ESP Biography



JAYSON LYNCH, MIT first year PhD in Theoretical CS




Major: 8, 6

College/Employer: MIT

Year of Graduation: G

Picture of Jayson Lynch

Brief Biographical Sketch:

Although my deep and secret love has always been physics, after studying it for my undergrad degree at MIT I've now fallen to the dark side of Theoretical Computer Science. I also enjoy larping, game design, teaching, and caving.



Past Classes

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

M12540: Sharing Information Without Knowing It and Other Wonders of Cryptography in Splash 2018 (Nov. 17 - 18, 2018)
In this course we'll discuss how to prove you know something without telling anyone the answer and how to split up information so a group can know a secret without any individual knowing any part. These fascinating results called Zero Knowledge Proofs and Secret Sharing use relatively simple math to achieve seemingly impossible results. We'll even cover methods you can implement at home!


M12560: The Computational Complexity of Games and Puzzles in Splash 2018 (Nov. 17 - 18, 2018)
Every hear about P vs. NP? Did you know that this fundamental mathematics question also relates to games and puzzles? This class will explore how the mathematics of computational complexity relates to games and puzzles.


X11797: The Science of Chocolate, How to Make Truffles in Splash 2017 (Nov. 18 - 19, 2017)
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.


X11315: Drilling for Chocolate in Spark 2017 (Mar. 11 - 12, 2017)
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!


X10720: Drilling for Chocolate in Splash 2016 (Nov. 19 - 20, 2016)
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.


L10337: The Science of Chocolate in Spark 2016 (Mar. 12 - 13, 2016)
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.


C10411: Famous Results From Female Computer Scientists in Spark 2016 (Mar. 12 - 13, 2016)
From the first programming language and the first computer bug to work on the protocols that keep our information safe and revolutionizing the very notion of a proof, female researchers have made amazing contributions to computer science. We'll take a tour through some of these results and discuss their impact on the field as a whole.


M10186: "Bayes Balls"- A Playful Introduction to Inference Using Graphical Models in Splash 2015 (Nov. 21 - 22, 2015)
A visual and intuitive way to think about how statistically related quantities depend on each other! (Also called "America's favorite rational pastime")


P9282: The Science of Chocolate in Spark 2015 (Mar. 14 - 15, 2015)
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. Chocolate will be provided.


X9304: Drilling for Chocolate in Spark 2015 (Mar. 14 - 15, 2015)
Are you interested in how the petroleum industry works? How about chocolate, are you interested in that? 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. It's gonna be good.


S8693: Drilling for Chocolate in Splash 2014 (Nov. 22 - 23, 2014)
Are you interested in how the petroleum industry works? How about chocolate, are you interested in that? 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. It's gonna be good.


S8729: The Science of Chocolate in Splash 2014 (Nov. 22 - 23, 2014)
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. Chocolate will be provided.


X8180: Drilling for Chocolate in Spark 2014 (Mar. 15 - 16, 2014)
Are you interested in how the petroleum industry works? How about chocolate, are you interested in that? 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. It's gonna be good.


S7772: Drilling for Chocolate in Splash! 2013 (Nov. 23 - 24, 2013)
Are you interested in how the petroleum industry works? How about chocolate, are you interested in that? 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. It's gonna be good.


M7972: Impenetrable Secrets in Splash! 2013 (Nov. 23 - 24, 2013)
How can we ensure that two people must send in the command to launch a nuclear weapon? Or how can a corporation restrict access to their proprietary data when a majority of the board members agree? Is it possible to prove to someone you know a password without telling them what that password is? We will be exploring solutions to these situations in the form of zero-knowledge proofs, secret sharing, and other ideas from modern cryptography


S6681: Drilling for Chocolate in Splash! 2012 (Nov. 17 - 18, 2012)
Are you interested in how the petroleum industry works? How about chocolate, are you interested in that? 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. It's gonna be good.


X5762: Chocolate Tasting in Spark! 2012 (Mar. 10, 2012)
Come learn the fine art of tasting chocolate. We will be sampling a variety of dark chocolates while leaning about their composition. We will discuss the flavors, textures, and composition that gives each chocolate its own unique character.


