Splash 2016
Course Catalog
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Note: For difficulty, * is easiest and **** is very difficult.
Visual and Performing Arts
A10578: Improv Games
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Brian Chen,
Jakob Weisblat
Let's play improv games together! From freeze to taxi to zip-zap-zop, it'll be lots of fun. No experience required.
A10757: Design, Narrative, and The Future Studio
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Steven Faerm
Designers must adopt radically different strategies if they are to succeed in the knowledge-based economy and evolving industries. Rather than narrowly focusing on the “what” of design, designers must increasingly focus on the “how” of design. This approach to design involves developing emotionally compelling narrative and unique design processes that, in turn, innovate product and heighten consumers’ interests.
This presentation explores the future of design and the designer. We’ll discuss our contemporary mass-obsession with design, socio-economics, consumer behavior, marketing, sustainability, design education, and tomorrow’s design studio to contextualize how and why the designer’s role is shifting. The presentation concludes by showcasing undergraduate and professional fashion design projects that creatively illustrate key concepts.
Presented by Steven Faerm, Associate Professor, Parsons School of Design.
This presentation explores the future of design and the designer. We’ll discuss our contemporary mass-obsession with design, socio-economics, consumer behavior, marketing, sustainability, design education, and tomorrow’s design studio to contextualize how and why the designer’s role is shifting. The presentation concludes by showcasing undergraduate and professional fashion design projects that creatively illustrate key concepts.
Presented by Steven Faerm, Associate Professor, Parsons School of Design.
A11014: Harmonica 101 Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Jonathan Hurowitz
Have you always wanted to play the harmonica like the blues and rock pros? Then we'll teach you! You'll get your own harmonica that you can keep!
Prerequisites
Play another instrument or have some knowledge of music theory (chords and scales)
Prerequisites
Play another instrument or have some knowledge of music theory (chords and scales)
A10865: [LEADS] Swing into social dance
Difficulty: **
In this course, we'll look at the basics of swing dancing. Swing is a partner dance with 2 roles: leads and follows. Sign up for this class if you want to lead; find the other listing if you want to follow.
A10891: The Art of Cardmaking
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Divya Ramamoorthy
Do you have a birthday or holiday coming up that you need a card for? Have you ever walked through the greeting cards section of a store and wondered how they are made?
This class will teach you how to make beautiful handmade cards. We'll cover rubber stamping, paper layering, and embossing techniques - and everything you need to know to make cards on your own! This class is for everyone, from avid cardmakers to first time crafters.
Each student will get to take home their handmade cards!
This class will teach you how to make beautiful handmade cards. We'll cover rubber stamping, paper layering, and embossing techniques - and everything you need to know to make cards on your own! This class is for everyone, from avid cardmakers to first time crafters.
Each student will get to take home their handmade cards!
A10842: Introduction to Parody Song Writing
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Lee Friedman
Parodies of songs have long been in existence, as long as songs themselves. In this class we’re going to learn about what makes a good song parody, and create one (or more, depending on time) together as a class.
A10864: [FOLLOWS] Swing into social dance
Difficulty: **
In this course, we'll look at the basics of swing dancing. Swing is a partner dance with 2 roles: leads and follows. Sign up for this class if you want to follow; find the other listing if you want to lead.
A10687: How to Solve a Rubik’s Cube Full!
Difficulty: **
Learn how to solve a 3x3x3 Rubik’s cube. Impress your friends and become the life of any party with this newfound ability. No experience necessary.
A11161: Advanced Knitting Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Corinn Herrick
Do you know how to knit and purl but want to take things to the next level? In this class we'll briefly talk about some more advanced topics in knitting, for instance:
* How to pick the right yarn for your project.
* Cabling
* Colorwork
* Shakerknitting
* Texture patterns
* Knitting twisted
* Openwork/lace knitting
* Finishing your work (weaving in loose ends and blocking)
* Seams
* Handling dropped stitches
* Increases and decreases
Exact topics will be determined based on student interest. Bring your own project if you'd like because most of the class will be hands-on practicing the topics we learn.
Prerequisites
Must be able to knit and purl comfortably. Bonus if you already know some of the topics on the topics list. A survey will be sent to the class before Splash and we'll choose topics that students aren't already familiar with but are ready to learn.
* How to pick the right yarn for your project.
* Cabling
* Colorwork
* Shakerknitting
* Texture patterns
* Knitting twisted
* Openwork/lace knitting
* Finishing your work (weaving in loose ends and blocking)
* Seams
* Handling dropped stitches
* Increases and decreases
Exact topics will be determined based on student interest. Bring your own project if you'd like because most of the class will be hands-on practicing the topics we learn.
Prerequisites
Must be able to knit and purl comfortably. Bonus if you already know some of the topics on the topics list. A survey will be sent to the class before Splash and we'll choose topics that students aren't already familiar with but are ready to learn.
A10672: Intro to Photography Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Akshara Thejaswi
Do DSLR cameras (aka "real" cameras) scare you? Did you buy a super fancy professional camera, only to use it on Auto? Want to turn your Instagram into #instagoals?
Come learn the basics of photography! We'll cover the basics of camera settings (ISO, aperture, shutter speed), methods of framing (the rule of thirds, leading lines, etc.), and photo editing skills.
Prerequisites
None! If you have a DSLR or other camera, bring it!
Come learn the basics of photography! We'll cover the basics of camera settings (ISO, aperture, shutter speed), methods of framing (the rule of thirds, leading lines, etc.), and photo editing skills.
Prerequisites
None! If you have a DSLR or other camera, bring it!
A10893: It Don't Mean A Thing If It Aint Got That Swing: Swing Dance 101 Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Lee Friedman,
Mehitabel Glenhaber
Want to look like cool people from old movies? Swing is an awesome social dance from the 1930s, and you too can learn how to dance it! Come learn the basic steps, as well as some exciting turns, passes, and other flashy moves. We'll also teach you about dance floor etiquette, and everything else you need to go social dancing on your own once you get hooked on swing!
Also, you should probably shoes you can dance in (sneakers are the best), and clothes you can move in. Or, y'know, just show up in your best vintage 1930s outfit. Your choice!
Also, you should probably shoes you can dance in (sneakers are the best), and clothes you can move in. Or, y'know, just show up in your best vintage 1930s outfit. Your choice!
A11042: Intro to Songwriting Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Julie Vaughn
Always wanted to write a song for your dog, friend, or significant other? Wondered what makes a good pop song stick in your head? Then this course is for you!
A10610: Painting: Freedom of Expression & Creative Thinking
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Piper Nichole Henriques
You will be surprised what you can learn from creating art with your hands. You don't have to be a trained painter or an "artist" -- you just have to have the desire to try something new and artistic. This class gives you a chance to create an artwork -- painting, sketch, or mixed-media collage. This class is about giving you exposure to the arts and understanding that anyone can be creative -- and ways to use creativity in your every day life and how creative thinking can help you in your future career.
A10745: Salsa Dancing
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Francesca Majluf
Come learn how to dance one of the most fun partner dances ever! There may or may not be dips involved.
A10572: Advanced Chain Mail
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Miranda Gavrin
Already know the basics of weaving chain mail? Want to do some cooler projects? Come to this class to learn new techniques!
Prerequisites
Must already have experience manipulating chain mail rings. Ideally, should remember how to do 4-in-1.
Prerequisites
Must already have experience manipulating chain mail rings. Ideally, should remember how to do 4-in-1.
A10892: The Shim Sham Dance Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Lee Friedman
Sometimes a tap dance, sometimes a jazz/swing dance, this simple line dance is a super fun, super chill dance that anyone can learn! Created in the 1920s, this dance is done in studios, clubs, and flash-mobs all around the world. No dancing experience necessary, just bring water and comfortable shoes!
A10993: How to become a Newspaper Cartoonist Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Claire Traweek
Have you ever wondered where the cartoons in the newspapers came from? Have you ever wanted to draw some yourself? Come learn about the cartooning greats, current state of cartooning, and how to get involved! We'll cover all the steps of writing, drawing, and syndication (getting your cartoons published), and practice drawing comic strips! No drawing ability is required (in fact, many renowned cartoonists were notorious for their lack of prior drawing expertise).
A10980: Creating a green screen video
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Jim Flannery
Have you ever wondered how YouTubers make green screen videos? Now is your chance!
In this course, your class will learn how a green screen works, discover some do's and do-not's, brainstorm creative ways to use green screens, and finish by making a group video.
In this course, your class will learn how a green screen works, discover some do's and do-not's, brainstorm creative ways to use green screens, and finish by making a group video.
A10831: Geometric Art- using Matlab!
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Sarah Bricault,
Adam Spanbauer
You can create an amazing variety of geometric art creations using a small set of functions. Matlab is a programming language that excels at data manipulation. What happens when these two come together? You can create geometric art images and videos with ease! Come to this class to learn the basics, and take home an image or a video of your favorite creation!
Prerequisites
Basic knowledge of programming- for loops, while loops, if statements- is essential. Basic knowledge of sine, cosine, and tangent functions is useful.
Prerequisites
Basic knowledge of programming- for loops, while loops, if statements- is essential. Basic knowledge of sine, cosine, and tangent functions is useful.
A11110: Origami Basics
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Shahul Alam
The ancient Japanese art of paper-folding is not for the weak of heart. If you have the courage to put up with the occasional paper cut and the willpower to create something out of nothing, then come learn the foundations of origami.
Prerequisites
Steady hands and a creative nous.
Prerequisites
Steady hands and a creative nous.
A10573: Learn to Knit! Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Isabel Kaspriskie
Have you ever wondered how two sticks and a ball of yarn can turn into anything from socks to mittens to an adult-sized sweater? Uncover the beautiful simplicity of knits and purls -- you'll be making your own creations in no time!
A10674: The Ancient Mystery of the Boots and Cats Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
John Bond
A rundown of some good starting tips for anyone interested in the world of beatboxing. All experience levels welcome, but this will be focusing more on the fundamentals of the craft. So, if you want to know how to make weird noises in a rhythmic fashion to impress your friends at parties, come on down!!
A10584: Theater Lighting Workshop Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Ben Rosen-Filardo,
Jakob Weisblat
Come learn a little bit about lighting design for the theater. We'll hang a few lighting instruments from the ceiling, play with controlling them a bit, and maybe even light a short scene or song.
Prerequisites
None
Prerequisites
None
A10787: How to Play Piano by Ear Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Anthony Liu
Do you play piano? Do you want to play your favorite pop/EDM/r&b songs without having to find and purchase sheet music? If you already have a basic set of piano playing skills, then playing piano by ear is easier than you may think. In this class, we'll go over a step-by-step process to playing songs by ear, covering topics such as finding the key of a song, identifying chords, playing rhythmic patterns, and improvising. Note: you do NOT need to know how to read sheet music to take this class (that's kind of the point) :)
Prerequisites
* should be able to play basic melodies and chord progressions * ~1-2 years of experience playing; you should be able to play with both hands comfortably * you don't need any formal training!!! * you definitely do NOT need to know anything about sheet music
Prerequisites
* should be able to play basic melodies and chord progressions * ~1-2 years of experience playing; you should be able to play with both hands comfortably * you don't need any formal training!!! * you definitely do NOT need to know anything about sheet music
A11155: Geometric Origami Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Tiffany Tao
Curious about geometric origami? It uses multiple modules to be folded together into a bigger more complicated origami. Come join us as we explore the different things you can do with paper!
A10802: Beginner Swing Dance!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Julia Fiksinski,
Davis Tran
Learn some basic swing dance with Davis and Julia!
A10808: Doodling for Designers
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Joyce Wang
Do you doodle in class because there's nothing else to do? Are you an active doodler and own thousands of scraps of paper filled with doodles? A lot of people think that doodling is a waste of time, but in fact, doodling is a great way to explore the principles of design! It helps us figure out what makes some things look good and other things look not as good.
In this class, we will learn about basic design principles and how they affect the way we see things as art. From product identity to infographics, and yes, even to doodling in the margins of your notes, the principles of design are everywhere and available for you to use to your advantage. Whether you're thinking of designing websites or just want better margin-doodles, we will talk about just what makes something look good and why.
I won't be teaching you the "right way" to doodle, I welcome all students to doodle alongside me as I talk about different aspects of design. It's not every day that a teacher asks that you doodle MORE in class!
In this class, we will learn about basic design principles and how they affect the way we see things as art. From product identity to infographics, and yes, even to doodling in the margins of your notes, the principles of design are everywhere and available for you to use to your advantage. Whether you're thinking of designing websites or just want better margin-doodles, we will talk about just what makes something look good and why.
I won't be teaching you the "right way" to doodle, I welcome all students to doodle alongside me as I talk about different aspects of design. It's not every day that a teacher asks that you doodle MORE in class!
A11091: Performers' Practice Circle
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Abigail Walzer
Sing. Dance. Act. Recite poetry. Tell a story. The sky's the limit, really, as long as it's a performing art. We're all going to get together and practice by taking turns performing for the group, in a friendly setting. There is no audience-- everyone is required to take a turn doing something. Critiques, however, are optional. This is a good chance to try performing in a low-key environment, or perfect that thing you're working really hard on before you perform it for real!
Prerequisites
Come with at least one thing to perform prepared! Ideally not longer than five minutes, but in past years we've had plenty of time to get to everyone, so I'm flexible on the time thing. (In past years I've had time to get to everyone multiple times, so while you're only required to go once, you may have the opportunity to go more than once if you want to.) All skill levels and all performing arts are welcome.
Prerequisites
Come with at least one thing to perform prepared! Ideally not longer than five minutes, but in past years we've had plenty of time to get to everyone, so I'm flexible on the time thing. (In past years I've had time to get to everyone multiple times, so while you're only required to go once, you may have the opportunity to go more than once if you want to.) All skill levels and all performing arts are welcome.
A11059: Charting Out Your Life
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
A L
No, we won’t be plotting trajectories towards life goals. But we will consider simple and effective data visualization approaches that could help you with that. Come build graphs and diagrams that reflect analytically, or at least systematically on your interests, habits, activities, feelings and more.
A10735: Watch Our Town
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Mary Jane Porzenheim
Watch the students in my "Script Reading: Thorton Wilder's Our Town" class read Our Town! Now you may be thinking, "why would I want to watch a bunch of amateurs read some silly play?" I can only say that Our Town is a fantastic, moving, thought-provoking play. Even if you don't sign up for this class, I hope you experience it at some point in your life- you will be richer for doing so. If you'd like to perform, sign up for the script-reading version!
Prerequisites
A good attention span, enjoyment of plays. Wear something comfy!
Prerequisites
A good attention span, enjoyment of plays. Wear something comfy!
A10734: Script Reading: Thorton Wilder's Our Town
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Mary Jane Porzenheim
Come read a part in Thorton Wilder's seminal minimalist play about life and death and love in Grover's Corners, New Hampshire. This is a show that means a lot to me, personally- I often think of a few of the ending scenes. The class will be limited to a fairly small number, so you should all have good parts. There will be an audience! If you would like to hear the show but maybe not perform, sign up for my class "Watch Our Town," which will watch this class read the show.
Prerequisites
Some acting experience preferred, (particularly if you'd like to read for the stage manager) though none required. It would be great if you'd read the show beforehand!
Prerequisites
Some acting experience preferred, (particularly if you'd like to read for the stage manager) though none required. It would be great if you'd read the show beforehand!
A10605: How to Draw People Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Carolyn Lu
A fast-paced tour of anatomy and tricks for drawing people! From the face to the feet we'll go over all you need to know to draw convincing people in any style. If we have time, we'll also do some figure drawing so you can put what you've learned to practice!
A10571: Chain Mail Weaving Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Miranda Gavrin
This class will teach the fundamentals of making your own chain mail. Learn the basic weave you can use to make anything from keychains and bracelets to a full suit of armor!
Prerequisites
None
Prerequisites
None
A10985: Portrait Drawing Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Maeve Hedstrom
This class is for every skill level, from beginner to pro. You will learn how to draw a portrait, practicing by drawing a self portrait in a mirror. You will learn about factors of portraits including composition, proportion, and shading. There is an optional (volunteer) critique at the end of class. This classroom is a fun, non-judgemental learning environment, for building up portrait drawing skills, building confidence, and having fun! If you were in this class last year, and would like more practice drawing, please sign up again!
Prerequisites
None
Prerequisites
None
A11026: Resist Gravity: Learn to Juggle! Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Miriam Pofcher
Learn to juggle! Make your own juggling balls!
A11185: Math in Music Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
John Mori
What makes music work? Why are certain songs so catchy? Explore the mathematics behind basic harmony and its application in pop music.
Prerequisites
None
Prerequisites
None
A10934: Intro to Beading: Making 3D Things
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Tara Liu
Learn to make 3D structures using only beads and a single string! I will teach you how to make a dodecahedron out of beads, and also introduce some ways to generalize what you've learned so that you can make anything you could imagine.
Leave the class with a cute keychain and a newfound power to make many, many polyhedra.
Prerequisites
Patience and the willingness to fiddle around with small objects for an extended period of time
Leave the class with a cute keychain and a newfound power to make many, many polyhedra.
Prerequisites
Patience and the willingness to fiddle around with small objects for an extended period of time
A10601: Handwhistling Fundamentals Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Robert Henning,
Catherine Zeng
An introductory class in how to handwhistle. Come learn how to whistle with cupped hands and make music. Handwhistling: the cheapest, most portable instrument that can have as many notes as a saxophone or trumpet.
A11021: Clothes for Imaginary People: Crash-course in Costume Design Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
E Rosser
Imaginary people need clothes, too! Whether they're on stage, on the screen, or from your favorite tabletop campaign, you can tell loads about a character from the costume they wear. Learn how to convey feelings through line and color, try your hand at outfitting a character, and visit a working costume shop!
A10597: Room for Improv-ment
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Molly Swanton
Have you ever wanted to try theater, but didn't have the time to commit to large scale productions? Luckily for you, this class is a chance to act your pants off without any hassle, no prior experience necessary! All you need to bring is yourself, an open mind, and a willingness to work with others. (I do ask that all pants physically remain on everyone's person, though).
A10981: Learn to speak in public without peeing your pants!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Jim Flannery
Are you terrified of public speaking but want to overcome the challenge? This workshop is just for you!
This class breaks your fears down into little bits and squashes them like bugs. I won't reveal the hidden secrets in the description but I can share with you that the majority of the class will involve telling jokes and laughing at jokes. You are guaranteed to leave having improved skills and a smile.
No joke-writing skills required to participate.
This class breaks your fears down into little bits and squashes them like bugs. I won't reveal the hidden secrets in the description but I can share with you that the majority of the class will involve telling jokes and laughing at jokes. You are guaranteed to leave having improved skills and a smile.
No joke-writing skills required to participate.
A10620: Knitting Workshop
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Ari Saksonov
A fun crash course in some cool things you can do with a ball of yarn and some sticks! Topics covered include reading a pattern, cable techniques, and theoretical sock construction. PLUS the importance of gauge and blocking AND some basic intro-level lace! Tea and cookies will be served!
Prerequisites
Students must know a basic cast-on and bind off, knit and purl stitch, and at least one type of decrease.
Prerequisites
Students must know a basic cast-on and bind off, knit and purl stitch, and at least one type of decrease.
A10836: Video Editing- an Introduction Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Sarah Bricault,
Adam Spanbauer
Have you ever wanted to create your own custom video but just aren't sure how? How do you overlay videos? Add custom backgrounds? Make lightning fly from your fingertips on film? Or just make a custom holiday message for your family? Come to this introductory class and learn the basics! I'll have all the material for you to create holiday videos, or you can come with your own project idea.
Prerequisites
None; a USB drive is recommended but not necessary. Please note that you will be asked to make a video recording of yourself for use in your project. Feel free to bring existing videos, photos, or other media-- but keep any video files under 1.5 minutes long!
Prerequisites
None; a USB drive is recommended but not necessary. Please note that you will be asked to make a video recording of yourself for use in your project. Feel free to bring existing videos, photos, or other media-- but keep any video files under 1.5 minutes long!
A10769: Stravinsky and the Birth of Twentieth-Century Music: "Firebird", "Petrushka" and "The Rite of Spring"
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Marshall Estrin
From 1909 to 1913, Igor Stravinsky wrote three ballets that would define modern music. In this course we will examine how Stravinsky's "The Firebird", "Petrushka" and "The Rite of Spring" incorporated a century of Russian music, turned it inside out and used the past to create the future.
Languages and Literatures
B10955: The History of English
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Juliet Stanton
This class will provide a brief overview of the history of the English language, from ca. 450AD to the present day. We will focus primarily on ways in which Modern English differs from its ancestors in terms of sound, sentence structure, and vocabulary, and how other languages have affected its development.
B11108: The Yellow Wallpaper
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Haley Cope
The Yellow Wallpaper is a short story by a women's rights activist named Gilman. It is a first person narrative of a woman who is diagnosed with hysteria. It explores questions of treatment, patient's rights, women's rights, and mental health.
We will be discussing the major themes of the work, and how the writing style illustrates the challenges of the narrator. Please come prepared to discuss the work.
Prerequisites
You should read the story prior to class
We will be discussing the major themes of the work, and how the writing style illustrates the challenges of the narrator. Please come prepared to discuss the work.
Prerequisites
You should read the story prior to class
B10813: Learn How to Speak in Gibberish!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Kathy Camenzind
Ever wanted to have a secret language that nobody could understand? Are you bored of Pig Latin and want omethingsay arderhay? Come learn how to speak in Gidigibbidigeridigish!
B10653: Conversational Korean
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Sungil Kim,
Hyun Ryong Lee
According to research, Korean is one of the easiest language to learn to speak, but very difficult to get mastered in reading and writing. In less than one hour, this class is served to teach very essential conversational Korean: from pronunciation to useful vocabularies.
This course will have fun interactive exercises with your peers to practice for learned expressions. At the end of the course, I will answer questions about Korean culture and language.
This course will have fun interactive exercises with your peers to practice for learned expressions. At the end of the course, I will answer questions about Korean culture and language.
B10764: Introduction to Ancient Greek Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Leah McKinney
Did the Greek phrases in Percy Jackson & the Olympians ever capture your attention? Do you love learning Greek mythology? Interested in learning Ancient Greek? In this class, we'll be going over the basics of Ancient (Attic Greek), including the alphabet and some basic noun (first and second declension) and verb (present tense) forms, and work through a short, rather entertaining translation.
B10823: Introduction to Latin
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Emma Batson
Crash course introduction to the Latin language and Roman culture
B10642: How to make your own language Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Helen Read
Learn how to construct your own personal language, from phonetics to grammar! A basic intro to IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) will be included, as well as how to get started, and good features to include, as well as ways to avoid a copy of English or a "kitchen sink" conlang.
B10713: Intro to Russian
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Irina Kantor
Basic introduction to Russian language, including the alphabet and most general conversational phrases.
Prerequisites
Enthusiasm, lots of it!
Prerequisites
Enthusiasm, lots of it!
B11122: The Elian Script Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Ray Hua Wu
Learn a new, artistically freeform and visually pleasing script in which to write English words! The Elian Script makes English writing look like abstract art, whether you use this fact to make writing beautiful or to camouflage the fact that you're writing words.
B10810: Compositional Semantics - How Sentences Come Together
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Henry Shackleton
Compositional Semantics studies how the meaning of sentences come together from the meanings of individual words. In this class, we'll lay down some of the basic framework and notation used for this study, discuss some of the philosophical implications, and take a stab at figuring out how language works.
B10623: Vowel Phonology: Sounds of the World's Englishes
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Roan LaPlante
In this course we will go over the theory, anatomy, and orthography (International Phonetic Alphabet) of different vowel sounds.
Because English has one of the most complex vowel phonologies in the world, we will primarily compare dialects of English, but we will also discuss vowel systems in the other languages of the world.
This is a very interactive course, with an emphasis on speech production.
Prerequisites
It is suggested for students to first take the companion course on consonant sounds immediately preceding this course, but not required.
Because English has one of the most complex vowel phonologies in the world, we will primarily compare dialects of English, but we will also discuss vowel systems in the other languages of the world.
This is a very interactive course, with an emphasis on speech production.
Prerequisites
It is suggested for students to first take the companion course on consonant sounds immediately preceding this course, but not required.
B10678: An Introduction to Latin
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Peter Klapes
This course will cover the basics of the Latin language--noun declensions, verb conjugations, vocabulary, etc.
B10561: Introduction to Hungarian Through Song
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Jessica Oehrlein
We'll cover basic Hungarian* by singing (mostly children's) songs! You'll learn very important vocabulary words like yellow, raspberry, icicle, and animal.
*I do not guarantee that you'll be able to hold any kind of reasonable conversation.
Prerequisites
Willingness to sing very silly songs
*I do not guarantee that you'll be able to hold any kind of reasonable conversation.
Prerequisites
Willingness to sing very silly songs
B10622: Consonant Phonology: Strange Sounds of the World's Languages
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Roan LaPlante
In this course we will go over the theory, anatomy, and orthography (International Phonetic Alphabet) of different consonant sounds, including sounds in English and lots of amazingly fun sounds that are not at all like sounds in English.
This is a very interactive course, with an emphasis on speech production.
This is a very interactive course, with an emphasis on speech production.
B10644: Learn the International Phonetic Alphabet!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Tuesday Mueller-Harder
Or, [lɝn ði ɪntərnæʃnəl fənɛdɪk ælfəbɛt]!
Ever seen a word's pronunciation on Wikipedia and not understood how to read it? Ever wanted to be able to precisely and accurately explain how to say a certain word? Come learn the IPA! You'll understand the basics of how to transcribe American English pronunciation, and if we have time, we'll begin to cover sounds that appear in other languages.
Prerequisites
Must not be afraid of unfamiliar words.
Ever seen a word's pronunciation on Wikipedia and not understood how to read it? Ever wanted to be able to precisely and accurately explain how to say a certain word? Come learn the IPA! You'll understand the basics of how to transcribe American English pronunciation, and if we have time, we'll begin to cover sounds that appear in other languages.
Prerequisites
Must not be afraid of unfamiliar words.
B10882: Let's Read Dr. Seuss!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Alexandra Martirosian
Pick a favorite Dr. Seuss story, and let's go! We'll look at some of the themes present in Dr. Seuss stories and explore them on a level beyond elementary school.
B11061: You Are What You Speak: An Introduction to Linguistic Relativity Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Katie O'Nell
Have you ever wondered if the language(s) you speak shapes the way you conceptualize the world? Well you're not alone! It's a contentious area in linguistic and cognitive research, so I don't have any definitive answers for you, but if you want to learn more about the related literature and current theories, this is the class for you! (Plus there will be donuts...)
Prerequisites
A love of language and the human mind :)
Prerequisites
A love of language and the human mind :)
B11041: Hebrew 101 Full!
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Irina Kantor
Learn a new alphabet, and figure out how to write a whole bunch of international words (and of course, your name and the names of your friends) with this straightforward introduction to Hebrew! Get a basic understanding of syntax in under 2 hours!
Prerequisites
Open mind; good analytical skills recommended
Prerequisites
Open mind; good analytical skills recommended
B10568: "Superman/woman" and Science Fiction/Fantasy
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Josh Shaine
Science Fiction and Fantasy have many characters who stick out compared to others because they have more magic, different powers, unique abilities.
We will look at how these characters are treated by the worlds in which they are set and reflect on what, if anything, this says about the society in which we live.
We will look at how these characters are treated by the worlds in which they are set and reflect on what, if anything, this says about the society in which we live.
B10751: Introduction to Russian Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Marcella Lusardi
Take a journey east to learn the mysterious language of the czars, the Soviets, and the modern-day natives of the largest country in the world—Russia! We'll cover the alphabet and some vocabulary and phrases.
B11120: Storytelling in Interactive Media (Video Games)
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Xiang Wen Kuan
From books and theatre, to audio and film, the art of storytelling has evolved together with our technologies and new forms of media. For our generation, our new form of media is Video Games.
Go beyond gameplay and learn how Video Games are able to tell stories in a way that no other medium can!
Prerequisites
Beware of spoilers
Go beyond gameplay and learn how Video Games are able to tell stories in a way that no other medium can!
Prerequisites
Beware of spoilers
B11103: The Book of Genesis
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Haley Cope
The Book of Genesis is a heavy work, full of rich symbolism, a wide cast of characters, and interesting disconnect abound.
We'll be taking a treatment from a literary perspective. While I hold religion and faith to be an important and meaningful thing, we will be looking purely at the text and not the beliefs/religions.
This class will be discussion-based. Come prepared to interact and engage with the text and each other.
Prerequisites
None, some familiarity with Biblical themes would be helpful
We'll be taking a treatment from a literary perspective. While I hold religion and faith to be an important and meaningful thing, we will be looking purely at the text and not the beliefs/religions.
This class will be discussion-based. Come prepared to interact and engage with the text and each other.
Prerequisites
None, some familiarity with Biblical themes would be helpful
B10693: Introduction to Lojban
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Robert Kao
newparagraph lojban does not use uppercase letters except for special purposes and uses words instead of symbols to indicate punctuation period
newparagraph do you want to learn a language that is actually worth learning questionmark then learn lojban exclamationpoint do not worry dash actual lojban text is much easier to read and less ugly than this parody style period
newparagraph lojban is a constructed language that has many awesome features openparenthesis syntactic unambiguity comma cultural neutrality comma complete regularity comma basis on logic comma high freedom of expression comma et cetera closeparenthesis period therefore comma it is easy to find good answers to the question beginquote why lojban questionmark endquote also comma lojban speakers actually do exist period
newparagraph this course covers the basics of lojban comma including phonology comma morphology comma basic idea of the grammar comma and the most common grammatical constructs period you will also have the opportunity to practice speaking the language period it is hoped that you will continue studying this language after taking the class period
newparagraph do you want to learn a language that is actually worth learning questionmark then learn lojban exclamationpoint do not worry dash actual lojban text is much easier to read and less ugly than this parody style period
newparagraph lojban is a constructed language that has many awesome features openparenthesis syntactic unambiguity comma cultural neutrality comma complete regularity comma basis on logic comma high freedom of expression comma et cetera closeparenthesis period therefore comma it is easy to find good answers to the question beginquote why lojban questionmark endquote also comma lojban speakers actually do exist period
newparagraph this course covers the basics of lojban comma including phonology comma morphology comma basic idea of the grammar comma and the most common grammatical constructs period you will also have the opportunity to practice speaking the language period it is hoped that you will continue studying this language after taking the class period
B10718: Poetry! Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Peter Klapes,
Sarah Wharton
In this course, we'll analyze a handful of poems. We'll discuss the philosophical, rhetorical, and literary implications of the various poems. Feel free to bring poems that you would like the class to have a look at.
B10738: Potential Literatures
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Kavi Duvvoori
Novels without 'e's! Stories on mobius strips! 100,000,000,000,000 sonnets in one! This will be a brief introductory workshop on the possibility of using constraint, mathematics, and formal experimentation as sources of inspiration, meaning, and creative freedom through the techniques developed by the (mostly) French writers of the OuLiPo. No writing experience necessary; enjoyment of puns encouraged!
B11092: Introduction to Japanese Full!
Difficulty: **
こんばんは！Are you interested in Japanese Language and/or Culture? Whether your interest comes through video games, anime, martial arts, or just a general confusion on those foreign scribbles that somehow make sounds, we'll introduce you to the three writing systems of Japanese (hiragana, katakana, and kanji), some basic conversational items, and some *real life* words. We will also tell you about our experiences in Japan and guide you in the right direction so you can continue to teach yourself the language! またね！
B11060: Punctuation Pedantry
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Jessica Hyde
Unleash your inner stickler and annoy your friends with your excessive attention to the rules of punctuation in the English language. Master the 'technically' correct run-on sentence. Learn to recognize and retreat in horror from errors on shop signs. (And what's up with that Oxford comma, anyway?)
B10660: Intro to Russian
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Alexandra Martirosian
Privet! Interested in discovering a new language? Or do you just want to practice your skills? Come to rev up your Russki! In this class, we'll learn the alphabet, practice basic phrases and language structure, and maybe have time for more.
[Deprecated] Computers and Programming
C11007: Proofs and games
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Ben Sherman
The four color theorem states that any map can be colored with just 4 colors such that no two regions which touch are given the same color. If you don't believe it, give me a map, any map, and I'll 4-color it for you!
This is an example of how proofs correspond to winning strategies for a game: you won't be able to find a map that I can't color. This *interactive* interpretation of proof gives a concrete, testable understanding of truth. We'll explore the connection between proofs and games, and construct some proofs in the programming language Coq, which converts proofs to winning players in those corresponding games. Finally, we'll look at the game of Chomp, where it's clear the first player can always win, but it's actually quite difficult to figure out how!
This is an example of how proofs correspond to winning strategies for a game: you won't be able to find a map that I can't color. This *interactive* interpretation of proof gives a concrete, testable understanding of truth. We'll explore the connection between proofs and games, and construct some proofs in the programming language Coq, which converts proofs to winning players in those corresponding games. Finally, we'll look at the game of Chomp, where it's clear the first player can always win, but it's actually quite difficult to figure out how!
C11070: Promiscuous Mode-Network Protocol Analysis Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Harvey Yee
Do you want to be in Promiscuous (Monitor) mode? You may if you are a network engineer. Join us in learning what is involved in Network Protocol analysis, and along the way learn about network architecture and protocols. Depending on what is available in the classroom, a demonstration of a wired or wireless network session will be provided. A free copy of Linux LiveCD will be provided so that you can continue your learning of network protocol analysis after this class.
Prerequisites
None other than having curiosity and a sense for adventure
Prerequisites
None other than having curiosity and a sense for adventure
C10669: Introduction to Unity3D Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Lucas Kasser
In this class we will cover the fundamentals of the game development engine Unity3D. This powerful and ubiquitous software can enable developers to easily build games without worrying about low-level concepts like physics engines, colliders, AI navigation, and rendering. Furthermore, the vast array of plugins, the ability to easily export a game to a variety of platforms, and the fact that Unity is free for small companies makes this a great choice for starting game development. Note, however, that this is an introduction to Unity, not an introduction to programming. Please adhere to the course prereqs
Prerequisites
Proficiency with an object-oriented language (Unity uses C#, but proficiency with Java, Scala, or something similar will be fine)
Prerequisites
Proficiency with an object-oriented language (Unity uses C#, but proficiency with Java, Scala, or something similar will be fine)
C10873: Building a Dream Machine: A Workshop on Computer Vision and Deep Learning
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Han Altae-Tran,
Brian Do
Driving automatically, beating the best Go player in the world, and helping to detect and treat cancer: in recent years, computers have begun to match and even surpass human visual capabilities. Equipped with the exciting ability to see and process images, computers naturally acquire the ability to dream as well.
In this interactive workshop, we will discuss cutting-edge methods that programmers use to teach computers how to understand images and video. We will then build our own neural networks using open-source Google tools and explore their properties in detail to help you understand exactly how they work. Surprisingly, we'll need very little math to get to this point! Then, we'll finish up the class by learning how to use these tools to let a computer dream.
Note: computers will be provided for this workshop.
Prerequisites
Familiarity with the idea of derivatives will be helpful, but very little math will be required.
In this interactive workshop, we will discuss cutting-edge methods that programmers use to teach computers how to understand images and video. We will then build our own neural networks using open-source Google tools and explore their properties in detail to help you understand exactly how they work. Surprisingly, we'll need very little math to get to this point! Then, we'll finish up the class by learning how to use these tools to let a computer dream.
Note: computers will be provided for this workshop.
Prerequisites
Familiarity with the idea of derivatives will be helpful, but very little math will be required.
C10943: What Is A Computer?
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
John Gregg
You may know how to program, but what is a computer such that it needs programming? Everyone knows that computers "think" in 1's and 0's, but why, and what does this even mean? Poets welcome!
C10863: Let's Git Started - A Brief Introduction to Version Control
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Zachary Zagorski
Do you program anything? Have you ever tried to do any programming projects with a team and had trouble coordinating? Do you think you're an expert on version control software?
If you answered 'yes' to any of those, you should take this course! We'll talk about what git is (and isn't), how you can use it to manage your code for both personal and large group projects, and some of the fancy-schmancy things you can do with it.
Oh, and you'll be able to say things like "Sure, just interactively rebase the cherry-picked commits onto your master branch before you push" and understand what they mean!
If you answered 'yes' to any of those, you should take this course! We'll talk about what git is (and isn't), how you can use it to manage your code for both personal and large group projects, and some of the fancy-schmancy things you can do with it.
Oh, and you'll be able to say things like "Sure, just interactively rebase the cherry-picked commits onto your master branch before you push" and understand what they mean!
C10972: Pathfinding with the A* Algorithm
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Cory Lynch
Tired of your video game AI running into walls all the time? Then come and find out how to navigate around obstacles with pathfinding algorithms!
Learn how to use A*, an efficient algorithm for finding the fastest traversable path between two points. Beyond game AI, you can use it to solve mazes, calculate the fastest route on a map, and more.
I will teach A* on a conceptual level, and then explain the code for a JavaScript implementation of the algorithm if time permits. At the end of the class, you'll be able to run the code on your phone or laptop and experiment with the algorithm.
Prerequisites
Programming background would be helpful.
Learn how to use A*, an efficient algorithm for finding the fastest traversable path between two points. Beyond game AI, you can use it to solve mazes, calculate the fastest route on a map, and more.
I will teach A* on a conceptual level, and then explain the code for a JavaScript implementation of the algorithm if time permits. At the end of the class, you'll be able to run the code on your phone or laptop and experiment with the algorithm.
Prerequisites
Programming background would be helpful.
