<p>Actually, they can, two ways:</p>
<ol>
<li>You can tweak the powerpc mac version of matlab, by disabling certain features (specifically, all java-based features), to get it to run rosetta.</li>
<li>Or, you can get the matlab 2007 beta for intel macs. It runs just as slowly, because it's loaded with debug stuff, but it's a full-featured universal binary and doesn't run under rosetta.</li>
</ol>
<p>For example, I'm running matlab 2007 beta - student version right now (legally :) ) Getting the matlab beta varies depending on your status as a matlab user (i.e., student, professional, giant licensee, etc)</p>