ESP Biography



BRIAN LEE, Self-taught programmer, chemist, go player




Major: 5

College/Employer: Hubspot

Year of Graduation: 2011

Picture of Brian Lee

Brief Biographical Sketch:

Did chemistry for most of my high school / college career, but switched over to computer programming after deciding grad school wasn't for me. I love playing Go and am involved in organizing events around the Boston area.



Past Classes

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

W9858: The Game of Go in Splash 2015 (Nov. 21 - 22, 2015)
Go is a 2-player board game originating in ancient China. The rules to Go are very simple and easy to learn, but playing well requires deep strategical thinking. No matter your skill level, feel free to stop by and play!


C7860: Scheming Away in Splash! 2013 (Nov. 23 - 24, 2013)
Have you ever wanted to learn how to program? Learn how to program in Scheme, one of the simplest yet most powerful languages ever designed.


S6576: Origami Mathematics in Splash! 2012 (Nov. 17 - 18, 2012)
Let's talk about the rules that govern origami folding. No special math background required!


W5077: Play Go! in Splash! 2011 (Nov. 19 - 20, 2011)
This walk-in seminar is run by the MIT Go Club. Go is a truly great game with simple rules but endless complexity, so whether you are a complete beginner or an expert or anywhere in between, you should stop by and learn/play some go! Some info about Go: Go, also known as Weiqi in Chinese and Baduk in Korean, is a game that originated in China about five thousand years ago. Two players, black and white, take turns placing a stone on a 19 by 19 board. The objective is to control a larger territory than the opponent. The rules are so simple; yet from simplicity comes endless complexity and strategic depth. Whereas the strongest chess programs can routinely defeat grandmasters, the strongest Go program can be defeated by a strong club player.


X5352: Real-world Philosophy in Splash! 2011 (Nov. 19 - 20, 2011)
Let's talk real philosophy. Not the kind that you learn in school. The real kind, free of any and all literary/humanities BS.


X4672: Learn to Play Go in Spark! 2011 (Mar. 12, 2011)
Go, also known as Weiqi in Chinese and Baduk in Korean, is a game that originated in China about five thousand years ago. Two players, black and white, take turns placing a stone on a 19 by 19 board. The objective is to control a larger territory than the opponent. The rules are very simple; yet from simplicity comes endless complexity and strategic depth. Whereas the strongest chess programs can routinely defeat grandmasters, the strongest Go program can be defeated by a strong club player.


X4110: Learn to play Go in Splash! 2010 (Nov. 20 - 21, 2010)
Go, also known as Weiqi in Chinese and Baduk in Korean, is a game that originated in China about five thousand years ago. Two players, black and white, take turns placing a stone on a 19 by 19 board. The objective is to control a larger territory than the opponent. The rules are so simple; yet from simplicity comes endless complexity and strategic depth. Whereas the strongest chess programs can routinely defeat grandmasters, the strongest Go program can be defeated by a strong club player.


X3328: Learn to play Go! in Spark! 2010 (Mar. 13, 2010)
Learn how to play the ancient game of Go! "While the Baroque rules of Chess could only have been created by humans, the rules of Go are so elegant, organic, and rigorously logical that if intelligent life forms exist elsewhere in the universe, they almost certainly play Go." - Edward Lasker


X2691: The mathematics behind music in Splash! 2009 (Nov. 21 - 22, 2009)
Have you ever wondered why we have 12 notes to an octave? Why was Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier so revolutionary? Why does a middle C from a guitar sound different from a middle C on a piano? For that matter, why does a computer-generated middle C sound so boring? What the heck does T-Pain do with his recordings?


A3029: Nationalism of the Romantic Period: Chopin to Rachmaninoff in Splash! 2009 (Nov. 21 - 22, 2009)
Love classical music from the nineteenth century? Can't get enough of Chopin or Dvorák or Sibelius? Then come join us for a survey of classical music of the Romantic era! We'll discuss the development of nationalistic themes in music and listen to some of the best examples from Russia, Finland, Norway, Czechoslovakia, Spain and beyond!


S2395: Chemistry of the Elements in HSSP Summer 2009 (Jul. 12, 2009)
Everyone knows about the Periodic Table of the Elements. But for most people, it's just that - a table. Come learn about the quirks and strange personalities of the elements! Students should know basics of chemistry (what atoms are, how to balance simple chemical equations)


Learn to Play Go in SPARK (2011)
Go, also known as Weiqi in Chinese and Baduk in Korean, is a game that originated in China about five ...