C11003: Cyberespionage
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Benjamin Tidor
What happens when governments get into the business of computer hacking? Back in the good old days, viruses were written by criminals out to steal your money. Nowadays, we can do more interesting things, like sabotaging a nuclear enrichment facility, for example, or spying on an entire country's private email messages. In this class, you'll hear about recent break-ins on the international stage while learning a bit about the everyday systems that keep us safe and secure on the Internet.
C10894: Intro to 3-D modeling/ Blender 101 Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
William Pinney
What do animated movies, video games, and 3D printing have in common? Computer modeling! In this class we'll learn the basics of 3D modeling via Blender, a free-open-source modeling program. You'll even have the chance to work on your own independent Blender project! Whether you want to animate or build, or just learn a cool new skill, this is the class for you!
C11094: Your Computer is Smarter Than You
How can a computer assign a caption to a picture (e.g. http://tinyurl.com/jzus4h7)? How could a computer tell you what disease someone has based on the symptoms (like WebMD)? We'll give you a broad overview of lots of machine learning algorithms popular today.
C10861: Who is Bobby Tables? Exploring Security with XKCD
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Zachary Zagorski
What makes a "good" password? How did Heartbleed work? And who is Bobby Tables?
We'll discuss some topics at the intersection of computer security and Randall Munroe's XKCD, including SQL injection attacks (and how to prevent them), creating good passwords (and techniques for guessing bad ones), and the Heartbleed bug, plus additional topics as time allows.
We'll discuss some topics at the intersection of computer security and Randall Munroe's XKCD, including SQL injection attacks (and how to prevent them), creating good passwords (and techniques for guessing bad ones), and the Heartbleed bug, plus additional topics as time allows.
C11154: The Halting Problem, and other problems computers can NEVER solve
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Benjamin Cosman
Some problems aren't just difficult for computers, they're impossible! Starting only with simple assumptions about what computer programs can do, we'll show that you can't reliably detect when a program has an infinite loop. Using that we'll prove Rice's Theorem, a shockingly powerful statement about the impossibility of many problems we might like to solve.
C10941: Programming For A Living: What They Don't Teach You In School
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
John Gregg
I've been doing this for a long time, and there is a lot more to doing it happily and well than clever coding.
C10612: Introduction to Web Design Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Piper Nichole Henriques
The goal of this class is to introduce you to web design for desktop and mobile. It will also touch on mobile app designs. You will learn the way digital can also be very beautiful and artistic. It is web design made easy and also shares about trends in graphic design and responsive design.
C11025: Functions, and Nothing Else
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
David Bau
A speedy intro to untyped lambda calculus; or, a human-readable programming language in only two symbols.
Learn how to reconstruct traditional programming constructs (numbers, arithmetic, conditionals, loops, and arrays) using nothing but anonymous function definitions and calls.
Prerequisites
Some experience with programming is recommended, but not required.
Learn how to reconstruct traditional programming constructs (numbers, arithmetic, conditionals, loops, and arrays) using nothing but anonymous function definitions and calls.
Prerequisites
Some experience with programming is recommended, but not required.
C10887: Introduction to Python Programming Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Eileen Hu,
Shannon Peng
Want to learn to code, but don't know where to start? We've got you covered!
We'll start with variables, if-statements, and loops, and then work up to building a guessing game.
We're assuming that you don't have prior programming experience.
We'll start with variables, if-statements, and loops, and then work up to building a guessing game.
We're assuming that you don't have prior programming experience.
C10629: Computer Programming with Julia
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Arnav Sood
This class is an introduction to computer programming for those who have never seen it before. The tool we'll be using is the Julia language, a fast, elegant, and open-source language built by people at MIT.
We'll cover a wide range of topics, possibly sampled from: how to programmatically interact with the internet, how programming languages organize information, how to interact with the operating system, how to build your own objects, some ways to do fast math, and a few others.
We'll cover a wide range of topics, possibly sampled from: how to programmatically interact with the internet, how programming languages organize information, how to interact with the operating system, how to build your own objects, some ways to do fast math, and a few others.
C10580: Be a l33t h4xx0r Full!
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Jakob Weisblat
We'll be doing some basic penetration testing of computer systems and looking at some common forms of security vulnerabilities.
Prerequisites
basic programming knowledge, some amount of familiarity with C would be good
Prerequisites
basic programming knowledge, some amount of familiarity with C would be good
C10801: How to build a computer
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Lotta Blumberg,
Della Hendrickson
Learn about the inner workings of your computer! We'll look at bits and logic gates, and see how to perform computations using simple building blocks.
C11181: Compilers Demystified
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Ziv Scully
Chances are that if you've programmed something before that you used things like "variables", "functions", or "loops". But your computer's processor works in an entirely different way; it doesn't know what any of those things are. Compilers are the programs that translate nice-looking human-readable variabley-loopy code into processor-executable code. That translation seems at first glance like an unapproachably difficult task. In this class, we'll give an overview of how compilers work and see that they aren't so mysterious after all.
Prerequisites
If you've ever written a program, you're ready for this course.
Prerequisites
If you've ever written a program, you're ready for this course.
C11178: The Internet
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Favyen Bastani
Learn about IP, BGP, TCP, UDP, and other technologies that form the foundation of the Internet. Time permitting, we'll discuss attacks like IP spoofing and packet flooding, discuss peering between ISPs and peering disputes that sometimes break connectivity, and other interesting issues.
C10609: Creative Digital Advertising
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Piper Nichole Henriques
Get insight to the ever-changing world of digital advertising! You will be introduced to the creative shift in advertising with new medias: video advertising, social media advertising, native content, advertising that follows your habits and interest and most fun of all, training on how to design digital ads.
We will cover core concepts from finding the beautiful compelling image, to catchy words and creative campaign ideas. There will be instruction and a chance for you to work together with other students to come up with creative digital advertising ideas for an engaging, interesting and educational experience. This new, interactive form of advertising has changed the industry.
We will cover core concepts from finding the beautiful compelling image, to catchy words and creative campaign ideas. There will be instruction and a chance for you to work together with other students to come up with creative digital advertising ideas for an engaging, interesting and educational experience. This new, interactive form of advertising has changed the industry.
C11113: Python Bee!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Brian Chen,
Andrew He
Do you love programming in Python really really quickly? Are you good a telepathy? Well test your skills in both in the Splash Python Bee! You'll form teams of 3 and type out Python challenges one character at a time, while learning some cool Python constructs. Good luck, and see you there!
Prerequisites
Basic knowledge of Python: loops, variables, lists, sets, dicts, functions, etc.
Prerequisites
Basic knowledge of Python: loops, variables, lists, sets, dicts, functions, etc.
C10880: Computer Vision (⌐■_■)
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Martin Schneider
Quick! Tell me - how do you see? How are you reading this text? How do you recognize people, see colors, identify objects... ?
Computer vision studies how to make programs that see like humans. We'll look into human vision, light, image representations, and fundamental computer vision techniques. Then, we'll do some programming and get hands on experience with a computer vision library.
Computer vision studies how to make programs that see like humans. We'll look into human vision, light, image representations, and fundamental computer vision techniques. Then, we'll do some programming and get hands on experience with a computer vision library.
C11001: Can Computers Solve Captchas? An Introduction to Generative Modelling
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Colin Aitken
Some problems are easy for people but hard for computers! We'll focus on the example of Captchas, where some short text is shown in weird fonts and all twisted up. One of the promising techniques people use to teach computers to solve these problems is called generative modelling. We'll introduce some basic notions from probability and use them to learn how we can teach computers to think!
C11116: How Do Computers Add?
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Marcus Boorstin
How do computers add? What happens behind the scenes when your program runs the line "int z = x + y;"? This may seem simple for you, but it's NOT for your computer. We'll discuss the nitty-gritty of how hardware adders work, starting with transistors and working our way up through logic gates to the complex hardware algorithms modern computers use.
C11172: Random Thoughts
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Benjamin Chan
This is an exploratory course on randomness and its implications on human thought. We will have open ended discussions about some very interesting unsolved questions: How do random systems converge into something meaningful? How does the human brain interpret a chaotic universe? Take this course if you have an open mind, and are hoping to share your ideas; this is uncharted territory.
C11179: Distributed Storage Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Favyen Bastani
We'll examine the inner workings of several large-scale storage systems. Distributed filesystems allow applications on multiple machines to interact simultaneously on a shared storage device. Object storage stores immutable files, often replicating data across datacenters in different geographic regions. Block storage stores disks for virtual machines, so that data won't be lost on cloud infrastructure providers like AWS EC2 when disks fail.
C11071: Wireshark Workshop
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Harvey Yee
To provide in deeper understanding of network protocols, we will be analyzing some interesting case studies of typical network issues in detail . In this course, we will hone our knowledge and skills in understanding and decoding network traffic by looking at several network traces step by step.
Come prepared to get a deep dive into network protocol analysis by looking a detail network traces and discuss the importance of where traces should be taken and what filters to use to be used to quickly expose the issues at hand. A dvd of the traces discussed will be provided at the end of this class.
Come prepared to get a deep dive into network protocol analysis by looking a detail network traces and discuss the importance of where traces should be taken and what filters to use to be used to quickly expose the issues at hand. A dvd of the traces discussed will be provided at the end of this class.
C10885: Designing the Game of Life: Implementing Cellular Automata in Python
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Srinivas Kaza
Ever heard of Conway's Game of Life? No? Well, come find out what the world's most popular zero-player game is all about, and even implement it yourself! You'll have the opportunity to write Python code to play the Game of Life, and discover other (even more interesting) automata that can model diverse physical behavior from snowflakes to sea shells. We'll also discuss multiple ways of implementing the game, and exploring various patterns which can arise.
Prerequisites
Good understanding of Python; some experience in computer science
Prerequisites
Good understanding of Python; some experience in computer science
C11114: What's the minimum?
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Andrew He
[ 97, 69, 65, 36, 92, 3, 55 ]
What's the minimum value? What about the minimum from the middle three? What if add 12 to the last half? We'll explore various algorithms for computing and updating the minimums of subarrays, called the "range min" problem, from sparse tables to range trees.
Prerequisites
Basic knowledge of programming and algorithms, including solid understanding of arrays and binary trees.
What's the minimum value? What about the minimum from the middle three? What if add 12 to the last half? We'll explore various algorithms for computing and updating the minimums of subarrays, called the "range min" problem, from sparse tables to range trees.
Prerequisites
Basic knowledge of programming and algorithms, including solid understanding of arrays and binary trees.
C11177: Scaling Web Applications Full!
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Favyen Bastani
Have you ever wondered how Google, Facebook, Twitter, and other huge Internet services accommodate millions of users concurrently? We'll look at techniques for load balancing, caching, fault tolerance, and more!
C11006: The Internet, the Law, and You Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Eric Mannes
What Supreme Court case made Facebook, Yelp, and free online porn all possible? What is privacy, and do you have any online? And how can a prime number be illegal?
The internet has been shaped by centuries of law. Take this class and find out how they affect you every day.
The internet has been shaped by centuries of law. Take this class and find out how they affect you every day.
C10709: Enumerative Combinatorics with Haskell
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Brian Chen
Haskell is an elegant functional programming language used in academia and industry alike. Enumerative combinatorics is the study of counting, or "how many?": from "how many ways can you arrange the numbers 1 to 10 in a row?" to "how many pattern locks can you enter into an Android phone?" Learn how to program and count cool things with the coolest programming language ever!
In this course, we'll dive into Haskell with a focus on the features that make it mathematically appealing and useful for listing and counting combinatorial objects, from permutations, partitions, and Fibonacci numbers to completely ad-hoc structures made up for fun. Who knows, we might even get to cover a little category theory.
Prerequisites
Familiarity with programming (in any language), and preferably with recursion in particular. Basic knowledge of — and passion for! — counting/combinatorics.
In this course, we'll dive into Haskell with a focus on the features that make it mathematically appealing and useful for listing and counting combinatorial objects, from permutations, partitions, and Fibonacci numbers to completely ad-hoc structures made up for fun. Who knows, we might even get to cover a little category theory.
Prerequisites
Familiarity with programming (in any language), and preferably with recursion in particular. Basic knowledge of — and passion for! — counting/combinatorics.
C10971: Using Python to Analyze Baseball Data
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Spencer Bard
This course will give a very brief introduction to Python. It will also give an introduction to Big Data in Major League Baseball. After some explanatory material, the class will be walked through a demonstration showing how to use Python to create a graphical representation of some Major League Baseball Data.
Prerequisites
An general understanding of programming specifically with Python will make the course easier to follow.
Prerequisites
An general understanding of programming specifically with Python will make the course easier to follow.
C10800: Making Things Happen On Your Screen
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Ian Clester
You, yes, you, can make interesting things happen on your screen! Specifically, by telling your computer to do it for you. Which, as it happens, is what this course is about: drawing things and responding to input via code. No prior programming experience required! Will culminate in writing a simple game, time permitting. Creativity encouraged.
C10759: How do operating systems work? Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Marcus Boorstin
Why do we need operating systems? What do they do? How do they do it? We'll discuss some of these ideas, and then look at some actual code.
Prerequisites
You'll probably get more out of this class if you know a bit of C.
Prerequisites
You'll probably get more out of this class if you know a bit of C.
C10895: Writing a 3D Renderer from Scratch: Redesigning Quake for 2016
Difficulty: ****
Teachers:
Srinivas Kaza
Ever played a 3D videogame and thought -- "Hey, I wonder exactly how every aspect of this game is implemented at a low level?" Well, this is the course for you. We're going to cover every step in a (common) real-time 3D rendering pipeline in quick succession; everything from texture mapping to shaders to rasterization to anti-aliasing in one whirlwind 110 minute class. No knowledge of a lower-level graphics API such as OpenGL or DirectX is required.
Prerequisites
Basic understanding of vectors and matrices Has watched at least three Pixar movies
Prerequisites
Basic understanding of vectors and matrices Has watched at least three Pixar movies
C10969: Free Software and Ethical Programming
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Shi Ke Xue
What is free software? Is it a program you can run without paying any money? Is it open source?
Free software means "free as in freedom", not "free as in free food". Find out how software can infringe on your freedoms and important ethical issues in computer science.
Free software means "free as in freedom", not "free as in free food". Find out how software can infringe on your freedoms and important ethical issues in computer science.
C11145: Understanding the Internet
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Miriam Gershenson
How does information from websites find its way to you? I'll go over some of the technologies that make the internet possible.
C10791: Intro to Linux Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Anne LoVerso
What's Linux? Learn how it works, why it's cool, and a basic lesson on command line tools.
C10747: How to be Artificially Intelligent
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Alex LaGrassa
Introduction to artificial intelligence algorithms. Learn how a computer can understand rule systems and generate new fortune cookie sayings! This class can change the way you think about the way you think.
Prerequisites
Knowing logic would be helpful
Prerequisites
Knowing logic would be helpful
C10683: Whirlwind Introduction To Deep Learning
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Jing Lin
Ever wonder how self driving cars work? Curious about what the future of automated diagnosis entails? Do you find programmatically generated art to be interesting?
If you are interested in AI and want to learn more about the future, come by! Even if you don't know what AI is, you should come by!
Prerequisites
Linear Algebra Calculus
If you are interested in AI and want to learn more about the future, come by! Even if you don't know what AI is, you should come by!
Prerequisites
Linear Algebra Calculus
C11144: Big Data Basics: Hadoop and MapReduce
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Regan Dvoskin
Ever wonder how data is stored when there are petabytes of it? How do companies like Yahoo! and Facebook process data that large efficiently?
This course will go over the basics of Big Data and Apache Hadoop, including the Hadoop Distributed File System and MapReduce. We will discuss what big data is, how Hadoop and MapReduce work, and some other ways of processing big data.
Prerequisites
A basic knowledge of how computers work and some coding background would be helpful. We won't be writing much code, but we will be looking at some Python. If you already some knowledge of distributed systems and how they work, this class will likely be a bit slow for you.
This course will go over the basics of Big Data and Apache Hadoop, including the Hadoop Distributed File System and MapReduce. We will discuss what big data is, how Hadoop and MapReduce work, and some other ways of processing big data.
Prerequisites
A basic knowledge of how computers work and some coding background would be helpful. We won't be writing much code, but we will be looking at some Python. If you already some knowledge of distributed systems and how they work, this class will likely be a bit slow for you.
C10684: A Crash Course in Logic and Computability
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Adam Catto
We'll go over the fundamentals of propositional and predicate logic, formal languages, Turing Machines, and hopefully cellular automata, time permitting.
Prerequisites
Proficiency in high school algebra is assumed. Should know basic concepts of functions and sets.
Prerequisites
Proficiency in high school algebra is assumed. Should know basic concepts of functions and sets.
C10803: To The Moon!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Marcus Boorstin,
Valerie Sarge
Ever wondered how the Apollo missions got to the moon? Does "weaving 2 cubic feat of memory" strike fear into your heart? How about "Program Error 1202"? We'll discuss some of the hardware and software (and how the two interacted) of the Apollo Guidance Computer, and then play with a simulation!
Prerequisites
You should have done at least a little programming before or have a vague familiarity with "programming concepts" like variables and if/else statements.
Prerequisites
You should have done at least a little programming before or have a vague familiarity with "programming concepts" like variables and if/else statements.
C10574: Algorithms of the Dummies, by the Dummies, for the Dummies
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Akshay Padmanabha,
Raja Selvakumar
Ever do excess work when it can be done more efficiently? What/who/when/where/how is efficiency? This class will teach you the tricks, shortcuts, and everything you need to know about algorithms: who they are, why they be, and what they want, etc etc. So much knowledge that we can't even: only odd!
C11085: Bitcoin & the blockchain: A bit by bit introduction
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Jessy Lin,
Anthony Liu
Bitcoin is a digital currency that uses some pretty nifty math to guarantee its security. Come learn about how it works, what it's used for, and how the underlying technology can be used for problems totally unrelated to money.
Prerequisites
Familiarity with probability recommended!
Prerequisites
Familiarity with probability recommended!
C10635: How Computers Work
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Margalit Glasgow
Ever wondered how your computer does simple things like adding numbers, or more complicated things like running fancy programs? Come learn about how computers work from the ground up.
We'll talk about some of the low level hardware involved (like transistors) and work up to logic gates, full adders, and more!
We'll talk about some of the low level hardware involved (like transistors) and work up to logic gates, full adders, and more!
C10991: Search Algorithms: The Quest from Start to Goal Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Sophie Mori
We won't quite figure out how Google Maps gives you optimal (and usually accurate) directions so quickly, but we will cover basic graph search algorithms and some more interesting ones that involve heuristics.
Prerequisites
Programming knowledge not necessary, but come prepared to mentally process the logic behind the search methods!
Prerequisites
Programming knowledge not necessary, but come prepared to mentally process the logic behind the search methods!
C11132: Movin' Some Bits: An Introduction to Data Serialization and Protocol Design
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Ty-Lucas Kelley
Ever wondered what actually happens when you visit Facebook's website? Or what's going on behind the scenes when you're playing a game of League of Legends with a person on the other side of the country?
This course will provide a brief introduction to $$\textbf{data serialization}$$, the conversion of complex pieces of information into a sequence of bits that a computer program can process and send (usually over the internet) to another program to parse. Some are human-readable, such as HTTP, others are binary formats designed solely for speed, and many strike a balance between the two.
We'll take a look at some of the more common protocols out there, learn how they work, and talk about why certain design decisions were made. Afterwards, we will try to design our own simple protocol for a specific use case.
Prerequisites
$$\textbf{Note}$$: Even if you aren't familiar with some of the terminology and material below, fear not! I'll be sending an email to all students who register that will get everyone up to speed. (Also, the course will not be very technical, so don't worry if you aren't comfortable with things like math or programming) 1. A high-level understanding of the web and how it works; things like HTTP, TCP, the client-server relationship. 2. Ability to convert numbers between their binary, hexadecimal, and decimal representations 3. Understanding of some computer science and software engineering concepts and tools; databases, caching, data types (integers, strings, boolean values, etc)
This course will provide a brief introduction to $$\textbf{data serialization}$$, the conversion of complex pieces of information into a sequence of bits that a computer program can process and send (usually over the internet) to another program to parse. Some are human-readable, such as HTTP, others are binary formats designed solely for speed, and many strike a balance between the two.
We'll take a look at some of the more common protocols out there, learn how they work, and talk about why certain design decisions were made. Afterwards, we will try to design our own simple protocol for a specific use case.
Prerequisites
$$\textbf{Note}$$: Even if you aren't familiar with some of the terminology and material below, fear not! I'll be sending an email to all students who register that will get everyone up to speed. (Also, the course will not be very technical, so don't worry if you aren't comfortable with things like math or programming) 1. A high-level understanding of the web and how it works; things like HTTP, TCP, the client-server relationship. 2. Ability to convert numbers between their binary, hexadecimal, and decimal representations 3. Understanding of some computer science and software engineering concepts and tools; databases, caching, data types (integers, strings, boolean values, etc)
C10719: How to Get Dates with Cryptography
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Sam Dukhovni
Alice has a crush on Bob, but she doesn't know how he feels about her, and she's scared of embarrassing herself. What should she do?
In this class, we'll talk about RSA cryptography, and how we can use it to save Alice's love life! We'll also see how we can solve complicated communication problems without handing our personal lives to Google, Facebook, and the NSA.
Prerequisites
Familiarity with modular arithmetic will be helpful, but not required.
In this class, we'll talk about RSA cryptography, and how we can use it to save Alice's love life! We'll also see how we can solve complicated communication problems without handing our personal lives to Google, Facebook, and the NSA.
Prerequisites
Familiarity with modular arithmetic will be helpful, but not required.
C10876: How to get to MIT
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Kyle Swanson
Have you ever wondered what it takes to get into MIT? 20 AP classes? A perfect SAT score? An international mathematics olympiad gold medal? Well, none of that matters if you don't know how to get to MIT, so in this class we're going to talk about search algorithms. If you ever wondered how Google maps finds the shortest route from your house to MIT, this is the class for you.
This class will provide an introduction to some of the most common search algorithms, including (but not limited to) breadth first search, depth first search, and A* search. We will discuss how the algorithms work, both conceptually and in code, and how to express a wide variety of problems - from board games to DNA sequencing - as graph search problems.
Prerequisites
Basic programming experience suggested but not required.
This class will provide an introduction to some of the most common search algorithms, including (but not limited to) breadth first search, depth first search, and A* search. We will discuss how the algorithms work, both conceptually and in code, and how to express a wide variety of problems - from board games to DNA sequencing - as graph search problems.
Prerequisites
Basic programming experience suggested but not required.
C11162: Machine Learning Workshop Full!
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Corinn Herrick
Hear what all the buzz is about! We'll go over some basic machine learning techniques and then you'll apply them to build predictive models from data.
A note on prerequisites: It is very important to have the prereqs for this class because you will spend a lot of the class working individually on a project. You should be able comfortable reading and modifying other people's code. It will be hard to participate otherwise!
Prerequisites
You should be strong in python programming, algebra, and geometry at minimum.
A note on prerequisites: It is very important to have the prereqs for this class because you will spend a lot of the class working individually on a project. You should be able comfortable reading and modifying other people's code. It will be hard to participate otherwise!
Prerequisites
You should be strong in python programming, algebra, and geometry at minimum.
C11067: Intro to Sorting
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Evan Tey
Have you ever tried to order a deck of cards? Was it too hard for you? Learn the best (and worst) sorting practices here and how we can analyze them! We'll learn about really basic sorting algorithms (like selection sort) and slowly speed up!
C10877: Learn to Make iPhone Apps
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Ben Cootner
In this course I will be teaching you how to make apps for iOS devices. First we will start with the basics of Apple's new language Swift. We will then learn how to use Storyboards in Xcode and finally finish the class by making an actual app.
Prerequisites
Basic programing knowledge (for, while, if) are extremely useful, but we will review them briefly.
Prerequisites
Basic programing knowledge (for, while, if) are extremely useful, but we will review them briefly.
C11171: 8 Bits Walk Across a Bridge
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Benjamin Chan
This is a class on bits, on how we transform everyday messages, images, and web pages into 1s and 0s. We explore how these streams of 1s and 0s are then communicated to other machines, and then decoded to be useful.
C10997: Computer Hacking 101 Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Edward Park,
David Zheng
A short and sweet overview of computer hacking, including common security vulnerabilities, famous exploits, and a live demo of how to find and take advantage of website vulnerabilities. By the end, students will have a solid understanding of the tricks that hackers use to undermine the security of a website.
C11078: Interactive Algorithms: Be the Bit!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Allen Park
do the thing
be the bit
learn the stuff
Be the data in algorithms and see how they work by acting it out yourself!
be the bit
learn the stuff
Be the data in algorithms and see how they work by acting it out yourself!
[Deprecated] Engineering
E10652: Intro to Integrated Circuits Design: How tiny chips are made?
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Sungil Kim
Chips are everywhere, from computer memory and processor to implantable bioelectronics. This course will briefly introduce the field of integrated circuits (IC) and systems, and how circuit designers design those chips.
The class is organized as following:
(1) What is the integrated circuits?
(2) How and why circuit designers design those chips?
(3) What do you need to known to be a circuit designer?
(4) How can we improve the performance and realize unimagined applications? : overview of current research in the field of digital IC design
The class is organized as following:
(1) What is the integrated circuits?
(2) How and why circuit designers design those chips?
(3) What do you need to known to be a circuit designer?
(4) How can we improve the performance and realize unimagined applications? : overview of current research in the field of digital IC design
E10649: Photovoltaics
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Keith Phuthi
Solar power holds lots of potential as a source of energy for the present and future. This class will help you understand the basics of how photovoltaic cells and other technologies work.
Prerequisites
Basic physics/chemistry
Prerequisites
Basic physics/chemistry
E10702: Build a Bridge! Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Mary Hwang
Ever wonder how bridges and buildings stand up? Come learn about the basics of civil engineering in a fun way! We'll be building bridges and testing them to see how much they can carry in a fun design competition!
E10977: Autonomous Navigation Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Yun Chang
Basic autonomous navigation ideas. For example, localization, mapping, path planning, obstacle detection...
Prerequisites
None
Prerequisites
None
E11105: Why the T is so slow, and how to speed it up
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Joshua Fabian
Ever wonder why the [insert color] Line is always delayed at rush hour, or why buses appear to come in bunches? Why does this line go here, why does that one go there, and is there anything that can be done to reduce inefficiencies?
Come make sense of these questions by learning the basics of queuing theory, as well as how they apply to everyday operations on the T - dealing with situations such as disabled trains and bus bunching. We will look at current operations on the MBTA and transit in general from a financial, engineering, and historic perspective. Finally, this course will explore innovative solutions to operational challenges, using the Green Line as a particular case study.
Students are of course encouraged to bring their own transit-related questions for discussion.
Prerequisites
Best to have previously ridden the MBTA around Boston, or some other public subway or bus system in the world.
Come make sense of these questions by learning the basics of queuing theory, as well as how they apply to everyday operations on the T - dealing with situations such as disabled trains and bus bunching. We will look at current operations on the MBTA and transit in general from a financial, engineering, and historic perspective. Finally, this course will explore innovative solutions to operational challenges, using the Green Line as a particular case study.
Students are of course encouraged to bring their own transit-related questions for discussion.
Prerequisites
Best to have previously ridden the MBTA around Boston, or some other public subway or bus system in the world.
E10590: Intro to Materials Informatics
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Edward Kim
Materials Informatics is a relatively new field. The central theme is using data-driven methods (vs first-principles equations / computations) to predict or understand properties of materials.
In this class, we will do the following:
(1) Give a very brief conceptual intro to what materials science is as a field
(2) Talk about some thematic differences between 'informatics' and 'first principles' computation
(3) Students will have a chance to make some cool plots (using Python) of real materials science data, which they can save and show off to their friends later!
Prerequisites
Very basic understanding of Python would be helpful (e.g. knowing how to write and call a function). But no prior experience is necessary. If you've taken some high school physics and chemistry, it will help you appreciate some things more, but I will keep the discussions conceptual and avoid detailed mathematics.
In this class, we will do the following:
(1) Give a very brief conceptual intro to what materials science is as a field
(2) Talk about some thematic differences between 'informatics' and 'first principles' computation
(3) Students will have a chance to make some cool plots (using Python) of real materials science data, which they can save and show off to their friends later!
Prerequisites
Very basic understanding of Python would be helpful (e.g. knowing how to write and call a function). But no prior experience is necessary. If you've taken some high school physics and chemistry, it will help you appreciate some things more, but I will keep the discussions conceptual and avoid detailed mathematics.
E11011: The Atomic Secrets of Metals: Basics of Modern Crystallography
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Felipe de Quesada
Have you ever wondered why steel is heavier than aluminum? And have you ever thought why tin crumbles at very low temperatures during the winter?
If you want to know the answer these and many more questions, then come and learn all about the magnificent world of metals! In this class, we will explore together their importance throughout history and we will venture into the atomic realm to understand what makes metals the materials they are.
Be prepared to expect some exciting surprises…
Prerequisites
This introductory class doesn’t require you to know any “fancy” college math to follow the lecture. However, I would strongly encourage you to have some basic knowledge of geometry and algebra, as well as the ability to visualize geometric shapes. Don’t forget your excitement!
If you want to know the answer these and many more questions, then come and learn all about the magnificent world of metals! In this class, we will explore together their importance throughout history and we will venture into the atomic realm to understand what makes metals the materials they are.
Be prepared to expect some exciting surprises…
Prerequisites
This introductory class doesn’t require you to know any “fancy” college math to follow the lecture. However, I would strongly encourage you to have some basic knowledge of geometry and algebra, as well as the ability to visualize geometric shapes. Don’t forget your excitement!
E10995: How Nano is Huge
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Lidia Kuo
You might have heard the word "nano" thrown around quite often nowadays, from the iPod Nano to Jimmy Neutron's doomsday nanobots. But what is "nano" and how can something so small (a billion times smaller than a meter!) make a huge impact? Come learn about how nanotechnology is revolutionizing the future of science, engineering, and technology.
E10845: Rockets! Full!
Difficulty: *
Feeling weighed down? Blast off with the MIT Rocket Team! Come learn how rockets work, how to build one, and what it takes to reach orbit.
E10671: Operation: Egg Drop
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Kaitlyn O'Donnell
How hard is it to protect an egg while dropping it off a roof? Come work in teams to make an egg protection system out of everyday materials and drop it off the roof.
Bring your best egg puns to name your protection system with. Get eggcited!
Bring your best egg puns to name your protection system with. Get eggcited!
E10765: DFA Assistive Technology Workshop
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
DFA Service
Have you ever wondered what it’s like to have a disability? Do you enjoy being creative and engineering innovative solutions to real problems? Do you like being hands-on, building things, and brainstorming? Learn about assistive technology and ideate innovative solutions with MIT’s Design for America! Learn more about us at http://designforamerica.mit.edu/.
E10968: Crazy about Lasers Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Katia Shtyrkova
Intro to the physics and design of lasers and laser systems; overview of various types of lasers, and discuss common and exotic laser applications, such and Airborne Laser and Free Electron Laser.
The first half of the class will be spent on basic laser physics, and understanding what makes lasers different from LEDs and other light sources. The second half of the class will be spent on learning about cool laser applications.
The first half of the class will be spent on basic laser physics, and understanding what makes lasers different from LEDs and other light sources. The second half of the class will be spent on learning about cool laser applications.
E11089: Questions about Living in Space and Future Space Settlements
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Bruce Mackenzie
Bring your questions about how we might live in space, on Mars, on
asteroids, on moons of planets, or on Luna (what Earthlings consider
‘the Moon’, forgetting that there are lots of moons). I will try to
answer them, and maybe throw some questions back at you. Preference
for questions about how to live in space, construct spinning space
settlements for artificial gravity, grow food, find air and water,
stay warn or cool, etc. There will be little math or equations, just
general information.
asteroids, on moons of planets, or on Luna (what Earthlings consider
‘the Moon’, forgetting that there are lots of moons). I will try to
answer them, and maybe throw some questions back at you. Preference
for questions about how to live in space, construct spinning space
settlements for artificial gravity, grow food, find air and water,
stay warn or cool, etc. There will be little math or equations, just
general information.
E10790: Astronaut Challenge
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Sabrina Khan
Spacecraft is filled with all kinds of interacting systems, especially for those that carry humans. When one system fails, it can have dangerous, cascading effects.
Learn about astronauts and spacecraft systems in this class, then pretend to be an astronaut, gather a crew and apply your skills to solve an emergency in your rocket. You'll get some basic supplies and a few hints from "Houston" (aka, me). Prizes are awarded at the end!
Prerequisites
None
Learn about astronauts and spacecraft systems in this class, then pretend to be an astronaut, gather a crew and apply your skills to solve an emergency in your rocket. You'll get some basic supplies and a few hints from "Houston" (aka, me). Prizes are awarded at the end!
Prerequisites
None
E11121: How Not to Talk Over Each Other Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Allan Sadun
How is it that my phone, and my laptop, and all of your phones, can talk to the same WiFi router without getting in each other's way? How do people coordinate their speech so that they can talk to each other without interrupting? How can I reliably send you a message, if part of the message might get lost in transit? In this class, we'll lay out these problems more mathematically, and explore and analyze various strategies - called "MAC algorithms" and "transport protocols" - that can be used to solve them. We'll play some communication games to illustrate, and hopefully you'll go home with some new insights about the way you and your friends talk to each other.
Prerequisites
The more probability background you have, the better. I'll try to keep it so that you only need to know the basics, but we'll see.
Prerequisites
The more probability background you have, the better. I'll try to keep it so that you only need to know the basics, but we'll see.
E10760: Soil and Dirt Engineering
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Jacob Miske
Many people know about mineral identification and all the dichotomous charts and scales involved. I seek to teach about the identification of particles we all trod upon while relating the information to actual knowledge construction engineers need to know when constructing a bridge, home, or tower.
E11083: Living on Mars Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Bruce Mackenzie
How would you build a house on Mars? I’ll show lots of pictures of
possible Mars structures. We will review the conditions on Mars which
affect how you would live, work, grow food, and build houses.
Differences from Earth include: low temperature, very low pressure,
carbon-dioxide atmosphere, almost 25 hour days, long seasons, dust,
and radiation. One advantage is lots of cheap land. The Mars soil and
air have every element we need to live and build structures, but not
in convenient building forms such as wooden 2x4’s. We might have to
make fiberglass, brick, or aluminum structures. They must be
cylindrical to hold the internal air pressure, with air-locks for
doors. Oh, incidentally, how to pay for the rocket to get you there is
not included. I will also suggest ways you can get involved and help
the settlement of space.
possible Mars structures. We will review the conditions on Mars which
affect how you would live, work, grow food, and build houses.
Differences from Earth include: low temperature, very low pressure,
carbon-dioxide atmosphere, almost 25 hour days, long seasons, dust,
and radiation. One advantage is lots of cheap land. The Mars soil and
air have every element we need to live and build structures, but not
in convenient building forms such as wooden 2x4’s. We might have to
make fiberglass, brick, or aluminum structures. They must be
cylindrical to hold the internal air pressure, with air-locks for
doors. Oh, incidentally, how to pay for the rocket to get you there is
not included. I will also suggest ways you can get involved and help
the settlement of space.
E11183: Topographic Maps
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Sophie Mori
The U.S. Geological Survey produced several series of maps of the U.S. We will be looking at how to interpret the 7.5-minute, 1:24000 maps, of which there are nearly 57000. This class is heavily based on the Science Olympiad event Road Scholar.
Prerequisites
A love of maps!
Prerequisites
A love of maps!
E10804: I Heart Circuits Full!
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Thanh Nguyen,
Farita Tasnim
Have you ever wanted to learn how to harvest the power of moving electrons to create working circuits? Join this class to delve into the magical, mystical field of electrical engineering, made simple and easy for you to understand! We'll be teaching you how to make your own heartbeat monitor (ECG), so you can heart circuits just as much as we heart circuits!
E10633: Environmentally Benign Design and Manufacturing
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Vrajesh Modi
After this class, you will be able to: (1) justify why environmentally benign design and manufacturing matters; (2) evaluate and compare the environmental impact of various products and technologies; and (3) recognize and challenge questionable environmental analysis. Format will consist of a blend of lecture on theory and discussion on current issues.
Prerequisites
Chemistry and/or Physics background encouraged but not required.
Prerequisites
Chemistry and/or Physics background encouraged but not required.
E10637: Battleboats Full!
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Crystal Owens
Why are cars shaped like they are? How does a jetski work? Is a hovercraft possible? Come learn the basics of hydrodynamics and jet propulsion, and then build your knowledge in a hands-on activity to design, build, and race a small Lego boat.
Prerequisites
A basic class in physics.
Prerequisites
A basic class in physics.
E11086: 3D Print Your House on Mars Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Bruce Mackenzie
Can we take a 3D Printer and Laser Cutter to Mars, and make most of
the equipment needed to live there? Perhaps we can make whole habitats
(aka houses) and greenhouses out of thin air on Mars (which is good,
because thin air is the only kind Mars has). The Mars Foundation is
working toward permanent settlement of Mars, using custom
manufacturing to lower the cost. We also have a 3D printer at a Mars
habitat in Hawaii, and could use your help demonstrating what can be
made there. Come find out how expand beyond this planet
the equipment needed to live there? Perhaps we can make whole habitats
(aka houses) and greenhouses out of thin air on Mars (which is good,
because thin air is the only kind Mars has). The Mars Foundation is
working toward permanent settlement of Mars, using custom
manufacturing to lower the cost. We also have a 3D printer at a Mars
habitat in Hawaii, and could use your help demonstrating what can be
made there. Come find out how expand beyond this planet
E10705: WHY DO AIRPLANES FLY? Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
NURIA LIZARBE
In 2015, 3.5 billion passengers and 50 million tons of freight were transported by air. It is hard to believe that the first flight, in history, took off only about a hundred years ago. We´ve made huge progress since then! Would you like to find out why airplanes fly? What are the basic principles of aeronautics? Or how are airplanes built? If you are curious and want to learn more feel free to join!
