ESP Biography



JASON ALONSO, MIT PhD student studying AI




Major: Media Arts and Sciences

College/Employer: MIT

Year of Graduation: G

Picture of Jason Alonso

Brief Biographical Sketch:

I do artificial intelligence research in robotics at the MIT Media Laboratory, Personal Robots Group.

I'm a system administration geek with a penchant for Civilization IV, German board games, light bridge playing, writing, cheese, sugar, and more cheese.

Incidentally, I am also Treasurer of ESP 2006-2008.



Past Classes

  (Clicking a class title will bring you to the course's section of the corresponding course catalog)

C4187: Programming and Debugging Workshop in Splash! 2010 (Nov. 20 - 21, 2010)
Come with your partly working projects, crazy ideas, language frustrations, cool demos, whatever. I might not have heard of the language you're using, but I can try to help you think clearly about debugging or crafting code. Or we can just sit around and talk about programming. It's okay to be a geek.


H1697: Bookbinding in Splash! 2008 (Nov. 22 - 23, 2008)
Ever wonder how books are made? Ever think it would be cool if you could have your creative writing in hardcover? Ever wanted to use the word "signature" in a way that none of your friends understand? Come bind copies of the novel written in "How to Write a Novel in 3 hours." You will practice some basic techniques and learn about more of them in the course of this class.


H1732: Introduction to European Games in Splash! 2008 (Nov. 22 - 23, 2008)
Tired of Monopoly, Taboo and Trivial Pursuit? This class will introduce “European-style” board games, which range from monks in a monastery trying to solve a murder mystery to settling an island to building Arabian palaces. These games are social, fun and themed while still incorporating interesting strategy. We'll explore several varieties of European games, including some specific examples, and examine sources for these games. This class will include, of course, a “games tasting” session, where we will break into groups and play some of these games. Estimated attendance: 10 students (including other sections of the same class).


L1989: Write a Novel In 3 Hours in Splash! 2008 (Nov. 22 - 23, 2008)
Sound insane? Well, yeah. And yet, we shall boldly venture forth, writing without a prayer of proofreading, hacking out our chapters as fast as our fingers can type them. Be a part of this crazy experiment! In the first 90 minutes, we will come up with a plot, sketch out chapter summaries, and divide them up. In the second 90 minutes, we will write, write, write! If you take bookbinding, you'll get to bind this novel afterwards. Those who expect quality may be disappointed. Those few, brave, creative souls who want to see what happens anyway are warmly invited!


Natural Language Processing in SPLASHONWHEELS (2008)
It’s well past 2001, and we still can’t talk with our computers. Well, okay, we can tell our cell phones ...


Database-Backed Web Design in SPLASH (2007)
So you've written an awesome webpage for the whole world to see! But you want something more than that: You ...


Introduction to European Games in SPLASH (2007)
Tired of Monopoly, Taboo and Trivial Pursuit? This class will introduce "European-style" board games, which range from monks in a ...


Natural Language Processing in SPLASH (2007)
It's well past 2001, and we still can't talk with our computers. Well, okay, we can tell our cell phones ...


Ramencraft in SPLASH (2007)
Playing with food is an activity with a long and glorious history. From the very first cave paintings of steak-tossing, ...


Database-Backed Web Design in SPLASH (2006)
So you've written an awesome webpage for the whole world to see! But you want something more than that: You ...


Introduction to European Games in SPLASH (2006)
Tired of Monopoly, Taboo and Trivial Pursuit? This class will introduce "European-style" board games, which range from monks in a ...