Speaking in MITese

Speaking in MITese Almost every time I return home from MIT, I find myself mentally translating certain MIT concepts or words or course numbers when Im talking to my parents or friends. Things like I just got back from my 5.112 lecture in 10-250 or I have three psets due every week this semester and its really hosing or even Im doing a UROP in Course 7 dont mean much to people whove never been exposed to MIT. To MIT students, those words and abbreviations and numbers are part and parcel of our culture, with unambiguous and precise meanings. But to my friends and even, to some extent, to my parents, its like Im talking a foreign language speaking in MITese. But what else would you expect from a school where virtually everything, from the buildings to the academic buildings, is numbered? One reason Im writing this entry is to help bridge the gap between MITese and regular English. And beyond that, I also want to showcase this phenomenon of speaking in MITese, because I personally feel its one of MITs most interesting and yet also most understated features. Keep in mind that this guide is just an introduction; I chose to focus on the aspects of MITese that are (in my opinion) universal across campus and of particular interest to prospective students and incoming freshmen. More comprehensive guides do exist, in both printed form and online, and I assure any aspiring scholars of MITese that you will find plenty of material to interest you. Advanced scholars may also wish to pursue the Jargon File or MITs Acronym Wiki. With that said, enjoy this glimpse into the wonderful if sometimes confusing world of MITese! The Essentials Athena (n.) The MIT campus-wide, Unix-based computing environment; appropriately named after the Greek goddess of wisdom. beaver (n.) MITs mascot, chief engineer of the animal kingdom. Brass Rat (n.) A conspicuous hunk of gold that most MIT students and alums wear on a finger; colloquial name for MITs famous class ring, whose design is unique to each class. cruft (n.) (1) Old, mostly-useless junk. Being able to take cruft and make it work again, or do something new and useful, is a badge of honor and a prized skill. (2) Term for alumni who remain socially active at MIT. Dorm Rush (n.) See REX. Engineers (n.) The proper nickname for MITs 41 varsity sports teams. FSILG (n.) Catch-all term for MITs 27 fraternities, 6 sororities, and 4 independent living groups. hack (n.) (1) A clever trick or prank designed to amuse and intrigue people. Examples range from putting a firetruck on the Great Dome to subtly sabotaging the Harvard-Yale football game to many more. (2) An inelegant shortcut to get something done quickly, such as in a computer program. hack (v). (1) To explore ordinarily inaccessible or unknown parts of the MIT campus. (2) hacker (n.) (1) One who hacks. (2) One who pulls hacks. (3) One who goes hacking. Harvard Bridge (n.) The Mass Ave bridge from MIT to Boston, which measures 364.4 Smoots plus 1 ear in length. Hell (n.) Rather less affectionate name for MIT. hosed (adj.) Flooded with work, as if attempting to drink from a firehose IAP (n.) Independent Activities Period. The month of January at MIT, and one of the best times to be on campus. IHTFP (expl.) (1) I Hate This F***ing Place. (2) I Have Truly Found Paradise. (3) A paradoxical sentiment, frequently experienced by MIT students, combining the two previous definitions in a varying ratio. Institute (n.) Affectionate name for MIT. Sometimes shortened to tute. See Hell (n.) living group (n.) Generic term for where you live, encompassing all of MITs dorms and FSILGs. Mass Ave (n.) Massachusetts Avenue, one of Boston and Cambridges main thoroughfares, which also happens to run through the middle of MIT. Mystery Hunt (n.) The (in)famous weekend-long mind-crushing puzzle competition held annually during IAP. pset (n.) Problem set, usually given weekly or biweekly; occasionally written p-set. pset (v.) See tool (v.) punt (v.) (1) To slack off, e.g. by checking Facebook, playing Rock Band, or blogging; often contrasted with tool (v.) (2) To skip something, e.g. a problem set or meeting (Im so hosed with 8.022, Im going to have to punt this 7.013 pset); generally bad things happen to students who punt too often. REX (n.) Residence Exploration; the time during Orientation for incoming freshmen to explore dormitories to discover which living group suits them best. Pronounced like the dinosaur, never are-ee-ex. Smoot An unconventional and nonstandard unit of length equal to the height of Oliver Smoot ’62 (5 feet 7 inches), whose body was once used as a yardstick to measure the Harvard Bridge (n.) Tim (n.) Name given to MITs beaver suit mascot (get it?) tool (v.) To work very diligently on academics; often contrasted with punt (v.) tool (n.) One who tools. UROP (n.) (1) Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program, which cultivates relationships between students and researching faculty; among the first of its kind in the US. (2) A student who participates in research through this program. unit (n.) The basic unit of MIT academic credit. A normal class is worth 12 units at MIT, which indicates that the class should require approximately 12 hours worth of time each week (in the classroom, in the lab, and outside of class). wanking (v.) self-indulgent pontificating or arguing, full of sound and fury but generally signifying (and accomplishing) nothing; the verb form is wank Some Important Places 77 Mass Ave 77 Massachusetts Avenue; the colonnaded primary entrance to campus. Big Sail official name of the steel sculpture by Alexander Calder south of the Green Building; according to MIT myth, it was built to block the force of wind coming off the Charles River towards the The Dot the circle of grass between the Green Building and the Big Sail. Officially (i.e. almost never) called McDermott Court. Great Dome one of MITs most famous landmarks, not to mention a frequent target