E10851: How to Build a Telescope Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Alexander Patton
Telescopes have been our window into the cosmos since the time of Galileo. Today, many amateur astronomers still take great pride in building their own telescopes from scratch. Come learn all about these magnificent instruments: how they work, how they are built and used, and how with a few simple tools, a piece of glass, and your bare hands, you can grind optics that rival the precision of the Hubble itself! During the second half of the class, we'll be building and decorating small telescopes for you to take home.
E10889: Powerful Polymers
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
German Parada
What do rubber bands, bulletproof vests, jello and milk bottles have in common? They are made out of polymers!
Come and learn about some common and very useful polymer materials that you may use or see at home or at school. Also, we will be discussing how the chemical structure of these materials affects their properties and performance.
Prerequisites
general chemistry
Come and learn about some common and very useful polymer materials that you may use or see at home or at school. Also, we will be discussing how the chemical structure of these materials affects their properties and performance.
Prerequisites
general chemistry
E11063: Mechanical Engineering = Big Chunks of Metal
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Elliot Owen
Big chunks of metal are very important, sometimes they break, it makes people sad.
Learn how and why they break and how to avoid it, basically a semester of mechanics and materials in 1 hour.
Prerequisites
Know what forces/torques/free-body-diagrams are.
Learn how and why they break and how to avoid it, basically a semester of mechanics and materials in 1 hour.
Prerequisites
Know what forces/torques/free-body-diagrams are.
E10816: Exploring Aerospace!
Difficulty: *
Come learn about exciting topics that relate to aeronautics and astronautics. We'll talk about current research, fascinating phenomena, and fundamental principles relating to aerospace engineering. Hosted by MIT's Women in Aerospace Engineering group.
E10938: What Is 3D Printing And The Maker Movement? (With lasers & CNC Milling, Oh My!)
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
William Little
3D printing has grown in popularity over a very short period of time and is one of the most popular pieces of equipment in the maker movement! But wait, what is the maker movement? what is open source? what is all of this about? and apparently lasers and something called "CNC Milling" are involved too? what is all of this?
In this class, I will be talking about all of the above! We'll dive into 3D printing with a live printing demonstration and move into CNC milling and laser cutting. We'll then look at the bigger picture with home manufacturing, independence, and the maker movement! Get ready to smell the smell of progress as we melt some plastic and get creative.
In this class, I will be talking about all of the above! We'll dive into 3D printing with a live printing demonstration and move into CNC milling and laser cutting. We'll then look at the bigger picture with home manufacturing, independence, and the maker movement! Get ready to smell the smell of progress as we melt some plastic and get creative.
E11084: What is Chemical Engineering?
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Raja Selvakumar
For everything from the rubber in your shoes to the mechanism of how you breathe, chemical engineering is everywhere. But what is it? What do chemical engineers do in the real world? Come find out!
Humanities
H10812: Philosophy of Color Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Henry Shackleton
What is color? Does color exist? What do I mean when I say "the grass is green"? Is color subjective? We'll discuss some of the common theories surrounding this, and the problems they face.
H10857: Eros: A Workshop on Love Poetry and Expression Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Han Altae-Tran
Ever wanted to write a love poem, but worried it'd be too corny? At last, a workshop on love poetry! Here, we'll cover strategies and techniques for writing elegant, emotionally charged love poems.
Specifically, we'll cover the use of assonance, dissonance, and sound evolution to create powerful, emotional landscapes.
And, most excitingly, you'll get the opportunity to work on your own poems!
Prerequisites
A beating heart, and a desire to write.
Specifically, we'll cover the use of assonance, dissonance, and sound evolution to create powerful, emotional landscapes.
And, most excitingly, you'll get the opportunity to work on your own poems!
Prerequisites
A beating heart, and a desire to write.
H11097: Women and Gender Studies 101 Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Haley Cope
What does it mean to study women and gender? How does race, class, and other factors influence people's lives? What is the place of philosophy and theory in the field? What about data?
We'll discuss all this and more!
We'll discuss all this and more!
H10872: I Object!: A Mini Mock Trial Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Elizabeth Parizh,
Nina Plotnikov
"Objection, your Honor!"
"On what grounds?"
"On the grounds of you're stupid!"
We don't want you to end up like this silly lawyer. In this class, you will learn the basics of doing mock trial, from planning and writing the case to actually performing it. Then you'll know what to do next time you end up in court.
"On what grounds?"
"On the grounds of you're stupid!"
We don't want you to end up like this silly lawyer. In this class, you will learn the basics of doing mock trial, from planning and writing the case to actually performing it. Then you'll know what to do next time you end up in court.
H10841: How to Argue About Anything Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Caitlin Fischer,
Angelina Li
Want to be able to form a coherent, substantial argument about anything? Want to practice your impromptu debate skills? We’ll talk about how to structure an argument and come up with solid points in a really short timeframe, then put those skills into practice with some debates!
H11080: Modern Art
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Erica Liu
Not sure what the difference is between Monet and Manet? Or Pollock and Picasso? Fail to see why soup cans and a sideways urinal feature so prominently in your history books? Take this class on modern art so you can feel really cultured and either impress or drive away all of your friends with your newly learned interesting facts about modern art.
H10960: How to say more than what you literally mean
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Milo Phillips-Brown
Imagine that you are hiring a new CEO for your company. You get a letter of recommendation for one of the candidates, Smith. It says only 'Smith has excellent handwriting'. The *literal meaning* of these words only concerns Smith's handwriting. But the letter writing has said much more to you: she has told you that Smith is a bad candidate!
How did that happen? How did the letter writer tell you so much more than what her words literally meant? The answer to this question has been the subject of (what I think is) the most exciting area of research in linguistics and philosophy in the last 50 years.
In this class, you'll learn to distinguish what our words literally mean from what we say, and how to use your words to say just what you want to say!
Prerequisites
None!
How did that happen? How did the letter writer tell you so much more than what her words literally meant? The answer to this question has been the subject of (what I think is) the most exciting area of research in linguistics and philosophy in the last 50 years.
In this class, you'll learn to distinguish what our words literally mean from what we say, and how to use your words to say just what you want to say!
Prerequisites
None!
H10611: Comics Theory 101
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Mehitabel Glenhaber
Ever wanted to talk about comics like you talk about books in lit class? Interested in what makes comics tick? In this class, we'll go through some of the basics of comic theory. We'll try to define what a comic really is, talk about speech bubbles, panel borders, and the other fundamental building blocks, and how these parts are combined to make the comic books that we read and love (or hate) We'll discuss how the comics genre is similar to and different from other genres, the unique skills and weaknesses of the comics medium, and what comics storytelling looks like. Finally, we'll take a look at what makes comics work (or not work) and analyze some pages on our own!
Prerequisites
None! This is a rather theoretical class though, so come ready to talk about comics in a very abstract way.
Prerequisites
None! This is a rather theoretical class though, so come ready to talk about comics in a very abstract way.
H10668: Intro to Epistemology Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Lucas Kasser
Have you ever wondered whether or not you actually know stuff? Do you want to win (or at least not lose) every argument that you have? Does the word "Epistemology" sound fun to say? In this class we will be discussing what (if anything) we can actually know. The class is intended for those without an extensive philosophy background
H11058: Once Upon A Time, The End Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
A L
A tear formed in my eye as I watched him pick out the peas from his carrots. He learned it from her.
That's it. A complete work of fiction in two sentences. Inventive writers are now crafting really short stories that can be surprising, intriguing and delightful. The fascinating genre of flash/sudden/micro fiction is all around us. In the form of cell phone stories, TV/radio commercials, web videos and other manifestations, highly compact stories can be humorous, thought-provoking, informative and much more. Come sample some microfiction and write your own in this workshop! Bring writing materials!
That's it. A complete work of fiction in two sentences. Inventive writers are now crafting really short stories that can be surprising, intriguing and delightful. The fascinating genre of flash/sudden/micro fiction is all around us. In the form of cell phone stories, TV/radio commercials, web videos and other manifestations, highly compact stories can be humorous, thought-provoking, informative and much more. Come sample some microfiction and write your own in this workshop! Bring writing materials!
H10576: Film Theory 101
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Sarah Wharton
Just like we analyze books we read, we can look at films with a critical eye. We'll be watching the delightful 45-minute silent film Sherlock Jr. (1924) and discussing it afterward. Come learn about the history of film and analysis techniques of this awesome visual art form!
H10811: Technology and Society
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Anne LoVerso
Sometimes we like to immediately jump to technology as the solution to all the world's problems. Hackathons like "hack world hunger" or "hack education" spend 48 hours suggesting tech solutions for enormous, worldwide problems.
When is technology appropriate and when should we be concerned? This will be a discussion-centered class about the impact of technology on society using a couple case studies and examples. There's no right answers here, but it's something worth thinking about
When is technology appropriate and when should we be concerned? This will be a discussion-centered class about the impact of technology on society using a couple case studies and examples. There's no right answers here, but it's something worth thinking about
H10662: Let's Go East! A Journey in the Ottoman Empire through Coffee and Music
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Shubhan Nagendra
Do you like coffee? Do you like music? Yes? Let's look at both of them. We will do this by tracing their journey within the Ottoman Empire, and discussing how they came to influence our lives today. We will do this through a couple of ways: Food, music, and art.
Turkish delight will be served in class.
Prerequisites
An interest in food and music.
Turkish delight will be served in class.
Prerequisites
An interest in food and music.
H10927: Worldbuilding: Crafting Narrative Experiences Full!
Difficulty: **
Why do the worlds of The Matrix or Mad Max feel real when the world of Harry Potter feels flaky compared to the characters and plot? Why does playing Bioshock feel cohesive when playing Bioshock Infinite feels disconnected?
Come learn about what makes a fictional world good or bad, and come up with your own weird worlds!
Come learn about what makes a fictional world good or bad, and come up with your own weird worlds!
H10613: The Copernican Revolution Through Primary Sources
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Mehitabel Glenhaber
Historical documents: they make the world go 'round! Or rather, this one explains how and why the world goes 'round! Come take a look at the Copernican Revolution, the science behind it, and reactions to it, by reading Galileo's Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems. In this pretty excellently snarky document, written in 1632, Galileo outlines his heliocentric model, and additionally writes about a lot of physics which impressively predicts Newtonian mechanics. It's also the book that got him locked up under house arrest for life by the medieval church. In this class. we'll read this document and talk about the arguments for and against heliocentrism, look into why heliocentrism may have been an upsetting idea in the 1600s, and pick apart some of Galileo's super sneaky rhetorical tricks!
Prerequisites
None!
Prerequisites
None!
H10924: Dramatic reading: Arcadia
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
David Rolnick
Join us for a group reading of "Arcadia" by Tom Stoppard. May involve time, tortoises, the mathematics of entropy, and carnal embrace (offstage). Parts will swap regularly, come prepared to improvise.
"We shed as we pick up, like travellers who must carry everything in their arms, and what we let fall will be picked up by those behind. The procession is very long and life is very short."
Et in Arcadia ego.
Prerequisites
It will be very helpful to have read the play beforehand. Acting experience encouraged but not required.
"We shed as we pick up, like travellers who must carry everything in their arms, and what we let fall will be picked up by those behind. The procession is very long and life is very short."
Et in Arcadia ego.
Prerequisites
It will be very helpful to have read the play beforehand. Acting experience encouraged but not required.
H10854: Armchair Philosophy Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Elise Bickford
Let's talk about philosophy! Topics include but are not limited to free will, consciousness, morality, personal identity, and Nietzsche's moustache.
H10990: Introduction to Phonetics and Phonology
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Sophie Mori
Come learn about the sounds of the English language and how they work together to create the wonderful language this class will be taught in!
H10975: Excavating a Shipwreck
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Annika Heinold
This class will explore excavation techniques used in the excavation of intertidal shipwrecks. I will be using the wreck of the Ada K Damon as my example, which I have spent the last two summers excavating.
Techniques we will be covering include trilateration, mapping, scale photography, drone usage (no real drones though :( ), baseline usage, keeping a field notebook, and background research.
The class will be hands-on as possible! As we cannot actually go out to a site for 2 hours I will be providing shipwreck models for us to map.
There hasn't been an archaeology class at Splash in years! So take this course while you can. Food may also be provided!
Prerequisites
An interest in archaeology or anthropology or An interest in ships and maritime history A basic knowledge of grid coordinates and scaling things
Techniques we will be covering include trilateration, mapping, scale photography, drone usage (no real drones though :( ), baseline usage, keeping a field notebook, and background research.
The class will be hands-on as possible! As we cannot actually go out to a site for 2 hours I will be providing shipwreck models for us to map.
There hasn't been an archaeology class at Splash in years! So take this course while you can. Food may also be provided!
Prerequisites
An interest in archaeology or anthropology or An interest in ships and maritime history A basic knowledge of grid coordinates and scaling things
H10663: What is Happiness?
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Shubhan Nagendra
Have you thought about happiness? Have you thought about happiness in terms of success? Have you thought what success might mean?
We will look at happiness through different forms -- art, music, and short readings. We will approach the topic through Eastern as well as Western philosophy.
Prerequisites
General interest, and some short readings prior to class.
We will look at happiness through different forms -- art, music, and short readings. We will approach the topic through Eastern as well as Western philosophy.
Prerequisites
General interest, and some short readings prior to class.
H10748: Why do you Need to Save the World
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Francesca Majluf
Love the planet you live in? Come learn why the Earth of the future may not be the Earth you know today.
H11187: Being Asian in America
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Caroline Mak
It's hard to carry the hopes and dreams as a first gen, second gen Asian American. Let's talk about our struggles and unique experiences dealing with privilege, (lack and appreciation of), class, career, gender, and sexuality
*anyone is welcome, gobs and gobs of familiar childhood Asian snacks will be there
*anyone is welcome, gobs and gobs of familiar childhood Asian snacks will be there
H10881: Aristotle's (totally legitimate) Theory of Unicorn Hooves and Other Stories from Ancient Science
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Eleanor Graham
Come learn about the strange theories of Aristotle (and maybe a few other people if we have time), from the spectacularly cool to the spectacularly wrong! Actually, they're usually both at once, but that's part of the fun. Potential topics include but are not limited to: what "the Ancients believed there were four elements" really means, why you shouldn't publish your lecture notes, how something called the theory of forms unifies all parts of Aristotle's science (and why that's really cool), ridiculous research failures, and, yes, unicorns.
Prerequisites
A healthy suspension of disbelief will be very useful!
Prerequisites
A healthy suspension of disbelief will be very useful!
H10699: Hungarian for Dummies
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Melinda Szabo
Are you interested in being able to speak a language that is unlike any other (maybe Finnish, but not really)? Come to Hungarian for dummies and learn about one of the most complicated grammars and how to pronounce strange new phonemes from a Hungarian-speaking MIT student. Besides the basics of language, we are also going to play games and learn about Hungarian culture.
H10798: The Philosophy of Rick and Morty Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Vineel Adusumilli,
Matt Bahner
Come travel through the universe and explore the mind-blowing trippiness of Rick and Morty. It's a beautiful tool to help answer the questions of existence through the wonderful world of science.
Prerequisites
Watch the show
Prerequisites
Watch the show
H10837: Behavioral Economics: Why it is okay to misbehave Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Kosi Aroh
In this course we will examine what economic theory says about human behavior and how that deviates for actual life experiences. Behavioral economics will then be intorduced as a way better understand how we think. This class will be interactive with both lecture type segments as well as scenario participation. Ex. "You have just won $30. Now choose between: (a) A 50% chance to gain $9 and 50% chance to lose $9. (b) No further gain or loss."
H11062: Free your Mind from the Free Market: Consumer Psychology 101 Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Katie O'Nell
Do you ever feel like companies are trying to manipulate you to buy things? Well you're right. Come learn the tips and tricks of corporate marketers and fight the power!
Prerequisites
Healthy skepticism
Prerequisites
Healthy skepticism
H10727: Animal Studies: a lightning introduction
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Elise Michaels
Want to learn more about how we study non-human animals? Or why? Or which ones? Want to learn about pets, zoo animals, and our wild neighbors?
Welcome to a very brief introduction to Animal Studies, also known as anthrozoology.
Welcome to a very brief introduction to Animal Studies, also known as anthrozoology.
H11109: The Five Faces of Oppression Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Haley Cope
The Five Faces of Oppression (Young) is a classical work which aims to address the different ways in which minority groups are oppressed by majority groups. We will be discussing and defining the different faces, as well as questioning our own world for examples of them.
Reading the work beforehand is not required, but may be helpful.
Reading the work beforehand is not required, but may be helpful.
H10921: "Internationality" : life through the eyes of internationals
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Quentin Wellens,
Christine You
Get to know how internationals perceive the world and the US in a different way..
H10795: Education: Is this the best we can do? Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Anne LoVerso,
William Wu
EDUCATION. Let's talk. What sucks about schools? What could be better? How do students learn? Are charter schools good or bad? What's up with lectures vs project based learning? How can we make schools more just? What is happening as a result of the "education reform movement". How can we improve schools? What has your experience been like? How would you improve your school?
H10658: Notable Notaphily
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Ryuga Hatano
Ever wondered what goes into those pieces of paper that we call banknotes? Come learn more about the art, the history, and the technology behind the money used in countless transactions across the world.
Prerequisites
Bring a piece of paper currency
Prerequisites
Bring a piece of paper currency
H10982: How to model states of mind
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Cosmo Grant
I have three red hats and two white hats. I put a hat on Alice, on Bob, and on Cat. I ask each in turn if she knows the color of her own hat. Alice says she doesn't know. Bob says he doesn't know. Cat says she doesn't know. What color is Cat's hat?
This course will be an introduction to epistemic logic, a powerful and general framework for representing people's states of mind, e.g. their beliefs, their beliefs about the others' beliefs, their beliefs about the others' beliefs about the others' beliefs, and so on, all the way up.
The framework will solve all our puzzles. But, more than that, we will point towards some applications of the framework in computer science, game theory and philosophy.
This course will be an introduction to epistemic logic, a powerful and general framework for representing people's states of mind, e.g. their beliefs, their beliefs about the others' beliefs, their beliefs about the others' beliefs about the others' beliefs, and so on, all the way up.
The framework will solve all our puzzles. But, more than that, we will point towards some applications of the framework in computer science, game theory and philosophy.
H10621: Introduction to Socionics
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Roan LaPlante
In this class we will review Socionics, a personality typology and branch of Jungian analytical psychology developed by a Lithuanian woman named Ausra Augustinavicitue in the 1970s. Socionics is moderately well popularized in Eastern Europe and almost unheard of in Western Europe or America.
Socionics is an abstract philosophical model and language for describing people and their social interactions, which attempts to answer the question, "How are different people different?" More concisely, it is a system of personality types. In this class, we will simultaneously review the conceptual foundations of this typology, and in doing so, we will address the problem of knowledge and numerous issues in practice. Specifically we will point out the problems and vagueness of the topic of personality types in itself, how it relates to science (socionics is *not* science) and ask what understanding personality types is actually useful for.
Prerequisites
A desire for self-knowledge and a willingness to think critically. Familiarity with MBTI is potentially helpful but also potentially detrimental. Some background in psychology is helpful but not needed.
Socionics is an abstract philosophical model and language for describing people and their social interactions, which attempts to answer the question, "How are different people different?" More concisely, it is a system of personality types. In this class, we will simultaneously review the conceptual foundations of this typology, and in doing so, we will address the problem of knowledge and numerous issues in practice. Specifically we will point out the problems and vagueness of the topic of personality types in itself, how it relates to science (socionics is *not* science) and ask what understanding personality types is actually useful for.
Prerequisites
A desire for self-knowledge and a willingness to think critically. Familiarity with MBTI is potentially helpful but also potentially detrimental. Some background in psychology is helpful but not needed.
H10788: Lobbying and Advocacy to Change the World
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Brock Adler
Is there a cause you are passionate about? Would changing laws or regulations, or having new government funding for your area of interest be useful? By joining together and advocating and/or lobbying with others, you can work towards accomplishing your personal, community, and societal goals. This session will give you (and your collaborators) a great start at being able to plan and carry out campaigns to create or change laws that you feel will improve things. You will learn about strategies and tactics applicable to a variety of different kinds of causes. I will use as an example an effort I have been working on for a few years, to add environmental education language to the Every Student Succeeds Act (the education bill that replaced No Child Left Behind), but the lessons presented will be applicable to a wide variety of other issues and levels of government. We will spend much of the time helping you think about how to advance your causes or projects.
Prerequisites
Have a basic understanding about how laws are passed http://kids.clerk.house.gov/high-school/lesson.html?intID=17; do some thinking about what cause you are passionate about; and find out who your Congressional Representatives are at www.house.gov and www.senate.gov, and look on their websites to find which committees they sit on.
Prerequisites
Have a basic understanding about how laws are passed http://kids.clerk.house.gov/high-school/lesson.html?intID=17; do some thinking about what cause you are passionate about; and find out who your Congressional Representatives are at www.house.gov and www.senate.gov, and look on their websites to find which committees they sit on.
H11087: How to Fail AP US History Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Alap Sahoo
Did you know that four of the first eight American presidents were gingers? Did you know that Mark Twain described America's Gilded Age as "the apex of human civilization"? Did you know that Theodore Roosevelt got shot during a speech and still finished it? Did you know which of those facts were true and which were complete lies? Then join us for How to Fail AP US History 101, where we will teach mostly true US history facts that will either help you or utterly fail you come next May. Come by and see if you can decipher the fact from the fiction!
H10698: Robots! Space! Time! Stories!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Bianca Homberg
Interested in science fiction, futuristic engineering, artificial intelligence or interplanetary empires? Ever wondered what would happen if people lived forever? What would happen if the world split in two every time you had to make a choice, and both options happened? What would happen if there was a center of time where time stood still?
Come read a few of the short stories of Isaac Asimov, one of the most prolific science fiction writers of all time. We'll spend an hour devouring tales of robots, space, and time!
Come read a few of the short stories of Isaac Asimov, one of the most prolific science fiction writers of all time. We'll spend an hour devouring tales of robots, space, and time!
H11158: Unsolvable Problems
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Chelsea Voss
What can philosophers learn from computer scientists?
Even though computer science is an applied discipline, its theoretical foundations are rich and fascinating.
For example, many problems are *impossible* to solve by writing a computer program. Why are these problems unsolvable? I'll prove it to you -- and along the way we'll learn some unexpected facts about infinity.
In order to talk about computer science formally, we'll learn about Turing machines. We'll decide on what it means for something to be powerful enough to be called a "computer", and we'll investigate whether systems such as Minecraft or the Game of Life make the cut.
Finally, we'll discuss some philosophical puzzles and paradoxes relating to the study of minds and machines and artificial intelligence.
Come learn about uncomputability, about Turing machines, and about code that loops forever. We will explore the limit of the mathematically possible.
Even though computer science is an applied discipline, its theoretical foundations are rich and fascinating.
For example, many problems are *impossible* to solve by writing a computer program. Why are these problems unsolvable? I'll prove it to you -- and along the way we'll learn some unexpected facts about infinity.
In order to talk about computer science formally, we'll learn about Turing machines. We'll decide on what it means for something to be powerful enough to be called a "computer", and we'll investigate whether systems such as Minecraft or the Game of Life make the cut.
Finally, we'll discuss some philosophical puzzles and paradoxes relating to the study of minds and machines and artificial intelligence.
Come learn about uncomputability, about Turing machines, and about code that loops forever. We will explore the limit of the mathematically possible.
H10701: How to Study Abroad without Dying
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Kelsey Becker
Ever wonder what it's like to live abroad? Find out from someone who lived in a tent in Greece for two months. Learn the do's and don'ts of studying abroad including what to pack, what to expect, and how not to die.
H10679: Does God exist? Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Peter Klapes
In this discussion-based course, we will explore the different arguments regarding the existence of God.
H10711: Science and Models
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Tyler Pleasant
What is a model and science? At what points do scientific and model thinking converge and diverge? Does science truly provide explanations of the world? This class will cover these questions while focusing on describing, comparing, and analyzing the respective strengths and weaknesses of science and models. This course will introduce some philosophy of science ideas such as Scientific Underdeterminism, the meaning of scientific explanation, and how science changes. Through exposure to these topics, you will be able to see the role models have in science and be able to evaluate both science and the current system in society for scientific research.
H10783: Designing Utopia
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Vineel Adusumilli
Seminar-style discussion about designing a perfect society from scratch.
H10670: Does Race Affect Your Life?
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Michelle Chalmers,
Izumi Ludgate
Splash students will participate in an interactive class while watching videos, engage in activities and dialogue about economic inequality in the country and take a look at the affect and effect of race.
H10681: Fantasy World-Building Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Ben Johnson
Have you ever wanted to create your own world just like Middle Earth? Or maybe that's a bit too one sided for you and you prefer Azeroth. Or maybe that's just got too many things going on and you'd prefer Alagaesia. I think we all know the best one is one we make ourself, so come do that with me! We will be exploring what a fantasy world consists of and requires, and creating the basis for one in class.
H10814: RADIO: From On-Air to On-Line
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
David Mercado
Radio is the original electronic "social medium;" connecting diverse groups of people through common language and shared cultural experiences. Join several dj's and producers from WMBR Radio as we describe radio's role in American life and demonstrate the practical how-to's of communicating over the air and in the digital world.
Prerequisites
Student must listen to at least one over the air radio show or podcast of their choosing during the week before the class. And be prepared to describe the contents to the class.
Prerequisites
Student must listen to at least one over the air radio show or podcast of their choosing during the week before the class. And be prepared to describe the contents to the class.
H11004: From Brahma to Ragnarok: A Study of Mythologies Around the World
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Jahnavi Kalpathy
Are you secretly building an underwater sustainable living pod so you can survive after Ragnarok floods the world? Do you pray to the sun before every big test or project? Are you trying to avoid a curse that will come into effect on your sixteenth birthday by dedicating yourself eternally to the Goddess of the Hunt?
If so, you can probably help me teach this class! But if you're fascinated by mythologies - how they develop, how they effect culture and social norms, how they are merging with different aspects of pop culture today - come to this class to learn more!
This class will be both lecture and discussion based. I'll touch on as many different mythologies as I can, including all the smaller myths that are not often discussed like Slavic gods of revenge and African tribal folk stories. This class will focus much more on the stories and character in myth rather than on the religious implications. We will also discuss the way traditional myths have entered contemporary pop culture (Neil Gaiman's books, the Percy Jackson series, animated movies).
If so, you can probably help me teach this class! But if you're fascinated by mythologies - how they develop, how they effect culture and social norms, how they are merging with different aspects of pop culture today - come to this class to learn more!
This class will be both lecture and discussion based. I'll touch on as many different mythologies as I can, including all the smaller myths that are not often discussed like Slavic gods of revenge and African tribal folk stories. This class will focus much more on the stories and character in myth rather than on the religious implications. We will also discuss the way traditional myths have entered contemporary pop culture (Neil Gaiman's books, the Percy Jackson series, animated movies).
H10962: A Very Brief History of Western Philosophy
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Fan Liu
What is truth, and how has our understanding of truth developed over time? What has it meant to "live the examined life?" In this class we will explore important time periods and figures in Western philosophy: Socrates, Descartes, Sartre, just to name a few. We will examine and analyze the questions they have pondered throughout the ages, and how their search for a greater understanding of the universe has evolved to the questions we ask today.
This course is intended for people with all backgrounds in philosophy and wish to explore philosophy in a historical context.
This course is intended for people with all backgrounds in philosophy and wish to explore philosophy in a historical context.
H10625: How to Torture Your Characters 101 Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Lydia Brown
You: Love writing fiction. Flash fiction. Short fiction. Novellas. Novels. Text-based roleplay. Comics. Graphic Novels. Fanfic. Possibly edgy or experimental. Some experience and past interest in creative writing of some kind.
Us: A civil rights lawyer and a law student. Activists. Gluttons for good food. Easily distracted by kittens and dogs. Long time text-based roleplayers. One of us a novelist.
What We'll Do: In this class, we'll talk about motivation, cultural context, political intrigue, relationship angst (and not just THOSE kinds of relationships), trauma, and identity. You will learn how to develop realistic, compelling characters full of depth. (At least in theory. This IS Splash after all.)
And then you will learn how to torture your characters -- that is, how to create and sustain personal and interpersonal conflict in your fiction, and how to make the story quintessentially readable and enjoyable, and ideally, relatable.
Prerequisites
Open to discussion of potentially dark topics. Content notes provided at beginning of class or by email in advance to student. Some experience (even totally informal!) with writing fiction strongly encouraged; this is not a completely 101 class despite the title. Also, the desire to be a evil creator lording over your small internal laboratory -- we mean, fictional creation.
Us: A civil rights lawyer and a law student. Activists. Gluttons for good food. Easily distracted by kittens and dogs. Long time text-based roleplayers. One of us a novelist.
What We'll Do: In this class, we'll talk about motivation, cultural context, political intrigue, relationship angst (and not just THOSE kinds of relationships), trauma, and identity. You will learn how to develop realistic, compelling characters full of depth. (At least in theory. This IS Splash after all.)
And then you will learn how to torture your characters -- that is, how to create and sustain personal and interpersonal conflict in your fiction, and how to make the story quintessentially readable and enjoyable, and ideally, relatable.
Prerequisites
Open to discussion of potentially dark topics. Content notes provided at beginning of class or by email in advance to student. Some experience (even totally informal!) with writing fiction strongly encouraged; this is not a completely 101 class despite the title. Also, the desire to be a evil creator lording over your small internal laboratory -- we mean, fictional creation.
H10942: Philosophy of Mind and Consciousness
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
John Gregg
What is a mind, and why is it so special? Is it special? How could it possibly work? Won't brain science, psychology and/or cognitive science answer any questions anyway? What do we need philosophy for? Do I have to wear a toga? No to that last one, but for the rest, sign up for this class. A brief history, and a primer on the current debates in this contentious field.
H10772: Ethics and Justice
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Mary Jane Porzenheim,
Rikhav Shah
Should you kill one person to save two? Is it ever justified to lie? Theories of ethics and justice can help us answer these questions.
We will give a brief rundown of the ethics of Mill and Kant, and also contrast the two most prominent theories of justice: those of Rawls and Nozick.
We will give a brief rundown of the ethics of Mill and Kant, and also contrast the two most prominent theories of justice: those of Rawls and Nozick.
H11164: Writing workshop!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Sarah Bricault
Whether it's your college admissions essay, a dark poem, or the beginning of your first novel- you've written a thing! But what would make it better? What parts work? What parts don't? This is a small, informal workshop course where students are expected to bring a writing sample to share with others.
Your piece can be a writing sample of any quality, any genre, any form- so long as it's under 2 pages! However, we do ask you to avoid graphic scenes and explicit sexual content. Other than that, we simply encourage everyone to come ready to give and receive feedback!
Prerequisites
Please bring three physical copies of a writing piece of up to 2 single-spaced pages that you would like to workshop.
Your piece can be a writing sample of any quality, any genre, any form- so long as it's under 2 pages! However, we do ask you to avoid graphic scenes and explicit sexual content. Other than that, we simply encourage everyone to come ready to give and receive feedback!
Prerequisites
Please bring three physical copies of a writing piece of up to 2 single-spaced pages that you would like to workshop.
Lunch
L11173: Lunch Period
Difficulty: None
Teachers:
Enjoy a break for lunch with your friends! Please register for at least one lunch period on each day of the program.
L11174: Lunch Period
Difficulty: None
Teachers:
Enjoy a break for lunch with your friends! Please register for at least one lunch period on each day of the program.
Mathematics
M11033: Fermi Estimation Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Patrick Ledwith,
Amelia Trainer
Come act like a real scientist and practice the subtle art of making conclusions with little/no actual data!
We'll go a bit into the idea of Fermi Estimation and back-of-the-envelope-calculations, then do some mild examples and then some (hopefully fun and challenging) examples.
Prerequisites
Comfortable with arithmetic, should be a mildly reasonable person.
We'll go a bit into the idea of Fermi Estimation and back-of-the-envelope-calculations, then do some mild examples and then some (hopefully fun and challenging) examples.
Prerequisites
Comfortable with arithmetic, should be a mildly reasonable person.
M10940: Complex Numbers: Math That Will Freak You Out (at least a little bit)
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
John Gregg
I promise this math will freak you out at least a bit. We will explore the existence or non-existence of nonsensical things called complex numbers, or less scarily, imaginary numbers (aren't they all?). We will end up deep, deep inside a certain blob called the Mandelbrot set, which is made of these "imaginary" numbers.
M11136: Conceptual Calculus
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Aaron Dunbrack
Learn what it means to take the limit, the derivative, or the integral! Also learn how to apply these concepts in some pretty cool ways. Note: this class will be almost entirely conceptual - very few actual derivatives will be taken, although some of the more interesting ones may be used.
Prerequisites
Understand basic algebraic manipulations. Familiarity with polynomial functions, exponentials and trigonometry will help with understanding examples, but are not required for basic understanding.
Prerequisites
Understand basic algebraic manipulations. Familiarity with polynomial functions, exponentials and trigonometry will help with understanding examples, but are not required for basic understanding.
M10826: Advanced Counting: Introduction to Combinatorics
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Clare Keenan
Combinations, Permutations, Probability, Pascal's triangle, and probably some other stuff too
M11139: Symmetry
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Aaron Dunbrack
You've surely learned about things which are "symmetric" - which you can do something to and they look the same (e.g., rotating a square by 90 degrees). In this class, we'll discuss how to formalize that idea using the abstract algebra idea of a group, and some specific examples. We'll also discuss how continuous symmetries lead to "conserved quantities" in physics (and what this means).
M10628: Recursive Macroeconomic Models
Difficulty: ****
Teachers:
Arnav Sood
This class is a gentle introduction to infinite-stage decision problems, with a special focus on macroeconomic applications. These problems are tricky because there's no good way to test every possible path, especially when there's an infinite number of things we can do at each stage!
The central object is something called a Bellman equation, which relates a problem we need to solve today to one we'll need to solve tomorrow. Examples we'll look at are economic growth, job search, and a few others.
Prerequisites
Some calculus would be good, but it's not required.
The central object is something called a Bellman equation, which relates a problem we need to solve today to one we'll need to solve tomorrow. Examples we'll look at are economic growth, job search, and a few others.
Prerequisites
Some calculus would be good, but it's not required.
M10577: The Basic Ideas of Calculus Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Mikaela Scheff
Are you someone who is intrigued by calculus even though you have no idea what it is? If the answer is yes, then this class is for you. It will cover the basic concepts and ideas of calculus using simple graphs and common sense. There will be no complicated mathematical formulas, no strange symbols, and no test at the end. Be ready to look at lots of graphs and to think about roller coasters and trips to exciting places.
Prerequisites
Know what slope, speed, and velocity are and how to calculate them when looking at a graph.
Prerequisites
Know what slope, speed, and velocity are and how to calculate them when looking at a graph.
M11050: Explore Geometry with Paper
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Luis Herrera Arias,
Max Kessler
I bet you didn’t know that those three lines intersect! Come, we’ll play games and learn mysteries of triangles. Know how to trisect angles and do other geometric constructions without a straight edge or compass? We’ll learn tricks with origami! Low risk of paper cuts.
M11153: Unrelated Math II
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Benjamin Cosman
Same idea as Unrelated Math I (M11152) except the topics will be - you guessed it - totally unrelated! So sign up for either or both of these; there will be no overlap between the two.
M11052: Fun With Group Theory!
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Yoa Clifton
What can you do with just one operation (multiplication) ? Apparently, a whole lot! Come be amazed by groups and group actions. We will build from the ground up and work towards proving the Sylow theorems and Burnside's lemma!
Prerequisites
Familiarity with proofs and strong interest in math. No group theory background required,
Prerequisites
Familiarity with proofs and strong interest in math. No group theory background required,
M11152: Unrelated Math I
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Benjamin Cosman
3-5 mini-lectures with no unifying theme. Possible questions include:
- How many bears can you run away from forever?
- How can electrons prove inequalities for us?
- Why is traffic so bad on your favorite roads?
- Are there theorems that are true but can't be proven?
- How can physics prove the Pythagorean Theorem?
- How many bears can you run away from forever?
- How can electrons prove inequalities for us?
- Why is traffic so bad on your favorite roads?
- Are there theorems that are true but can't be proven?
- How can physics prove the Pythagorean Theorem?
M10648: How to Win Games and Irritate People
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Akshara Thejaswi
Why are elections so complicated? How do you win Survivor? Why can't Congress get anything done? How do you win an auction by bidding less than the other buyers?
In this class you'll learn introductory game theory, explore the intuition behind the concepts, and see some practical applications; we'll cover topics such as different types of equilibria, the Prisoner's Dilemma, sequential games, mixed strategies, and more!
Prerequisites
Knowledge of algebra is helpful, but not required.
In this class you'll learn introductory game theory, explore the intuition behind the concepts, and see some practical applications; we'll cover topics such as different types of equilibria, the Prisoner's Dilemma, sequential games, mixed strategies, and more!
Prerequisites
Knowledge of algebra is helpful, but not required.
M11166: Math for Computer Science
Difficulty: *
We will be covering a range of topics relating to math for computer science, specifically the Stable Matching Problem, Arrow's Impossibility Theorem, and Pigeon Hole Principle. We will not only cover the theory of these ideas, but also focus on real world applications.