H5177: Board Game Design, A Comparative Study: Puerto Rico, San Juan, and Race for the Galaxy (Part 1) in Splash! 2011 (Nov. 19 - 20, 2011)
The award winning board game Puerto Rico was adapted into the card game San Juan. Race for the Galaxy was developed out of another prototype adaption of Puerto Rico. We will play and compare these three games. Points of interest include the similarities between San Juan and Puerto Rico despite having some fundamentally different mechanics, whether the science fiction setting of Race for the Galaxy changes how it feels, and consider the design decisions given each game was released several years after the previous one. These three games will provide a context to study board games and game design. Part 1 will cover some basic background on board game criticism and design, as well as play and discussion of the game Puerto Rico.


H5576: Board Game Design, A Comparative Study: Puerto Rico, San Juan, and Race for the Galaxy (Part 2) in Splash! 2011 (Nov. 19 - 20, 2011)
This is the second part of a two part course on board games and game design. This is intended for people who have taken Part 1. In Part 2 we will play San Juan and Race for the Galaxy and analize these boad games using the ideas discussed in Part 1 of the class. We will then look into the history and relation of the games and discuss the games similarities, differences, and design in this context.


M4681: Combinatorial Game Theory in Spark! 2011 (Mar. 12, 2011)
Ever wanted to prove who can win a game? Love playing games like Hex, Chess, Nim, or Dots and Boxes? Curious what it means for a game to be impartial, zero-sum, or perfect information? Then join us as we play games, discuss strategies, and investigate the mathematics behind them.


C4683: Exploring Cellular Automata in Spark! 2011 (Mar. 12, 2011)
Have you heard of Conway’s Game of Life? What about Brian’s Brain, Rule 30, or van Neumann Universal Constructor? Come explore these fascinating models which exhibit complex behavior from relatively simple rules. We’ll spend time examining different types of Cellular Automata, altering the underlying rules to see what happens, and discussing some of the theory or application behind these models.


C4262: Exploring Cellular Automata in Splash! 2010 (Nov. 20 - 21, 2010)
Have you heard of Conway’s Game of Life? What about Brian’s Brain, Rule 30, or van Neumann Universal Constructor? Come explore these fascinating models which exhibit complex behavior from relatively simple rules. We’ll spend time examining different types of Cellular Automata, altering the underlying rules to see what happens, and discussing some of the theory or application behind these models.


M4289: Combinatorial Game Theory in Splash! 2010 (Nov. 20 - 21, 2010)
Ever wanted to prove who can win a game? Interested in Nimbers and Surreal Numbers? Love playing games like Hex, Chess, Nim, or Dots and Boxes? Then join us for some games and proofs as we explore this fun and fascinating field.


M4294: Transfinite Numbers - Comparing the Infinite in Splash! 2010 (Nov. 20 - 21, 2010)
What is the biggest number you can think of? What is twice infinity? How large is the set of natural numbers? We will answer such questions with an introduction to Cantor’s work on transfinite numbers. We will discuss some basic Set Theory, how to can compare infinite sets, and some of the implications of different cardinalities of infinite sets.


M3319: Transfinite Numbers - Comparing the Infinite in Spark! 2010 (Mar. 13, 2010)
How many numbers are there? What is twice infinity? What's bigger than infinity? How can infinitely many actually be very few? We will answer such questions with an introduction to Cantor's work on transfinite numbers. We will discuss some basic Set Theory, how we can compare infinite sets, and some of the implications of different cardinalities of infinite sets.


M1717: Big Numbers! in Splash! 2008 (Nov. 22 - 23, 2008)
You can probably think of functions that get big pretty quickly. $$x^3$$ is fairly fast, $$2^x$$ even faster. But those are tiny compared to some other functions we can come up with. Want to see some really really big numbers? Come to this class! Note: You should not come if you are afraid of expressions like $$7(2*3^7 + 1)(2*3^{7*(2*3^7 + 1)} + 1).$$


C1771: Cellular Automaton in Splash! 2008 (Nov. 22 - 23, 2008)
This class will introduce and experiment with some basic cellular automaton such as Conway's Game of Life and the Elementary Cellular Automata. We will observe some of the interesting patterns and properties within these simulations, and look at how different rules impact how these 0 player "games" unfold. Discussion may also include how complexity arises from such simple rules, and cellular automaton as universal computers.


Cellular Automaton in SPARK (2009)
This class will introduce and experiment with some basic cellular automaton such as Conway’s Game of Life and the Elementary ...