for hackers and tourists alike; sits above Lobby 10 Green Building tallest building in Cambridge and home of Course 12; Building 54. Infinite Corridor A hallway through the heart of the Institute, stretching from Lobby 7 (west) through Buildings 3, 10, 4, 8 (east). At one point believed to be the longest contiguous corridor in the world, the Infinite is occasionally treated as a highway. Johnson Johnson Athletics Center, where some of your finals will probably be held. Killian Court The large and picturesque courtyard in the middle of main campus, surrounded by Buildings 1-4, Building 10, and Memorial Drive. Location of the freshman class photo and Commencement. Pronounced kill-ee-un. Kresge Auditorium One of MITs nicest auditoriums; the exterior is one-eighth of a perfect sphere. Little Dome baby cousin to the Great Dome; sits above Lobby 7 Lobby 10 First floor of Building 10, opening onto Killian Court Lobby 7 The large, open atrium that houses the famous inscription of MITs mission: Established for advancement and development of science, its application to industry, the arts, agriculture, and commerce. Stata Center Odd, vaguely alien cluster of towers and other structures. Properly, it should be pronounced stay-tuh (rhymes with beta). Building 32. W20 The (Stratton) Student Center, yet another building more commonly referred to by its number than its name. Z-Center Zesiger Center, part of MITs comprehensive athletics complex. 6-120 (six one twenty) lecture hall located near the end of the Infinite Corridor 10-250 (ten two fifty) Newly-renovated lecture hall in the center of campus where many freshman GIRs are taught 26-100 (twenty six one hundred) large lecture hall located just off the Infinite 34-101 (thirty four one oh one) lecture hall with bright green seats 54-100 (fifty four one hundred) main lecture hall in the Green Building; accessed by stairs or the Lower Level in the buildings main elevator Coursework 3.091 Solid-State Chemistry (three oh nine fun) 5.11x Introductory Chemistry 7.01x Introductory Biology 8.01 Physics I: Mechanics 8.02 Physics II: Electricity and Magnetism 18.01 Calculus 1: Single-Variable 18.02 Calculus II: Multi-Variable 18.03 Differential Equations x In this context, used to indicate a family of multiple similar subjects, varying in either difficulty or emphasis. All 7.01x classes are approximately the same difficulty; but 5.112, for example, is harder than 5.111. GIR(s) General Institute Requirement(s). Pronounced gee-eye-our(s). HASS Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences. Pronounced hass (not the word has). REST Restricted Elective in Science and Technology. Pronounced like the word rest. Science Core The set of GIRs consisting of two semesters of calculus, two semesters of physics, one semester of biology, and one semester of chemistry (in MITese, 18.01, 18.02, 8.01, 8.02, 7.01x, and 3.091/5.11x). See also hosed, punt, and tool. Living Groups GRT Graduate Residence Tutor; graduate students who actually live in each dorm on campus and serve a variety of roles, from peacekeepers to mentors to providers of free food. Pronounced gee-are-tee. Housemaster Members of the MIT community who are responsible for providing adult leadership and some extent of oversight to each dorm, in addition to being residents of the dorms community. A dorms housemasters are usually a professor and his or her spouse. House Manager MIT employees responsible for overseeing the upkeep and condition of each dorm. Among other things, theyre the people you call when you need to get that light in your room replaced or when you want permission to paint your room/loft your bed/build a giant roller-coaster in front of the dorm. RA Residential Assistant. The equivalent of a GRT, but for FSILGs. RLA MIT employees that serve as a valuable resource for a zone of 2-3 dorms, providing a range of services from helping with party registration, serving as a mediator between students and administrators, advising house governments, supporting Housemasters and GRTS, and planning events at dormitories. Living Groups Dorms Baker BC Burton-Conner Bexley EC East Campus MacG MacGregor McC McCormick NH New House 500 Memorial Drive Next House NW35 the New Ashdown community Random Hall SH Senior House (Haus) Sponge Simmons Hall Living Groups Fraternities ADP Alpha Delta Phi AEPi Alpha Epsilon Pi ATO Alpha Tau Omega Beta Beta Theta Pi Chi Phi DKE Delta Kappa Epsilon Delts (DTD) Delta Tau Delta No. 6 Delta Psi DU Delta Upsilon Kappa Sig Kappa Sigma LCA Lambda Chi Alpha ND Nu Delta PBE Phi Beta Epsilon Phi Delts (PDT) Phi Delta Theta Skullhouse (PKS) Phi Kappa Sigma PKT Phi Kappa Theta Phi Sig (PSK) Phi Sigma Kappa Pi Lam Pi Lambda Phi Sigma Chi Sigma Nu SigEp Sigma Phi Epsilon tEp Tau Epsilon Phi OX Theta Chi TDC Theta Delta Chi TXi Theta Xi ZBT Zeta Beta Tau Zeta Psi Living Groups Sororities AXO Alpha Chi Omega AEPhi Alpha Epislon Phi APhi Alpha Phi KAT or Theta Kappa Alpha Theta Pi Phi Pi Beta Phi SK Sigma Kappa Living Groups Independents ET Epsilon Theta Fenway House pika Student House WILG Womens Independent Living Group *** In the interest of full disclosure, I want to mention that some portions of this MITese-English guide are inspired by How To Get Around MIT, the student-produced handbook to the Institute. Often called HowToGAMIT for short, the handbook is distributed to incoming freshmen each year at no charge. (Shameless plug: Class of 2012, you can and should get your copy of How To Get Around MIT this week. Just look for our table on the first floor of the student center. Well be around more or less regularly from 9am-5pm.) Like most other frosh, I received a copy during my Orientation last year and loved it so this summer, I decided to get involved in helping produce the next edition of HowToGAMIT. I ended up volunteering to be HowToGAMITs treasurer as well as editing HowToGAMITs own, much more comprehensive glossary. What are your favorite MIT terms and idioms?