M11140: Multivariable/Vector Calculus
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Aaron Dunbrack
Learn what comes after "regular" calculus. We'll start with vector fields, partial derivatives and multiple integrals and end with an explanation of the gradient, divergence, curl, flux and curvature.
Prerequisites
Know what a vector is. Know single-variable calculus, at the very least conceptually, either through my earlier course or through your own knowledge - i.e., know what a limit is, what a derivative is, and what an integral is.
Prerequisites
Know what a vector is. Know single-variable calculus, at the very least conceptually, either through my earlier course or through your own knowledge - i.e., know what a limit is, what a derivative is, and what an integral is.
M10929: The Dime Game: Introduction to Game Theory Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Lee Friedman
Using a pretty simple game, we will explore the basics of game theory, a form of math and logic that is incredibly useful in politics, computers, psychology, and poker.
M11002: Prime Numbers are Hard and Boring and Nobody Cares About Them
Difficulty: ****
Teachers:
Colin Aitken
Come learn about prime numbers! How many are there? How far apart are they? What do they look like? They're hard and boring and nobody cares about them. You probably shouldn't come to this class.
Prerequisites
Some knowledge of modular arithmetic might help but is not strictly required.
Prerequisites
Some knowledge of modular arithmetic might help but is not strictly required.
M11189: The Euclidean Algorithm
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Lane Gunderman
Have you ever wanted to find the greatest common divisor between two numbers? How about finding it quickly? How about really, really quickly? In this class, we aim to prove the Euclidean Algorithm for finding the greatest common divisor of two numbers!
Prerequisites
Preferably a knowledge of what the greatest common divisor of two numbers is, as well as familiarity with prime factorization. In addition you are hopefully excited about number theory, but that is not a prerequisite.
Prerequisites
Preferably a knowledge of what the greatest common divisor of two numbers is, as well as familiarity with prime factorization. In addition you are hopefully excited about number theory, but that is not a prerequisite.
M11073: Hidden Markov Models
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Xiaolu Guo
Hidden Markov Models (HMMs) are highly useful probabilistic models, with real-world applications ranging from Siri to gesture recognition to weather forecasts.
Prerequisites
Precalculus
Prerequisites
Precalculus
M10563: The Math Behind Poker
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Eric LaCava,
Vincent Tjeng
How do you make the best decisions while playing poker? Well, thinking of it from a mathematical perspective can help.
In this class, we'll consider how 1) you can use the odds of winning when on a drawing hand to decide whether or not to fold, call, or raise; 2) the number of other players remaining in the hand can affect the relative value of starting hands; 3) your stack size can affect the way you play; 4) tournaments and cash games are different and 5) bluffing (sometimes, but not always) makes sense.*
* We might switch some of these topics!
Prerequisites
Poker hand order; basic play for Texas Hold-em
In this class, we'll consider how 1) you can use the odds of winning when on a drawing hand to decide whether or not to fold, call, or raise; 2) the number of other players remaining in the hand can affect the relative value of starting hands; 3) your stack size can affect the way you play; 4) tournaments and cash games are different and 5) bluffing (sometimes, but not always) makes sense.*
* We might switch some of these topics!
Prerequisites
Poker hand order; basic play for Texas Hold-em
M10581: Cryptography 101
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Jakob Weisblat
We'll go through some basics of cryptography from the Caesar cipher to Diffie-Helman and RSA to maybe some elliptic curves if we're feeling adventurous
Prerequisites
Some mathematical background would be good.
Prerequisites
Some mathematical background would be good.
M11036: The Futurama Theorem
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Anthony Liu,
Simon Zheng
Suppose you have a machine that can switch two people's bodies but each pair of bodies can enter the machine at most once. You and your friends keep switching bodies until everyone is in someone else's body. Is it possible to restore everyone to their original bodies? We'll be using MATH (in particular, cycles and permutations) to find out. The writers of the TV show "Futurama" actually proved that the answer is yes, using at most two extra people.
***
Professor Farnsworth (in Bender's body): Now then Amy, we'll simply switch bodies, and then we'll...no, I'd be back in my body, but then you and Bender would be switched. And the Amy and Bender bodies can't trade minds again, since they just did!
Amy (in Professor Farnsworth's body): Oh no! Is it possible to get everyone back to normal using four or more bodies?
Professor Farnsworth: I'm not sure. I'm afraid we need to use...[dramatic music]...MATH!
Prerequisites
Knowledge of cycles and permutations is helpful but not required.
***
Professor Farnsworth (in Bender's body): Now then Amy, we'll simply switch bodies, and then we'll...no, I'd be back in my body, but then you and Bender would be switched. And the Amy and Bender bodies can't trade minds again, since they just did!
Amy (in Professor Farnsworth's body): Oh no! Is it possible to get everyone back to normal using four or more bodies?
Professor Farnsworth: I'm not sure. I'm afraid we need to use...[dramatic music]...MATH!
Prerequisites
Knowledge of cycles and permutations is helpful but not required.
M11138: Partial Differential Equations
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Aaron Dunbrack
One of the hardest topics in mathematics is the study of partial differential equations. However, they describe a variety of mechanisms which depend on both position and time, such as fluids, quantum particles, and various biological population models. We will start out looking at transport (including nonlinear transport) and the method of characteristics and move on to diffusion and waves on both bounded and unbounded domains.
Prerequisites
A solid understanding of calculus. Recommended that you have multivariable calculus, although partial derivatives will be described at the beginning of the class. Knowledge of (Linear) Ordinary Differential Equations (ODEs) recommended, as at several points I will say "this ODE has this known solution," but if you're willing to bypass the technical details in those areas and just aim for a conceptual understanding you should still get that out of this class without ODEs.
Prerequisites
A solid understanding of calculus. Recommended that you have multivariable calculus, although partial derivatives will be described at the beginning of the class. Knowledge of (Linear) Ordinary Differential Equations (ODEs) recommended, as at several points I will say "this ODE has this known solution," but if you're willing to bypass the technical details in those areas and just aim for a conceptual understanding you should still get that out of this class without ODEs.
M11019: From Exponents to Entropy
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Tal Scully
If you have taken Chemistry, you may be familiar with some of the difficult-to-define concepts of thermodynamics. "Heat" means something slightly different than what you'd expect, "entropy" is vaguely described as "disorder", and "enthalpy" is it's own beast that even some MIT professors can't explain. But we can do better! Come learn how math and data structures can help explain the true meaning of "disorderly" entropy at the microscopic scale.
Prerequisites
This class will be most interesting to those who have encountered entropy in the context of a Chemistry class. In addition, you should know what an exponent is. Logarithms will be helpful, but are not necessary to know in advance (as they will be explained).
Prerequisites
This class will be most interesting to those who have encountered entropy in the context of a Chemistry class. In addition, you should know what an exponent is. Logarithms will be helpful, but are not necessary to know in advance (as they will be explained).
M11182: Queueueueues
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Ziv Scully
It's possible to have a bus stop where buses come every 10 minutes on average, yet the average rider has to wait 20 minutes for a bus. It's possible to have a fair policy for waiting in line that involves people cutting. It's possible for a grocery store with many slow checkout lanes to be better than a store with one really fast checkout lane... and it's also possible for the one fast lane to beat the many slow lanes.
Come learn about how each of these things is possible in this introduction to queuing theory!
Prerequisites
You should at least currently be in Algebra 2 or similar.
Come learn about how each of these things is possible in this introduction to queuing theory!
Prerequisites
You should at least currently be in Algebra 2 or similar.
M10731: Gröbner Bases and Term Rewriting
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
James Koppel
Solving systems of linear equations is easy. How about systems of polynomial equations?
We're not really going to teach you that. Instead, we're going to teach you about Gröbner bases, a crazy way of representing spaces of polynomials, which also gives the ability to solve polynomial equations.
Actually, we're not going to really teach you that either. Instead, we're going to go into a separate branch of mathematics called Term Rewriting and teach you about Knuth-Bendix Completion, a "meta-algorithm" which can take definitions of equality and give you an algorithm for telling whether two things are equal. We'll present Gröbner Bases as a special case of Knuth-Bendix Completion. We might even have time to solve a polynomial equation or two!
Bring your generalization goggles, 'cause things are about to get abstract.
Prerequisites
Polynomial division and solving systems of linear equations should be no problem for you. The more of these you understand, the easier time you'll have: algebraic rings, polynomial rings, ideals, ring quotients
We're not really going to teach you that. Instead, we're going to teach you about Gröbner bases, a crazy way of representing spaces of polynomials, which also gives the ability to solve polynomial equations.
Actually, we're not going to really teach you that either. Instead, we're going to go into a separate branch of mathematics called Term Rewriting and teach you about Knuth-Bendix Completion, a "meta-algorithm" which can take definitions of equality and give you an algorithm for telling whether two things are equal. We'll present Gröbner Bases as a special case of Knuth-Bendix Completion. We might even have time to solve a polynomial equation or two!
Bring your generalization goggles, 'cause things are about to get abstract.
Prerequisites
Polynomial division and solving systems of linear equations should be no problem for you. The more of these you understand, the easier time you'll have: algebraic rings, polynomial rings, ideals, ring quotients
M10632: Mathematical Modeling Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Jessica Oehrlein
Math modeling is how we use mathematics to study open-ended questions about real-world phenomena. What's the best location for a food truck? How does an invasive species affect an ecosystem? How do we clean up space debris? These are all questions that we can start to answer with math modeling. The goal of this class is to introduce you to the modeling process. By the end, you'll have developed models to answer questions about a couple of different scenarios, and you'll know about some of the tools you can use to tackle more significant modeling problems.
Prerequisites
Comfort with algebra and a willingness to tackle very open-ended problems.
Prerequisites
Comfort with algebra and a willingness to tackle very open-ended problems.
M10592: How to Lie With Statistics Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Kaylee Brent
If you don't understand statistics, it's easy to be misled. If you do understand statistics, it's easy to mislead other people to get what you want! Come learn how....
(1) Companies that are losing money convince their investors they're worth it.
(2) Rich people on Cape Cod think that wind farms are bad for their health.
(3) The tobacco (and fossil fuel) industry got away with selling poison for so long.
(4) I'm going to convince my supervisor I've done enough with my thesis to graduate (mostly kidding on the last one, David, please don't hate me)
Prerequisites
Algebra II and preferably some introduction to statistics and probabilities
(1) Companies that are losing money convince their investors they're worth it.
(2) Rich people on Cape Cod think that wind farms are bad for their health.
(3) The tobacco (and fossil fuel) industry got away with selling poison for so long.
(4) I'm going to convince my supervisor I've done enough with my thesis to graduate (mostly kidding on the last one, David, please don't hate me)
Prerequisites
Algebra II and preferably some introduction to statistics and probabilities
M11053: Fun with Ramsey Theory!
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Yoa Clifton
In the 1950s, a Hungarian sociologist noticed that in every set of around twenty children, there were four who were all friends, or four none of whom were friends. Had he just discovered a remarkable property of human interactions? No!
Enter Ramsey theory which explores results about some partition of a set maintaining the property of the whole. How big of a complete graph do we need for any partition of its edges into two "colors" to contain a monochromatic k-clique? What's the smallest n such that any way of splitting the numbers 1,2,...,n into two disjoint sets guarantees that one of your two sets contains an arithmetic progression of length 4? Explore the answers to these and other fun questions! I'll even provide some open problems for you to think about afterward.
Prerequisites
Excitement about math! High comfort level with proofs. Familiarity with graph theory and the pigeonhole principle is encouraged. I expect you to understand most of the math terms in the course description, but by no means to understand the questions themselves :)
Enter Ramsey theory which explores results about some partition of a set maintaining the property of the whole. How big of a complete graph do we need for any partition of its edges into two "colors" to contain a monochromatic k-clique? What's the smallest n such that any way of splitting the numbers 1,2,...,n into two disjoint sets guarantees that one of your two sets contains an arithmetic progression of length 4? Explore the answers to these and other fun questions! I'll even provide some open problems for you to think about afterward.
Prerequisites
Excitement about math! High comfort level with proofs. Familiarity with graph theory and the pigeonhole principle is encouraged. I expect you to understand most of the math terms in the course description, but by no means to understand the questions themselves :)
M10998: Why "How Big Is Infinity?" Is a Stupid Question
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Rogers Epstein
In which I present a case to why $$\infty$$ doesn't exist. When we talk about it, are we referring to the biggest natural number, or some different object(s) altogether? Come share your frustration with the imperfect rigor in math while making fun of those attending the class name of the referenced question.
Prerequisites
It is useful to come in with the institutionalized intuition of infinity and why we need it, but that will be discussed.
Prerequisites
It is useful to come in with the institutionalized intuition of infinity and why we need it, but that will be discussed.
M10799: Elliptic curves and cryptography
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Sanath Devalapurkar
You've probably heard of RSA, a public-key cryptosystem - it's what makes your credit card transactions, etc. secure. But this isn't the only kind of cryptosystem! There is an alternative that takes up less memory and is a little faster; this uses the mathematical theory of elliptic curves.
Here, we'll introduce what an elliptic curve is, and why these things are very special. We'll then use this specialty to build a cryptosystem, and see how it's in some ways both better, and worse, than RSA.
Prerequisites
Modular arithmetic and high school algebra
Here, we'll introduce what an elliptic curve is, and why these things are very special. We'll then use this specialty to build a cryptosystem, and see how it's in some ways both better, and worse, than RSA.
Prerequisites
Modular arithmetic and high school algebra
M10888: Playing fast and loose with infinite series, Euler-style
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Eva Belmont
What is the value of $$1 + \frac{1}{4} + \frac{1}{9} + \frac{1}{16} + \dots$$? Mathematicians were stumped for nearly a hundred years until Leonhard Euler surprised everyone by showing the answer is $$\frac{\pi^2}{6}$$.
In this class, I will present Euler's original argument for this result and several others, including the famous formula $$e^{i\pi} = -1$$ and the power series expansion for $$\sin x$$. While there are plenty of modern, rigorous proofs of these results, it's fun to watch how Euler breaks all the rules but comes out on top because of his amazing ingenuity and intuition.
Prerequisites
Some familiarity with trig and good working knowledge of algebraic manipulations
In this class, I will present Euler's original argument for this result and several others, including the famous formula $$e^{i\pi} = -1$$ and the power series expansion for $$\sin x$$. While there are plenty of modern, rigorous proofs of these results, it's fun to watch how Euler breaks all the rules but comes out on top because of his amazing ingenuity and intuition.
Prerequisites
Some familiarity with trig and good working knowledge of algebraic manipulations
M10930: The math they don't teach you in AP Calc (or, intro to Discrete Math)
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Avery Nortonsmith
How many different ways can you give 20 pennies to 10 people?
How many ways can you rearrange the letters in the word "MISSISSIPPI"?
How can you prove that the square root of 2 is irrational?
How can you prove that there is no largest prime number?
Want to learn how to solve these problem and many others like them? Take this crash course in counting, proofs, and number theory to find out how!
Prerequisites
No mathematical prerequisites beyond basic algebra. If you have taken a course in discrete math, or know how to solve the problems listed above, then you will find this class redundant.
How many ways can you rearrange the letters in the word "MISSISSIPPI"?
How can you prove that the square root of 2 is irrational?
How can you prove that there is no largest prime number?
Want to learn how to solve these problem and many others like them? Take this crash course in counting, proofs, and number theory to find out how!
Prerequisites
No mathematical prerequisites beyond basic algebra. If you have taken a course in discrete math, or know how to solve the problems listed above, then you will find this class redundant.
M11150: Voting Theory (or, How the Election SHOULD Have Worked)
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Benjamin Cosman
I don't know who the 45th president is, but I do know that there are much better ways we could have chosen one: we're flying half-blind by having voters only vote for one candidate. In this class we will discover and compare the better voting systems that are possible when voters rank ALL the candidates.
Prerequisites
None. This class may have little to offer if you are also taking "Z11088: Voting Systems, Democracy, and Electoral Reform" or if you are familiar with the most common systems and criteria in this table: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voting_system_criterion#Compliance_of_selected_systems_.28table.29
Prerequisites
None. This class may have little to offer if you are also taking "Z11088: Voting Systems, Democracy, and Electoral Reform" or if you are familiar with the most common systems and criteria in this table: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voting_system_criterion#Compliance_of_selected_systems_.28table.29
M10777: Mods and Primes
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Rikhav Shah
When does 11+4=3? When isn't 5 a prime number? How do prime numbers keep our bank accounts safe? What is Fermat's Little Theorem? Come learn about mods and primes to find out!
Prerequisites
Basic knowledge of imaginary numbers
Prerequisites
Basic knowledge of imaginary numbers
M10961: Factorials (!)
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Jonah Philion
The function that's just as fun to write down as it is to evaluate: !. Course will be rigorous and full of what appears to be mathematical coincidence. Featuring an in-depth look at Big O analysis of n!, inverse of n!, and why $$n!$$ and $$e$$ and $$\pi$$ are all connected. Topics to be covered: Stirling's Approximation, Prime Number Distribution, Gamma function and Beta Function.
Prerequisites
1d calculus and arithmetic
Prerequisites
1d calculus and arithmetic
M10925: Probability Puzzles and Paradoxes
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Sandeep Silwal
We will explore some fun and weird probability concepts! Be prepared to have your intuition blown away. Some familiarity with probability will be helpful but not required.
Prerequisites
Some familiarity with probability would be helpful.
Prerequisites
Some familiarity with probability would be helpful.
M10867: Math: The Highlight Reel
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Lily Jordan
So, you know math? And you know how it sometimes has boring parts? Yeah, we're skipping all of those.
It's gonna be lit.
Prerequisites
If you know how to take a square root, you're probably fine.
It's gonna be lit.
Prerequisites
If you know how to take a square root, you're probably fine.
M11146: Cryptography
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Gaurav Singh
Have you seen this weird cryptography in the news? Are you wondering how keys are relevant to your data? Then this class is for you! We will discuss the idea of cryptography, and go over some of the most important building blocks. If there is extra time, we will discuss some of the more exciting directions it is going in.
Prerequisites
It will be useful to have some idea about what cryptography is, but is not required.
Prerequisites
It will be useful to have some idea about what cryptography is, but is not required.
M10680: Oh My Godel! Kurt Godel's Life, Philosophy, and Mathematics
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Adam Catto
Kurt Godel was considered by many to be the greatest logician of the 20th century, and the greatest logician since Aristotle. Additionally, he was an exceptional philosopher, and had a really amazing and tragic life. We will explore some of his life and his most famous work, and will probably touch upon some work of his contemporaries.
Prerequisites
You should know a tiny bit of logic, like the basics of propositional logic. It would be helpful to read a bit about the history of logic and formalism, but it's certainly not necessary to understand what's going on.
Prerequisites
You should know a tiny bit of logic, like the basics of propositional logic. It would be helpful to read a bit about the history of logic and formalism, but it's certainly not necessary to understand what's going on.
M10907: Powerful Primes
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Michael Winston
What is the last digit of the number $$31415926535^{2016^{2015^{2014}}}$$ when expressed in base 2017? Using simple but unexpected number theory techniques, you can answer this and other deep questions in mathematics instantly!
Come join to learn what happens when you raise an integer to a power, and explore all the fascinating math you can surprisingly do with this. We will prove and generalise Fermat's Little Theorem and see a few of its immense implications. We will also uncover interesting relationships between primes and perfect squares. Along the way we will see how powers modulo a prime can be used in real-life cryptography.
Prerequisites
You should know basic modular arithmetic, but aren't expected or required to know much beyond that; the class will be building up from elementary concepts using a lot of logic and problem solving.
Come join to learn what happens when you raise an integer to a power, and explore all the fascinating math you can surprisingly do with this. We will prove and generalise Fermat's Little Theorem and see a few of its immense implications. We will also uncover interesting relationships between primes and perfect squares. Along the way we will see how powers modulo a prime can be used in real-life cryptography.
Prerequisites
You should know basic modular arithmetic, but aren't expected or required to know much beyond that; the class will be building up from elementary concepts using a lot of logic and problem solving.
M11054: Fun With Integer Partitions!
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Yoa Clifton
5 can be written as 5, 4+1, 3+2, 3+1+1, 2+2+1, 2+1+1+1, and 1+1+1+1+1. Why is this cool? Why did legendary mathematicians like Ramanujan care about stuff like this? We'll explore many types of partitions, learn about Young Tableaux and Generating Functions, practice finding bijections and then prove some machinery to automatically generate correspondences between different types of partitions.
Prerequisites
High comfort level with proofs.
Prerequisites
High comfort level with proofs.
M10600: Brief Introduction to Algebraic Topology
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
yc yu
Algebraic Topology is concerned with algebraic invariants of spaces under continuous deformations.
Topics from singular homology, basic category theory, CW complexes, basic homological algebra, cohomology, etc. Content and duration will be tailored to students' background and interests.
Prerequisites
Substantial familiarity with general topology and abstract algebra; anyone interested is welcome to come appreciate the elegance of topology.
Topics from singular homology, basic category theory, CW complexes, basic homological algebra, cohomology, etc. Content and duration will be tailored to students' background and interests.
Prerequisites
Substantial familiarity with general topology and abstract algebra; anyone interested is welcome to come appreciate the elegance of topology.
M11137: Point-Set Topology
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Aaron Dunbrack
People often think of topology as what surfaces can be smoothly shaped into other surfaces. More generally, topology discusses continuous functions. We'll discuss what it means for a set to have topology, what it means for a function in a topological space to be continuous, and various attributes that a topological space can have.
Prerequisites
Be familiar with basic notions of sets and logic (which you've probably been exposed to if you've done other math Spark classes). E.g., "there exists", "for all," what it means to have "an element of" a set, unions, intersections, etc.
Prerequisites
Be familiar with basic notions of sets and logic (which you've probably been exposed to if you've done other math Spark classes). E.g., "there exists", "for all," what it means to have "an element of" a set, unions, intersections, etc.
M10944: Fermi Estimation: the Math Behind Random Guessing
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Patrick Liscio,
Katherine Nazemi
How many fish are in the sea? What would it cost to wash all of the windows in New York City? How many ping-pong balls would it take to fill a 747? If you want to be able to answer these questions and others like them, then come and learn about Fermi estimation! We'll cover some tips and tricks for making "back-of-the-envelope" calculations like these in order to solve difficult problems involving really large numbers.
M10619: Fermat's Last Theorem
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Hadrian Merced
Some simple problems have very complex solutions. I have discovered a truly marvelous example for this lecture which this field is too small to contain.
M11119: Communicating as Efficiently as Possible
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Allan Sadun
There's a precise, scientific definition of speed, energy, and heat. We can write down equations that describe these things, and fundamental laws of physics that govern them. But science hasn't defined love, or information, or unity, or beauty ... has it? Actually, one of these things - information - IS well-defined, thanks to the tireless work of telephone engineers in the 1940's and 1950's to communicate as efficiently and quickly as possible. In this class, we'll lay down the equations that describe what it means, in a mathematical sense, to communication, and what information, according to the scientists, truly is. We'll play a couple of games and I'll also talk a little bit about the way this math relates to entropy and physics.
Prerequisites
Familiarity with the basics of logarithms, exponents, and probabilities. You should be able to figure out why the odds of me flipping a coin eight times and it coming up HHTTTTHT are 1 in 256.
Prerequisites
Familiarity with the basics of logarithms, exponents, and probabilities. You should be able to figure out why the odds of me flipping a coin eight times and it coming up HHTTTTHT are 1 in 256.
M10820: How big is Infinity? Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Margalit Glasgow,
Emanuel Perez
In this class we'll talk about some big big numbers...and then some numbers that are even bigger than that! We'll start with discussing the sizes of various sets of numbers - integers, prime numbers, real numbers, rational numbers. You'll get to solve some crazy brainteasers, try to make an infinite amount of money, and discover how normal logic collapses as n goes to infinity.
M10875: Intro to Computability Theory
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Della Hendrickson
Computers can do a lot of things. If you've ever programmed, you might think you can theoretically write a program that does anything. But it turns out there are things you can't program, no matter how clever you are! You'll see some examples of these functions and learn more about what computers are actually capable of.
Prerequisites
You should have seen programming at least a bit, though we won't use any detailed knowledge of it.
Prerequisites
You should have seen programming at least a bit, though we won't use any detailed knowledge of it.
M11010: Simple Models of Computation
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Adam Hesterberg
Almost all programming languages are equally powerful—anything one of them can do, they all can. We’ll talk about two less powerful models of computation—ones that can’t even, say, tell whether two numbers are equal. They’ll nevertheless save the day if you have to search through 200MB of emails looking for something formatted like an address.
This is a math class, not a programming one—we’ll talk about clever proofs for what those models of computation can and can’t do.
This is a math class, not a programming one—we’ll talk about clever proofs for what those models of computation can and can’t do.
M11046: The Honest Definition of a Continuous Function
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Daniel Zaharopol
Maybe you've heard that a continuous function is one you can draw without lifting your pencil off the paper. Do you really think that's the kind of definition a mathematician uses? It's all right for intuition, but it doesn't let you do any actual math with it. As a math major, the first real definition of a continuous function that you'd see is called the epsilon-delta definition, and it's much more sophisticated.
This class is meant as an introduction to what deeper mathematics is really like. We'll see how to really define continuous functions, what exactly they can and can't do, and how to prove a lot about what's going on underneath the hood. We'll even see what continuous functions would look like if we go to strange spaces that are not like the Euclidean plane at all.
Prerequisites
You should be interested in a challenge and very, very fluent with high school algebra. Beyond that, how hard the class is depends on how much experience you have with advanced math, but this can work as a good introduction for a bright high school student.
This class is meant as an introduction to what deeper mathematics is really like. We'll see how to really define continuous functions, what exactly they can and can't do, and how to prove a lot about what's going on underneath the hood. We'll even see what continuous functions would look like if we go to strange spaces that are not like the Euclidean plane at all.
Prerequisites
You should be interested in a challenge and very, very fluent with high school algebra. Beyond that, how hard the class is depends on how much experience you have with advanced math, but this can work as a good introduction for a bright high school student.
M11127: 2x2 = 4: The Hard Way
Difficulty: ****
Teachers:
Ziv Scully
We're going to prove this deep and insightful theorem using the most abstractly nonsensical mathematical sledgehammer of them all: category theory!
Category theory is when we draw letters on the board and then draw arrows between them such that certain nice things are true. Seems mostly harmless, doesn't it? Perhaps, but some point we'll need to prove that multiplication distributes over addition without accidentally proving that addition distributes over multiplication, too. This turns out to be pretty difficult :).
Prerequisites
You should know that a function is a map between sets. If you read a bit of the Function (mathematics) article on Wikipedia, you'll be fine.
Category theory is when we draw letters on the board and then draw arrows between them such that certain nice things are true. Seems mostly harmless, doesn't it? Perhaps, but some point we'll need to prove that multiplication distributes over addition without accidentally proving that addition distributes over multiplication, too. This turns out to be pretty difficult :).
Prerequisites
You should know that a function is a map between sets. If you read a bit of the Function (mathematics) article on Wikipedia, you'll be fine.
M11038: A Battle of Combinatorics Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Luis Herrera Arias
Come and learn about counting things you didn’t know you could count. We’ll play fun games and learn the secrets of gambling.
M11106: Counting Beyond Infinity Full!
Difficulty: ****
Teachers:
Della Hendrickson,
Jordan Hines
What if you started counting and never stopped? In this class, we'll talk about ordinals, the numbers you get by doing this. We'll see many types of infinity and do strange and exciting things with them!
Prerequisites
Know what it means for a set to be countable/uncountable. Prior experience with proofs and set theory would be helpful.
Prerequisites
Know what it means for a set to be countable/uncountable. Prior experience with proofs and set theory would be helpful.
M11128: Calculate Pi with Trains!
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Ziv Scully
It turns out that you can calculate pi to very high accuracy by bouncing a small train and a big train into a wall. Come on a journey through Extra-Nice Physics Land (where there's no friction and all collisions are perfectly elastic) to see how it works!
Prerequisites
Given the equation of a line, you should know how to find its slope. We'll also use the Pythagorean theorem.
Prerequisites
Given the equation of a line, you should know how to find its slope. We'll also use the Pythagorean theorem.
M10775: Axioms of Z
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Rikhav Shah
What is a number? How do we know there aren't any integers in between 0 and 1? Does the commutative property have to be true? Come find out if AXIOMS hold the answer to all these questions and more!
M11047: A Round Exploration of Tau
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Joey Muller
We have our favorite mathematical constants, 0, 1, i, e, and pi... um I mean tau, right? Learn about the controversial ratio, how you've been doing math all wrong, and engage in discussion on why tau is the true circle constant.
Prerequisites
Background in trigonometry and calculus is helpful
Prerequisites
Background in trigonometry and calculus is helpful
M10853: Drop the Base
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Carina Quiroz,
Evan Tey
Normal digits 0123456789 are boring.
Learn about different ways we can represent numbers -- like binary, octal, and hexadecimal -- and why they're important!
Prerequisites
Addition and Multiplication
Learn about different ways we can represent numbers -- like binary, octal, and hexadecimal -- and why they're important!
Prerequisites
Addition and Multiplication
M10840: Quirky Quarternions: Find your bearing with non-commutative algebra
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Lizhou Sha
$$ab = ba$$: You may have learned about this seemingly universal truth in grade school. However, in this class, we'll throw the commutative law of multiplication out of the window, and go back to the drawing boards to define an algebra of numbers with three imaginary units.
We will begin the class with a short introduction of complex numbers, their geometric representation as points on the complex plane, and the geometric meaning of their multiplication. We will then introduce the fundamental multiplication law for quaternions, $$i^2 = j^2 = k^2 = ijk = -1$$, and show how everything about quaternions falls into place following this formula. You will also learn about why you might want use quaternion multiplication to find your bearing.
Prerequisites
Geometry, Algebra 2 and trigonometry. Preliminary knowledge of complex numbers and vector dot and cross products is a plus.
We will begin the class with a short introduction of complex numbers, their geometric representation as points on the complex plane, and the geometric meaning of their multiplication. We will then introduce the fundamental multiplication law for quaternions, $$i^2 = j^2 = k^2 = ijk = -1$$, and show how everything about quaternions falls into place following this formula. You will also learn about why you might want use quaternion multiplication to find your bearing.
Prerequisites
Geometry, Algebra 2 and trigonometry. Preliminary knowledge of complex numbers and vector dot and cross products is a plus.
M10706: P vs NP and 21 other ways to win 1 million dollars
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Jake Wellens
In the field of computational complexity, most of the fundamental questions remain unanswered...so what have all those brilliant complexity theorists been doing for the past 50 years? In part, they have succeeded in painting a very intricate picture of the relationships amongst a wide variety of algorithmic problems. In Karp's foundational 1972 paper, he pulled the masks off of 21 familiar problems and revealed that, at their core, they are all just equivalent ways of encoding non-deterministic computation -- the adjective for such problems is "NP-complete." In particular, if you solve any one of them efficiently, you automatically prove P = NP. Since Karp's paper, thousands of household problems -- including almost all video games -- have been shown to share this underlying property. We'll discuss enough of these examples that, ideally, you'll be able to start noticing all sorts of secretly hard problems hiding in the most ordinary of places.
Prerequisites
Students should be comfortable thinking abstractly and following mathematical proofs
Prerequisites
Students should be comfortable thinking abstractly and following mathematical proofs
M10838: Introduction to Probability and Statistics
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Kenneth Wang
The world is filled with chance, and in this class, we will attempt to rigorously deal with chance. We will tackle famous probability questions, such as the birthday problem, and the Monty Hall problem. We will then discuss random variables and sequences of random variables to reach the foundational result, the Central Limit Theorem! Then, we will use it to derive results in statistics, and understand confidence intervals and other ideas that get thrown around in journalism and the everyday world a lot. Join us and learn about how to understand and interpret data!
Prerequisites
An understanding of functions is important, but that is about it!
Prerequisites
An understanding of functions is important, but that is about it!
M11008: Zero-knowledge proofs
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Adam Hesterberg
I can convince you I know how to solve any given position of a Rubik's cube without showing you at all how to solve that position, convince websites that I know my password without doing anything as risky as sending the password, and similar stuff. We'll see how.
Prerequisites
Comfort with mathematical proofs
Prerequisites
Comfort with mathematical proofs
M11126: The Banach-Tarski Paradox: Speed Run!
Difficulty: ****
Teachers:
Ziv Scully
Have you ever found yourself with a sphere, a very sharp knife and an Axiom of Choice when all you wanted was a second sphere? Have you ever wondered why everyone's favorite anagram of "Banach-Tarski" is "Banach-Tarski Banach-Tarski"? Come learn about and prove this surprising theorem: a ball can be split into a finite number of pieces that can be rearranged to make two copies of the original ball!
We're covering a few hours' worth of material in 50 minutes, so if that's your idea of fun then this class is for you!
Prerequisites
A certain degree of mathematical maturity. For example, you should understand the difference between countable and uncountable sets. If you've seen a bit of group theory it will come in handy.
We're covering a few hours' worth of material in 50 minutes, so if that's your idea of fun then this class is for you!
Prerequisites
A certain degree of mathematical maturity. For example, you should understand the difference between countable and uncountable sets. If you've seen a bit of group theory it will come in handy.
M11129: Building Mathematical Cars
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Christopher Brissette
In the field of Mathematics, calculus is most students' first introduction to higher level thinking. It is somewhat like getting your math drivers-license. If calculus is akin to getting a drivers-license then real analysis is like building a car, and that is what we aim to do in this course. Using logic, and our knowledge of the real numbers, come with us as we construct definitions and proofs of limits, integration and differentiation.
Prerequisites
A solid base in algebra will be crucial. A basic understanding of what sequence and series are. A decent understanding of what calculus is, even if you do not know how to do it.
Prerequisites
A solid base in algebra will be crucial. A basic understanding of what sequence and series are. A decent understanding of what calculus is, even if you do not know how to do it.
M11034: Chaos! Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Alexandra Churikova
Come learn all about chaos! And I'm not talking about the state of your room... I am talking about the state of the universe! Come learn the mathematics behind chaos and discover some of the most beautiful ways it is exhibited in nature.
Prerequisites
Excitement about the way math inherently describes our universe and willingness to look at pretty graphs :)
Prerequisites
Excitement about the way math inherently describes our universe and willingness to look at pretty graphs :)
M11005: Math through Terrible Sonnets Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Colin Aitken
I'll teach as much math as I can in an hour, but will only speak in 14-line sonnets! No, I don't know how this will go either.
M11000: Hard Answers to Easy Questions
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Colin Aitken
Does x + 0 = 0? What is 1 + 1? Does a + b = b + a? Come find out with me!
M10994: Spectral Graph Theory
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Yilun Du
Come learn what matrices can teach you about graphs! Learn how eigenvalues can tell you how many connected components your graph has or whether the graph is bipartite and much more!
Prerequisites
This class assumes familiarity with basic properties of graph. In addition, this class requires linear algebra, such as familiarity with quadratic forms.
Prerequisites
This class assumes familiarity with basic properties of graph. In addition, this class requires linear algebra, such as familiarity with quadratic forms.
M11107: Extending Functions to Complex Numbers Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Tuan Nguyen
All your life, you've (probably) been told to ignore non-real answers, like ln(-1). Well not anymore! We'll delve deep into those non-real answers, and show you the full picture of some your favorite functions!
We'll just be extending some simple functions like log, exponential, trig, and inverse trig to complex numbers.
Prerequisites
Preferably know at least Euler's formula, but we'll go over most of what you need.
We'll just be extending some simple functions like log, exponential, trig, and inverse trig to complex numbers.
Prerequisites
Preferably know at least Euler's formula, but we'll go over most of what you need.
M11180: Demockracy
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Ziv Scully
Having a fair election with two candidates is pretty simple: everyone votes for their favorite candidate and whoever gets the most votes wins. However, as anyone who was around for the presidential elections in 2000 (or 1912... or 1860) will tell you, things get complicated with three or more candidates. It's sometimes the case that you should vote for a candidate you think is likely to win instead of a fringe candidate you agree with more. We can think of different voting systems that try to get around this and other problems, but as we'll explore in class, no voting system avoids all potential flaws. You might ask: is there a "perfect" voting system out there?
Actually, it turns out there is one. It's called a dictatorship. And unless you have an infinite number of voters, no other system is "perfect". Come find out why!
Prerequisites
If you know how to prove there are infinitely many primes, you're definitely ready. Even if you can't, just come ready to think hard about voting :).
Actually, it turns out there is one. It's called a dictatorship. And unless you have an infinite number of voters, no other system is "perfect". Come find out why!
Prerequisites
If you know how to prove there are infinitely many primes, you're definitely ready. Even if you can't, just come ready to think hard about voting :).
M10766: The Mathematics of Baseball - from Scorekeeping to Sabermetrics
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Ian Palmer
Interested in math? Baseball? Can't stand either one? Come learn about how we use math to understand baseball! You'll enjoy the class, I guarantee it. Unless you're a Yankees fan. Just kidding!
Since Henry Chadwick introduced baseball statkeeping in 1860, the quantity and depth of baseball statistics has continued to grow. Simple statistics - at bats, hits, and strikeouts - dominated for the first half-century of the game. Soon batting average and earned run average became the primary means by which players were judged. Today, data from every pitch is stored in massive databases and analyzed with complex algorithms.
How has this 'sabermetric' revolution changed (and not changed) the way we play baseball? What's next for baseball statistics? In this class, we'll first take a look at the basic statistics: what they measure, what they don't measure, and where they fall short. We'll then get into the wacky world of sabermetrics: wRC+, wOBA, OPS+, and more. Finally, we'll talk about Statcast, the dawn of a new age in scorekeeping, and its applications.
