ESP Biography



KENDRA BECKLER, MIT senior studying Computer Science




Major: 6-3, 21M

College/Employer: MIT

Year of Graduation: G

Picture of Kendra Beckler

Brief Biographical Sketch:

I am a senior at MIT majoring in computer science and music. I enjoy many other areas of academics, from chemistry to math to literature.



Past Classes

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

X4715: Spark Patrol! in Spark! 2011 (Mar. 12, 2011)
Shoot your friends!! Its Patrol!! Patrol is a game sponsored by the MIT Assassins’ guild. Participants are divided into a number of teams. Each player is armed with a dart gun and a small number of rubber darts. Each player also wears a colored headband denoting what team he/she is on and whether or not he/she is currently alive. The object of the game is to shoot members of the other teams without getting shot. If shot, the player can resurrect by visiting the resurrection floor. The main goal, however, is to have fun. Please bring a signed permission slip available here: http://www.mit.edu/~assassin/PatrolPermissionSheet.txt


X4058: Patrol in Splash! 2010 (Nov. 20 - 21, 2010)
Shoot your friends!! Its Patrol!! Patrol is a game sponsored by the MIT Assassins' guild. Participants are divided into a number of teams. Each player is armed with a dart gun and a small number of rubber darts. Each player also wears a colored headband denoting what team he/she is on and whether or not he/she is currently alive. The object of the game is to shoot members of the other teams without getting shot. If shot, the player can resurrect by visiting the resurrection floor. The main goal, however, is to have fun. Please bring a signed permission slip available here: http://www.mit.edu/~assassin/PatrolPermissionSheet.txt


X2167: Truffles Making 101 in Spark! Spring 2009 (Mar. 07, 2009)
Come learn the exquisitely delicious art of turning chocolate into truffles. Impress your friends and family!


X2184: Storytelling, Rhetoric, and the Oral Tradition in Spark! Spring 2009 (Mar. 07, 2009)
The class will focus on the theory and practice of oral storytelling and rhetoric. Each student should come prepared with at least one story (max. 5 minutes) to tell.


H2206: Sonnets: A Dynamic Discipline in Spark! Spring 2009 (Mar. 07, 2009)
Witty, provocative, versatile. Despite its fairly strict and restrictive form, (14 lines, iambic pentameter) sonnets have a myriad of styles in historical and modern poetry. This class is designed to show you how sonnets have grown and developed over the past centuries into a diverse and powerful form that knows no bounds. We'll spend the first hour learning how to read and talk about a few classic sonnets to ground you in the sonnet tradition. The second hour will be dedicated to discussing you the myriad paths sonnets have taken since then. Come ready to think. Come ready to talk.


P1705: The History and Theory of Composing to Lyrics in Splash! 2008 (Nov. 22 - 23, 2008)
You may have noticed that some song tunes seem made for their lyrics, while some don't. (For instance, did you know that any Emily Dickinson poem can be sung to the tune of "The Yellow Rose of Texas"?) So how have composers throughout western music history created tunes to fit their lyrics? How should you? This class will cover examples (good and bad) of tune creation from organum and music of the Trecento to modern popular music.


H1904: Truffles-Making 101 in Splash! 2008 (Nov. 22 - 23, 2008)
Come learn to make homemade truffles, elegant and delicate. Impress your friends and family! Students will take their creations home.


L1910: Speculative Fiction Forum in Splash! 2008 (Nov. 22 - 23, 2008)
Do you like science fiction or fantasy novels? Share what you do and don't like, give (and get!) lots of book recommendations, compare systems of technology and magic, and discover new perspectives on these interesting genres.


L1913: Storytelling, Rhetoric, and the Oral Tradition in Splash! 2008 (Nov. 22 - 23, 2008)
The class will focus on the theory and practice of oral storytelling and rhetoric. Each student should come prepared with at least one story (max. 5 minutes) to tell.


H1323: Candy Bar Making in Spark! Spring 2008 (Mar. 08, 2008)
Learn how to make your own easy homemade chocolate bars with many and varied fillings.


H1332: The Fantasy and Science Fiction Books You Should Read NOW in Spark! Spring 2008 (Mar. 08, 2008)
Are you are a sci-fi nerd who can talk about FTL travel and cornucopia machines all day long? A fantasy geek who can explain the consistency of different magic systems off the top of your head? A newcomer to these genres? Learn what is awesome in science fiction and fantasy and what books you should drop everything to read NOW.


AP Music Theory in DELVE (2008)
Quotemined from the CollegeBoard website: "The ultimate goal of an AP Music Theory course is to develop a student's ability ...


Mathematical Story Time! in SPLASH (2007)
Learn some math while listening to stories about the infinity worms of Callisto (trying to live forever via math), surfing ...


Moore's Law and the Technological Singularity in SPLASH (2007)
Cybernetic implants, artificial intelligence, the metaverse- science fiction predicts lots of technologies for our future. Which of these have any ...


The Legacy of Beethoven in SPLASH (2007)
Beethoven's music caused classical music to vault into the Romantic Era, freeing composers from the strict constraints of the Classical ...


Truffles Making 101 in SPLASH (2007)
Truffles are layered chocolates, with soft, milky chocolate (called "ganache") surrounded by a hard chocolate shell. We will examine and ...


Truffles Making 101 in SPLASH (2007)
Truffles are layered chocolates, with soft, milky chocolate (called "ganache") surrounded by a hard chocolate shell. We will examine and ...


General Chemistry from the Perspective of Biology in JUNCTION (2006)
Ever wonder why the noble gases are so noble? Ever thought carbon was up to something fishy in order to ...


Title: Math, Physics, and Music: The Electric Guitar in HSSP (2006)
In this class, each student will build a simplified, but still real and working, electric guitar. Through doing this, students ...


Crazy Personalities of Classical Composers in SPLASHONWHEELS (2006)
Did you ever wonder where classical composers came up with so much original music? Well, they were geniuses. They were ...


Bar Magnets and Soldering Irons: Physics of the Electric Guitar in SPLASH (2006)
This class will pick apart a homemade electric guitar, to figure out how it works. We'll be looking at the ...


Bar Magnets and Soldering Irons: Physics of the Electric Guitar in SPLASH (2006)
This class will pick apart a homemade electric guitar, to figure out how it works. We'll be looking at the ...


How to Make Truffles in SPLASH (2006)
Truffles are layered chocolates, with soft, milky chocolate (called "ganache") surrounded by a hard chocolate shell. We will examine and ...


How to Make Truffles in SPLASH (2006)
Truffles are layered chocolates, with soft, milky chocolate (called "ganache") surrounded by a hard chocolate shell. We will examine and ...


The Baroque Era and the Beginnings of Classical Music in SPLASH (2006)
From Gregorian Chant to the beginning of the Classical Era, we will look at the history, composers, music, and theory. ...


in SPLASH (2005)
Please enter your course's description here.


Algebra I in SPLASH (2005)
This course will cover the middle school/high school Algebra I curriculum (NOT linear algebra) in 2 hours of happy, silly, ...


Algebra II in SPLASH (2005)
Come for a whirlwind version of high school Algebra II and some Precalculus covering all of the standard curriculum plus ...


Crazy Personalities of Classical Composers in SPLASH (2005)
Did you ever wonder where classical composers came up with so much original music? Well, they were geniuses. They were ...


Geometry in SPLASH (2005)
Geometry is pretty; it is not evil like some people claim! This course will cover an entire year of high ...


Trigonometry in SPLASH (2005)
Trig is awesome! This course will cover the standard high school Trigonometry curriculum in only 1 hour! Mechanics, applications, identities, ...