Undergraduate Seminars are offered in both fall and spring semesters. A seminar is a great way for you to add a unique extra dimension to your program of studies, e.g., to explore an area of interest or a style of learning not easily accessible to undergraduates in the MIT curriculum, e.g., small-group discussions or hands-on learning.
Seminars give 6 units of elective credit and are always graded P/D/F.
12.S23 Hands-On Astronomy: Observing Stars and Planets
16.S26 Modern Space Science and Engineering
17.S10 Conversations You Can't Have on Campus: Race, Ethnicity, Gender and Identity
22.S27 Controlled Fusion
24.S10 Being, Thinking, Doing (Or Not): Ethics and Your Life
SP.235 Chemistry of Sports: Understanding How Exercise Affects Your Body Chemistry
SP.268 Topics in the Mathematics of Toys and Games
SP.271 Beta-Testing Your Life at MIT
SP.324 Foundations of Leadership and Success for MIT Students
SP.325 The Benjamin Franklin Forum
SEM.095 Starting-Up New Technology-Based Business Enterprises at MIT — Part II
12.S23 Hands-On Astronomy: Observing Stars and Planets
Dr. Amanda Bosh
Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences
Units: 0-4-2 [P/D/F]
Lecture: R EVE (7-10 PM) (37-212)
Note: Attend the first mandatory organizational meeting at 7:00 pm on Wednesday, February 2, room 37-212. Regular sections meetings will be held from 7-10 pm on one day of the week (Monday-Thursday). Passing the seminar requires 100% attendance at observing sessions.
This seminar provides background for and techniques of visual observation and electronic imaging of the Moon, planets, satellites, stars, and brighter deep-space objects. It is an introduction to contemporary observational astronomy, including astronomical computing, image and data processing, and how astronomers work. There will be required weekly outdoor observing sessions with 8-inch diameter telescopes when weather permits. Indoor sessions introduce needed skills. Student must maintain a careful and complete written log which is graded.
Seminar meets jointly with subject 12.409
16.S26 Modern Space Science and Engineering
Prof. Jeffrey Hoffman and Prof. Laurence Young
Aeronautics & Astronautics
Units: 2-0-4 [P/D/F]
Lecture: W3-5 (37-212)
Space science encompasses exciting new worlds - from the smallest protein crystals grown on orbit to the furthest reaches of the visible universe. Space engineering provides the means to leave the surface of Earth to study these phenomena and involves the highest of high technologies from rocket propulsion and guidance to robotics and communication. In this seminar astronauts, faculty, and guest speakers from several departments at MIT, and from our sister institutions involved in the Massachusetts Space Grant Consortium, will introduce the challenges of design and operation of manned and unmanned spacecraft. Speakers from our industrial affiliates will also come to discuss space industry challenges and possibilities for summer employment under the Space Grant Summer Jobs Program. Prof. Young, who spent two years training as a space shuttle crew member for a life sciences mission, will lead discussions of human flight research as well as the practical reality of living on the Space Shuttle. Prof. Hoffman, a former astronaut with five missions to his credit, including the repair of Hubble, is involved in the system design for human exploration of Mars.
Regular attendance and active participation in discussions will be expected, as well as a presentation of a summary paper on one of the scientific or engineering issues associated with these spacecraft.
Larry Young is Apollo Program Professor of Astronautics. Jeffrey Hoffman is Professor of the Practice in the Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics.
17.S10 Conversations You Can't Have on Campus: Race, Ethnicity, Gender and Identity
Ms. Tobie Weiner
Political Science
Units: 2-0-4 [P/D/F]
Lecture: W3-5 (E51-390)
What if you could get together with a diverse group of students on campus and communicate openly about difficult issues? Despite the increasingly diverse student population at MIT, students are often separated from each other by differences in race, gender, ethnicity or sexual orientation. They have little interaction with individuals who are different from themselves and are unable to benefit from the rich and diverse student population that exists on campus.