Since Henry Chadwick introduced baseball statkeeping in 1860, the quantity and depth of baseball statistics has continued to grow. Simple statistics - at bats, hits, and strikeouts - dominated for the first half-century of the game. Soon batting average and earned run average became the primary means by which players were judged. Today, data from every pitch is stored in massive databases and analyzed with complex algorithms.
How has this 'sabermetric' revolution changed (and not changed) the way we play baseball? What's next for baseball statistics? In this class, we'll first take a look at the basic statistics: what they measure, what they don't measure, and where they fall short. We'll then get into the wacky world of sabermetrics: wRC+, wOBA, OPS+, and more. Finally, we'll talk about Statcast, the dawn of a new age in scorekeeping, and its applications.
M11184: Election Games
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Lisa Ho
This class mixes mathematics and social science to examine how elections work. We'll describe a couple different mathematical models to understand elections, and we'll simulate some elections to see how well theory fits practice! We will discuss how we think the mathematical models compare to the 2016 U.S. election.
Prerequisites
None
Prerequisites
None
M11056: Some Things Never Change
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Yoa Clifton
An invariant is some property that does not change throughout a process. Let's find some invariants which help us solve cool math problems!
Prerequisites
You don't even need to like math!
Prerequisites
You don't even need to like math!
M10723: Chocolate Key Cryptography Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Saroja Erabelli
A delicious way to send secret messages to your friends! Eat chocolate and learn about cryptography.
Prerequisites
Knowing basic modular arithmetic is useful, but not required.
Prerequisites
Knowing basic modular arithmetic is useful, but not required.
M11135: Abstract Linear Algebra and Physical Applications
Difficulty: ****
Teachers:
Aaron Dunbrack
Most classes on linear algebra are rather dull discussions on how to manipulate matrices. This will not be. We're going to discuss the machine, the language, of linear algebra - as seen by mathematicians and not computer scientists. We'll go through many of the same ideas as a standard linear algebra course - vectors, dot products, linear transformations, eigenvalues, and so on - but do them without reference to matrices. This class will conclude with a discussion of how linear algebra relates to both relativity and quantum mechanics.
Prerequisites
I will be referring frequently to your intuition for vectors and matrices - while an understanding of these is not strictly necessary, they will be very helpful as concrete examples. There's little specific you need to know, but this will be a hard class regardless.
Prerequisites
I will be referring frequently to your intuition for vectors and matrices - while an understanding of these is not strictly necessary, they will be very helpful as concrete examples. There's little specific you need to know, but this will be a hard class regardless.
M10773: How big is infinity?
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Rikhav Shah
Are there more even numbers or odd numbers? More irrational numbers or rational numbers? Come learn what 'infinity' means and how not all
infinities are created equally.
Prerequisites
None
infinities are created equally.
Prerequisites
None
M10957: The Joy of Counting
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
May Tomic
Ever wondered what happens when you try to put $$n+1$$ pigeons into $$n$$ holes? Or considered calculating exactly how badly a deranged waiter could mess up your order at a restaurant?
We'll use the pigeonhole principle, derangements, and a number of other exciting counting techniques to answer these questions and many more!
The only prerequisite is an interest in using simple mathematical reasoning to reach some very cool conclusions.
We'll use the pigeonhole principle, derangements, and a number of other exciting counting techniques to answer these questions and many more!
The only prerequisite is an interest in using simple mathematical reasoning to reach some very cool conclusions.
M10589: The Robinson-Schensted Correspondence
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Jordan Hines
Permutations are nice, but how could we make them better? With pictures, of course!
In this class we'll talk about Young tableaux, simple diagrams with numbers, and prove find a correspondence between permutations and pairs of standard Young tableaux. If we have time, we'll also touch on where these funny little diagrams show up in mathematics. Be prepared for some fun combinatorics!
In this class we'll talk about Young tableaux, simple diagrams with numbers, and prove find a correspondence between permutations and pairs of standard Young tableaux. If we have time, we'll also touch on where these funny little diagrams show up in mathematics. Be prepared for some fun combinatorics!
Pop (and not-so-pop) Culture
P11017: Food & Media
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Wendi Kong
This class will cover topics such as food photography for social media posts such as Instagram, Snapchat, and food blogs, as well as what makes a food "trendy". Student will get to prepare (and eat!) their own highly "Instagrammable" foods (Freakshakes, avocado toasts, etc.), practice their newly learned "photography" skills on various types of prepared food, and critique each other's work and photos.
P11156: Scenarios in a Snap: Ad Hoc Tabletop Game Scenario Design Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Matthew Petersen
It's late at night. Or perhaps it's early in the morning. Either way, you and some friends have decided to play a game, specifically a tabletop roleplaying game. You have drawn the short straw, and will be running the game. It's now twenty minutes before the start of the game, and your friends are frantically rolling up characters. You, on the other hand, are frantically making up a scenario.
This course will go over the basics of going from zero to game in a short time, with little pre-preparation. With some time, some details, and a little work, you'll be able to make a short adventure for your friends to play. In this course, I won't be sticking to a specific game system, but I am most familiar with Call of Cthulhu and Dungeons & Dragons.
This course will go over the basics of going from zero to game in a short time, with little pre-preparation. With some time, some details, and a little work, you'll be able to make a short adventure for your friends to play. In this course, I won't be sticking to a specific game system, but I am most familiar with Call of Cthulhu and Dungeons & Dragons.
P10978: How to Move on from Asra
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Brynna Downey
You became friends with Asra, you stayed friends with Asra, and then you stared into her eyes as she told you that she was graduating a semester early and so you two would not be Ferris Bueller'ing it together your last semester of college. Wow. Since when did people want to start growing up? Have I done anything with my life to warrant becoming an adult early like Asra? I-what-ma...choor? Sigh.
Prerequisites
It helps to have made friends with Asra or to have learned how to stay friends with her, but like all good cookies, you don't need the first bites to enjoy the last.
Prerequisites
It helps to have made friends with Asra or to have learned how to stay friends with her, but like all good cookies, you don't need the first bites to enjoy the last.
P10768: History and Design of Rhythm Games
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Christopher Shaw
So you and some friends have played Rock Band together, or maybe you saw a Dance Dance Revolution machine at an arcade and gave it a try, or possibly you saw the exhibition of Stepmania during AGDQ2016 and wondered what the whole rhythm game thing was about.
Well, wonder no further!
This course will be split into two distinct sections. The first part will be a (really fast) whirlwind tour of the history of rhythm games. The second part will cover, at bare minimum, how to make your own level for Stepmania (a well-known PC DDR simulator) and the .sm file structure required to do so. Time permitting we will also talk about Guitar Hero customs, osu!, Beatmania emulators, and more.
Experience with rhythm games not required (nor is having a computer or owning any of the software covered)
Well, wonder no further!
This course will be split into two distinct sections. The first part will be a (really fast) whirlwind tour of the history of rhythm games. The second part will cover, at bare minimum, how to make your own level for Stepmania (a well-known PC DDR simulator) and the .sm file structure required to do so. Time permitting we will also talk about Guitar Hero customs, osu!, Beatmania emulators, and more.
Experience with rhythm games not required (nor is having a computer or owning any of the software covered)
P11044: The Evolution of Modern Day Cartoons
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
John Adeyeye,
Mary Dahl
From the Saturday mornings of our childhood to binge watching sessions at 3 am the day before a test, cartoons have always been an important part of our lives. But where did they come from? How did we go from Steamboat Willie to Steven Universe? Join me as we delve into the history of cartoons, elements of modern day cartoons, and discover just why Avatar: The Last Airbender is so damn good.
P10753: Defense Against the Deceptive Arts
Difficulty: **
Sunshine State students will connect central Florida *magic* to MIT! In this class, the mystery behind your favorite British wizarding school will be challenged with hard science and theory. SPLASH participants will learn just how realistic Harry Potter ideas/concepts can truly be. Get ready for all of your beloved Hogwarts moments and Universal engineering creations to be ruined in the most wand-erful way possible.
P11142: A History of Modern Sci-fi/ Fantasy TV
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Emma Trujillo
Did you know 'Supernatural's' iconic Tuesday episode is actually fellow up to an 'X Files' episode? Or the the term Big Bad became popular on 'Buffy'? How about that the Musters and Addam's Family premiered back to back? Come learn and discuss the evolution of Sci-Fi/ Fantasy TV. We'll be covering everything from the 1960's onward.
Prerequisites
Some knowledge of shows such as Doctor Who, Buffy, Supernatural, etc. would be great, but is not even close to required.
Prerequisites
Some knowledge of shows such as Doctor Who, Buffy, Supernatural, etc. would be great, but is not even close to required.
P10615: History of Science Fiction!
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Mehitabel Glenhaber
What was the first story with a mad scientist? Or a time machine? What is science fiction anyway, and do Jules Verne and H.G. Wells and all those guys have anything to do with modern science fiction at all? This class will take you on a whirlwind tour of science fiction history mostly starting in the 1700s and ending with the present day. We'll discuss Shelly, Poe, Verne, Wells, Lovecraft, Bradbury, Asimov, Clark and more, focusing on the questions: What is science fiction? What does it tell us about the history of science? and What are the major trends in science fiction's attitudes towards science?
P10739: Space, The Final Frontier: 50 Years of Changing the World
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Xavier Luhman
Earlier this year, Star Trek celebrated its 50th anniversary. For a show that was canceled after the third season, Star Trek has had an amazing impact on our culture. From science and technology to art and transformative works (a.k.a. fan fiction), come learn how Star Trek has left its indelible mark on history.
P11068: Intro to Competitive Pokemon
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Margaret Tian,
Tony Zeng
Do you love Pokemon? Have you played through the Elite Four and wondered how to take Pokemon to the next level? Come and get your feet wet with Intro to Competitive Pokemon! We will teach the basics of getting the best individual Pokemon (IVs/EVs, move sets, and training), creating a balanced team, and understanding different battle formats and flows.
Bring your Pokemon games if you have them! We'll do our best to provide everyone that attends with a well-bred Pokemon :)
Prerequisites
You should know at least something about Pokemon (ex: what a Pikachu is) and game play. If you're already a competitive player, this class is not for you.
Bring your Pokemon games if you have them! We'll do our best to provide everyone that attends with a well-bred Pokemon :)
Prerequisites
You should know at least something about Pokemon (ex: what a Pikachu is) and game play. If you're already a competitive player, this class is not for you.
P10870: It’s a Conspiracy! From Aliens to the XYZ Affair
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Elizabeth Parizh,
Nina Plotnikov
“Did you hear that?”
“No, what?”
“That sound, like an authority figure trying to tell me what to do.”
“Are you okay?”
“How can I be okay when the world is conspiring against me!?”
Have you ever felt like you were being lied to or cheated by the government? Have you been called crazy by your friends for sharing with them your entirely valid concerns? Do you not believe in any conspiracy theories but find them interesting/thought-provoking/hilarious? Then this is the class for you! We will go over a bunch of mainstream (and far off the mainstream) conspiracy theories, but be mindful; not all the theories we’ll talk about are real, so listen carefully to pick out the internet favorites from the ones we just made up! We will also bring food, because, as we all know, handing out free food is the best way to make people listen to you (just add a circus and it will be like Ancient Rome). So come learn what the people screaming on the streets are all about! Or maybe we’ll just drain your souls and use your bodies as puppets to serve our own nefarious purposes -- you really can’t be sure.
“No, what?”
“That sound, like an authority figure trying to tell me what to do.”
“Are you okay?”
“How can I be okay when the world is conspiring against me!?”
Have you ever felt like you were being lied to or cheated by the government? Have you been called crazy by your friends for sharing with them your entirely valid concerns? Do you not believe in any conspiracy theories but find them interesting/thought-provoking/hilarious? Then this is the class for you! We will go over a bunch of mainstream (and far off the mainstream) conspiracy theories, but be mindful; not all the theories we’ll talk about are real, so listen carefully to pick out the internet favorites from the ones we just made up! We will also bring food, because, as we all know, handing out free food is the best way to make people listen to you (just add a circus and it will be like Ancient Rome). So come learn what the people screaming on the streets are all about! Or maybe we’ll just drain your souls and use your bodies as puppets to serve our own nefarious purposes -- you really can’t be sure.
P10763: Roller Coaster History
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Thad Megchelsen
Everybody loves roller coasters! They combine complex engineering and physics into a fun experience, but where did this crazy idea come from? Who invented the loop? What is an up-stop wheel? These questions and more will be answered at this class: Roller Coaster History!
P10725: History of Cinema: Weimar Germany Edition Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Mehitabel Glenhaber
In this class, we'll look at early silent films from the Weimar Republic, ay bizarre period in German history. Weimar Germany is weird for a lot of reasons, not least of which is the film, which had huge influences on today's cinema, but looks completely different from any movie you're ever seen. Come learn about the strange history of the period, and put it to use analyzing black and white silent films in two avant garde styles, German Expressionism and New Objectivity. Learn all about the birth of the horror and sci-fi film genres, as well as now gone genres like the "street film", and enjoy the topsy-turvy sets and incredibly strange style known as "Scream Acting."
P10910: Battlebots Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Kip Stahlecker
Battlebots: the world's premier robot combat competition. Whether you have been watching it on TV for years or if this will be your first experience, this is the class for you. We will discuss the history and rules of the competition to start the class and spend the remaining time analyzing battles. We'll discuss the effectiveness of the driving, weapons, and strategy after each fight and use this knowledge to make predictions about future fights. Robots activate!
Prerequisites
A love for, or desire to learn more about all things Battlebots.
Prerequisites
A love for, or desire to learn more about all things Battlebots.
P10950: Intro to Cosplay
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Meredith Benson,
Jasmine Lennert
Interested in cosplay, but don't know where to start? Join us for a rundown of tips and tricks to get started!
P11069: Pokemon Battling 101
Difficulty: *
Want to be the very best but all you know is to tap furiously on Pokemon Go? Look no further! We'll teach you battling basics on PoGo and then the main games. Then we will compare and contrast the two starkly different battle mechanics and how each meta favors different sets of Pokemon.
P10828: The Evolution of Mahō Shōjo
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Tabrez Alam
Some of you may remember shows like Sailor Moon, Cardcaptor Sakura or Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha from your childhoods. In this class, we will look at the gradual evolution of the Mahō Shōjo (Magical Girl) genre in Japan since its humble origins in the mid-20th century and the conditions that have led to such an evolution of this cultural phenomenon. Prior knowledge of anime not required.
P10599: Cosplay 101 Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Kay Labella,
Ray Lardie
Cosplay has been rising into public awareness as a fun, creative hobby, spurred on by the growing fame of events like San Diego Comic Con. But what is cosplay, actually? And how does a person get started? Come explore the history and how-tos in this introductory class, followed by crafting experimentation (materials provided). *Class is NOT intended for those already involved in cosplay, as it is a broad overview of the subject*
P10692: Intro to Circular Gallifreyan Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Loren Sherman
Come learn the writing system of the Time Lords! Perfect for any whovian, or anyone who enjoys cool and unique alphabets. Also, feel free to stick around afterwards for a Q&A session with the inventor of the alphabet.
P10647: Memes: A History
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Kyle Morgenstein
Where did dat boi come from? Where did he go? Where did he come from (cotton-eye Joe)? This class will consider the origins of the meme, the current social impact of internet culture, and ask questions regarding the future of meme creation, proliferation, and acceptance as a socially recognized form of communication.
Prerequisites
Basic internet literacy, a sense of humor, and an empty void in your heart left by Harambe's death.
Prerequisites
Basic internet literacy, a sense of humor, and an empty void in your heart left by Harambe's death.
P11072: Unraveling RNG in Pokemon
Difficulty: **
What are the chances of finding a shiny and how can you improve it? Did your Pokemon use Protect successfully 5 times in a row? Learn about how the main Pokemon games use a random number generator (RNG) to produce fun, frustration, and improbable results! Then, experience it for yourself by playing in our homegrown meta that is 99% RNG: Wailords only, Metronome only, 6v6 Triple Battle.
We will be playing on our online battle simulator on computers, so no need to bring your 3DS/laptop: mit.edu/pokemon/showdown.html
We will be playing on our online battle simulator on computers, so no need to bring your 3DS/laptop: mit.edu/pokemon/showdown.html
P10641: 10 Reasons You Should Totally Make A Buzzfeed Quiz With Us
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Katie Fisher,
Divya Gopinath
Have you always wondered which Friends character you are? Or what's your spirit animal? Take this course to learn the art of a Buzzfeed quiz from two certified experts. Help the world procrastinate doing any productive work.
Prerequisites
Have taken a Buzzfeed quiz before. If you haven't.... buzzfeed.com
Prerequisites
Have taken a Buzzfeed quiz before. If you haven't.... buzzfeed.com
P10918: Doctor Who: Regenerations and Life
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Joseph Noszek
A philosophical journey of the regenerations of the Doctor. How does this fictional show guide you in life? Find out here.
P10896: The Greatest Game You Will Ever Play Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Srinivas Kaza
Nethack is the greatest game you will ever play: http://www.thegreatestgameyouwilleverplay.com/ . Come to pay homage to the greatest contribution to the roguelike genre (and gaming in general), and enjoy the world's oldest videogame still in active development. This class will be part tutorial for Nethack, and part playtime.
P11163: Movies: Breaking it Down
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
James Manley
Ever seen a movie that made you FEEL?? Want to discuss your favorite movies and why they're so special to you? Thinking of pursuing the complex and beautiful art of film in college? This class is for you!!! Come join me in the land of pure imagination and let your analytical eye run free!
P11143: Fanfiction 101
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Emma Trujillo
Fanfiction has popped up everywhere in pop culture. Maybe you're a long time writer or maybe you're just looking to get started. This class will cover all the basics, look at some samples, and try out some writing. Come by and learn just how great the fanfiction community is.
[Deprecated] Science
S10839: Exoplanet Excavation
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Caitlin Fischer,
Lizhou Sha
How can we discover exoplanets when they're so insanely hard to observe? We'll look at the current methods of discovering planets beyond our solar system and see exactly why these objects are hard to confirm. The class will also discuss what we can deduce about these planets, why this science matters, and what the future looks like for this field.
S10776: The Origin and History of Life on Earth
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Makayla Betts,
Mallory Ringham
How did life on Earth begin? Join us as we explore Earth's formation and the evolutionary history of life from its origin to today. A lesson in biogeochemistry and discoveries MIT Earth and Planetary Science graduate students are excited to talk about!
S10956: A Closer look at Nature Deficit Disorder
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Isabelle Wadleigh
Feeling blue? Can’t seem to get away from the suffocating buzz of the city? There may be more to this feeling than you would think! Come explore the causes/effects of Nature Deficit Disorder and learn some fun activities that you can do by yourself or with your friends to get back in touch with nature! This class will teach you ways to do so while also teaching you the importance of keeping in touch with mother nature throughout your life. We will also be exploring ways to bring more nature into an urban setting!
S11130: Clinical Theory: What You Learn as a Medical Student
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Jonathan Lee
Interested in medicine? Or just curious why your doctors ask you certain questions/perform certain maneuvers? In this session, you will learn how doctors approach the patient interview, just as one would in medical school!
S10902: MITigating Climate Change: How to stop the end of the world!
Difficulty: *
Climate change is the biggest challenge facing our generation -- but how bad is it, really? How does it affect people and ecological systems across the globe and here in the US every day? More importantly, what you can do to protect your future?
You’ll learn about:
- The science behind climate change and climate models
- How regions, cities and people are being affected
- Renewable energy, climate policy, and other potential solutions
- What YOU can do in your home, school and community
PS: we will NOT be talking about polar bears (although polar bear-lovers are welcome!)
Prerequisites
Interest in solving the world's most complex current challenge!
You’ll learn about:
- The science behind climate change and climate models
- How regions, cities and people are being affected
- Renewable energy, climate policy, and other potential solutions
- What YOU can do in your home, school and community
PS: we will NOT be talking about polar bears (although polar bear-lovers are welcome!)
Prerequisites
Interest in solving the world's most complex current challenge!
S10724: Introduction to Organic Chemistry
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Steven Truong
Ever wondered how chemistry can be...organic? Does the USDA go around auditing colleges' chemistry departments?
In this class, you will learn many basic concepts of organic chemistry. Fear not: this is no rudimentary class devoted to naming molecules and compounds. We will go much further than nomenclature, discussing "real" organic chemistry: stereochemistry, reactions, mechanisms, syntheses, and whatever else we may have time for.
Prerequisites
Knowledge of AP Chemistry material (or above) is assumed. We will review some topics found in AP Chemistry that are relevant to Organic Chemistry, but the topics will be covered at a very (very) fast pace.
In this class, you will learn many basic concepts of organic chemistry. Fear not: this is no rudimentary class devoted to naming molecules and compounds. We will go much further than nomenclature, discussing "real" organic chemistry: stereochemistry, reactions, mechanisms, syntheses, and whatever else we may have time for.
Prerequisites
Knowledge of AP Chemistry material (or above) is assumed. We will review some topics found in AP Chemistry that are relevant to Organic Chemistry, but the topics will be covered at a very (very) fast pace.
S11148: How to Distinguish Medical Knowledge from Hoaxes?
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Yu-Han Chiu,
Kun-Hsing Yu
There are tons of newspaper articles talking about the "recent advances in health sciences." Some suggest "beer helps to prevent cancer," others claim "beer increased risks of getting cancer." Which one should we believe?
How do doctors decide what to do when coming across contrary scientific evidence? And what doctors might not know about the surgery they perform or the drugs they prescribe?
We will do some hands-on experiments on drawing conclusions in the world of uncertainty, and take a quick survey of the current methodologies in medical sciences.
Prerequisites
Have flipped coins, or played any other games involving probability or uncertainty.
How do doctors decide what to do when coming across contrary scientific evidence? And what doctors might not know about the surgery they perform or the drugs they prescribe?
We will do some hands-on experiments on drawing conclusions in the world of uncertainty, and take a quick survey of the current methodologies in medical sciences.
Prerequisites
Have flipped coins, or played any other games involving probability or uncertainty.
S10659: Nanophotonics
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Sean Burchesky
Light behaves in peculiar ways when it propagates through structures on the same scale as the wavelength. This is the world of solid state electro-magnetism. Learn about photonic crystals, meta-materials, invisibility cloaks and topological photonics.
E and M research is still going strong 150 years later!
Prerequisites
Calculus
E and M research is still going strong 150 years later!
Prerequisites
Calculus
S11170: Intro to Climate Change
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Elizabeth Berg
An introduction to climate change from multiple angles. We'll talk about what people mean when they say the planet is warming, and then discuss both scientific and policy ways to address it. Bring your questions and opinions!
Prerequisites
Comfort with algebra would be useful, but not strictly necessary
Prerequisites
Comfort with algebra would be useful, but not strictly necessary
S10904: Immunology: A [Nerf] battle against pathogens
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Kristina Lopez,
Rachel Terry
Ever wanted to learn more about how your body fights off disease? Ever wonder why you can't get the chicken pox twice? Love Nerf guns? Come join us and learn about your immune system's defensive strategies while engaging in a Nerf war against pathogens!
S10740: Intersection between the Recent Biotechnology Development and MIT
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
GiHun Choi
Are you interested in innovative and disruptive biotechnology? This is the right class for you! This class will highlight recent breakthroughs in biotechnology and their intersections with the research at MIT.
Prerequisites
Some exposure to biology is recommended, but not required.
Prerequisites
Some exposure to biology is recommended, but not required.
S10849: Ghostly Particles and Ice Cream: An Intro to Particle Physics Full!
Difficulty: **
The matter we interact with everyday is made up of well-understood particles like electrons and quarks. However, 95% of the universe is made of invisible dark matter and energy! In this class we will learn about what particle physicists do and explore the ways that they look for new particles. We will discuss what dark matter is, the evidence for its existence, and the ways that people are trying to detect invisible particles. Often such experiments require working in a very cold environment. For this reason, we will finish by making liquid nitrogen ice cream to demonstrate the cool science that can happen at low temperatures!
S10645: Mathematics of twelve-tone music
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
David Lawrence
What is an octave? Why are there five black notes and seven white notes in each octave on the piano keyboard? What makes a chord sound good or bad? We will answer these questions scientifically using nothing more than high-school mathematics and a little bit of computer programming.
Prerequisites
Mathematical background: be familiar with exponentials, n-th roots, and the concept of a geometric series. Musical background: play a modern musical instrument, or else be familiar with the twelve-tone scale. The more you know of music theory, the more you will get out of this course.
Prerequisites
Mathematical background: be familiar with exponentials, n-th roots, and the concept of a geometric series. Musical background: play a modern musical instrument, or else be familiar with the twelve-tone scale. The more you know of music theory, the more you will get out of this course.
S10638: Introduction to Nuclear Fusion and Plasma Physics
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Megan Kralj
Plasma, the fourth state of matter, plays a key role in a variety of real-world problems, from solving the energy crisis to understanding the cosmos. This class provides an introduction to plasma physics, with a focus on understanding the underlying mechanics of future fusion reactors. Some of the topics covered are thermonuclear processes, nuclear fusion reactors, magnetic confinement, computer simulations, and black hole accretion disks. This class will also feature a variety of live experiments, demonstrations, and an examination of current research being conducted by scientists at MIT!
This course provides a great introduction for anyone who is interested in the fields of physics, engineering, computer science, applied mathematics, chemistry, material science, and (especially) all things nuclear!
Prerequisites
None.
This course provides a great introduction for anyone who is interested in the fields of physics, engineering, computer science, applied mathematics, chemistry, material science, and (especially) all things nuclear!
Prerequisites
None.
S11188: Introduction to Statistical Mechanics
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Lane Gunderman
Like statistics? Love mechanics? Well, this class isn't about either of those really, but its good if you like those things. This class will justify many of the more common chemistry formulas using very basic principles. It will not require too much science knowledge, but will require much math skills. This will be fun and a new way to look at simple science principles.
Prerequisites
A vague knowledge of chemistry and/or physics is useful but not too needed. Instead you should have much math skills, like being able to do integrals and handle some strong math fudging.
Prerequisites
A vague knowledge of chemistry and/or physics is useful but not too needed. Instead you should have much math skills, like being able to do integrals and handle some strong math fudging.
S10716: Reducing Your Carbon Footprint
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Stephanie Roderick,
Katie Scherpf
Our generation is faced with the rapid challenge of slowing down the effects of global warming. Teaching recycling is one way of educating this generation on how to reduce our carbon footprint. The purpose of reducing our carbon footprint is pivotal to stabilizing global warming and its rapid effects. This course will focus on plastic and its interactions with our ecosystem. We will aso engage in recycling activities where we will discover exciting new ways to use recyclable materials.
S10750: Eyes in the Sky Full!
Difficulty: **
Not everything in space is there to look outward. There are actually tons of satellites in orbit whose purpose is to look back on the Earth: observe weather systems, track forest fires, quantify climate change, and so much more. Join us to talk about a variety of topics related to weather, climate, and Earth-observing satellites. We'll talk about rockets, orbital mechanics, communications, cameras and sensors, data processing, weather, hurricanes, climate change, and anything else you're interested in. Come prepared with questions!
S10825: Why are our Bees dying?
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Phoebe Hynes
In this course we will be exploring human interaction with the secret lives of bees. We will discuss the ecology of bees, viruses in bee populations, the effects of commercial pesticides in bee populations, biodiversity in plants and their importance to bee populations, and modern day bee-keeping. Through a sustainable lense we will explore these topics. I hope you will be able to answer the following questions after the course has finished:
-How has human interaction with the environment affected bee populations?
-Why are we seeing bees drop in population?
-What are solutions for these issues?
-How has human interaction with the environment affected bee populations?
-Why are we seeing bees drop in population?
-What are solutions for these issues?
S10859: Open Source Computational Biology!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Brendan Reardon
Have you heard of the human genome project? Did you know that genetic sequencing is becoming more and more common? With three billion base pairs being present in the human genome, you may have wondered, “How on earth do scientists analyze all of that data?!” or “Is that even useful?” Well, it is! There have been some pretty impressive advances in biology thanks to genetic sequencing, there are even FDA-approved drugs that consider a patient’s genomic information.
Would you believe me if I told you that you can perform some of these analyses from your own computer? Computational techniques have become indispensable to biology with the advent of high-throughput sequencing and many techniques and data sources are openly available for public use on the internet.
In this course, we will go on a brief tour of where some tools and data sources for computational biology live on the internet. We will go through tutorials on any tools introduced and look at data in cancer and even from the 2014 ebola virus outbreak.
There is no coding required for this course, not even a computer! Some biology may help, but is also certainly not required. Any websites visited or materials discussed will be shared with students, so we can spend ample time discussing cool science!
Would you believe me if I told you that you can perform some of these analyses from your own computer? Computational techniques have become indispensable to biology with the advent of high-throughput sequencing and many techniques and data sources are openly available for public use on the internet.
In this course, we will go on a brief tour of where some tools and data sources for computational biology live on the internet. We will go through tutorials on any tools introduced and look at data in cancer and even from the 2014 ebola virus outbreak.
There is no coding required for this course, not even a computer! Some biology may help, but is also certainly not required. Any websites visited or materials discussed will be shared with students, so we can spend ample time discussing cool science!
S10871: Babies Are Smarter Than You - When it Comes to Learning Words
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Elizabeth Parizh,
Nina Plotnikov
Googoo. Gaagaa. Googoo gaagaa? Googoo gaagaa! Gaaaaaaa!!!
It takes about 5 months for babies to go from incoherent babbling to producing their first words. You still don’t know how to ask to go to the bathroom in Spanish even though you’ve been learning it for the past three years. Give babies their well-deserved credit by learning about words, which are arbitrary combinations of form (sound in spoken language) and meaning. Maybe we’ll show you cute pictures. Actually, we will absolutely show you cute pictures. Let’s talk about words!
It takes about 5 months for babies to go from incoherent babbling to producing their first words. You still don’t know how to ask to go to the bathroom in Spanish even though you’ve been learning it for the past three years. Give babies their well-deserved credit by learning about words, which are arbitrary combinations of form (sound in spoken language) and meaning. Maybe we’ll show you cute pictures. Actually, we will absolutely show you cute pictures. Let’s talk about words!
S10703: Species Concepts: What is a species?
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Elizabeth O'Leary
You see two birds; they look and act the same but one has a red tail and the other a brown tail. Are they the same species? How do you know? Who made the decision and why? Come to learn and to discuss the philosophy behind taxonomy and it's most fundamental unit; the species.
S10920: Statistical Physics of Materials
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Saranesh Prembabu
Real life materials are full of intricate properties and interactions. Using elementary math and fundamental principles, we will unravel these mysteries all the way down to the quantum scale to understand why materials are the way they are.
Join to learn about the Maxwell-Boltzmann, Bose-Einstein, and Fermi-Dirac probability distributions and their implications. We will also be introduced to elegant mathematical tricks such as partition functions and mean field theory. With simple derivations, we can make powerful predictions, like what makes a material an insulator, why neutron stars form, when does a material become magnetic or change phase, and how fast do things heat up.
Prerequisites
Should be familiar with differentiation and standard integrals, as well as basic physics concepts like energy, temperature, magnetism, etc. Mostly we will build up on elementary concepts.
Join to learn about the Maxwell-Boltzmann, Bose-Einstein, and Fermi-Dirac probability distributions and their implications. We will also be introduced to elegant mathematical tricks such as partition functions and mean field theory. With simple derivations, we can make powerful predictions, like what makes a material an insulator, why neutron stars form, when does a material become magnetic or change phase, and how fast do things heat up.
Prerequisites
Should be familiar with differentiation and standard integrals, as well as basic physics concepts like energy, temperature, magnetism, etc. Mostly we will build up on elementary concepts.
S10639: Introduction to MHD
Difficulty: ****
Teachers:
Megan Kralj
So, you want to be a nuclear physicist? This class provides a graduate level introduction to magnetohydrodynamics (MHD), a physical system for understanding and modeling particle motion in high energy plasmas. After gaining both a conceptual and mathematical understanding of the underlying mechanics of plasma and turbulence, we will wrap up the class by examining a real plasma instability currently being researched by physicists and engineers at MIT!
Prerequisites
None, although prior exposure to either physics, calculus, or programming will be helpful.
Prerequisites
None, although prior exposure to either physics, calculus, or programming will be helpful.
S10858: Designing Intelligence
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Han Altae-Tran,
Brian Chen
With over 100 billion neurons and 100 trillion connections, the human brain is amazingly complex. Yet, scientists have nevertheless started to uncover what makes humans so intelligent..
In this class, we'll talk about how to translate concepts from neuroscience into abstract parts, and discuss how to assemble these parts into intelligent systems that can solve real world problems, such as driving a car.
Bring a problem you find interesting! Perhaps you'll discover a new way to solve it!
Keywords: Deep Learning, Visual Cortex, Reinforcement Learning, Recurrent Neural Networks.
Prerequisites
I'll go over much of the needed background for the material, so come as you are!
In this class, we'll talk about how to translate concepts from neuroscience into abstract parts, and discuss how to assemble these parts into intelligent systems that can solve real world problems, such as driving a car.
Bring a problem you find interesting! Perhaps you'll discover a new way to solve it!
Keywords: Deep Learning, Visual Cortex, Reinforcement Learning, Recurrent Neural Networks.
Prerequisites
I'll go over much of the needed background for the material, so come as you are!
S11082: Perception of Reality Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Avril Kenney
In this class you'll learn about how your perception of the world is influenced by your brain, your past experience, and your attention. We'll talk about things like
* Why does the same shade of grey look black or white depending on where it is in an image?
* Does the language you speak affect how you think about non-linguistic things?
* How well can people actually pay attention to multiple things at once?
* Why does the same shade of grey look black or white depending on where it is in an image?
* Does the language you speak affect how you think about non-linguistic things?
* How well can people actually pay attention to multiple things at once?
S11160: Walking a Fine Line: Psych Experiments that Went Too Far Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Alisa Tsenter
Is everything researchers do for science ethical? In this class we are going to take a look at some psychology experiments that crossed an ethical boundary. We will talk about why these experiments were so morally ambiguous and even though important discoveries were made, should they have been performed in the first place?
S11016: Rails and Relativity Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Tal Scully
You may have heard of Einstein's theory of Special Relativity, which describes the physics of objects moving close to the speed of light. It's a good example of how physics can get really weird, with time itself depending on your position and velocity in space. But how does this come about? Come learn about the claims of special relativity and learn how to derive the most basic principles... with trains!
S10778: Crash Course in Organic Chemistry
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Siddarth Guha
Have you ever wondered how to make TNT? How about aspirin? If so, you can finally learn how! This course will cover the fundamentals of organic chemistry, such as resonance, molecular orbital theory, nucleophilicity, and acidity. We will then build upon these concepts to explore several important reactions in organic chemistry. We will be moving pretty quickly as there is a lot of material to cover, so familiarity with concepts from AP chem is assumed.
Prerequisites
Knowledge of AP Chemistry
Prerequisites
Knowledge of AP Chemistry
S10833: Sustainability and Being Green
Difficulty: *
This course aims to teach students about what sustainability is and how to implement green practices into their every day lives. Students should leave this course feeling confident that they are able to implement sustainable and green practices into their own lives, and to advise their friends and family how to do the same. We will discuss some of the different aspects of life that sustainability can be used in (i.e; personal hygiene, cooking, school and office supplies, disposal, shopping, etc.) We will be focusing on discussing these practices and doing some activities, like planting our own herbs for a sustainable home garden, or creating our own compost bin.
S10952: Quantum Bomb Detection
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Shaun Datta,
Andrea Herman
You have a collection of old bombs - half are functional, half aren't. You need to figure out which ones work, but the only way to tell the difference is to detonate them - or is it?
Come get your mind blown by quantum mechanics.
Prerequisites
Experience with matrix multiplication and a little bit of probability would be helpful.
Come get your mind blown by quantum mechanics.
Prerequisites
Experience with matrix multiplication and a little bit of probability would be helpful.
S10850: Acid-Base Chemistry Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Christine Hamadani,
John Raisbeck
Come learn acid base chemistry!
In addition to detailing the theory behind acid-base reactions, we'll
actually apply the theory, tying each part of the class to the real
world. Learn how acid and base theory can be applied to make food
products and additives, pharmaceuticals, and cleaning products. Learn
why and how drain cleaners work, and why NaHCO3 seems to clean
everything.
In addition to detailing the theory behind acid-base reactions, we'll
actually apply the theory, tying each part of the class to the real
world. Learn how acid and base theory can be applied to make food
products and additives, pharmaceuticals, and cleaning products. Learn
why and how drain cleaners work, and why NaHCO3 seems to clean
everything.
S10807: Microbiome 101: What's In Your Poo?
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Kathleen Brandes,
Prachi Sinha
Trillions of bacteria, viruses, and fungi live in the human body, that are collectively known as the microbiome. Research on the microbiome is exploding; we're just beginning to learn about how bacteria may affect the way we smell, eat, and maybe even the way we behave. Come learn about this fascinating ecosystem inside our bodies, and learn about how bacteria in poo-- yes, poo-- can save lives.
S10758: Introduction to Quantum Mechanics
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Marcus Boorstin
Ever heard quantum mechanics talked about in vague or mystical terms but never understood it rigorously? We’ll give a (mathematical) introduction to quantum mechanics, use it to explore some basic problems, and then depending on what the class is interested in discuss other topics in QM (the uncertainty principle, states of the hydrogen atom, etc).
Prerequisites
Some calculus (you should know what derivatives and integrals are); more math and/or physics may help you appreciate what’s going on but probably isn’t necessary.
