Institute Double Take
This photo is a long exposure shot of the MIT Great Dome taken shortly after midnight. I recently got a new camera and was eager to take it out on a night photo adventure, no matter how cold it was that evening. After a few star trail shots with the Boston skyline, I decided to head to campus. There are many photos of the iconic Great Dome on the internet, so I wanted to try something different. I started exposing the image at 55 mm, and after two seconds I manually adjusted the zoom ring until I reached the wide-angle 17 mm view with another 2 seconds remaining on the shutter. I had to try it a few times to make sure I timed it right and got the zooming movement as smooth as possible. The result was an unusual, interstellar look to MIT.
Institute Double Take
I saw a post on reddit.com/r/mit asking when “MITHenge” would be this year. I clicked the link in the post and discovered that the alignment of the setting sun with the Infinite Corridor has been measured and modeled for decades. Turns out, the predicted dates for this winter’s perfect alignment — when the setting sun would be visible from the very end of the Infinite, in Building 8 — were November 10-12. So, of course, I set a reminder in my calendar and grabbed a camera when the first predicted time arrived.
Events Nov. 18 – Nov. 24
Events Nov. 18 – Nov. 24 Tuesday (5:30 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.) Modern War Gardens: Paradise Lost, with photographer Lalage Snow, sponsored by the MIT Global France Seminar — 2-105 (7 p.m. – 8 p.m.) Innovations in Wind Energy Lecture Series: Cape Wind, presented by Cape Wind Communications Director Mark Rodgers, with pizza served — 3-333 Wednesday (3:00 p.m – 4:30 p.m.) Life after the Postdoc: Research positions beyond the tenure track, sponsored by the Office of the Vice President for Research — 46-3002 (4 p.m. — 6 p.m.) 2014 Engineering Boutique Night for all levels of engineering students, sponsored by GECD, registration required — Sheraton Commander, 16 Garden Street Thursday (8 a.m. – 1 p.m.) Choose to Reuse (dropoff starting 8 a.m., pickup starting 11 a.m). — 32 first floor (5 p.m. – 6 p.m.) MISTI-Russia Info Session — E40-496 Friday (8 p.m. – 10 p.m.) MIT Sounding: Roomful of Teeth, tickets free with MIT ID on Eventbrite — W16 (Kresge auditorium) (8:00 p.m. – 10:30 p.m.) MIT American Indian Science and Engineering Society shows Windtalkers, refreshments provided — 4-237 Saturday (7:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.) LSC shows 10 Things I Hate About You, tickets $4 in Lobby 16 — 26-100 (7 p.m. – 9 p.m.) MIT Brazilian Student Association and UA show Central Station, with traditional Brazilian food — 3-270 Sunday (4 p.m. – 6 p.m.) Fidelio Trio — 14W-111 (Killian Hall) Monday (7 p.m. – 9 p.m.) Regenarratives, with speaker Gabriel Kahan — E15-070 (Bartos Theatre) Send your campus events to events@tech.mit.edu.
The universe in a nutshell
To be or not to be, that is the question.
Not your typical Wednesday
On a typical Wednesday, I only have two standing appointments: a marketing class and a comparative literature class focused on leadership stories and ethics. The rest of the day is filled with group meetings, homework, a visiting speaker session every now and then, and of course, sleeping in, thanks to my afternoon classes.
Pledge to end sexual assault
This week marked the launch of the MIT “It’s On Us” campaign. “It’s On Us” is a national awareness campaign developed by the White House in order to eliminate sexual assault on college campuses. As a part of the “It’s On Us, MIT” campaign, students, faculty and staff are invited to sign the MIT Bystander Pledge. The pledge was written by MIT students of the Title IX Working Group, the student-staff coalition that organized the It’s On Us campaign at MIT.