The goal of this seminar is to have fun conversations about serious issues in a nonstressful, informal setting. Here's a chance for cultural exploration -- both your own culture and the cultures of others. We hope to create a relaxed atmosphere in which people feel free to ask questions about "touchy" issues, flame about discrimination and stereotypes, and argue and intelligently discuss difficult issues.
The students in the class will choose many of the seminar themes but the issues we'll consider may include: What is race? What is ethnicity? How can communication and relationships between men and women be improved? What causes segregation in our society? How do stereotypes develop and why do they persist? How do individual's racial, ethnic and sexual identities form and develop?
We'll examine our themes using literature (nonfiction and fiction), film, video, art, and role playing. We'll invite guest speakers from the MIT community and the Boston/Cambridge area to join us for some discussions. Students are required to complete all reading assignments and write and turn in weekly reflection papers.
Tobie Weiner, the undergraduate administrator for the Political Science Department, has a BA in History (with a focus on African American Studies) and an MS in Criminal Justice. She coordinates the Internship Program in Course 17, the Community Service class, and has organized many activities at MIT concerning issues of race and race relations. One of her other passions is prodding students into heated discussions about race and gender issues. Tobie is the 1998 winner of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. leadership award.
22.S27 Controlled Fusion
Prof. Anne White
Nuclear Engineering
Units: 2-0-4 [P/D/F]
Lecture: R3.30-5 (24-121)
Fusion energy has the potential to provide almost unlimited amounts of electric power with minimal environmental impact as compared to other power sources. In this seminar Prof. Molvig and guest experts will talk about a range of plasma and fusion energy topics, including discussion of the global energy picture, the physics of fusion, fusion reactors and Tokamaks. Other fusion-related topics covered include plasma rockets for manned space missions, and plasma fuel converters for environmentally improved cars and trucks. The seminar group will also tour the Plasma Science and Fusion Center, including the Alcator C-MOD Tokamak.
Seminar meets with subject 22.012.
For more information: http://web.mit.edu/22.012/www/
Anne White is a faculty member in the Department of Nuclear Science and Engineering.
24.S10 Being, Thinking, Doing (Or Not): Ethics and Your Life
Professor Sally Haslanger
Philosophy and Women's and Gender Studies
Ms. Patricia Weinmann
Technology and Culture Forum
Units: 2-0-4 [P/D/F]
Lecture: R EVE (7.30-9 PM) (32-D461)
What is your responsibility to the global poor, the homeless, the disenfranchised? What sacrifices, if any, should we make to protect the environment? Should the government fund a space program? What constraints does the concept of “right to privacy” place on technological advances in intelligence gathering? Is nuclear energy worth the risk?
We will address these questions and others in this new seminar that will give students tools to articulate, and to live, their values and convictions. The seminar will also introduce students to the concept of an ethics learning community and encourage them to help create such a community. This community would help students build relationships, investigate and solve ethical problems, share resources, and gain skills for clarifying their personal and vocational principles.
The seminar format will be a weekly meeting over dinner. The discussions are geared to equip students for reflection and action. These lecture/discussions with guest faculty from various disciplines will be interactive and lively. During the semester, students will be expected to attend four Technology and Culture public forums or other pertinent public lectures offered at MIT. Students will exchange ideas and thoughts with one another between meetings, via online discussion, and develop several short reflection papers. There will be recommended readings to supplement the discussion.
Sally Haslanger is a professor in the Department of Linguistics and Philosophy.
Trish Weinmann is the Associate Coordinator of MIT's Technology and Culture Forum (T&C), where she helps organize lectures and symposia that explore the role of science and technology in promoting positive social, ecological, and economic change.