Prerequisites
Some calculus (you should know what derivatives and integrals are); more math and/or physics may help you appreciate what’s going on but probably isn’t necessary.
S10650: The success story of Maxwell's equations
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Keith Phuthi
A brief history on how Maxwell's equations came about, what they mean, the scientists who contributed to their formulation and why they are one of physics' greatest success stories.
Prerequisites
Physics
Prerequisites
Physics
S10905: The Land Before Dinosaurs
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Mary Spanjers
Dinosaurs ruled the Earth from 152 to 65 million years ago. But how did Earth go from a dead planet to hosting reptiles the size of buses? In 1 hour we'll cover the first 4 billion years of Earth's history and explore the complicated path that lead to dinosaurs.
S11015: Crystal Field Theory: How atomic dumbells make metals colorful
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Tal Scully
Ever wondered why transition metals have such vibrant and different colors? A cobalt ion surrounded by 6 groups of ammonia (NH3) is yellow, but replacing one ammonia with chloride (Cl-) makes it magenta. Come learn about Crystal Field Theory, which dives into the physics of electron orbitals to explain why transition metals are so pretty!
Prerequisites
You should be familiar with basic atomic orbital theory (s, p, d orbitals, etc.).
Prerequisites
You should be familiar with basic atomic orbital theory (s, p, d orbitals, etc.).
S10784: Bizarre Biology Facts Full!
Difficulty: *
Dung beetles use the Milky Way to navigate. Polar bears have black skin. Sloths can achieve speeds of up to 20mph in the right conditions. Chameleons change color to show emotions. Llamas are closely related to camels. There are monkeys native to South America. Some of these facts are false; can you tell which ones? In this class I'll tell you about lots of crazy new findings in biology, and I'll let you decide which ones are true.
S11090: TMI about DNA
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Shahul Alam,
Rosanna Zhang
Have you ever wondered why scientists refer to “the secret to life” as DNA, as opposed to another arbitrary, three-letter acronym? In this class, you will learn the answer to this (not-so-perplexing) conundrum, as well as the details behind much more interesting aspects of the world’s most fascinating molecule. From discovery to etymology, chemical reactivity to biological function, and methods of manipulation to laboratory applications, we will attempt to unravel DNA into more than just three, non-descriptive letters.
Prerequisites
None, although a basic interest in chemistry and biology is always helpful!
Prerequisites
None, although a basic interest in chemistry and biology is always helpful!
S10939: Neuroimmunology Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Sophia Liu
Let's talk about what we know about the neural and immunological interfaces in the human body. We'll discuss some basic science and also some interesting findings suggesting that Alzheimer's Disease may be connected to a way the brain fights off infection!
Prerequisites
Basic biology
Prerequisites
Basic biology
S11099: Game Theory and Social Behaviour Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Haley Cope
Can we explain love using math? Yes. What about beauty? Sure, why not. But we can't explain why we get angry or feel that we have the "right" to own property, right? Wrong! Of course we can. Game theory is a powerful tool in which we model the interaction of decision makers by saying they have strategies that earn them some kind of payoff. For example, two males can fight over a female, and can choose to fight-to-the-death or just display power to get the girl and be happy. What is the optimal action, and what should they do? In addition to answering questions about optimal actions, we will also be using tools from evolutionary dynamics to explain how these things, like beauty, can evolve over time. Combining these two ideas, we have a powerful way to explain the evolution of ideas and feelings that people have. I'll be teaching you all the material from a class that 120 MIT students took this fall. (see: http://isites.harvard.edu/icb/icb.do?keyword=k101375) Are you ready? (Note: though this is a loaded and fasted-paced, I will be teaching you all of the basics. That being said, we won't dwell too long on these, so people who know game theory will still learn a lot.)
Prerequisites
Some basic set knowledge assumed
Prerequisites
Some basic set knowledge assumed
S10852: Drugs
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Yue Zhang
Ever wonder what's in the medicines you use and what they do? This will cover many of the common drugs and their structures.
Bonus material: Discussion can lead to how they affect biochemical pathways and what to do in case of overdose.
Prerequisites
Know some biology and chemistry I guess
Bonus material: Discussion can lead to how they affect biochemical pathways and what to do in case of overdose.
Prerequisites
Know some biology and chemistry I guess
S11124: A Brief History of the Universe
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Christian Cardozo
If the universe is expanding infinitely, what is it expanding into? What do the center of a black hole and the big bang have in common? Will the universe end? How? If questions like this have ever zipped through your mind, this is the class for you! No math or science background required!
S11190: Let's Do Some Modeling
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Lane Gunderman
When something is too complicated to be understood, a very effective tool for creating approximate answers is modeling. In this course we will introduce the idea of statistical modeling as well as how to model chemicals using computer programs. We will speak about the applications of modeling and motivation for creating effective models.
Prerequisites
It is desirable that the students have a familiarity with basic statistic measurements (mean, median, mode), relative strength in algebra (graphing functions), and a vague idea of what chemicals/proteins look like would all be helpful.
Prerequisites
It is desirable that the students have a familiarity with basic statistic measurements (mean, median, mode), relative strength in algebra (graphing functions), and a vague idea of what chemicals/proteins look like would all be helpful.
S10591: How to Make Oxygen on Mars
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Jordan Hines
In 2020, NASA will be launching a new Mars rover with exciting new scientific devices! One of them is being developed right here at MIT! In this class, I'll tell you about our plan to make oxygen on mars using the carbon dioxide in the Mars atmosphere involving solid oxide fuel cells. We'll talk about the science behind the device going to Mars, called MOXIE, and some of the current work on related topics.
Prerequisites
High school chemistry recommended
Prerequisites
High school chemistry recommended
S10782: What Makes Us Human?
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Karen Cruz
What is it about the human brain that makes us special? Why is it that only humans make music, create art, write books? Why don't monkeys do calculus? What is it in our brains that makes us different from other animals? In this lecture, we'll explore what make the human brain unique-- and what doesn't.
S11141: Organic Chemistry through the Lens of Aromaticity
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Justin Wong
This lecture intends to introduce students to the language of Organic Chemistry through an in depth discussion of right structures. Specifically, we will explore pericyclic reactions (sigmatrophic rearrangement, electrocyclic., and cycloaddition) and aromatic compounds. Students should expect to gain a deeper understanding of molecular orbital theory, and the principles and methods used in organic synthesis
Prerequisites
Assumes AP chemistry or equivalent chemistry exposure; all other content will be introduced in lecture. Contact the instructor if you have any questions.
Prerequisites
Assumes AP chemistry or equivalent chemistry exposure; all other content will be introduced in lecture. Contact the instructor if you have any questions.
S11030: Modern Immunobiology Full!
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Riley Drake
Your body is a wonderland. This love is like a battlefield.
Take that, combine it. Your body is battlefield. Your immune system uses complex molecular mechanisms to distinguish between self and non-self, moving quickly to neutralize potential threats.
We'll learn about the CD4 and CD8 T-Cell Responses, the differentiation of T-cells, antibody creation, viral evolution and modern immunology assays. Focus will be on molecular aspects and case studies.
Prerequisites
Introductory high school biology recommended, though not required.
Take that, combine it. Your body is battlefield. Your immune system uses complex molecular mechanisms to distinguish between self and non-self, moving quickly to neutralize potential threats.
We'll learn about the CD4 and CD8 T-Cell Responses, the differentiation of T-cells, antibody creation, viral evolution and modern immunology assays. Focus will be on molecular aspects and case studies.
Prerequisites
Introductory high school biology recommended, though not required.
S10879: GLACIERS!!!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Jacqueline Liao
Come and learn all about glaciers, those beautiful moving pieces of ice. Learn about their types, their formation, their locations, and cool pics!!!! You will not be disappointed because glaciers don't disappoint!!
S11191: Introduction to Lagrangian Mechanics
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Lane Gunderman
All right, so you know how mechanical physics works. You can do all the problems: springs, gravitational fields, conservation of momentum, . Now here's the challenge, what equations govern all these motions? F=ma. Sure. But why is F=ma?
In this class we'll progress from the simple assumption that particles traverse action extremal paths in order derive some simple equations to describe general particle motion, then use these equations to derive at least one famous result.
Prerequisites
Calculus so much. You need to know calculus. Like actually, it's completely needed. Most of the physics in this class is playing around with equations and using calculus relations.
In this class we'll progress from the simple assumption that particles traverse action extremal paths in order derive some simple equations to describe general particle motion, then use these equations to derive at least one famous result.
Prerequisites
Calculus so much. You need to know calculus. Like actually, it's completely needed. Most of the physics in this class is playing around with equations and using calculus relations.
S10846: Shedding light on light: From classical to the quantum
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Alexander Keesling,
Harry Levine
What is the difference between light coming from the sun, an LED, or a laser? In this course we’ll discuss the properties of light, and introduce some of the key ideas that have developed over the last 200 years to form our modern understanding of light. In summary: there is much more to light than meets the eye.
Prerequisites
Familiarity with ray optics and the basics of waves in physics.
Prerequisites
Familiarity with ray optics and the basics of waves in physics.
S10792: A First Pass at Relativity
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Gurtej Kanwar
As far as we know, all of physics plays out on (and interacts with) a 4D spacetime described by Einstein's general and special relativity. We'll take a look at just what that means, and try to answer a few questions:
1. What does special relativity mean for spacetime far away from objects?
2. How do objects interact with spacetime? What's the deal with curved spacetime?
3. How does this look like the rules of gravity we experience every day?
If you haven't seen relativity before this is the class for you! We'll be keeping the math to a minimum and talking intuition more than anything else.
Prerequisites
Experience dropping objects or falling :)
1. What does special relativity mean for spacetime far away from objects?
2. How do objects interact with spacetime? What's the deal with curved spacetime?
3. How does this look like the rules of gravity we experience every day?
If you haven't seen relativity before this is the class for you! We'll be keeping the math to a minimum and talking intuition more than anything else.
Prerequisites
Experience dropping objects or falling :)
S10951: Paradoxes in Physics
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Shaun Datta,
Andrea Herman
Twins who age at different rates, outrunning a light beam, detonating bombs without causing explosions, and why not to push your friend into a black hole (ethical reasons aside).
Come to learn how quantum mechanics and relativity translate simple logic into shocking conclusions. Your mind will bend more than spacetime!
Prerequisites
Algebra and classical mechanics helpful, enthusiasm required.
Come to learn how quantum mechanics and relativity translate simple logic into shocking conclusions. Your mind will bend more than spacetime!
Prerequisites
Algebra and classical mechanics helpful, enthusiasm required.
S10583: Astronomy 101
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Hannah Taylor
Are you an avid stargazer? Or simply someone who wants to know more about what's out there? Astronomy 101 gotchu. We will cover the basics of astronomy, from our local Solar System to our own galaxy, the Milky Way, before ending with a discussion of some of the latest endeavors in the field! All levels welcome, will involve minimal math.
S10805: Stars, Galaxies, and Cosmology: An Introduction to Astronomy
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Bowen Yu
This class will provide an overview of interesting topics in astronomy. We will be focusing more on concepts rather than rigorous mathematical descriptions of astronomical phenomenon. Topics to be discussed include stellar evolution, galaxies types, cosmological principles, basic special and general relativity, black holes, current events, and anything that you find interesting!
S10588: How Stars Die
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Haley Bates-Tarasewicz
Explore the physics of the long lives and spectacular deaths of stars! Red giants, supernovas, pulsars, black holes, all of that cool stuff you've read about in sci fi novels! Class will focus mainly around general concepts, but may go into some light formula derivations.
Prerequisites
A basic understanding of classical mechanics, orbital motion and chemical processes will help you better understand the class, however most students will be able to grasp general topics so this isn't required.
Prerequisites
A basic understanding of classical mechanics, orbital motion and chemical processes will help you better understand the class, however most students will be able to grasp general topics so this isn't required.
S10657: Searching For Exoplanets
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Ryuga Hatano
What is an exoplanet? How are exoplanets found? What can we learn about exoplanets from Earth? Will we ever know if there is life on other planets?
Class will focus on answering these questions and more!
Prerequisites
- Algebra (must) - Newtonian mechanics (must) - Calculus (recommended) - Differential Equations (recommended)
Class will focus on answering these questions and more!
Prerequisites
- Algebra (must) - Newtonian mechanics (must) - Calculus (recommended) - Differential Equations (recommended)
S10614: Anything you could want to know about the oceans
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Clio Macrakis
Learn about anything related to the oceans, from hydrothermal vents and the make-up of corals reefs to marine mammal classification and global thermohaline circulation. Intrigued? Don't know what any of that means? This is the class for you!
Prerequisites
Basic chemistry is useful
Prerequisites
Basic chemistry is useful
S11096: Special Relativity
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Allen Cheng
Ever wonder why exactly people think Einstein is so smart? Come learn about special relativity, Einstein's first major theory. We'll learn what "relativity" really means (it doesn't mean that everything is "relative"!) We'll look at how time and space change and even come together, how this challenges normal physical intuition, and what relativity means for various paradoxes and research applications.
Prerequisites
Basic concept of geometry and algebra. Highly recommended that listeners have experience with matrices, calculus, and/or some concepts in classical physics like force, energy, and momentum.
Prerequisites
Basic concept of geometry and algebra. Highly recommended that listeners have experience with matrices, calculus, and/or some concepts in classical physics like force, energy, and momentum.
S10824: Quantum Field Theory Story Time
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Brian Skinner
Quantum mechanics is hard, and you are probably tired. So come relax and listen to an introduction to quantum field theory told in the style of a bedtime story. QFT is probably the deepest and most precise description that we have of nature, and usually it comes with lots of complicated-looking equations and diagrams. But here I'll give you a much more gentle introduction to QFT, using only pictures and no math. Learn a little bit about vacuum fluctuations, virtual particles, and the difference between Fermions and Bosons. Walk out with a new perspective on what "empty space" really is.
S10817: Epigenetics Made Accessible: How Accessing the Genome Determines Cell Fate Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Sarah Shareef
An introduction to epigenetics and how transcriptional regulation plays a role in normal cell development and in the development of cancer
S11057: Boron
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Yoa Clifton,
Aofei Liu
Come explore the exciting world of the 5th element!
Prerequisites
It will help if you've taken or are taking a chemistry class but that's not strictly necessary.
Prerequisites
It will help if you've taken or are taking a chemistry class but that's not strictly necessary.
S10855: The Existential Crises of Cells
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Crystal Chang
Featuring rolling cells, hungry cells, and--gasp!--the saddest cell story in the world. Fun intro to how cells grow and make decisions, especially in the context of immunology. This class will be 30-40 minutes of interactive lecture followed by a short Q&A session on how to get a research internship. :)
Prerequisites
Honors biology recommended, but not required!
Prerequisites
Honors biology recommended, but not required!
S10794: Cat Genetics
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Meredith Loy
Do you like cats? Do you like cat videos?
Come watch cat videos and talk about what makes cat fur so cool!
Prerequisites
An appreciation of cats and some basic knowledge about inheritance
Come watch cat videos and talk about what makes cat fur so cool!
Prerequisites
An appreciation of cats and some basic knowledge about inheritance
S10914: Viruses! What viruses are in you – and what are they doing?
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Kathryn Kauffman
Did you know that viruses were essential to the evolution of the placenta? Or, that every morning when you wake up your mouth is full of viruses? In this conversational class we take a fresh perspective on the role of viruses in animal’s lives – especially ourselves – and on how scientists study them. We introduce a framework for organizing different types of viruses, discuss how viruses can be “captured” for study, and then talk about a handful of cases of viruses doing surprising things in our bodies. Discover your own personal wealth of viruses and you’ll never feel alone again.
S10843: Gravitational Waves and the LIGO Experiment Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Caitlin Fischer
What are gravitational waves? What did LIGO detect? Why is this important? We'll talk about the basics of general relativity and use it to explore the LIGO gravitational wave detector's principles, challenges and recent successful detection.
Prerequisites
Some geometry
Prerequisites
Some geometry
S11074: When cells die OR Why Elizabeth Holmes/ Theranos never had a chance
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Andrew Thompson
Will you ever be able to go to the doctor and give just a few drops of blood from a finger prick, for all (most?) of your medical testing needs?
Nope, not ever.
The problem? We are made of cells and mother nature abhors the idea of mingling the outside with the inside of cells. Everything from ,what cells do when they are in a bad mood, to the frustrating 10 pm activities of lymphatic filariasis will show us why a finger stick will never put venipuncture out of business.
A mini-introduction to anatomic and clinical pathology, We will explore the body's various tissues, and fluids through examples of micro-anatomy and describe the changes they undergo as they encounter insult, injury and death. Hopefully your basic biology knowledge will be sharpened to explain many sophisticated phenomena of disease and death, including an explanation of why the Theranos-drop-of-blood testing idea, was a pipe dream before it was even thought of.
Prerequisites
1 year Introductory Biology. If you can draw and label a cartoon cell, you should be fine.
Nope, not ever.
The problem? We are made of cells and mother nature abhors the idea of mingling the outside with the inside of cells. Everything from ,what cells do when they are in a bad mood, to the frustrating 10 pm activities of lymphatic filariasis will show us why a finger stick will never put venipuncture out of business.
A mini-introduction to anatomic and clinical pathology, We will explore the body's various tissues, and fluids through examples of micro-anatomy and describe the changes they undergo as they encounter insult, injury and death. Hopefully your basic biology knowledge will be sharpened to explain many sophisticated phenomena of disease and death, including an explanation of why the Theranos-drop-of-blood testing idea, was a pipe dream before it was even thought of.
Prerequisites
1 year Introductory Biology. If you can draw and label a cartoon cell, you should be fine.
S10685: Mucking in the Marshes: Coastal Ecology of New England
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Alexander Denmark
Do you like the beach or the ocean? Do you want to discover the scientific secrets that dwell beneath the waves? Do piping plover really taste like chicken?
Learn everything from biogeochemical cycling and carbon sequestration in muddy salt marshes to population dynamics between great white sharks and seals. Don't have any idea what those things are? GREAT! We'll discover how the coastal ecosystem works, and learn what lives in the waters and along the coast of New England.
Prerequisites
Basic knowledge of Biology and Chemistry may be helpful, but not required. If you have any questions about the ocean that you would like to ask me, please bring them too!
Learn everything from biogeochemical cycling and carbon sequestration in muddy salt marshes to population dynamics between great white sharks and seals. Don't have any idea what those things are? GREAT! We'll discover how the coastal ecosystem works, and learn what lives in the waters and along the coast of New England.
Prerequisites
Basic knowledge of Biology and Chemistry may be helpful, but not required. If you have any questions about the ocean that you would like to ask me, please bring them too!
S10992: Cognitive Heuristics and Biases
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Isaac Grosof
How do people think and make decisions? Not how they should think, but how they do think. Learn about Systems 1 and 2, and the Anchoring Bias, the Planning Fallacy, and Loss Aversion, among others. Also learn how to recognize and circumvent these biases in your own thinking. Based on the work of Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky.
S11101: Experimental Basis of Quantum Mechanics Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Priya Kikani
Ever wondered how this whole "quantum mechanics" thing came about? What does this whole uncertainty principle mean? Does "quantum physics" sound interesting but intimidating? Then come to this class! We'll start at the very origin of quantum physics and go from there. We'll take about photons and double slits and lots of cool things!
Prerequisites
No background is needed, come with questions!
Prerequisites
No background is needed, come with questions!
S10593: Natural History of the National Parks
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Kaylee Brent,
Megan Goodell
Is Yellowstone actually going to explode? What the heck made the Half Dome look like that? How did the Grand Canyon form? What's a rainforest doing in the northern United States? How did those rocks into those positions at Arches? Why are there giant boulders all over literally everything in New England? Is Zion actually heaven? (spoilers: it is if you like sandstones)
S10822: Quantum Mechanics with 9th Grade Math
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Brian Skinner
Quantum mechanics is cool. But the math behind it can look more than a little intimidating. So come learn a few of the most important ideas in quantum mechanics without having to worry about any math beyond algebra. And figure out for yourself some of its most important results! Like: what is zero point energy? How big is an atom? And how fast would a whale fall if you dropped it out of an airplane?
Prerequisites
Algebra, and enough physics to know what energy and momentum are
Prerequisites
Algebra, and enough physics to know what energy and momentum are
S10829: Conceptual Quantum Mechanics I
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Kenneth Wang
In this course, we'll explore the weird quantum world without any serious mathematics! The goal will be to attempt to understand quantum mechanics in a completely conceptual way without solving any differential equations. Emphasis will be placed on using your classical intuition and use that to understand quantum phenomena. We will discuss why carrots are orange, and how the most accurate microscopes rely on quantum tunneling to work. We will discuss what photons are and how they are related to masses on springs. The continuation of this class is offered as Conceptual Quantum Mechanics II. Join us on a tour of the quantum world with no math!
Prerequisites
Classical mechanics is highly recommended, but not required!
Prerequisites
Classical mechanics is highly recommended, but not required!
S11131: EKGs and Heart Attacks: What Electricity Tells Us About Heart Disease
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Jonathan Lee
We've seen EKGs on TV and in the movies, but what do they actually mean? We will delve into a crash course on the electrocardiogram and what it tells us!
Prerequisites
Chemistry (required), Physics (suggested, but not required), Biology (suggested, but not required)
Prerequisites
Chemistry (required), Physics (suggested, but not required), Biology (suggested, but not required)
S11018: Early Life on Earth Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Jonathan Hurowitz
How did life originally develop on Earth? When did animals originate? How have mass-extinctions shaped life on Earth? Come find out and play with tons of cool fossils, such as extinct sea scorpions, clams, and snails!
Prerequisites
High school chemistry helpful but not required
Prerequisites
High school chemistry helpful but not required
S10964: Nature Journaling
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Sydney Rogers
Want to go outside and discover more about nature through writing and drawing? Come take this course where we will learn about nature writing (along with Emerson and Thoreau) and have the opportunity to go outside to write about and sketch our surroundings!
S11064: Viruses - Hijacking Life Itself
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Helen Sakharova
Learn all about viruses - what they're made of, how they invade and hijack their hosts, and how biologists can use them to reprogram cells! Focus will be on retroviruses, but we might talk about other types as well.
Prerequisites
Some bio is nice, but not required
Prerequisites
Some bio is nice, but not required
S11029: Exoplanet Compositions
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Nicholas Mondrik
Astronomers put in a lot of effort to find planets around other stars, but what do we do after we find them? In this class, we'll discuss the physical characteristics of alien worlds, including their formation, composition, and atmospheres. We'll also talk about where and how we're most likely to find Earth 2.0.
S11165: Ask Anything about Science
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Stephen Face
Ever wondered about the world around us? Come to this class to get your questions answered! You provide the questions and we'll try to provide the answers!
Prerequisites
Interest in learning things! Please bring at least one question!
Prerequisites
Interest in learning things! Please bring at least one question!
S11111: Intro to Geology!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Clio Macrakis,
Daniel Richman
Geologists are happy people and you can be one too! We'll show some cool rock samples from New England and beyond and talk about why silicates, carbonates, and halides make the kinds of materials they do. We'll also discuss the Earth's formation. Did you know the core is made of iron because iron is heavy and it sunk to the center?! Obligatory joke: rock on!
S10901: Don't Touch the King Cobra: An Introduction to Venomous Creatures
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Mary Spanjers
From snails to spiders, centipedes to cobras venom is one of the most fascinating evolutions in the animal kingdom. This overview of venomous creatures will teach you what venom is, how it works, and why you really shouldn't touch the King Cobra
S11065: Stupid human tricks
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Andrew Thompson
We'll cover some of the more unusual examples of how the human body can be an example of exquisite functional design or completely stupid fail. From here I hope to encourage discussion and question & answer of any bodily myth, mystery, or ailment. Topics including:Entoptic images. the Cushing reflex. Why only humans and pugs choke on their dinner. The valgus knee and how Bigfoot has to be a guy in a furry suit. etc
S11134: Quantum Mechanics Done Right
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Aaron Dunbrack
I'm going to teach quantum mechanics in a way that is both completely accurate and completely comprehensible - sweeping a few details of calculations under the rug, of course. The first half of the class will teach what the world "really is" in quantum mechanics, then how that leads naturally to superposition and the uncertainty principle. The second half will discuss composite quantum systems: we'll start with entanglement, then move on to how that leads to measurement and the different interpretations of quantum mechanics. Given extra time, I have more material I can cover as well.
Prerequisites
If you try to understand what a "vector" is beforehand, that will be helpful to your intuition, but I'll go over everything necessary.
Prerequisites
If you try to understand what a "vector" is beforehand, that will be helpful to your intuition, but I'll go over everything necessary.
S10781: Tales from the Periodic Table of Elements
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Soumya Gudiyella
Learn about …
Where Atoms Come From?
How Carbon’s low bond forming standards benefit life on Earth?
Why is ‘Silicon Valley’ called as the ‘Silicon Valley’?
Why is Gallium the go-to element for laboratory pranksters?
and more …
Prerequisites
Chemistry
Where Atoms Come From?
How Carbon’s low bond forming standards benefit life on Earth?
Why is ‘Silicon Valley’ called as the ‘Silicon Valley’?
Why is Gallium the go-to element for laboratory pranksters?
and more …
Prerequisites
Chemistry
S11013: The Early Solar System
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Jonathan Hurowitz
The solar system is a cool place! Come learn about our solar system's life cycle, from supernova to planets. Topics covered include solar system formation & composition, the future of our system, and a brief look into other solar systems and exoplanets.
Prerequisites
Physics mechanics (algebra-based). Some chemistry would be helpful but not required.
Prerequisites
Physics mechanics (algebra-based). Some chemistry would be helpful but not required.
S11039: History of Science during the Golden Age of Islam
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Joey Muller
Come learn about who Al-Khwarizmi and Alhazen were, the foundation of the scientific method, and the contributions of other near-eastern thinkers in the most under-appreciated period of science you won't learn in high school.
S10931: The Sound Of Science
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Emma Bingham,
Michael Winston
Are you interested in the physics of sound, and how this applies to music? Do you want to hear someone rap about compression waves? Come to this class!
S10562: An Introduction to Superconductivity
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Alfred Zong
As we cool down certain materials to extremely low temperature, its electric resistivity can abruptly drop to zero, a phenomenon called superconductivity. It’s no small feat! For example, zero resistance means an electric current can flow in a superconducting wire for many many years. In this class, you’ll be introduced to more fascinating properties of superconductors, and we’ll try to answer the question: what causes superconductivity?
Prerequisites
No advanced math or physics knowledge required, but I’ll assume you have heard of terms such as “voltage”, “current”, “resistivity”, and even better “magnetic field”.
Prerequisites
No advanced math or physics knowledge required, but I’ll assume you have heard of terms such as “voltage”, “current”, “resistivity”, and even better “magnetic field”.
S11133: Hitchhiker's Guide to the Multiverse
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Aaron Dunbrack
In this class, we will explore three questions. One: What is a multiverse? Two: Why might we want to (or not want to) discuss a multiverse? Three: What are the kinds of multiverses that people talk about? Along the way, we will discuss topics in both modern physics and philosophy.
S10666: BLACK HOLES
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Katya Leidig
A rapid introduction to the exciting world of black holes!
Come with the most ridiculous black hole questions you can muster and we'll see if we can answer them.
Prerequisites
An overwhelming love of space!
Come with the most ridiculous black hole questions you can muster and we'll see if we can answer them.
Prerequisites
An overwhelming love of space!
S10806: Scale of the Solar System: How big is Uranus really?
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Bowen Yu
Can the Earth really fit into the Sun more than a million times? How far did New Horizons fly to reach Pluto? Why isn't Pluto a planet?
These are some questions that you will hopefully not only know the answers to by the end of class, but truly comprehend the scales that we have no reference to here on Earth. In one hour, each one of you will create a scale model of the solar system that will give you a new perspective on how you view the solar system. If time allows, we will also discuss how our solar system compares to others nearby and in the grand scheme that is the entire universe.
Prerequisites
A readiness to get your mind blown
These are some questions that you will hopefully not only know the answers to by the end of class, but truly comprehend the scales that we have no reference to here on Earth. In one hour, each one of you will create a scale model of the solar system that will give you a new perspective on how you view the solar system. If time allows, we will also discuss how our solar system compares to others nearby and in the grand scheme that is the entire universe.
Prerequisites
A readiness to get your mind blown
S10607: The Neuroscience of Meditation
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Dae Houlihan
In parallel to how the scientific method has been used to probe the universe objectively, meditation practices have been used for millennia to probe the subjective nature of the human mind. This talk will look at how cognitive neuroscience and Buddhist psychology can mutually inform each other. We will hear about recent research into how meditation affects the mind, restructures the brain, and how the simple practice of paying attention to our own experience might facilitate the regulation of attention and emotion, leading to treatments for disorders such as ADHD, depression and chronic stress.
S10958: How Human Memory Works
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Abby Noyce
Admittedly, the truly honest answer is "Scientists don't really know." But there are a lot of snippets we do know! From the role of hippocampus structures in pattern separation and pattern completion, to the fMRI evidence for reactivation, to tips about how to study most effectively, this class will explore how the nervous system stores and accesses information.
Come prepared to talk about cells, but also to consider the computational basis of human cognition.
Prerequisites
You should have background equivalent to a year of HS biology. Programming experience is recommended but not required.
Come prepared to talk about cells, but also to consider the computational basis of human cognition.
Prerequisites
You should have background equivalent to a year of HS biology. Programming experience is recommended but not required.
S10688: Evolutionary Baggage
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Nora Enright
As strange as it seems, certain diseases began as an evolutionary benefit. Find the link between common disorders and survival.
Prerequisites
Some kind of biology background
Prerequisites
Some kind of biology background
S10617: Hardware store chemistry Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Christopher Hillenbrand,
David Wang
Ever buy a chemistry set and been disappointed by the conspicuous absence of anything interesting? Take this class and find out what chemical reactions can be done with only items from retail chains (answer: a worrisome number). You'll also hear tales of past makeshift chemistry masters.
Disclaimer: Please do not actually do these things at home. If you go to your chemistry teacher with a thorough proposal for an experiment, you can probably convince him/her to help you with it.
Disclaimer: Please do not actually do these things at home. If you go to your chemistry teacher with a thorough proposal for an experiment, you can probably convince him/her to help you with it.
S11027: Science Before the Scientific Revolution Full!
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Riley Drake
The advent of modern science in the western world was never a necessary outcome of western intellectual activity. Yet histories of science frequently spin a tale of intellectual progress leading inexorably to scientific thinking (and hint at brighter futures to come). This course examines the technologies and philosophical tools that would give rise to science, but with an eye to their historical contexts and their many non-scientific aspects. We especially will focus on how pre-modern medicine, astronomy, and alchemy relate to their modern counterparts.
S10728: Animal Cognition: Does your dog hate you?
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Elise Michaels
Do animals think? What do they think about? How can we figure out what they're thinking?
If you spend a lot of time wondering how psychology can be applied to our non-human fellows, this course might be for you.
Prerequisites
For those with no experience in the subject, my other class Animal Studies: a lightning introduction may be helpful.
If you spend a lot of time wondering how psychology can be applied to our non-human fellows, this course might be for you.
Prerequisites
For those with no experience in the subject, my other class Animal Studies: a lightning introduction may be helpful.
S11100: A Brief History of the Universe Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Allen Cheng
You may have heard that the universe is 13.8 billion years old, but wait! First, how do we know it's 13.8 billion years old? Second, what happened in all that time between now and the Big Bang? We'll begin by talking about how the universe has qualitatively changed over time. Then, we'll start from some simple postulates and derive a series of simple but true mathematical models.
Prerequisites
Everyone is welcome! You'll probably get more out of the lecture if you have a little bit of calculus (we'll have some straightforward differential equations) and physics.
Prerequisites
Everyone is welcome! You'll probably get more out of the lecture if you have a little bit of calculus (we'll have some straightforward differential equations) and physics.
S10874: Why Can't We All Just Get Along?
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Christopher Fry,
Henry Lieberman
This is not a class to trick you into learning math by some narrow application to something interesting.
It is not a class about big-data or AI (though those technologies can help.)
It is not a class about winning friends or getting a date.
It is not a class about who to vote for or political activism to lobby congress.
It is not a class about science fiction.
It is not a class about band-aid solutions that solve 2% of a problem (maybe).
It is not a class about religion in any sense.
it is not a class about being nice (though that would help too).
It is a class about how new (and not too distant) technologies and processes can actually SOLVE the
biggest problems facing humanity. Our solutions do not require magical re-education of the whole
planet, everyone to agree on everything, or lots of money, but there are things YOU can do in the next
decade to help bring about massive positive change.
We start with drastically reducing scarcity with next generation 3D printers.
We explain how this, along with a better understanding of psychology,
can replace competition with cooperation.
We describe a new constitution that replaces power-based governments (such as Democracy) with
reason based governments (such as Reasonocracy).
With these new paradigms in place, we can cure poverty, war, Global Warming and
a host of other major problems.
We do not have solutions for every problem.
But by getting the current big ones out of the way, that gives us resources to
work on the rest.
Prerequisites
An open mind
It is not a class about big-data or AI (though those technologies can help.)
It is not a class about winning friends or getting a date.
It is not a class about who to vote for or political activism to lobby congress.
It is not a class about science fiction.
It is not a class about band-aid solutions that solve 2% of a problem (maybe).
It is not a class about religion in any sense.
it is not a class about being nice (though that would help too).
It is a class about how new (and not too distant) technologies and processes can actually SOLVE the
biggest problems facing humanity. Our solutions do not require magical re-education of the whole
planet, everyone to agree on everything, or lots of money, but there are things YOU can do in the next
decade to help bring about massive positive change.
We start with drastically reducing scarcity with next generation 3D printers.
We explain how this, along with a better understanding of psychology,
can replace competition with cooperation.
We describe a new constitution that replaces power-based governments (such as Democracy) with
reason based governments (such as Reasonocracy).
With these new paradigms in place, we can cure poverty, war, Global Warming and
a host of other major problems.
We do not have solutions for every problem.
But by getting the current big ones out of the way, that gives us resources to
work on the rest.
Prerequisites
An open mind
S10965: Quantum Cryptography
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Kevin Zhou
Quantum computers promise to break RSA encryption, a cornerstone of modern cryptography. But over 20 years ago, before quantum computation was even imagined, two scientists found the fix: a protocol that used quantum mechanics itself to guarantee absolutely secure communication, against any possible attacker. It was an idea so counterintuitive and revolutionary that it took ten years to be published.
After a short (but self-contained) introduction to quantum mechanics and classical cryptography, we'll discuss this scheme, why it works, and what people are doing with it today.
Prerequisites
Know what a vector is, and be able to draw 2d vectors in the plane
After a short (but self-contained) introduction to quantum mechanics and classical cryptography, we'll discuss this scheme, why it works, and what people are doing with it today.
Prerequisites
Know what a vector is, and be able to draw 2d vectors in the plane
S10830: Conceptual Quantum Mechanics II
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Kenneth Wang
This is a continuation of Conceptual Quantum Mechanics I, and we move to even cooler concepts! However, it will be disjoint enough that even students without the first class should be able to follow. We will talk about electron spin as a general two state system and discuss superposition states. These superposition states will form the basis of a discussion of a quantum entanglement when Einstein was actually wrong! Quantum mechanics appeared to make a statement on philosophy. Then, we will move on to Quantum cryptography and if time, quantum computing and a quantum algorithm. Once again, in the spirit of Conceptual Quantum Mechanics I, we will attempt to do all of this with very little mathematics!
Prerequisites
Conceptual Quantum Mechanics I is highly recommended.
Prerequisites
Conceptual Quantum Mechanics I is highly recommended.
S10883: Introduction to Statistical Mechanics
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Songela Chen
What is entropy? Or energy? Or heat? Turns out chemistry is more than just the periodic table of elements, and many properties arise from basic principles. Come derive chemistry from math!
Prerequisites
Neither statistics nor mechanics. Know how to take an integral. Knowing some probability (i.e. expected value) is helpful. Be prepared for mathematical bashing.
Prerequisites
Neither statistics nor mechanics. Know how to take an integral. Knowing some probability (i.e. expected value) is helpful. Be prepared for mathematical bashing.
S10774: Feynman diagrams and renormalization -- toy examples
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Jeremy Owen
Using two simple examples, I'll illustrate, in roughest form, two techniques of modern physics: the use of Feynman diagrams to organize calculations and real space renormalization.
Much of the physics will be gone from our toy examples, but in exchange we'll be able to make progress using simple mathematical tools. Minimal hand-waving.
Prerequisites
The arguments will depend on calculus at a level covered in AP Calculus (integration, differentiation, Taylor series). If you aren't so familiar with calculus, I'll try nevertheless to make the overall structure of these beautiful physical ideas clear.
Much of the physics will be gone from our toy examples, but in exchange we'll be able to make progress using simple mathematical tools. Minimal hand-waving.
Prerequisites
The arguments will depend on calculus at a level covered in AP Calculus (integration, differentiation, Taylor series). If you aren't so familiar with calculus, I'll try nevertheless to make the overall structure of these beautiful physical ideas clear.
S10664: Gyroscope: Theory and Practice Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Thatcher Chamberlin,
Radha Mastandrea
Gyroscopes - what are they and how do they work? This question puzzled
humanity for ages but fortunately we know the answers. Come learn about
gyroscopes and their unusual behaviors! We've got a lot of great demos
lined up so it'll be a lot of fun!
https://xkcd.com/332/
Prerequisites
Introductory physics would be helpful, but it not necessary!
humanity for ages but fortunately we know the answers. Come learn about
gyroscopes and their unusual behaviors! We've got a lot of great demos
lined up so it'll be a lot of fun!
https://xkcd.com/332/
Prerequisites
Introductory physics would be helpful, but it not necessary!
