The MIT Thread

glennmagusharvey

Pretty sure this will be SFW unless you want to talk about inserting architectural style Q



into campus T

glennmagusharvey

Actually let's make this a Tim thread as well.

Yarrun XIX

Secret: I never actually finished the application for MIT. Due to them not being on the Common App, the application got borked and they sent me a message weeks after the deadline asking me to resend the recommendations. Me being a even more of an anxious wreck then than I was now, I decided to just not finish the application and hope that it didn't screw me over in April. And lo and behold, it didn't.

Anonus

Moose Institute of Toe Dancing

Calica

i didn't get into mit so w/e

Tre

Caltech sent me a couple of interest letters but I didn't bother pursuing them because I don't actually hate myself, despite appearing otherwise on occasion

MIT may have done so early on? I can't remember, but I'm probably not going there

glennmagusharvey

Tre said:

Caltech sent me a couple of interest letters but I didn't bother pursuing them because I don't actually hate myself, despite appearing otherwise on occasion

MIT may have done so early on? I can't remember, but I'm probably not going there

MIT's actually a pretty fun place to be, as long as you are punting your schoolwork, or you really love what you're studying.

There's a ton of interesting extracurricular stuff.  The Mystery Hunt.  Model Railroad Club with an impressive setup.  An anime club with an impressive and actively maintained library and big-screen showings.  Robotics contests.  A square dancing club that lets singles participate (and you can get physical education credit for being in it).  A chamber music club and a symphony orchestra.  A dorm that puts on its own theater production in-house every year.  A stuff-swap/freecycling service that people actually regularly use, from which you can get lots of interesting items and raw materials for your pet projects.  A number of dorms that allow you to construct all sorts of pet projects for enhancing your dorm, from simple bed lofts to hooking up a laptop and speakers to the bathroom door so that you can enjoy your favorite tunes while you shower.  A fundraising contest for professor-hating.  Indoor capture-the-flag that works even in the depth of winter thanks in part to generously-connected basements and tunnels.  DIY wooden roller coasters and ziplines.  Elaborate Rube Goldberg machines on the friday after Thanksgiving.  Free programming classes.  Pretty famous Smash players.  And people staying up until absurd hours of morning discussing game design.

And last but certainly not least, a strong tradition of elegant and clever pranks, with an associated tradition of exploration, complete with a safety code.

(No, I did not participate in all of these things.  Not even close.)

The only qualm about all this is that it almost certainly counts as "punting".  The act of punting is defined as not tooling.  "Tooling" is defined as working really hard on something you have to do, in other words, studying.  The slang exists because a local shop was once known as "Cambridge Tool and Die", and a student once read it wrong and found it appropriate thought it was funny.

For reference, from the 2007-2008 version of How To Get Around MIT:

tool - v. To study.  (See powertool.)

powertool - (1) n. An electrically operated tool.  (2) v. What one has to do to catch up on the entire term in any given course the night before the final exam in that course.

punt - (1) v.t. To determine after analytical deliberation not to do something, said something often academic in nature.  (2) v.i. To be in the process of not doing something.

glennmagusharvey

I love this fucking book.

Here are some choice quotes.

The Library Access to Music Project (LAMP) occupies channels 63-78, allowing you to listen to self-chosen selections from the MIT music libraries when it's not broken.  But we know you have 2 gigs of mp3s on your computer so LAMP is mostly worthless nowadays.

2 gigs is an understatement eight years after its publication.

Earthshaking developments that the major networks are carrying (space shuttle incidents, unapproved terrorism) are routed to the lobby monitors in Lobby 10.

According to those in the know, the most important campus periodical to watch out for is Voo Doo, MIT's only intentionally humorous publication.  All the other magazines and newspapers are somewhat amusing, but they don't it on purpose and you will find yourself laughing at them not with them.

furry fish - Cat; references the general rule that fish were the only pets officially permitted in dorms, except for the ones that require them for rodent control.

scrod - (1) n. A baby codfish popular to eat in Massachusetts.  Example: "I got scrod at the Dining Hall." (2) v. Past tense of screw.  Example: "I got scrod at the Dining Hall."

snow - n. Brown, cold particles that cover sidewalks and gutters through Boston winters.  Rumored to contain water.  Now available in blue and pink variations.

Big Screw - A 4', solid aluminum, left-handed thread, wood screw presented by Alpha Phi Omega during Spring Weekend to the faculty or staff member voted most deserving.

Yes, this is an actual thing.

cheese graters - Nickname of the ridiculous metal booths in Lobby 7 that replaced the low-key, "messy" functionality of drop posters and publications shelves with the lofty architectural form of giant, obstructive kitchen implements.

Basically, some large objects that served as posting-boards and dispensers for the student newspaper were replaced with these strange triangular steel things with lots of holes in them for no apparent reason.  Against a backdrop of classical columns, beneath a domed ceiling.

MITFCU - MIT Federal Credit Union.  Not pronounced "MIT-fuck-you" despite possible temptation, as the Credit Union is actually very cool.

The Asgard
Brewpub/Bar, Irish.  Stop laughing, it's pronounced "ash-guard."  If you like your food pseudo-Irish in a setting reminiscent of Braveheart, then this is the place for you.  Expect standard American bar fare with wacky Irish names - try to read 'Galway Buffalo Wings' or 'Celtic Quesadilla' with a straight face.  Large oak chairs and tables bring you back to medieval times, but the good selection of beers will remind you of the present.  Sometimes featuring live music, also from today's world.  Avoid the Tuesday Trivia Night, you know, unless you're into that kinda thing.  Accepts V, MC, AE, DC. (2006)

If waiting a week is too long [to get married] or your future spouse is scared of needles, Rhode Island has no blood test requirement or waiting period (though it may be hard to arrange the crucial third element of having Elvis perform the ceremony).

There are copying machines everywhere, particularly on campus.  Most offices have one, and there are several in the library.  There is also CopyTech, for large jobs, they can usually help you find something that fits your budget; ask LSC or APO for advice.  (See MIT Facilities chapter for details).  For smaller jobs (if you don't look too suspicious), most office workers will ignore you when you come in to use their copy machine.

glennmagusharvey

I somehow very thoroughly fucked up the formatting of my post by trying to center-justify something. Oh well.

Alduin

i completely forgot that you went to mit

glennmagusharvey

Arnold Arboretum
The Arboreutm
[sic] is a beautiful 265-acre park filled with over 6000 labeled
varieties of trees, vines, and flowers.  "No bicycling or picnicking,
except on Lilac Sunday in May." On most days, simply walking through the
park and taking pictures can fill hours.  Hours: Weekdays 9-4, Sat
10-4, Sun 12-4.  Admission: free.

My Freedom Planet reference opportunity senses are tingling.



so apparently i had the above saved as a draft many moons ago

glennmagusharvey

whatever

in any case, i wish i were still at the tute some days