SP.235 Chemistry of Sports: Understanding How Exercise Affects Your Body Chemistry
Dr. Patti Christie
Experimental Study Group
Steve Lyons
Units: 2-0-4 [P/D/F]
Lecture: W3-5 (24-619)
This seminar is an exciting way for students to study and apply chemistry knowledge to the improvement of their biological systems. We will be focusing on three sports (swimming, cycling and running), with a slight emphasis on running. There will be both a classroom and laboratory component to the seminar. The classroom component will introduce the students to the chemistry of their own biological systems. We will look at nutrition (to understand how to fuel and rebuild your body), anatomy and physiology (to better build your system), and how the body can be improved (or hurt) through physical activities. We will examine the chemistry of sports equipment including swimming (wetsuit and swimsuit manufacture), bicycling (including a field trip to a bicycle shop), and running (how running shoes are manufactured). We will also look at ways your body deals with exercise through building up and repair of muscles, improvement in lung and cardiovascular capacity, the chemistry of supplements and their effectiveness, and how we can use this knowledge to improve our physical fitness.
The two components to the laboratory portion of the class are the running study and training for and completing a triathlon. The students can earn up to 2 PE points during the term if they attend the supervised Triathlon training workouts. The students can also earn some PE points by completing the Mooseman Triathlon in NH in early June. Upon completion of the running study, participants will own a new pair of Newton running shoes and a heart rate monitor. This seminar is open to all MIT students.
For more information: http://stellar.mit.edu/S/course/SP/sp10/SP.235/index.html
Dr. Patti Christie is Department Head of Chemistry and Biology at ESG. She has been teaching at ESG since 1995 (full-time since 1999) and is the designer of the Kitchen Chemistry seminar. Patti is the course coordinator for both 5.111 and 5.112 and is very familiar with the Chemistry GIRs. She also helps run the MIT Masters Swimming program at the Z center pool. Patti graduated from the MIT chemistry department with a Ph.D. in Biological Chemistry in 1996. She worked in a cardiovascular laboratory in the Biology Department from 1996 to 2005, where she helped develop and study a mouse with a predisposition for heart attacks.
Steve Lyons has been involved in the sport of triathlon for 18 years. He is a former member of the US National Team and a veteran of 13 ironman races including the world championships in Kona, Hawaii. After helping out with the seminar last spring, he placed second in his age division in the Olympic Distance Los Angles triathlon, September, 2007. He is a successful lawyer in civil and criminal litigation and a partner in the Boston firm of KSL & G
SP.268 Topics in the Mathematics of Toys and Games
Melissa Gymrek
Experimental Study Group
Jing Li
Experimental Study Group
Units: 2-0-4 [P/D/F]
Lecture: T EVE (7-9 PM) (24-619)
Note: Faculty supervisor: Professor Erik Demaine
Many common toys and games actually involve non-trivial mathematical concepts. In this class we will explore the connections between topics in mathematics and combinatorial game theory and their applications to popular toys, games, and puzzles. We will analyze algorithmic approaches in single-player games and logic puzzles, as well as strategies in multi-player competitive games. Students will be introduced to a variety of applied math and game theory topics and be able to implement the algorithms and competitive strategies in actual game play. This seminar is open to all MIT undergraduates.
For more information: http://esg.mit.edu/academics/current-esg-undergraduate-seminars
Melissa Gymrek is a senior studying computer science and math. She has past teaching experience as a TA for 18.02 in ESG, as a lab assistant for 6.01, and as a co-instructor for this seminar the previous two spring terms. She also does computational biology research in the Erlich Lab.
Jing Li is a senior studying mathematics along with computer science (18C) and
economics (14). She has past teaching experience as a lab assistant for 6.01,
as a TA for 8.012 and 18.03 at ESG, and as a co-instructor for this course for
the past two spring semesters. Her research interests are in economics, and
she has worked on projects in development economics, environmental economics,
and social networks. Jing is currently involved in a project studying
innovation on mobile platforms at MIT Sloan.
SP.271 Beta-Testing Your Life at MIT
Dr. Holly Sweet
Experimental Study Group
Donna Denoncourt
Residential Life
Units: 2-0-4 [P/D/F]
Lecture: T3-5 (24-619)
Note: This seminar is open to all MIT students.