Newbury Street shutdown
Where Newbury Street becomes the Boston Public Gardens, a large crowd of people of various ethnicities, genders, nationalities, colors, and ages began to march. To the brunch-eaters who paused mid-bite of quiche to try to make out what we were chanting; to the annoyed trio of girls whose path to Urban Outfitters we blocked with the incessant stream of bodies; to the tourists trapped between a fence and our anger with no choice but to hear our message: I do not apologize.
Events Nov. 04 – Nov. 10
Events Nov. 04 – Nov. 10 Tuesday (11:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.) DJing at a glance, sponsored by MIT Libraries — 14E-109 (6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.) MIT Sustainability Mixer — 6-104 Wednesday (12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.) Artists Beyond the Desk Presents Michael Yarsky — Killian Hall (7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.) Film Screening of Anita: Speaking Truth to Power, a documentary about Anita Hill’s fight to end sexual harassment, sponsored by the Graduate Consortium in Women’s Studies — 4-370 Thursday (5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.) MISTI Info Session: South Africa, food provided — E40-496 (8:00 p.m. – 11:00 p.m.) Shakespeare Ensemble presents Othello — W20, La Sala de Puerto Rico Friday (12:01 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.) Open mic in the Lewis Music Library, refreshments provided — 14E-109 Saturday (4:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.) LSC shows How to Train Your Dragon 2 (free) — 26-100 Sunday (2:30 p.m. – 4:45 p.m.) Samba and Jive Workshop, hosted by MIT Ballroom Dance Club — Lobby 13 Monday (5:15 p.m. – 6:15 p.m.) Great Jewish Personalities of the 20th century, sponsored by MIT Hillel — W11-180 Send your campus events to events@tech.mit.edu.
Quiet places
There are times when I’m on the MIT campus and I want some quiet. I enjoy being around people, but in the bustle of campus activities, sometimes you need some thinking space. Here are some of my favorite places to stay when I want a relaxing environment to work, chomp on food, or sleep.
Events Oct. 28 – Nov. 03
Events Oct. 28 – Nov. 03 Tuesday (4:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.) Examining Ebola Interdisciplinary Panel — 4-163 (4:30 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.) Putin’s Kleptocracy: Who Owns Russia? — E40-496 Wednesday (11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.) MIT Events Fair 2014, sponsored by CAC — W20 3rd floor (5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.) MISTI Info Session: India, food provided — E40-496 Thursday (7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.) Ultimate Truths: Comparing Science and the Humanities, sponsored by MIT Communications Forum — 32-123 Friday (12:00 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.) Starr Forum: Palestine Now, a conversation with Husam Zomlot — E40-496 (8:00 p.m. – 11:45 p.m.) Persian Students Association Halloween Party, $12 MIT, $16 non-MIT — Lobdell Saturday (6:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.) Deepavali and Hari Raya Celebration hosted by MITMASA — 6-120 (8:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.) Chongyang Festival Game Night — W20-307 Sunday (4:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.) Shakespeare Ensemble presents Othello — W20, La Sala de Puerto Rico (6:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.) Diwali Night 2014, hosted by MIT Sangam — Kresge auditorium Monday (5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.) MISTI Info Session: Singapore, food provided — E40-496 Send your campus events to events@tech.mit.edu.
Young, ambitious, and undocumented at MIT
Jose A. Gomez ’17 recalled sitting down his junior year of high school to contemplate his post-graduation plans. Like many now-undergraduates at the Institute, he had dreamed of applying to MIT for years but felt his chances of actually being able to attend were slim.
Institute Double Take
Being out and about during magic hour with a camera — the time right before sunrise and after sunset — is a great way to capture beautiful photos. The light is soft and tinged with warm colors. In the evening, the orange and yellow city lights illuminate the skyline, providing a nice contrast to the blue and purple skies. Everything glows. At 6:30 p.m. on October 8th, 2013, the sun had already set, and the sailboats were returning to dock in the fast waning rays of twilight. It was quite a colorful and serene scene, punctuated by the waxing crescent moon. A high aperture and ISO was used to keep as much of the scene in focus as possible. Even though the original was in color, a black and white version was created for a business that wanted a framed 30" by 30” print in their office. The original image was in 3:2, so a simple square crop wouldn’t work without cropping some of the sailboats. I used the content-aware resizing tool in Photoshop to keep the essence of the original image in the new aspect ratio, with the business’s approval.
