ESP Biography



SHAUN DATTA, ESP Teacher




Major: 8,18

College/Employer: MIT

Year of Graduation: 2018

Picture of Shaun Datta

Brief Biographical Sketch:

Not Available.



Past Classes

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

S10951: Paradoxes in Physics in Splash 2016 (Nov. 19 - 20, 2016)
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!


S10952: Quantum Bomb Detection in Splash 2016 (Nov. 19 - 20, 2016)
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.


S10528: Books I Wish I'd Read Before College in HSSP Summer 2016 (Jul. 10, 2016)
This course will be a casual opportunity to read and discuss books I wish I'd read before college, either because they contain content that I feel would be useful to undergraduates (particularly those studying physics and math), or because I haven't had the time to sit down and appreciate them since coming to college. The reading list includes The Second Law by P. W. Atkins, What is Life? by Schr$$\ddot{o}$$dinger, A Beautiful Question by Frank Wilczek, and QED by Richard Feynman. The course will provide a forum for you to discuss your thoughts on the readings and engage in an open-ended conversation. This list is by no means exhaustive, and we can add or take away from our repertoire based on your interests. This class is going to be fun, so I hope you take it!


S9875: Bizarre biology facts in Splash 2015 (Nov. 21 - 22, 2015)
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.


S9905: A Taster of Relativity in Splash 2015 (Nov. 21 - 22, 2015)
Come learn about relativity, Einstein's brainchild that remedies inconsistencies in classical mechanics that occur when moving really fast. We will talk about length contraction, time dilation, look at spacetime diagrams, and discuss well-known "paradoxes" associated with the theory. If time allows, we will also take a look at general relativity (just conceptual, no math).