released several videos and images of a person of interest, but haven’t yet identified or arrested the individual.
Fox News Digital reached out to Brown University and the City of Providence for comment.
Read the full article from Here
Somehow, in the midst of all the injuries the Boston Red Sox dealt with last season, shortstop Trevor Story stayed healthy.
Story played 163 games in his first three years as a Red Sox, then played 157 this past year. He led the team in home runs, RBIs, and stolen bases. His defense tailed off in September, but he was also leading the charge on offense by the time the Sox got to the playoffs.
Entering his age-33 season, Story has been vehemently endorsed as the starting shortstop by the Red Sox organization, specifically chief baseball officer Craig Breslow. Are the Red Sox counting too heavily on the veteran repeating his production from a year ago?
If you like our content, choose Sports Illustrated as a preferred source on Google.
Story coming back to earth this season?
On Thursday, MLB.com published a “snapshot” of the Red Sox’s Fangraphs projections for this season, and the No. 1 thing that stood out from the list was Story and the Boston shortstop group being projected for 2.0 WAR, which ranked 27th out of the 30 teams in baseball.
“This projection and ranking might be a bit surprising, considering that Trevor Story had a resurgent 2025 season with a .741 OPS, 25 home runs, and 31 stolen bases and finished with 3.0 WAR,18th-best among shortstops,” wrote MLB.com’s Brent Maguire.
“Projection systems, however, are notoriously conservative and are looking beyond just the previous season. Story was oft-injured and unproductive during his first three years with the Red Sox before 2025 and with him entering his age-33 season, there are still some questions about his production in 2026.”
Certainly, one projection does not mean Story is doomed to have a bad year, and if anything, he might have a better defensive season if he stays healthy, because he’ll be better conditioned for those final weeks of the year.
However, this underscores the need for the Red Sox to land another big bat, and ideally, two. The odds that Story leads the team in all of those offensive categories again feel slim, and even if he does, that likely means Boston’s offense was fairly pedestrian.
More MLB: Red Sox’s Former No. 5 Prospect Breaks Silence On ‘Surprise’ Trade
Two men were killed in a shooting along Linnview Avenue in Pittsburgh’s Carrick neighborhood on Thursday, authorities said.
The shooting happened around 5:15 p.m. on the 1200 block of Linnview Avenue, according to a Pittsburgh Public Safety spokesperson.
When first responders arrived at the scene, they found two men with multiple gunshot wounds on the sidewalk about 10 feet apart. Both men were taken to local hospitals in grave condition, but they were pronounced dead when they arrived, Pittsburgh Public Safety’s spokesperson said. The victims were 23 and 27 years old. However, the victims have not been identified as of Thursday night.
Officials said the suspect fled on foot down Nobles Lane. No other information was released about the suspect. No arrests have been made as of Thursday night.
Neighbors told KDKA they heard at least six gunshots. Investigators at the scene recovered two firearms, the spokesperson for Pittsburgh Public Safety said. Police are investigating.
“At one point, I heard what sounded like fireworks,” one neighbor said.
New Video Shows Plane Carrying NASCAR’s Greg Biffle Exploding
Contributor: Who can afford Trump’s economy? Americans are feeling Grinchy
Commentary: Seahawks remind Rams that even one bizarre play can unravel a charmed season
Who was Osman Hadi; why is Bangladesh on fire over his death?
Putin tells news conference that Kremlin’s military goals will be achieved in Ukraine
Florida High School Football Rankings: Top 25 teams – Oct. 21
Cleary's 21 help Le Moyne down Central Connecticut State 69-64 in OT
How old is Bo Nix? What to know about Oregon quarterback ahead of 2024 NFL Draft
99th annual Pony Swim held in Virginia
Video: ‘It Didn’t Have to Happen This Way:’ U.Va. Faculty Call for Review of Police Response to Protests
Who was Osman Hadi; why is Bangladesh on fire over his death?
Putin tells news conference that Kremlin’s military goals will be achieved in Ukraine
Video: Trump Mocks Obama, Biden in His Presidential ‘Walk of Fame’
Trump quietly signs sweeping $901B defense bill after bipartisan Senate passage
Mercosur signature delayed to January after Meloni asks for more time
-
Iowa4 days agoAddy Brown motivated to step up in Audi Crooks’ absence vs. UNI
-
Washington1 week agoLIVE UPDATES: Mudslide, road closures across Western Washington
-
Iowa6 days agoHow much snow did Iowa get? See Iowa’s latest snowfall totals
-
Maine3 days agoElementary-aged student killed in school bus crash in southern Maine
-
Maryland4 days agoFrigid temperatures to start the week in Maryland
-
Technology1 week agoThe Game Awards are losing their luster
-
South Dakota5 days agoNature: Snow in South Dakota
-
Culture1 week agoCan You Identify Where the Winter Scenes in These Novels Took Place?