Events Oct. 21 – Oct. 27
Events Oct. 21 – Oct. 27 Tuesday (5:15 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.) CME Info Session, sponsored by MIT GECD — 4-149 Wednesday (10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.) MIT Medical’s walk-in flu clinic — Walker Memorial lobby (6:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.) Solutions with/in/sight: From Bench to Bedside in Less Than Six Years, with speakers Matthew Vander Heiden and Katharine Yen — 76-156 Thursday (12:00 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.) Anonymity on the Go: A Talk About Tor on Mobile Devices, with speaker Nathan Freitas, RSVP for lunch — 37-252 (8:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.) A Sweet Trip Through Italy (3rd Annual), sponsored by MITALY— 32-162 (Forbes Cafe) Friday (8:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.) Night Market 2014, $5 pre-sale for MIT students, $7 for non-MIT students, $7 at door, sponsored by MIT CSC, AAA, ATS, SAO, and LEF — Lobdell (10:00 p.m. – 12:00 a.m.) LSC shows Guardians of the Galaxy, tickets $4 in Lobby 16 — 26-100 Saturday (6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.) Cena a las Seis, semi-formal evening sponsored by Latino Cultural center — 50-140 Sunday (10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.) Symposium on Theoretical Computer Science on the Occasion of Michael Sipser’s 60th Birthday, sponsored by Department of Mathematics — E15-070 Monday (2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.) Job Search for International Students, sponsored by MIT GECD, advanced registration requested via CareerBridge — 32-144 Send your campus events to events@tech.mit.edu.
Institute Double Take
It’s not easy to see the night sky through Boston’s severe light pollution. But the camera can often see more of it than the human eye. On the night I took this photo (Oct. 6), I’d actually tried take a picture of the Milky Way from the edge of the Charles River. It should seem ludicrously impossible to photograph the Milky Way from anywhere remotely near a city, but it can actually be done with enough work in post-processing.
Events Oct. 14 – Oct. 20
Events Oct. 14 – Oct. 20 Tuesday (11:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.) Streetwise (Safety Fair), sponsored by MIT Parking and Transportation, Institute Events, and MIT Police — W20 (7:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.) Pizza in the Hut, sponsored by MIT Hillel — Hillel Sukkah (Kresge) Wednesday (6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.) The Environmental Poisoning of Iraq: Why Academics Must Speak Out, with speakers Muhsin Al-Sabbak and Mozhgan Savabieasfahani — 32-141 Thursday (10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.) MIT Medical’s walk-in flu clinic — W20 2nd floor (6:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.) Big Cats, Panama, and Armadillos: A Story of Climate and Life (4th Annual John Carlson Lecture), free admission — New England Aquarium IMAX Theater Friday (8:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.) Jupiter String Quartet All Beethoven Concert, $5 admission in advance via Eventbrite for MIT community members — W16 (Kresge auditorium) Saturday (4:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.) Children’s Diwali Party, sponsored by Westgate and GSC — 50-140 (Walker Memorial, Morss Hall) (6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.) Durga Puja Celebrations 2014, sponsored by MIT Bangladeshi Students’ Association and Office of Multicultural Programs — W20-307 Sunday (9:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.) Swapfest: hi-tech, computer, electronics, and ham radio flea market, $6 buyers admission, $4 with MIT/Harvard student ID — N4, Albany St. garage and lots Monday (5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.) How to Evaluate, Accept, or Decline a Job Offer, sponsored by MIT GECD — 4-149 Send your campus events to events@tech.mit.edu.