S10933: King Kong and the physics of scaling
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Anuj Apte
We discuss the physics of scaling and its far reaching impact especially on King Kong
Prerequisites
Basic high school physics
Prerequisites
Basic high school physics
S11079: Methylene Blue and Stories of Pathology
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Andrew Thompson
The basic dye, and redox indicator, Methylene blue will be the central character in this series of tales which will serve to explain several key concepts in human pathology. Antihistimines, antipsychotics malaria, sickle cell disease, viagra, gram+ bacteria, and a variety of seemingly disparate topics of biology will be tied together and explained with the help of methylene blue.
Prerequisites
Introductory biology is a must
Prerequisites
Introductory biology is a must
S11123: Infinities in Physics: Divergent Summation and Regularization
Difficulty: ****
Teachers:
Patrick Ledwith,
Amelia Trainer
We'll explore the appearance of infinities in physical calculations and how to interpret them, as clearly nothing we measure is *Actually Infinite*. So something must be wrong when we calculate answers and get infinitely large values!
As a result physicists have developed a bunch of methods to deal with these infinities, and interpretations of how/why they arise.
In this class we'll figure out why these infinities tend to pop up and why they don't influence anything we measure. Along the way we'll understand the often quoted result:
$$1+2+3+4+5+....=-1/12$$
and how it relates to the Riemann Zeta Function and the distribution of prime numbers. We'll also explore the idea of non-integer dimensions and how we can use them to deal with infinite integrals.
Prerequisites
Calculus and some knowledge of waves
As a result physicists have developed a bunch of methods to deal with these infinities, and interpretations of how/why they arise.
In this class we'll figure out why these infinities tend to pop up and why they don't influence anything we measure. Along the way we'll understand the often quoted result:
$$1+2+3+4+5+....=-1/12$$
and how it relates to the Riemann Zeta Function and the distribution of prime numbers. We'll also explore the idea of non-integer dimensions and how we can use them to deal with infinite integrals.
Prerequisites
Calculus and some knowledge of waves
S10848: AP Chemistry Cram Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Yue Zhang
Learn all of AP chemistry in 3-4 hours!
Prerequisites
None!
Prerequisites
None!
S11037: How Particles are Discovered
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Kevin Zhou
In 2013, the LHC discovered the Higgs boson. But the Higgs decays too fast to ever be seen directly. So what exactly did they see, and how did they know it was the Higgs?
In this class, I'll give an overview of the process of particle discovery, an enormous industry that employs thousands of theorists and experimentalists. We'll touch on the physics of the Standard Model, and why its results can be so hard to predict. We'll talk about the algorithms used to analyze and simulate particle collisions. And we'll consider the thorniest question of all: how can we ever know what really happened inside a collision?
Time permitting, we'll talk about how the above principles are being used to search for supersymmetry and dark matter today.
Prerequisites
Know some mechanics, i.e. what energy and momentum are. It would be helpful to know what a p-value means.
In this class, I'll give an overview of the process of particle discovery, an enormous industry that employs thousands of theorists and experimentalists. We'll touch on the physics of the Standard Model, and why its results can be so hard to predict. We'll talk about the algorithms used to analyze and simulate particle collisions. And we'll consider the thorniest question of all: how can we ever know what really happened inside a collision?
Time permitting, we'll talk about how the above principles are being used to search for supersymmetry and dark matter today.
Prerequisites
Know some mechanics, i.e. what energy and momentum are. It would be helpful to know what a p-value means.
S10733: Insect Identification!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Chelsea Voss
Is that an orchid, or a mantis? What's the difference between a bug and a beetle? Why does EVERYTHING seem to want to pretend to be an ant? Why do bees cooperate with each other like that?
Come learn about insects, the fascinating animals with more than a million species on Earth and a majority of ALL the species we know about!
This class will present a whirlwind tour of insects of all sorts. You'll learn how each group is related and how to recognize each group's unique features, as well as some random cool examples of camouflage, symbiosis, and parasitism among insects.
As we go, you'll apply your newly-learned identification skills to identify insects yourself!
Come learn about insects, the fascinating animals with more than a million species on Earth and a majority of ALL the species we know about!
This class will present a whirlwind tour of insects of all sorts. You'll learn how each group is related and how to recognize each group's unique features, as well as some random cool examples of camouflage, symbiosis, and parasitism among insects.
As we go, you'll apply your newly-learned identification skills to identify insects yourself!
S10604: What Every Science Student Should Know
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Yoo Jung Kim,
Andrew Zureick
"What Every College Science Student Should Know" aims to serve as a mentor for aspiring STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) students. This workshop is a distillation of years of research and interviews with successful scientists and other science students. The workshop will point out the challenges students commonly face when pursuing a science major. We'll focus on choosing a major, mastering study skills and time management, conducting scientific research, finding a job, applying to graduate and professional schools, and, most importantly, how to foster and maintain a lifelong love of science.
S10606: The Physics of Martial Arts
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Christopher Panebianco
For thousands of years, martial artists have used precise body motions to strategically maneuver their centers of mass, apply powerful forces and manipulate the momentum of their opponents. While they understood these concepts at an applied level, physicists have been studying these same fundamental concepts of motion, forces and momentum at a more theoretical level. In this class, we'll bridge these two sets of knowledge and understand martial arts from a physics framework. Students will learn the basic physics behind several martial arts principles and then apply them in a real martial arts class!
***Students should wear something comfortable to work out in!***
***Students should wear something comfortable to work out in!***
S10866: Sex, Drugs, and Mind Control: Cool Topics in Neuroscience Full!
Difficulty: **
Ever wonder what's going on in your brain? Why do we dream? Where do emotions come from? Is mind control really possible?
In this course, we will go over some cool topics in neuroscience in an easy-to-digest way. We'll talk about neurons, senses, how substances can affect the brain, and much, much more! We will also have demonstrations about tools that scientists can use to control minds, and a real brain to dissect!
In this course, we will go over some cool topics in neuroscience in an easy-to-digest way. We'll talk about neurons, senses, how substances can affect the brain, and much, much more! We will also have demonstrations about tools that scientists can use to control minds, and a real brain to dissect!
S10809: What the frequency? Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Rebecca Engelke
We live in one kind of space. In fact, we are so ingrained in it that we sometimes call it "real space." But there is another kind of space--"frequency space", where musical notes and electrons and other ephemeral beings can live.
If you've ever wondered why physicists seem to *love* waves just a little too much, this class will clear that up for you! Come learn about why and how we sometimes plot things based on their frequency rather than their position (also known as a Fourier Transform). Topics will include sound waves & music, particle-wave duality, image filtering (holograms?), and more!
Prerequisites
You should know what sine and cosine are!
If you've ever wondered why physicists seem to *love* waves just a little too much, this class will clear that up for you! Come learn about why and how we sometimes plot things based on their frequency rather than their position (also known as a Fourier Transform). Topics will include sound waves & music, particle-wave duality, image filtering (holograms?), and more!
Prerequisites
You should know what sine and cosine are!
[Deprecated] Walk-in Activity
W10651: Spaceteam
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Tuesday Mueller-Harder
Come play Spaceteam, a high-pressure, multiplayer technobabble game. Download the free iOS or Android app and be prepared to discharge clip-jawed fluxtrunions, invert hyperpod bypass valves, or reticulate splines!
Warning: there will probably be a lot of yelling.
Warning: there will probably be a lot of yelling.
W10673: Da Vinci's Devices
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Clio Macrakis
Leonardo da Vinci was an engineer, artist, naturalist, and many other things. However, he built very few of the inventions he came up with. Try your hand at building them with the designs and materials provided!
W10704: Paper Snowflakes Extravaganza
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Elizabeth O'Leary
Come and cut paper snowflakes with me! More than just an activity for first graders, cutting a beautiful snowflake requires correct folding, cutting, and consideration of the positive and negative space. And it's fun.
W10987: Portrait drawing: Self portrait and one-on-one
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Olivia Coucci,
Maeve Hedstrom
This class offers the opportunity to draw self portraits in a mirror, or pair up with someone and draw their portrait! If you don't feel comfortable drawing, that is fine! You can watch and learn more about how to draw portraits from everyone in the class!
W11035: Paper Staple Madness
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Zachary Abel
Put your stapling skills to good use while designing and constructing fun, wavy, bouncy, intricate polyhedral structures!
W11159: Introduction to Cuneiform
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Matthew Petersen
Cuneiform is the world's oldest writing system, used originally to write Sumerian and Akkadian in ancient Mesopotamia.
In this walk in activity, students will learn the basic mechanics of cuneiform, and inscribe a small tablet to take home.
In this walk in activity, students will learn the basic mechanics of cuneiform, and inscribe a small tablet to take home.
W11151: Play Codenames!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Benjamin Cosman
Learn and play Codenames, a board game about finding and solving clever links between words. It's short and you can drop in or out any time.
W10986: Origami!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Sophie Mori
Come fold cute animals and neat boxes! If you're more ambitious, tackle some modular origami. Fold lots of little units and fit them together to make a larger, more complex structure! Don't worry if you don't understand the weird diagrams in the books; help will be provided.
W10744: Sustainability Extravaganza!
Difficulty: **
Learn about sustainability and sustainable practices. Show what you know and win at our trivia game!
W11009: Linguistics Problem Solving
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Adam Hesterberg,
Chelsea Voss
Do you enjoy unraveling logic puzzles, want to learn about other languages, or crave the feeling of a good riddle?
Come solve fun problems from the Linguistics Olympiads, NACLO and IOL!
A variety of languages, problem styles, and difficulty levels will be provided for you to solve. Logic and reasoning are your main weapon here – no prior linguistics knowledge required!
Come solve fun problems from the Linguistics Olympiads, NACLO and IOL!
A variety of languages, problem styles, and difficulty levels will be provided for you to solve. Logic and reasoning are your main weapon here – no prior linguistics knowledge required!
W10582: ScienceBowl
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Ahaan Rungta
Come play high school ScienceBowl and try to win for bragging rights and learn some awesome things about science which you did not know before. You do not need to have familiarity/experience with this game to participate!
W11022: Mutant Plushie Lab
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
E Rosser
Create an army of mis-matched minions to unleash your vengeance on the world! Or, you know, just see what a teddy with an alligator head would look like. If you would rather play with Sid's toys than Andy's, this is the Activity for you. No prior sewing/gene splicing experience required.
W11194: Unhappy with the election results? Unsure what to do next?
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Margaret Sands
Elections in a democracy never satisfy everyone, and certainly not this one! If your candidate lost, or your issues weren't prioritized, this is a space to figure out an action plan for yourself. What is the next step to connect with others? This is not intended to focus on venting, but rather to be an open discussion/brainstorming session to help you come up with your next steps.
W10755: Chinese chess for fun: Xiangqi
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Louis Gosart
Join me for a fun game of Chinese chess, or Xiangqi, 象棋.
Even if you have never played this game, and not so good in regular chess, you may like learning and playing! It's fun!
And, you can even win a set of Chinese chess!
Even if you have never played this game, and not so good in regular chess, you may like learning and playing! It's fun!
And, you can even win a set of Chinese chess!
W10815: Make Balloon Animals!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Kathy Camenzind
Need a break from academic learning? Come stop by and learn how to make balloon animals!
Warning: Balloons pop loudly
Warning: Balloons pop loudly
W10937: Food tongue 101
Difficulty: **
Come learn food tongue, a language in which every word is a food, by immersion!
W10818: Learn the Chinese Yo-Yo!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Mikayla Murphy
The Chinese Yo-Yo, also known as Diabolo, has been a popular circus prop for many years. Come learn how to play with this fun toy that also is an important part of Chinese heritage!
W10856: Modern Screen Adaptations of British Literature
Difficulty: **
We're just gonna eat popcorn and watch movies. It'll be chill.
(Tentatively Clueless, 10 Things I Hate About You, and She's the Man.)
(Tentatively Clueless, 10 Things I Hate About You, and She's the Man.)
W10899: Mahjong
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
George Liu-Krason
This isn't some solo matching game you've seen on PC but a PvP showdown of skill and luck! Come see what it's about and play with tiles.
W10988: Balloon Animals!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Emma Kerwin
Learn how to make some balloon animals :D
W11075: Hands on hardware for software people
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Joseph Okor
You software people out there, you know you want to play with hardware. Some of you have even bought Arduino, Raspberry Pi, etc and tried doing hardware. Chances are you had a bad experience, and have vowed not to play with hardware again. Good News. We have solved the problems that make hardware weird for software people. Come see for yourself. You will get the chance to use your programming skills to interact with our "toys". What type of "toys" you ask?. Our "toys" include (a) keyless entry system (b) color LED message board (c) 60 color LED strip 1 meter long (d) electro/mechanical devices such as stepper motors, dc motors, solenoid, servo, etc. We also have some robots. Here is the link to our website: http://xfunbotix.com/splash2016/
W10661: Circle Poetry!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Alexandra Martirosian
Like reading poems? Like writing your own? Come do both! We'll go around in a circle and each write a line or two to make a giant poem! And then we'll read all of them...you may be surprised :)
W10884: Hamiltunes and Hors d'oeuvres
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Shannon Peng,
Helen Read
Like singing along to Hamilton? Like snacks? Come join us while we talk less, sing more, and munch on hors d'oeuvres non-stop.
W10979: NACLO Shenanigans!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Josephine Yu
Do you like puzzles? Do you like logic? Do you like languages? If yes, and even if no, check out some old NACLO problems; they're great fun, and if you like them, you can participate in the actual competition this coming February! All experience levels welcome.
[Deprecated] Miscellaneous
X10762: How to Make the Best Paper Airplane
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Benjamin Kurzban
You will learn how to fold the paper airplane that currently holds the Guinness World Record for the farthest flight.
X11168: Learn Your Way Around MIT!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Ray Hua Wu
MIT has its own neat code of referring to geographical locations. Buildings are often called by their numbers. And they're actually mostly method with touches of madness. Don't worry, this class will cover plenty of both.
Prerequisites
be able to walk comfortably
Prerequisites
be able to walk comfortably
X10868: Fountain Pens 101: Project Lab Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Kevin Rodriguez
The class will cover the ins and outs of fountain pens from how to hold the pen to the foundations of calligraphy/elven script to care/maintenance and conversion from cartridge to ink drop.
Prerequisites
Has used or heard of a pen before
Prerequisites
Has used or heard of a pen before
X10847: Introduction to Knots
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Irene Betts-O'Rourke
Learn to tie knots that are used in boating and everyday life. No experience needed!!
X10736: How to Be Happy
Difficulty: *
Join us in answering life’s eternal question - how to be happy.
Prerequisites
Be a human.
Prerequisites
Be a human.
X10793: Chinese Sauces
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Mitchell Gu,
Jingyi Zhao
Ever wondered what chefs put in that stir-fry? I don't even know! But let's try out sauces that are often used in cooking Chinese food, and make some delicious or weird dishes.
X10579: BRAIN WORLD CUP Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Kevin Li,
Jakob Weisblat
Compete in a homemade imitation of a Japanese game show which centers on frivolous tests of ingenuity. Prove that you have more obscure knowledge than your friends, or that the judges like you better - we're not sure which.
Prerequisites
Small amounts of obscure knowledge, excitement, the ability to deal with entirely arbitrary rules
Prerequisites
Small amounts of obscure knowledge, excitement, the ability to deal with entirely arbitrary rules
X10720: Drilling for Chocolate
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Elizabeth Krueger,
Jayson Lynch
Are you interested in how the petroleum industry works? How about chocolate? Come learn how oil companies go about finding and drilling for oil by trying it for yourself. With a team of your fellow students, you'll be competing to get the data and find the oil without going bankrupt. Except instead of oil, you'll be drilling for chocolate.
X10585: Ballhawking 101: Snagging a Baseball at a Major League Baseball Game
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Jason Zagorski
Baseball fans - heads up! If you want to snag a baseball at your next Major League Baseball game, this is the perfect course for you. Learn all the tips, tricks, and secrets that go through the mind of a "ballhawk" each game, and hopefully you'll be able to walk home with one (or maybe six) baseball(s) after your next game.
Prerequisites
Be a baseball fan and know how to use a computer
Prerequisites
Be a baseball fan and know how to use a computer
X11193: Introduction to Investing
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Stephenie Zhang
Interested in stocks? Come learn about how to start investing in stocks, from how the stock market works to how to pick which stocks to buy. We'll show you the qualitative and quantitative ways analyze a company, as well as walk you through what a well-researched stock pitch consists of.
Prerequisites:
Prerequisites:
X10656: Steak: Theory and Practice Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Ryuga Hatano,
Lucia Lam
TIred of USDA standard beef? Steer yourself on over and meat your fellow cownnoisseurs! We'll moove from the science of cooking meat to useful tools and techniques for preparing beef. Classes this well done are rare, so it would be a missteak to miss this.
Prerequisites
While you do not need to be able to eat beef to participate, your experience will probably be much better if you could partake of the results.
Prerequisites
While you do not need to be able to eat beef to participate, your experience will probably be much better if you could partake of the results.
X10796: Earth Art
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Xaelel Allen-Caballero,
Hope Seasholes
Earth Art or Land art has been around for centuries. It began with things such as Stonehenge and Indian Burial Mounds and has now transformed into a more contemporary conceptual art. This art is created in the environment from renewable or natural items. They can decompose and be left to biodegrade and contribute to other systems. It can also be impacting and raise awareness. Such as a social commentary or satire.
Art is important, weather you agree or not. It is a creative outlet and it gives us a voice without even having to say a single word. We see 90% of the information we take in. Visual literacy is instrumental in learning and the way we perceive our world.
The underlying aim of creating Earth Art has always been to craft artistic imagery using earth, rocks, soil and other natural material, with a view to increasing our sensibility towards our environment. To heighten public awareness of Man's relationship with the natural world, we will delve more into what earth art is and why it is useful. We will analyze some specific pieces and artists as well as discuss ways in which art applies to systems in our world. Lastly, we will make art that is both fun and environmentally friendly, while actually incorporating natural resources into the process.
Art is important, weather you agree or not. It is a creative outlet and it gives us a voice without even having to say a single word. We see 90% of the information we take in. Visual literacy is instrumental in learning and the way we perceive our world.
The underlying aim of creating Earth Art has always been to craft artistic imagery using earth, rocks, soil and other natural material, with a view to increasing our sensibility towards our environment. To heighten public awareness of Man's relationship with the natural world, we will delve more into what earth art is and why it is useful. We will analyze some specific pieces and artists as well as discuss ways in which art applies to systems in our world. Lastly, we will make art that is both fun and environmentally friendly, while actually incorporating natural resources into the process.
X10732: Introduction to Puzzlehunts Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Brian Chen,
Andrew He
Do you like word games? Logic puzzles? Creative problem solving? Join us to learn about puzzlehunts, a fun style of puzzles and puzzle events blending all of these types and more, and try your hand at solving some puzzles!
Prerequisites
Having a device that can access the internet is useful, but not essential. If you've ever done well in a puzzlehunt before, this might be too easy for you. I heard there are some other puzzly classes; you might want to look into them...
Prerequisites
Having a device that can access the internet is useful, but not essential. If you've ever done well in a puzzlehunt before, this might be too easy for you. I heard there are some other puzzly classes; you might want to look into them...
X10779: Making the Best Financial Decisions for You: College, Career, etc...
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Patricia Craig
A handful of major decisions can really influence your life and possibly have a lasting influence on your future happiness. What career you choose, what college you attend, how you pay for college, who you choose to marry, whether you buy a house or rent - - these are some of the really big "financial" decisions. The purpose of this course is to help you expand your thinking on these very critical decisions with particular emphasis on college decisions.
Prerequisites
None
Prerequisites
None
X11186: Blogging 101
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Cherry Chen
If you've ever wanted to create a blog or sustain/manage one, take this class! We'll go over the basics of platforms you can use, using social media channels to reach and retain audience, defining a niche/personal brand, creating content etc.
X10945: How to succeed at any interview
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Anagh Tiwary
Figure out how to interview well. Learn the skills and tricks needed to look good in an interview setting, whether for college or for an internship/job. Fast paced and seminar style so be prepared to get involved.
X10636: Creating a Multi-Million Dollar Company as a College Student
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Anayet Chowdhury
Are you ready to change your life?
This course will cover entrepreneurship, innovation, how to start a start-up company, understanding money and the true harsh realities that too many students face after graduation. This course is designed for all students regardless of which field you are interested in.
Come join this class, I promise you will not regret it!
This course will cover entrepreneurship, innovation, how to start a start-up company, understanding money and the true harsh realities that too many students face after graduation. This course is designed for all students regardless of which field you are interested in.
Come join this class, I promise you will not regret it!
X10966: Traveling the Continental USA
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Lori Trojak,
Michael Trojak
Ever think about taking a summer to see the USA? I’ve visited all 50 states by car/van/RV/train/plane alone/with friends/ with family and on a budget. The USA has some of the most beautiful sites and wonders in the world. Join me for a quick trip around the USA through photos and stories highlighting the best of what I saw. Plus, l’ll also give a handout of recommendations for each state. Hopefully by the time you leave, you will have a blueprint for your own trip! (FYI - This is a partner class with Exploring Alaska and Hawaii offered after this class. But either can be taken alone!)
Prerequisites
A sense of adventure and wonder!
Prerequisites
A sense of adventure and wonder!
X11117: Ask a Random Couple Anything
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Madhumita Gopal,
Thomas Gosart
Come ask questions. Any and all questions are welcome. We are a random couple who are college freshmen, studying physics and neuroscience. Free of charge. There will be candy. Trust us.
X10780: Developing Your Inner Strength: Some Tips for Managing Hard Times
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Patricia Craig
Every person has times in their life when it is really tough. Whether a parent lost a job, a grandparent just died, someone you know has cancer, parents are getting divorced, or not fitting in at school - - - coping and trying to stay upbeat seems nearly impossible. This course will provide some helpful hints on managing those rough patches. The hints are drawn from the following books, “The Adversity Quotient”, “How to Stop Worrying and Start Living”, and “The Fifth Discipline Fieldbook.” Additionally, some hints from Stanford Professor Michael Ray’s course, “Creativity in Business” will be discussed.
X10844: How to Actually Change the World Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Angelina Li,
Daniel Ziegler
From the ALS ice bucket challenge to ads for disaster relief campaigns, we're constantly bombarded with messages about how to help others. But some charitable organizations are doing more harm than good, and only a small handful are both highly effective and supported by data. This class will take a hard look at our obligations to the world, and introduce students to ideas in the growing field of high-impact altruism.
X11051: Exploring Alaska and Hawaii
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Lori Trojak,
Michael Trojak
Alaska and Hawaii have unique stories to tell. With an abundance of natural beauty, multitude of geologic wonders, and distinct cultural heritage, these states offer visitors much to be explored and experienced. Join me as we explore volcanoes, glaciers, the Arctic Ocean, whale migrations, the Aurora Borealis, Denali, giant ancient sea turtles and one of the clearest observatories on top of the tallest mountain in the world (Not Everest!) Come and see what all the fuss is about.
(FYI - This class is a partner to Traveling the Continental USA which is offered just before this class but not required.)
Prerequisites
A sense of adventure and wonder:)
(FYI - This class is a partner to Traveling the Continental USA which is offered just before this class but not required.)
Prerequisites
A sense of adventure and wonder:)
X10712: Savage Worlds Tabletop RPG
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Srinivas Kaza,
Tyler Pleasant
Have you ever been interested in Dungeon & Dragons or other tabletop RPG's but not gotten the chance to try? Love tabletop RPG games and would like to learn more systems?
Well come join for a session of Savage Worlds, a genre-generic tabletop RPG system. I will teach everything needed to play so no prior knowledge is required. I will send out a google poll when schedules are selected so you can have a say in the genre you want to play.
Well come join for a session of Savage Worlds, a genre-generic tabletop RPG system. I will teach everything needed to play so no prior knowledge is required. I will send out a google poll when schedules are selected so you can have a say in the genre you want to play.
X10608: The Art of Twitterbots
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Megan Belzner
A Twitterbot is a program which automatically generates and posts tweets, and can be used for anything from spam to reminders to generative art. We'll look at a variety of Twitterbots from across the platform, ranging from the bot that screams at regular intervals to the bot that tries to describe the contents of a photograph. From here, we'll think about the role of Twitterbots as a form of art and as a medium of internet culture, examine some of the possibilities and (in)famous failures of bots, and talk a bit about how to make a Twitterbot yourself.
X10700: Tantrix Training
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Valerie Richmond,
Melinda Szabo
Ever heard of the quick but challenging, puzzling but simple, fun but frustrating multiplayer game Tantrix? This elegant tile game requires visual-spacial strategy along with understanding of the simple placement rules to create a suspenseful head-to-head match. Now you can learn about the basic game play and even play against your friends! Easy to learn, but impossible to master.
X10908: Cookies n' Code Full!
Difficulty: **
YUMMY CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES!!
Make them! Eat them! Share them with your friends! And learn a little code while waiting for the cookies to bake.
Prerequisites
Bring a computer
Make them! Eat them! Share them with your friends! And learn a little code while waiting for the cookies to bake.
Prerequisites
Bring a computer
X10819: Study Abroad in High School-- For Free!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Mikayla Murphy
Ride camels in Morocco. Celebrate Chinese New Year in China. Sing K-pop in Korea. Become fluent in Bosnian. Go skiing in the German alps. Attend 11th grade in Ghana. Find your home away from home in Macedonia. Eat turkey- in Turkey!
Guess what? You could do all of these while still in high school- for free!
Come learn about US government-sponsored study abroad programs designed especially for high schoolers! We'll talk about programs such as CBYX, NSLI-Y, and YES Abroad, as well as discuss the benefits and challenges of studying abroad in high school. We'll also go over application tips and tricks and other advice on how to prepare for a trip overseas.
Prerequisites
An interest in other cultures- no previous travel or foreign language experience necessary!
Guess what? You could do all of these while still in high school- for free!
Come learn about US government-sponsored study abroad programs designed especially for high schoolers! We'll talk about programs such as CBYX, NSLI-Y, and YES Abroad, as well as discuss the benefits and challenges of studying abroad in high school. We'll also go over application tips and tricks and other advice on how to prepare for a trip overseas.
Prerequisites
An interest in other cultures- no previous travel or foreign language experience necessary!
X10586: Dungeons and Dragons Tabletop RPG Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Haley Bates-Tarasewicz
You toss aside your bow and draw your sword as the slobbering beast draws closer. You slash at it as it snarls and bears down on you. You step back only to feel the cool stone wall of the cave at your back. You steel yourself and begin chanting. The air around you glows and crackles as you prepare to cast the spell.
Come play a one-shot tabletop campaign! We'll be playing Dungeons and Dragons 5th edition. Fight horrible monsters, explore dungeons and loot the dragons hoard!
Prerequisites
Familiarity with tabletop RPGs is suggested but not required. No prior knowledge of the dungeons and dragons system necessary.
Come play a one-shot tabletop campaign! We'll be playing Dungeons and Dragons 5th edition. Fight horrible monsters, explore dungeons and loot the dragons hoard!
Prerequisites
Familiarity with tabletop RPGs is suggested but not required. No prior knowledge of the dungeons and dragons system necessary.
X10922: Make Your Own Drawstring Bag
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Mae Dotan
Learn how to sew with a sewing machine by making your own drawstring bag!
Bonus, make a custom drawn the bag pocket :)
Bonus, make a custom drawn the bag pocket :)
X10771: Sound and Audacity Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
AJ Whitman
Ever listened to the world around you? Want to see what you're actually hearing? In this class, we will look at and learn about sound and it properties, learning a bit about how to use the program Audacity in the process.
X10983: Your First Problem Set!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Hao Shen
Ever wanted to see what problem sets at MIT are like? We'll take a look at some problems from a variety of classes and pick the ones you want to do!
X10717: Purpose, Process, Progress
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
A L
Often we are told to tap into our passions, values, vision, willpower, strengths and more, utilizing them to get unstuck, make breakthroughs, propel our careers and change the world. But accessing these vital aspects of ourselves isn’t always straightforward. Purpose, Process and Progress is a space for sharing resources and perspectives to help you access your passions, values, vision and more.
Purpose, Process and Progress is a space for sharing resources and perspectives to help you access your passions, values, vision, strengths and more.
Interested in being more purposeful and productive with your creativity for academic aspirations or personal pursuits? Come find out about resources that can help connect your creativity to your passions, values, vision and more, then share resources and perspectives you’ve found useful.
Purpose, Process and Progress is a space for sharing resources and perspectives to help you access your passions, values, vision, strengths and more.
Interested in being more purposeful and productive with your creativity for academic aspirations or personal pursuits? Come find out about resources that can help connect your creativity to your passions, values, vision and more, then share resources and perspectives you’ve found useful.
X10923: The Nature of Ideas
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Katherine Nazemi,
William Wu
Why do ideas spread? What makes an idea stick? How much is an idea worth? Can ideas change the world?
In this class, we’ll be exploring these questions (and asking more) through hands-on activities, group discussion, and thought-provoking examples.
Prerequisites
Curiosity, interest, and a willingness to ask “why?”.
In this class, we’ll be exploring these questions (and asking more) through hands-on activities, group discussion, and thought-provoking examples.
Prerequisites
Curiosity, interest, and a willingness to ask “why?”.
X10598: Nerds' Declassified College Survival Guide
Difficulty: *
It's scary trying to jump from high school to college, but we're here to help make that jump a little less scary. We'll provide useful information and personal insight about the college application process, decision-making once results are released, and the transition to college life. Bring questions!
X10618: Learn to Play Go (Weiqi/Baduk)
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Cam Wagner
Come and enjoy the deep game of Go. Go is a strategy game, currently as widespread in Asia as Chess is in the Western world. The goal of the game is somewhat abstract: to control a larger portion of the board than your opponent. You can capture your opponent's pieces by surrounding them.
The rules are extremely simple; yet from simplicity comes endless complexity and strategic depth. We'll teach you how to play, and then you can come up with your own strategies as you play against your classmates.
The rules are extremely simple; yet from simplicity comes endless complexity and strategic depth. We'll teach you how to play, and then you can come up with your own strategies as you play against your classmates.
X10953: Myth it Up: Would Amaterasu and Amun-Ra be besties?
Difficulty: **
A journey into perhaps more esoteric myth, we will explore some mythologies that are less well known in mainstream culture. Explore deep into the wilds of man's stories, and discover themes in people who lived worlds apart, uncovering some of what really makes us not so different after all.
X10746: Hacking the Mind with Meditation
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Blake Elias
Learn some simple breathing techniques, explore the mind-breath connection, and meditate! Learn how the breath can affect the state of our mind, lead to different states of consciousness, automatically reduce stress, increase focus, and make us more productive and effective at working with others. Enjoy some guided meditation!
This may be the best preparation you can do to make sure you are at peak mental capacity. So that you can learn as effectively as possible from the rest of MIT Splash! (Or do well in school, apply to colleges, or succeed at anything!!!)
Students may also take an interest in S10607: The Neuroscience of Meditation.
Compared with that class, you may expect this one to be more practical application and less theory. We won't delve into all the science (though we will talk about some). We will devote more time towards getting ourselves into an actual meditative state, reflecting on the experience as a group, and presenting/discussing ideas that can help us bring a meditative state of mind into everyday life.
Prerequisites
Have a functioning brain :) Be on time :) (though if you arrive a bit late you may come anyway) Helps to be on a relatively empty stomach: 2 hours since your last meal would be best (though snacks are okay). The practices are also most effective during morning-time, so if you have a choice, sign up for that one! It will give you a fresh mind to take with you the rest of the day. You do NOT need to already be a calm/meditative person, or have any prior experience with meditative practices. This class will help everyone, whether you have experience or don't!
This may be the best preparation you can do to make sure you are at peak mental capacity. So that you can learn as effectively as possible from the rest of MIT Splash! (Or do well in school, apply to colleges, or succeed at anything!!!)
Students may also take an interest in S10607: The Neuroscience of Meditation.
Compared with that class, you may expect this one to be more practical application and less theory. We won't delve into all the science (though we will talk about some). We will devote more time towards getting ourselves into an actual meditative state, reflecting on the experience as a group, and presenting/discussing ideas that can help us bring a meditative state of mind into everyday life.
Prerequisites
Have a functioning brain :) Be on time :) (though if you arrive a bit late you may come anyway) Helps to be on a relatively empty stomach: 2 hours since your last meal would be best (though snacks are okay). The practices are also most effective during morning-time, so if you have a choice, sign up for that one! It will give you a fresh mind to take with you the rest of the day. You do NOT need to already be a calm/meditative person, or have any prior experience with meditative practices. This class will help everyone, whether you have experience or don't!
X10886: Writing Up Math
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Justina Yang
Have you ever written down an equation? If so, come practice your mathematic handwriting! We'll cover tips for making your work legible (especially relevant for math and science competitions), symbols like Greek letters and how to write them, and notational conventions.
X10730: Being a Proud Tribesman
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
James Koppel
Give an American soldier a heavy pack, and moving becomes harder. Give it to an African villager, and moving becomes easier. Turns out they're just better at walking than us. And standing and sitting. Come learn why everything you know about posture is wrong.
Superpowers to be had from this class include the ability to see things directly behind you and being able to sleep on a wooden log. Some increase in height may be expected. Warning: Upon completion of this class, your life may feel like an endless massage. You may also experience a sudden urge to replace all your furniture.
Prerequisites
Bring a jacket, or something else soft and moldable. We will be using it to modify the shape of chairs.
Superpowers to be had from this class include the ability to see things directly behind you and being able to sleep on a wooden log. Some increase in height may be expected. Warning: Upon completion of this class, your life may feel like an endless massage. You may also experience a sudden urge to replace all your furniture.
Prerequisites
Bring a jacket, or something else soft and moldable. We will be using it to modify the shape of chairs.
X11045: Puzzles That Make You Think Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Daniel Zaharopol
A lot of people like Sudoku, and they're fun puzzles, but there's a problem with them: they're all the same. Once you learn some basic strategies, you're mostly doing the same thing over and over again. In this class, each puzzle will be new and different. You'll have to keep coming up with new strategies, developing your thinking and learning to tackle new situations. You'll learn to stretch your mind and be more creative when faced with a new problem. Join us for a fun time, solving at your own pace and going over all kinds of different challenges!
X10714: Knitting for Beginners Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Lauren Bustamante
Learn how to knit so you can make cute scarves, hats, and socks for your friends and family for the holidays!
X10646: Making Bagels! Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Regan Dvoskin
Have you ever wondered how bagels are made? What about wanted to make them yourself? This course will teach you both! Students will leave with the knowledge of how to make bagels from scratch and at least one freshly made bagel.
X10767: B-B-Beatboxing Basics
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Anthony Cheng
Learn the basics of beatboxing [for amateurs with little to no experience].
Prerequisites
A mouth.
Prerequisites
A mouth.
X10890: Everything You Wanted to Know About College..and More Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Matt Drosselmeier
I started off my college career commuting to college, I then went to a community college and finally ended up leaving home for college. In this hour you'll learn all about applying to college, getting financial aid, and much much more.
Snack and music will be provided. Think about your favorite songs and feel free to come with suggestions for the playlist.
Snack and music will be provided. Think about your favorite songs and feel free to come with suggestions for the playlist.
X10737: The Memecosystem Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Megan Belzner
The meme ecosystem, or memecosystem, controls the internet at the highest level. Come explore it! We'll discuss what memes are, where they come from, and what makes a good meme. If you ever wanted to overanalyze silly internet jokes, this is the class for you.
Prerequisites
None, but knowing some examples of memes will make discussion more interesting.
Prerequisites
None, but knowing some examples of memes will make discussion more interesting.
X10834: LGBT... Q?
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Lydia Brown,
Shain Neumeier
There is increasing awareness and, arguably, acceptance of LGBT people and issues in society. However, that acronym, and the average person's understanding of the queer community, still leaves a lot of people out. This class will discuss such topics as:
* The asexuality spectrum
* Romantic orientation vs. sexual orientation
* Non-binary genders
* Intersex conditions
* Pansexuality and its overlap with bisexuality
* The overlap between the LGBTQ community and other communities
Students will hopefully come away with a better understanding of the broader queer/LGBTQ community and have resources to explore the issues further if they would like.
Prerequisites
No prerequisites necessary. However, this course will discuss difficult subject matter including sex, rape culture and coercive medical treatment.
* The asexuality spectrum
* Romantic orientation vs. sexual orientation
* Non-binary genders
* Intersex conditions
* Pansexuality and its overlap with bisexuality
* The overlap between the LGBTQ community and other communities
Students will hopefully come away with a better understanding of the broader queer/LGBTQ community and have resources to explore the issues further if they would like.
Prerequisites
No prerequisites necessary. However, this course will discuss difficult subject matter including sex, rape culture and coercive medical treatment.
X10761: I Worked in College Admissions -- Ask Me Anything!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Amy Estersohn
A former admissions officer (me, writing about myself in the third person) will discuss the back-end of how an admissions office works and how admissions officers read applications.
Feedback from previous iterations of this class indicated more time for AMA-style Q+A, so this class is now two hours instead of one.
Feedback from previous iterations of this class indicated more time for AMA-style Q+A, so this class is now two hours instead of one.
X11098: The Mechanics of Human Nature
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Georgette Tso
Can you apply the physical laws used to study the mechanics of materials to study human relationships? Come and find out! I will attempt to predict whether your relationships will survive stress and strain by applying the laws of physics onto you and your partner/friend as if you were linear elastic/elastic plastic/viscoelastic materials.
Prerequisites
A bit of physics (mechanics) would be helpful.