Through readings, journal writing, guest speakers, discussions, and structured exercises using photography, art and writing, we will explore different aspects of emerging adulthood from a chronological point of view, particularly as it applies to your own life. These aspects will include your family background and key turning points, influential people in your life, making a successful transition from high school to college, exploring your racial and ethnic identity, looking at your spiritual and moral codes, maintaining your mental and physical well being, exploring friendships and romantic relationships, and understanding how our gender impacts our sense of self and how others view us. Students will have a chance to design and present a workshop on a class topic of their choosing to a group of their peers. The class is designed to be highly experiential, with room for significant student input.
For more information: http://esg.mit.edu/academics/current-esg-undergraduate-seminars
Holly Sweet is a lecturer at MIT and the Associate Director of the Experimental Study Group. She is also a psychologist in private practice and has co-authored A Creative Guide to Exploring Your Life which is based on a seminar (Composing Your Life) which she co-taught for several years at MIT. She has offered MIT undergraduates a variety of experientially-based seminars in the past, including Three Approaches to Psychology, Transitions and Connections, Psychology Looks at the First Year,and Sex Roles and Relationships (which won the 1997 MIT Sizer award for the most significant improvement to MIT education). In her spare time, she likes to play tennis, ski, hike, bike, and travel.
Donna Denoncourt is the Associate Dean for Residential Life. Most recently, the department of Residential Life led the First Year Experience program and have advanced living-learning experiences including a residentially based Leadership program in Baker, and the development of ihouse (International House for Global Leadership). She has been working in student life for 20 years, and started at MIT in 2007. She has taught the past two years a First Year Women’s Leadership course. Prior to that she has taught other Student Development Courses at both the undergraduate and graduate level including Diversity in Life, and Transition of the First Year at college. For fun, she likes to read, run 5-10Ks, walk her two dogs and play tennis.
SP.324 Foundations of Leadership and Success for MIT Students
Instructor TBA
Units: 2-0-4 [P/D/F]
Lecture: F12-2 (16-160)
Learn the strategy and theoretical underpinnings of how Charles and David Koch, two of MIT’s most successful alumni, built up a $100 billion per year company. The approach to success at Koch Industries, on the organizational level, is related to success on both the individual and societal levels. The foundations of this approach and connections across levels will be discussed in this seminar.
Students expected to do some relevant reading in preparation for interactive class discussions.
SP.325 The Benjamin Franklin Forum
Prof. Bernhardt Trout
Units: 2-0-4 [P/D/F]
Lecture: F12-2 (16-128)
Note: Primarily for Concourse students and alumni, but other undergraduates are welcome to attend space permitting.
Explores core texts and ideas through discussions led by top scholars in various disciplines, from both within and outside of MIT. Students prepare in advance by reading materials from the scholars and participate in a luncheon discussion.
For more information: http://web.mit.edu/concourse/www/series.html
SEM.095 Starting-Up New Technology-Based Business Enterprises at MIT — Part II
Mr. Joseph G Hadzima, Jr.
School of Management
Mr. Richard Shyduroff
Units: 2-0-4 [P/D/F]
Lecture: T EVE (7-9 PM) (66-148)
In this seminar we define and study the stages of development of new enterprises at MIT, often beginning at that exciting moment when a new idea for a tech product or service is realized, and through the processes of debugging, team building and maintenance, idea sharing and intellectual property protection, licensing and deal making, market research, business plan writing, fundraising, development, usability testing, manufacturing, and selling, to customer support and the next new idea. Participants follow the history of selected successful MIT spin-off companies with due attention paid to the people as well as their ideas, behind MIT start-ups.
Students in this seminar host live MIT technology and science start-up case presentations given by individuals and start-up teams working from zero-stage, to partners in going-concerns of historical relevance to The Institute and the economy.
Joe Hadzima '73, is a senior lecturer in the School of Management and legal counsel to The MIT Enterprise Forum. Richard Shyduroff is the co-founder and co-director of the MIT Entrepreneurs Club ("The E-Club") and has been involved in a number of MIT start-up companies.