Events Oct. 07 – Oct. 13
Events Oct. 07 – Oct. 13 Tuesday (5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.) Free Self Defense Workshop hosted by Coach Hagymas of MIT Tennis — DuPont Wrestling Room (6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.) MIT Museum Soap Box: How to Make Life and Influence Planet — N51 Wednesday (4:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.) How to Find a UROP, sponsored by Undergraduate Advising and Academic Programming — 5-134 (7:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.) Cleantech Entrepreneurs Panel, sponsored by MIT Energy Club and MassCEC — E40-160 Thursday (6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.) Dussehra Social and Diwali Night auditions, hosted by MIT Sangam — W20 Lobdell Dining Hall (6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.) Urban Films: Dark Days, sponsored by the Department of Urban Studies and Planning Friday (6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.) Take Back the Night, hosted by Alpha Epsilon Phi and Alpha Chi Omega — Student Center Steps (rain location: 20 Chimneys) Saturday (6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.) MITHAS presents Mysore Brothers (violin duo), $10 admissions for students and seniors, $30 otherwise — 32-123 Sunday (6:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.) MIT Cricket Tournament, sponsored by LEF and GSC Funding Board — Barry’s Field Monday (5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.) MISTI-Israel Info Session, food provided — E40-496 (7:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.) 2014 Folk Music of the British Isles & North America presents Jeff Davis, sponsored by Music and Theater Arts, Literature Section — 14W-111 Send your campus events to events@tech.mit.edu.
Domestic violence awareness
Before we even arrived for orientation at MIT freshman year, we were all supposed to have completed an online program of alcohol, sexual misconduct, and general safety training. I don’t remember much about those videos besides the amazingly awkward acting, but I do remember having to take an exam and perhaps a survey at the end to make sure I understood the important life lessons I had just been taught.
The People’s Climate March
“Is Earth fu**ed?” asked a provocatively titled talk at the 2012 American Geophysical Union, one of the largest gatherings of climate scientists in the world. Believing — like most scientists — that although planet Earth will continue to exist in the face of global warming, its inhabitants are indeed currently fu**ed, I decided to postpone laundry and lab and head to Manhattan for the People’s Climate March the Sunday before last.
Events Sept. 30 – Oct. 06
Events Sept. 30 – Oct. 06 Tuesday (7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.) Iran, The Bomb, and Nuclear Disarmament: Understanding the call to eliminate nuclear weapons, sponsored by The Technology and Culture Forum at MIT and Massachusetts Peace Action — 32-155 Wednesday (5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.) MTA Composer Forum presents Alvin Curran. sponsored by Music and Theater Arts and MIT Libraries — 14E-109i (MIT Lewis Music Library) (5:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.) How do physical spaces foster innovation? with speakers David Chang of Paypal and Nadeem Mazen of danger!awesome, sponsored by MIT Enterprise Forum of Cambridge — District Hall, 75 Northern Ave Thursday (4:00 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.) Muddled Information, with speaker Alex Frankel, sponsored by MIT/Harvard Theory Workshop — Littauer-M16, Harvard Friday (12:01 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.) Open mic in the Lewis Music Library, refreshments provided, sponsored by MIT Libraries — 14E-109 (7:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.) LSC shows X-Men: Days of Future Past, tickets $4 in Lobby 16 — 26-100 Saturday (9:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.) HackMIT, sponsored by MIT TechFair — W34-101 Sunday (11:30 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.) China National Day BBQ, sponsored by CSSA and CAST — NW35-Hulsizer Monday (10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.) From Songs to Symbols, From Calls to Speech Graphs, with speaker Sidarta Ribeiro, sponsored by McGovern Institute for Brain Research — 46-3189 (3:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.) MOOCs: Open Education with Old and New Learners, with speakers Jeff Haywood and Lori Breslow, sponsored by Office of Educational Innovation and Technology — 4-270 Send your campus events to events@tech.mit.edu.
Sincerity on a day-to-day basis
It was a simple question really, but we often overlook the significance of simple questions. One day during the second semester of my senior high year in high school, a friend asked me in passing, “How are you doing?” I froze.