Prerequisites
A bit of physics (mechanics) would be helpful.
X10860: Spontaneous 5-Minute Classes on Whatever You Want
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
David Rolnick
You choose the title, we improvise a 5-minute lesson on it! Bring your wackiest topic suggestions, and watch us embarrass ourselves as we teach you about them on the spur of the moment.
X10906: Why NASCAR is Awesome
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Dirk Stahlecker
Whether you're a NASCAR fan looking to learn more about the technical aspects of the sport or someone who has never even seen a race before, this class is for you! Come learn all about NASCAR racing, from the cars and tracks to the strategy and engineering behind the vehicles.
X10954: Extemporaneous 5-minute Classes on Absolutely Anything
Difficulty: *
Ever wondered about how to properly handle a crocodile? Ever wanted to know how to spot a split infinitive? Now's your chance to find out ALL the answers! Give us a title, we'll teach a 5-minute class on the topic! The weirder the topic, the more you'll get to see us embarrass ourselves as we make up answers on the spot. Bring your silliest, awesome-est, ludicrous-est ideas! (shameless idea cred to Anna '14)
X11104: Feeling Blue Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Haley Cope,
Jacob Martin
We all have down days but what if all of your days are down? Why do some people have difficulty with their daily activities just because of their brain? This class explores some of the science of depression and the human aspect of what to do if you or a friend is having trouble.
X10603: Want to save a life? Learn CPR and First Aid! Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Anjali Misra,
Hannah Rudoltz
Come join MIT EMS for a quick training in Hands-Only CPR and First Aid! We’ll go over the basics of chest compressions, practice on mannequins, and have you trained to do CPR within minutes. Then, you'll learn about how you can use First Aid techniques to help out in a variety of emergencies. Immediate CPR can triple a cardiac arrest victim’s chance of survival, so we guarantee this will be worth your time. Come by and learn how to save a life today!
X10749: Yoga and Meditation Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Francesca Majluf
Why do people do it? What could possibly be fun about sitting still for more than 30 seconds? How can yoga be a sport? Come learn the answers to these questions and how meditation and yoga can make you a better version of yourself.
X11040: Letter Security 101 Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Mitchell Gu,
Jingyi Zhao
Learn the best way to seal letters.
X10715: The Mess known as Club Soccer
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
William Sablove
When I was your age, only one kid in school played for a club soccer team. Today, anybody who can kick a ball plays for GPS or NEFC or one of the other giant clubs. How did it get like this? What caused the explosion of club teams even with a contraction of clubs? Why does every coach come from England or the Caribbean? This course will explore what triggered the boom and how it has affected youth soccer in the United States. Also, there will be a referee discussion and roundtable.
Prerequisites
Must play or have played soccer for a club, town, or school. Referees are encouraged to sign up.
Prerequisites
Must play or have played soccer for a club, town, or school. Referees are encouraged to sign up.
X10677: Science of Chocolate/How to make truffles Full!
Difficulty: *
Do you love chocolate? Ever wonder why chocolate melts in your mouth? Or gets dry and crumbly when it's old? Join us to discover the science and engineering behind chocolate! Learn how to go from a cocoa bean to a truffle and discover phase diagrams, nucleation, and a little bit of history while you're at it. Ample chocolate will be provided.
X10915: What happens behind the scenes when you take the airplane?
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Quentin Wellens,
Christine You
What happens with the plane, baggage, fuel, handling, catering before a flight takes off or lands?
Prerequisites
none
Prerequisites
none
X10984: Financial Planning 101 for College Living
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Lori Trojak,
Michael Trojak
What do you need to pack/ purchase for a typical dorm room? What expenses outside of tuition, room and board and books will you need or want to cover each month? Should I have a credit card or bank account? Some expenses can vary greatly depending on the college, nearby town and personal wants but we will cover the basics in this class and leave you with a spreadsheet that you can fill in with your own particular information/ expectations and estimates as you speak with different colleges..
Prerequisites
None.
Prerequisites
None.
X10686: What your schools didn't teach you Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Anne LoVerso
Let's talk sex ed. We'll cover FAQ, LGBTQIA+ resources and questions, safety, pleasure, sex toys, masturbation, everything in between, no shame. We'll have some discussions and a ton of time for Q&A.
This course title is intentionally vague, because I want you to be able to sign up for this class without worrying about awkward questions.
This course title is intentionally vague, because I want you to be able to sign up for this class without worrying about awkward questions.
X10691: How to Pass Four or More ASEs Without Knowing Much
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Robert Kao
If you decide to enroll at MIT, you should consider taking a bunch of Advanced Standing Exams (ASEs) when you begin your freshman year so that you can get credit for the easy classes and take more interesting one. Don't worry, it is not as hard as it seems if you study the right way. This class will teach you how to tackle problems of the type found on ASEs.
Prerequisites
It helps if the students have taken AP-level classes in Calculus BC, Chemistry, Physics C, and Biology, but these are not requirements.
Prerequisites
It helps if the students have taken AP-level classes in Calculus BC, Chemistry, Physics C, and Biology, but these are not requirements.
X11081: Introduction to Rugby Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Jazmine Henderson,
Olivia Washington
This is an introduction to the rules and some of the most basic motions of the game. After learning about the brief history of the game and what each position does, we will try some fun (non-contact) drills on how to pass and catch and then we will finish off with a contact free scrimmage.
Prerequisites
None!
Prerequisites
None!
X11077: K-Pop Dance 101 Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Ara Adhikari
Come learn some fun k-pop dance moves! :D
X10575: This Class is NOT a Puzzle
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Runpeng Liu,
Sophie Mori
We shall puzzle over some of life's greatest mysteries
Prerequisites
Imagination, patience, and a willingness to be wrong
Prerequisites
Imagination, patience, and a willingness to be wrong
X11023: Why Things Are the Way They Are
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Joshua Evans
Why are things the way they are? In this class, we'll explore the causes of everything from grand historical events to mundane everyday realities. Why does the universe exist? Why did Europeans take over the world? Why did crime drop in the mid 1990s? Why doesn't America use the metric system? Why did you have so much trouble finding your way around Boston? Why did this election go the way it did? Why are video games seen as a boys club?
The answers to these questions and more will span science, history, economics, and geopolitics, so be prepared for anything!
A basic understanding of geography, history, science, and critical thinking is expected, but students will probably be able to pick things up on the fly.
The answers to these questions and more will span science, history, economics, and geopolitics, so be prepared for anything!
A basic understanding of geography, history, science, and critical thinking is expected, but students will probably be able to pick things up on the fly.
X10909: Intro to Yo-yos Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Philip Phan
Interested in yo-yos? Always wanted to learn how to "walk the dog"? Come join for a introduction to yo-yoing. We'll cover the basics of yo-yoing and learn the fundamental tricks.
X10916: Effective Altruism
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Juan Gil,
Francisco Pineda
Effective altruism is the practice of using evidence and reason to determine how to most improve the world. This class will discuss how YOU can be an effective altruist and make the greatest positive impact!
X10560: Intentional Talk
Difficulty: *
Come interact with other enthusiastic baseball nerds about the MLB 2016-17 season, playoffs, offseason, and sabermetrics! Don't know what the last word means? We can talk about that too!
Yes, the name of this class is ripped off the MLB Network TV show.
Prerequisites
A little knowledge about what transpired in the most recent MLB season.
Yes, the name of this class is ripped off the MLB Network TV show.
Prerequisites
A little knowledge about what transpired in the most recent MLB season.
X10878: Escape the Room Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Ben Cootner,
Matt Drosselmeier
You and your peers will be locked in a room. The only thing standing in the way of you and the key to escape is a series of increasingly complex puzzles. Think you can do it?
This is a mystery puzzle. Find the hidden objects, figure out the clues and solve the puzzles to earn your freedom. The game is designed for intense cooperation and working together.
This is a mystery puzzle. Find the hidden objects, figure out the clues and solve the puzzles to earn your freedom. The game is designed for intense cooperation and working together.
X11102: Paranoia!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Robert Rusch
Ever wanted to live in a totalitarian, dystopian police state! Well now you can through the magic of the pen and paper RPG Paranoia. Experience the joy of navigating the maze of inane bureaucracy as you attempt to stop the mutant communist traitors. You'll even learn about actual real world totalitarian states as well! And remember, happiness is mandatory!
X10729: Being an Immovable Object Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
James Koppel
If you twist your shoulder in the right way, you can lift twice as much. Tense your abs in the right way, and you can punch three times as hard. Whether you like martial arts or yoga, dancing or football, or even if you just want to seem more confident when presenting, you can do more with less effort when you put your body in a position of stability. So come to this class and get better at everything!
X11012: College Transition 101
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Tina Quick
Learn the secrets to a successful college transition - what every institution of higher learning SHOULD be discussing at orientation and beyond. Learn what to expect in transition and how to avoid common student pitfalls.
X10594: Ultimate Frisbee 101 Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Annie Phan,
Richard Yip
Learn the basics of ultimate frisbee - throwing, pivoting, forcing, vertical stack, cutting effectively. Then scrimmage! We'll wrap it up with a throwing competition to see who can, as they say, "grip it and rip it."
Sneakers and athletic clothes required!
Sneakers and athletic clothes required!
X11115: How to Produce Music Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Shreyas Kapur
Ever wondered how most music is actually made? Want to learn how Major Lazer, Calvin Harris, Flume or Martin Garrix make their tracks? We'll dissect the Top 40 pop tracks and learn how to create our own tunes using FL Studio.
X10742: Live, Laugh, Lead: Exciting Leadership Activities
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Blake Berk,
Allie Shepard
Crossing deadly rivers of molten chocolate, escaping explosive minefields, and constructing great pyramids. Now what does all this have to do with Leadership? Come and find out…
Do you like games, teamwork, creative problem solving, or having fun? Want to know how this can help you become a better leader? Come and participate in fun interactive activities, and maybe learn a thing or two about leadership.
The Leadership Training Institute (LTI) is a high school mentoring program right here at MIT, and we will be sending mentors to lead what will surely be a jam-packed session of excitement, fun, and thoughtful conversation.
Do you like games, teamwork, creative problem solving, or having fun? Want to know how this can help you become a better leader? Come and participate in fun interactive activities, and maybe learn a thing or two about leadership.
The Leadership Training Institute (LTI) is a high school mentoring program right here at MIT, and we will be sending mentors to lead what will surely be a jam-packed session of excitement, fun, and thoughtful conversation.
X10722: How to Survive Almost Anything
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Mindy Wu
What do you do if you're stuck in a car underwater? What if you find yourself in quicksand? Learn what to do if you ever find yourself in a sticky situation!
X10626: Science Requires G-d
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Yale Zussman
Application of the processes of Science to Science itself leads to the conclusion that an entity with all the necessary properties of
G-d must exist -- or Science itself will rest on shaky grounds. Come find out why.
G-d must exist -- or Science itself will rest on shaky grounds. Come find out why.
X10912: Needle Felting Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Alicia Ouyang
Life become frustrating and needs more cute things? Stab things until they become cute! Poke your heart's content onto wool until it becomes your favorite plushie!
X10989: How to Run a Splash
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Clio Macrakis,
Mikayla Murphy
Ever thought about what happens behind-the-scenes when you sign up for Splash classes? Or how all of our teachers and classes fit into MIT's classrooms? Splash takes months to plan, and for good reason. Come learn how we make Splash happen every year!
X11157: Intuitive Explanations of Big Concepts Full!
Difficulty: **
TBD
X10996: Gedankenexperiment: The Power of Critical Thought
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Norman Cao
The thought experiment has been used throughout history to critically evaluate the claims and assumptions we make, while providing us a way to frame and advance our understanding of the world. This class aims to cover some of the most famous thought experiments in science, math, and philosophy (such as Einstein's "Gedankenexperiments", Zeno's Paradoxes, or the Chinese Room), with a focus on understanding the thought processes behind them and the practical consequences of the experiments. Hopefully by the end of the class you'll be able to use critical thinking and your own thought experiments to critically evaluate the world around you.
X10862: Amazing Insects
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
David Rolnick
Come learn about beetles with suction cups, ants that explode, and wasps that use metal-tipped drills! Find out why fruit is red and what the fireflies are talking about when they glow. Look at insects that pretend to be poop, insects that hide in poop, and insects that eat poop. In this class, we will see why insects are so interesting and, in many cases, beautiful.
X10832: Indie RPGs Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Shain Neumeier
Many people have heard of Dungeons & Dragons, but there are a lot of equally amazing tabletop games out there -- and some only take a few hours to learn and play. Come to this session, and we'll learn to play one. I will be bringing Microscope (2-4 players), Durance (3-5 players), and Archipelago (small group, probably 3-5 people), and the group will vote on which one they want to play. All three involve a lot of participation by the group in playing as far as worldbuilding and character creation.
If more people show up than can play a single game, I will be glad to lend one of the other books to a different group to play and help as needed to figure out the rules of the game.
Prerequisites
None
If more people show up than can play a single game, I will be glad to lend one of the other books to a different group to play and help as needed to figure out the rules of the game.
Prerequisites
None
X10752: Working With Children
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Alexis Oriole
If you have ever wanted to be a teacher, scout leader, camp counselor, etc., or if you are just interested in learning about working with kids, then this class is for you! We will cover topics such as child abuse prevention and age group characteristics, and, most importantly, we will be learning leadership skills and how to lead games and songs with kids ages 5-13. I believe in hands-on learning, meaning we will play many games ourselves!
X10667: Sex Ed is Fun!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Katya Leidig,
Kaitlyn O'Donnell
Are you interested in comprehensive sex ed? Do you wonder what your health teacher left out? Are you curious how sex ed applies to the LGBTQ+ community?
Come learn all the sex ed your health teacher never taught you and discuss related topics in a nonjudgmental, safe space.
Come with questions!
Prerequisites
The ability to talk about sex in a mature manner.
Come learn all the sex ed your health teacher never taught you and discuss related topics in a nonjudgmental, safe space.
Come with questions!
Prerequisites
The ability to talk about sex in a mature manner.
X10741: Fun with Flags!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Matthew Hutchinson
Matthew Hutchinson presents Fun with Flags! Ever heard of vexillology? How about vexillography? Come join our exploration into the fascinating world of flags! Topics covered will range from history to design. No prior knowledge required, but come prepared to have fun and participate in an interactive classroom.
X11169: Tour of MIT
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
MIT Tour Guides
Take an official MIT Admissions tour of MIT! Parents will not be allowed on these tours -- there will be separate tours available at Parent's Program.
Prerequisites
None!
Prerequisites
None!
X10897: Deep, Dark Angsty Stuff
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Soumya Ram
Do you ever find the world to be absurd? Come here, and we'll talk about the foundations of war and violence, mix in a little psychology, and try to explain why the world is the way it is.
X10587: Call of Cthulhu Tabletop RPG Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Haley Bates-Tarasewicz
You run terrified down an old dusty hallway as a dark being not of this world chases just behind you. You clutch a spellbook and turn to face the creature, looking into its flat yellow eyes as you yell the incantation. As the light dances from your fingertips, you just hope it'll be enough. You feel your mind slipping further and further into insanity.
Come play a one-shot Tabletop campaign! We'll be playing Call of Cthulhu 6th edition. The system makes use of H. P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu mythos. Dark mysteries and morbid secrets await!
Prerequisites
Familiarity with tabletop games is suggested but not required. No prior knowledge of the Cthulhu mythos or the Call of Cthulhu system necessary.
Come play a one-shot Tabletop campaign! We'll be playing Call of Cthulhu 6th edition. The system makes use of H. P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu mythos. Dark mysteries and morbid secrets await!
Prerequisites
Familiarity with tabletop games is suggested but not required. No prior knowledge of the Cthulhu mythos or the Call of Cthulhu system necessary.
X10976: World Changer's Think Tank: Creating Sustainable Community Service Projects.
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Emily Pond
World Changer's Think Tank is a workshop that teaches middle school and high school students how to implement and execute effective, result-maximizing service projects within their communities.
X10690: Live Poker Tells Full!
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Kevin Li
People are really bad at hiding their hand. We'll talk about some ways they sometimes are really really obvious.
Prerequisites
Familiarity with some form of poker
Prerequisites
Familiarity with some form of poker
X10756: 4D Tic Tac Toe: Visualizing the Fourth Dimension
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Anthony Liu,
Abhinav Venigalla
Tic tac toe is a classic game, but the standard version is pointless. It's far too easy to develop strategies that guarantee you'll draw or win. You can make the game more interesting by increasing the board size, but even that becomes too simple after a while. For a truly intriguing alternative version, you need to move on to higher dimensions (2D, 3D, 4D). In this class, you'll learn the basics of visualizing the fourth dimension through the lens of four-dimensional tic tac toe. You'll have the chance to verse other students in 3D and 4D games, and you'll even learn how to do so in your mind, without any pen or paper.
Prerequisites
* knowledge of how to plot a point in 3D given its (x,y,z) coordinates (essential) * knowledge of combinations/permutations/summation for the mathy parts (optional)
Prerequisites
* knowledge of how to plot a point in 3D given its (x,y,z) coordinates (essential) * knowledge of combinations/permutations/summation for the mathy parts (optional)
Social Studies
Z10567: Underachievement - Changing Your Perspective
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Josh Shaine
A lot of students are told how bright they are, and yet, "Why aren't you living up to your potential?!" Parents, teachers, and even yourselves are asking just that. Maybe you really aren't as smart as they think? Join us to explore this incredibly uncomfortable place to be... I promise it will be thought provoking, if not fun!
Z11095: The American Judicial System Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Daniel Richman
The Supreme Court makes a lot of news. Did you know you can skip the news blurbs and read argument transcripts and legal orders yourself? We'll give a quick overview of the American justice system and discuss some key branches of the law. Then we'll jump in and look at some decisions!
Z11043: Get Caught Up with Current Events
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Kristina Schmidt
Sure, you may know who the president is, but what about all those other issues you see in between videos of puppies? Well, now is your chance to learn. What exactly is happening in Syria? What is the status of Taiwan? Why is NAFTA such a big topic of debate? What is this 'politics' thing and how do I get involved?!?! I can *maybe* answer these questions, and probably more!
Prerequisites
The less news you know the better!!!
Prerequisites
The less news you know the better!!!
Z10630: Privacy in America
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Arnav Sood
Most of us know that our government is watching, in that it maintains institutions to collect data on American citizens, foreign people, and the world at large. But what's the context for such surveillance? Is it effective now, and has it been in the past? How does it square with the Constitution, exactly, and how has privacy in general been treated by the government?
This class is a discussion of these questions, among others. The goal will be to use mock cases, and real case law, to let you talk more intelligently about how privacy works in the United States.
This class is a discussion of these questions, among others. The goal will be to use mock cases, and real case law, to let you talk more intelligently about how privacy works in the United States.
Z10566: Non-linear Thinking in a Linear World
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Josh Shaine
Does doing one thing at a time drive you batty? Do people frequently tell you to pay attention or to 'stay on topic?' Do you think in pictures instead of words? Does the whole "You have to do it in the right order" concept bother you? Join us for an exploration of the How's and Why's of non-linear thinking. We'll talk about how to recognize and develop strengths, not just how to 'fit in.'
Prerequisites
Open-mindedness.
Prerequisites
Open-mindedness.
Z11112: American Public Transit
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Daniel Richman
Public transportation: subways, buses, ferries, trolleys, railroads. But also paratransit, bicycle sharing, and commuter vans. We'll discuss case studies of recent failures: Boston's Green Line Extension, the Washington Metro, and the Bay Area BART system. Our question: what is transit today, and what should it be? We'll see a brief history of public transportation in America, its financing, and the origin of the word "commuter."
Z10926: The Dark Continent (Who Dimmed the Light?)
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Chibueze Amanchukwu
There’s a class 99% of you will never take during your educational career. A topic 99% of you would never learn. And this topic affects over a billion people. An entire continent. The continent that appears on your TV screen or your social media account whenever things go wrong. Things always seem to go wrong. We are talking about Africa. Come learn about colonialism and its continued effect on the continent. Why does it appear that most African countries can’t get it right politically, why there always appear to be brutal civil wars, why do the countries languish in poverty despite numerous natural resources? You are guaranteed to learn something new, and can be the change we wish to see in the continent. Previous Splash students rated the class 4.5/5. Sign up!
Z10948: Myth Matched: What do Hermes and Hermod have in common?
Difficulty: **
Cultures all around the world developed rich and varied bodies of myth, yet there are often striking similarities and differences. Come compare Greco-Roman, Norse, and other mythologies, discover weird comparisons and speculate about their origin, and discuss interesting differences!
Z10689: The Legacy of the Private Automobile in the United States
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Kevin Li
Cars have completely changed how we live, how we think, and how we move in this country. Highways crisscross our cities, traffic keeps us frustrated, and suburban development keeps us isolated and far from each other. How has this changed our country? We'll explore what the effects of this are and examples of transportation innovation as a reaction to this.
Z10911: How (not) to be an Econ
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Andy Wei
Do humans think rationally—or at least, behave as if they are rational? Or are humans just plain irrational (stupid) at times? Come and learn about the ways of an Econ (short for Homo economicus), and why economists love studying them so much! In the meantime, we will cover topics in microeconomics, game theory, and behavioral economics.
Prerequisites
That you are a rational, utility-maximizing agent (not). Rational thinkers welcome.
Prerequisites
That you are a rational, utility-maximizing agent (not). Rational thinkers welcome.
Z11031: How to Get to Hell: A Historical View
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Riley Drake
Since the formation of the early modern Catholic Church, conceptions of the afterlife have changed drastically. We'll discuss the history of purgatory, the influence of neoclassical literature on pastoral interpretation of scripture and the role of hell in the crusades. Special attention will be paid to the evolution of the most damning crime through the centuries as well as the role of deathbed confessions in missions abroad. Finally, we'll consider the evolution of the church's stance on religious pluralism, a topic considered publicly as early as 1449.
Z11147: Opinions
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Gaurav Singh
Do you have opinions? Well, we don't care about those in this class. In this class we will look at opinions of a different set of people, the Supreme Court. We will discuss how the Supreme Court works, and go through their opinions for a case together.
Prerequisites
Basic idea of the role of the supreme court
Prerequisites
Basic idea of the role of the supreme court
Z10743: Let's talk about Watergate
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Marcus Boorstin
Let's talk about Watergate - what actually happened (people broke into DNC headquarters), what people think happened (Rose Mary Woods erased some tapes?), and what probably didn't happen (aliens did everything?). Bring questions and conspiracy theories!
Z10973: A Primer on Existentialism
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Shi Ke Xue
For most people, the word "existentialism" means dreary-eyed philosophers and melodramatic tones of despair and nothingness. For the others who have learned what it actually means, it's a meaningful philosophy about how one should live an authentic life.
The focus will be on Sartre's existentialism, although other authors will be covered as well. For the first half of the class, we will investigate why life's not worth living and attempt to recover it in the second half.
Prerequisites
An interest in philosophy.
The focus will be on Sartre's existentialism, although other authors will be covered as well. For the first half of the class, we will investigate why life's not worth living and attempt to recover it in the second half.
Prerequisites
An interest in philosophy.
Z11024: Important Moments in History
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Joshua Evans
Ever heard of the Battle of Talas? How about the Taiping Rebellion? Or the Imjin War? Or Mansa Musa's Hajj? You're very much forgiven if you said 'no'. This class will fill in important areas of history that often aren't taught in schools, but are nonetheless vital to understanding how the modern world came to be. And yes, you should be prepared for lots of non-European history.
There will be some overlap between this class and my other class, Why Things Are the Way They Are, but this class will focus much more on important historical and political moments as opposed to explanations for everyday phenomena.
Prerequisites
Some basic knowledge of geography and history. If you can name all the continents and locate countries like France, Spain, Russia, China, Germany, and Iran on a map and have heard of the Roman empire, you should be fine.
There will be some overlap between this class and my other class, Why Things Are the Way They Are, but this class will focus much more on important historical and political moments as opposed to explanations for everyday phenomena.
Prerequisites
Some basic knowledge of geography and history. If you can name all the continents and locate countries like France, Spain, Russia, China, Germany, and Iran on a map and have heard of the Roman empire, you should be fine.
Z11055: Microeconomics
Difficulty: **
Learn about economics so you can understand the mentality of the capitalist machine and overthrow it!! A thorough coverage of perfectly competitive markets will be given.
Topics covered:
- assumptions of the perfectly competitive market model
- supply/demand curves
- equilibrium and surplus
- elasticity
- effect of government policy
- effect of trade
Topics covered:
- assumptions of the perfectly competitive market model
- supply/demand curves
- equilibrium and surplus
- elasticity
- effect of government policy
- effect of trade
Z10697: How to Win an Argument Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Jonathan Haber
Want to learn the secret behind winning every argument? The first step is to realize that an argument is actually a constructive endeavor between two parties, each trying to achieve the same goal (albeit by different means). Intrigued? Find out more by taking this class.
Z11028: Health and Healing in the Middle Ages
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Riley Drake
We'll investigate the diagnosis, treatment, and social implications of ailments in the medieval West. Though medieval medicine is often glossed over as rudimentary, medieval methods of healing were as varied as the complex ideological frameworks on which they were based. Topics of the course include herbal, magical, and alchemical remedies, saints, shrines, miracles and the professionalization of medicine.
Z10624: Everything You Need to Know About Prisons in the U.S. Full!
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Lydia Brown
Where do prisons come from? What are the purposes of prisons? Do they really hold up to those ideals? What is prison privatization? What are mass incarceration and the prison-industrial complex and why should you care? We're fascinated with shows like Oz, Prison Break, Orange is the New Black, and Wentworth but what do we really know about how prisons work in society, who is imprisoned (and why, and who isn't), and where our system fails?
Come to learn about the history of prisons and incarceration in the United States, how our criminal justice system stacks up against others internationally, and what current pressing issues we are now grappling with as a society. We will talk about the role of incarceration in institutional/structural racism, classism, and ableism (don't worry; we'll discuss those terms!) and the connections between prison abolition work and the Black Lives Matter movement as well as the psychological effects of solitary confinement, legal issues surrounding indigent (public) defense and access to counsel, and the ethics of alternatives to prisons.
Prerequisites
An understanding and willingness to engage in some heavy topics especially about violence and anti-Black racism. Class will likely get into detail about slavery, police brutality, and abusive conditions of confinement.
Come to learn about the history of prisons and incarceration in the United States, how our criminal justice system stacks up against others internationally, and what current pressing issues we are now grappling with as a society. We will talk about the role of incarceration in institutional/structural racism, classism, and ableism (don't worry; we'll discuss those terms!) and the connections between prison abolition work and the Black Lives Matter movement as well as the psychological effects of solitary confinement, legal issues surrounding indigent (public) defense and access to counsel, and the ethics of alternatives to prisons.
Prerequisites
An understanding and willingness to engage in some heavy topics especially about violence and anti-Black racism. Class will likely get into detail about slavery, police brutality, and abusive conditions of confinement.
Z10682: Egyptian Mythology: Creation to Contendings Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Ray Lardie
Most history classes gloss over Egyptian mythology in favor of studying the more well-known Greek and Roman gods—find out what you’ve been missing! We’ll cover the basic theories behind Egyptian cosmology, and many, many gods: from the major gods involved in the creation myth(s) up to the Contendings of Horus and Seth, from Osiris and Anubis, to lesser-known deities like Khonsu and Nit.
Prerequisites
If you're already familiar with ancient Egyptian mythology, you might bit a tad bored.
Prerequisites
If you're already familiar with ancient Egyptian mythology, you might bit a tad bored.
Z11149: How great was Peter the Great?
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Albert Kong
Was Peter the Great really that great? From his 18-month tour of Europe in the “Grand Embassy” to the Great Northern War, we will look into the personal life of Peter the Great and into a few historical legacies of Russia (Why are they so obsessed with warm water ports?) and their implications in today’s politics. No prior knowledge needed of Peter, greatness, or even today’s politics!
Z10696: How to Make (and Pass) a Test
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Jonathan Haber
Learn about how educators and professional test developers create accurate and effective assessments to evaluate student learning. If you're an practicing or aspiring teacher, or just want to know how the tests you've been taking are (or should) be developed and graded, this is the class for you.
Z11032: A Brief History of Public Health in the African Diaspora
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Riley Drake
What does it mean to be sick? What does it mean to be healthy? Is disease a social construct? When did health become a human right?
We'll attempt to answer these questions by drawing upon a rich history of case studies. We'll consider the importance of tribal healers like Domingos Alvarez in the British colonies, health and disease on the US plantation and the healing of freepeople in the reconstruction era. We'll also consider a few more modern case studies, like the establishment of schizophrenia as a black disease characterized by violence during the civil rights movement, the advocacy of the Black Panther movement, and the recent lead poisoning epidemic in Flint.
We'll attempt to answer these questions by drawing upon a rich history of case studies. We'll consider the importance of tribal healers like Domingos Alvarez in the British colonies, health and disease on the US plantation and the healing of freepeople in the reconstruction era. We'll also consider a few more modern case studies, like the establishment of schizophrenia as a black disease characterized by violence during the civil rights movement, the advocacy of the Black Panther movement, and the recent lead poisoning epidemic in Flint.
Z10974: Building a Surveillance State
Difficulty: ***
Teachers:
Shi Ke Xue
The Edward Snowden leaks have revealed that America is massively spying on every individual on a global scale. How did we reach this point? Why is global surveillance worrisome? And what tools and policies might push us closer to or further away from a totalitarian state?
Z10634: Game Theory in Movies
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Arda Gitmez
This is an introductory Game Theory course, with demonstrations of concepts via examples taken from movies (The Dark Knight, Dr. Strangelove, The Good the Bad and the Ugly are some of the stuff we will cover.) Take this if you want to learn/casually discuss about Dominant Strategies, Nash Equilibrium or Subgame Perfection... Or if you want to learn what Joker had in mind when he set the bombs!
Prerequisites
A little bit of math, and willingness for analytical thinking. Preferably some interest in movies!
Prerequisites
A little bit of math, and willingness for analytical thinking. Preferably some interest in movies!
Z11088: Voting Systems, Democracy, and Electoral Reform
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
John Raisbeck
Learn about different voting systems, the superiority of the alternative vote, and the reason we (well, adults) are forced to choose between two of the most hated candidates to ever run for president. We will discuss potential modifications to electoral systems in this country, far beyond the electoral college. We will also examine other aspects of voting unfairness, with a focus on mathematically resolvable problems like gerrymandering. In addition to discussions of voting theory, we will talk about the practicalities of implementing these systems.
This class will focus on the implications of various single-position voting systems, with relatively little time allocated to proportional systems for representative bodies. If there is interest, time can be allocated at the end of class to discuss adjacent issues.
This class will focus on the implications of various single-position voting systems, with relatively little time allocated to proportional systems for representative bodies. If there is interest, time can be allocated at the end of class to discuss adjacent issues.
Z10917: Introduction to Microeconomics
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Margaret Sands
Economics is really cool and microeconomics is even cooler than the rest of economics. This will be a super basic introduction to microeconomics covering basic supply and demand.
Prerequisites
It would be helpful if you knew how to take a derivative but if you don't that's cool and we'll just skip that part.
Prerequisites
It would be helpful if you knew how to take a derivative but if you don't that's cool and we'll just skip that part.
Z10928: Who Started the Fire?
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Kris Kim,
Libby Koolik
Well, Billy Joel didn't do it. Let's figure out who did as we rapid-fire through each event mentioned in Billy Joel's hit song.
Z10708: Elections: Theory and Practice
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Benjamin Kraft
Congratulations to ???, the 45th President of the United States!
By the time you take this class, we'll know how to fill in that blank, along with who will control the House and Senate, whether Massachusetts has legalized marijuana, and the results of thousands of other state and local races across the country. So we'll talk about all of that! Topics will probably include who won, which pundits, forecasters, and politicians were wrong, what it means for the government and the country, and why it happened.
Sore winners and sore losers not welcome; leave your gloating and moaning at the door.
By the time you take this class, we'll know how to fill in that blank, along with who will control the House and Senate, whether Massachusetts has legalized marijuana, and the results of thousands of other state and local races across the country. So we'll talk about all of that! Topics will probably include who won, which pundits, forecasters, and politicians were wrong, what it means for the government and the country, and why it happened.
Sore winners and sore losers not welcome; leave your gloating and moaning at the door.
Z10726: History of Japan
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Stephanie McHugh
In the year -1,000,000,000 Japan might not have been here. In the year -40,000 it was here. It's 2016 now; what's happened in between then?
Z10695: Critical Voter
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Jonathan Haber
Now that the election is over (thank God), what can you use from that experience to become a better thinker? This course will use examples from Presidential elections past to teach you the fundamentals of critical thinking, including logic, argumentation, persuasion, cognitive biases and media and Information Literacy. Don't get fooled again! Come learn to think for yourself.
Z11192: How to Train your Dog and/or Take Over the World Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Rebecca Reiss
In “How to Train your Dog and/or Take Over the World” we will learn about the basic principles of applied behavior analysis and how to use them to change human and animal behavior. All animals, including us, respond to the pleasant and unpleasant things in our lives in predictable ways and, by harnessing the power of these responses, it is possible to train your pets, change your life, and maybe even take over the world. Note: world-taking-over not guaranteed.
Z10947: All the World's a Game: Game Theory in International Relations
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Kelsey Becker,
Marianne Olsen
Come watch MIT Class of 2019's sole Political Science major and her Mechanical Engineering friend plagiarize our 17.41 professor and discuss how we can use game theory to analyze international relations!
Z10655: Basic Income: Why everyone should get free money Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Rebecca (Becky) Romatoski
If you are alive, you get free money. It could cure poverty, end global warming, reduce violence and more. A basic income is an income unconditionally given to all citizens on an individual basis, without any strings attached or requirements to be met. We'll cover the following material before debating whether a basic income is a good idea and how it might best be implemented: policy aspects of instituting a basic income in the United States, recent history, and how basic income is viewed from different ideological perspectives.
Z10707: Gerrymandering: Theory and Practice
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Benjamin Kraft
Gerrymandering: America's favorite political power play since 1812. We'll learn how and why parties draw congressional districts with nicknames like "The Pinwheel of Death", "The Mistake by the Lake", and "The 8 Mile Mess", and why it's hard to outlaw such madness. Then you'll get to try your hand at gerrymandering, to see if you can do better than your classmates at getting more seats for your party.
Z10898: The History of (MIDDLE) Earth
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
William Pinney
Is human history too human-centric? Do you wish there was a bit more magic in your Social Studies class? Or are you a Lord of the Rings buff interested in diving greedily into the backstory of middle earth? Come learn about the world of J.R.R Tolkien's Middle Earth, and the history of his fantastic mythos.
Z10789: Why Do We Procrastinate? Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Gina Li,
Nadia Lucas
Learn how standard economic models break down when humans have time-inconsistent preferences under the example of procrastination. Learn how to model your own procrastination and how to become sophisticated enough to overcome it!
Z10721: How To Get What You Want
Difficulty: *
Teachers:
Bryce Hwang,
Jenny Li
Discover the inner workings of the human brain that will allow you to trick everyone around you into getting what you really want.
Prerequisites
Exist.
Prerequisites
Exist.
Z10565: The Election is Over; What does it Mean? Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Josh Shaine
Your candidate won! You weren't sure that s/he would . . . but now, what does it mean? How will the next four years be different? The same? Join a discussion of the ramifications of the recent election. Explore the effects of the changes in the White House, Senate, and House of Representatives on the world, the country, and you.
Prerequisites
Passion and curiosity, and a cleaner result than in 2000!
Prerequisites
Passion and curiosity, and a cleaner result than in 2000!
Z10627: The Meaning of Election 2016 Full!
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Yale Zussman
Although this description was submitted before the polls opened, by SPLASH the voting will presumably be over and it will be time to try to figure out what happened, why, and perhaps what can be done to ensure it doesn't happen again.
Z11049: How We Got to the Civil War
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Daniel Zaharopol
You might think that Republicans and Democrats are at each other's throats now. You have no idea!
In the 1840s and 1850s, the country was a crazy place. People talked openly about slavery being a good thing and the superiority of the white race. But a growing movement started to see it as a moral wrong, and proxy wars were waged for influence in the country. The US attacked Mexico because we thought we were entitled to the land. A guy from Florida invaded Cuba. Three times.
This was when the Republican Party was born; when the Democrats were strong in the South and the Republicans in the north. Find out how it happened, and the incredible factors that led to a terrible war.
In the 1840s and 1850s, the country was a crazy place. People talked openly about slavery being a good thing and the superiority of the white race. But a growing movement started to see it as a moral wrong, and proxy wars were waged for influence in the country. The US attacked Mexico because we thought we were entitled to the land. A guy from Florida invaded Cuba. Three times.
This was when the Republican Party was born; when the Democrats were strong in the South and the Republicans in the north. Find out how it happened, and the incredible factors that led to a terrible war.
Z10967: How to be Less Wrong
Difficulty: **
Teachers:
Shi Ke Xue
Are you deeply invested in politics? Do you play Facebook games? Do you really know why you like the things you do?
In actuality, there are a lot of cognitive biases at play in every case that tint our reasoning. For various reasons, human psychology leads us to reach conclusions which are wrong and usually unnoticed. We will explore common biases which affect what we believe, how we make decisions, and how we behave. When it comes to thinking about ourselves, we can learn to be less wrong.
Prerequisites
None.
In actuality, there are a lot of cognitive biases at play in every case that tint our reasoning. For various reasons, human psychology leads us to reach conclusions which are wrong and usually unnoticed. We will explore common biases which affect what we believe, how we make decisions, and how we behave. When it comes to thinking about ourselves, we can learn to be less wrong.
Prerequisites
None.