To the Graduates: A time capsule of life and advice

From a time when we could attend commencements in person and get sunburned. Photo by the author.

"Bloom where you're planted."

// attributed to St. Frances of Sales, Bishop of Geneva (1567-1622)

Graduation ceremonies were pretty different this year. Instead of baking under the sun or freezing in the rain, friends and family members sat in front of their computers, dressed in their caps and gowns. Their names were not mispronounced in front of their classmates and colleagues. Speeches were shorter than usual, since giving (or watching) Zoom speeches can be ... well, you know. Acting as dean, my cousin moved the tassel of his daughter’s mortarboard from one side to the other. She and many others have graduated, but this year's milestone was muted by pandemic, injustice, and unrest.

In these strange times, I offer the words of friends who, four years ago, shared glimpses of their college lives with me. For various reasons, those words had been forgotten and unread until now -- but I am so glad I rediscovered this treasure trove. Although these friends wrote during pre-pandemic times, their stories remain relevant. They spoke of uncertainty and disillusionment. They spoke of hope, and even assurance, in the midst of the expanse of life ahead of them.

Here I have included a curated portion of their responses, which are lightly edited but still speak for themselves. I only regret that, for attention span's sake, I am not able to include more of the words and stories I received. (I originally asked sixteen questions.) Some of the participants permitted me to use their first names or first initials, while others chose to remain anonymous. See the bottom of the post for some more information about them.

Whether you are in the class of 2020, the class of 2016, or are simply going through a transition, I invite you to explore this time capsule with me.

And in the time-honored tradition of graduation songs that stir up memories and nostalgia, I've included some musical accompaniment for this look to the past, in order to look forward.

Rounding up with a slice of pi(e)

Apple pie from Petsi Pies, true to the spirit of the day.

For some people, yesterday was simply Saturday, March 14th, the year 2015.

Here at MIT, where mathematical constants play a part in most people's everyday business, it was

Super Pi (π) Day

Day: 3.14.15

Time: 9:26:53

the first day in my generation's lifetime when we would celebrate ten digits of Pi, twice in a single day (if you count AM and PM).

The next one won't be for another 100 years, so I was among the many on campus and in the Boston area who made sure to celebrate well and indulge in pie in all forms -- from traditional fruit-filled pies to custardy cream ones to pizza pies and even shepherd's pie served in the dining hall (arguably not qualified for Pi Day given its non-round shape, but we're not picky around here).

Buried in snow, so where does it go?

Hello from the land of snow, snow, and more snow that is Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

We've had the snowiest month ever (98.7" and counting), the second snowiest winter ever (see graphic), and more white stuff is on its way as we speak.  Plus some rain and above-freezing temperatures tomorrow to throw some snow melt and ice in the wintry mix.

The stats (updated daily by the city):

285,728 miles plowed

74,862 tons of salt

174,725 hours plowed

98.7 inches (8.225 feet) total snow fall

While this 'winter from hell' (aka Snowmageddon, among other names) is already a cliched subject in the news, as a visual person and student of the built environment, I have still had lingering questions.  For instance, how much snow has there been?  How can I make it personal?  We've seen graphics galore on the amounts and quantities, but I thought it would be fun to visualize myself buried in the heap:

Yes, that is actually a scalie ("silhouette" used in rendered images) of me.  

My entire M.Arch class was converted into scalies, and some of my classmates are featured here as well.

(And no, that dog wasn't part of the class, just there as a height reference and for cuteness factor.)

Heard @ MIT / Energy

// Heard @ MIT:

Long-locks: “Revolving or normal door?”

Sharp-dresser: “Revolving, obviously - it conserves energy.”

pause

Sharp-dresser: “… But of course, energy is always conserved.”

Long-locks laughs, and they both enjoy a very MIT chuckle.

[yele] A retroactive "tour"

As I was combing through the files on my computer, I came across a slew of video clips I had taken while in Yele this past January. This one in particular brought back some good memories of the village the eLuma team called home for 3 weeks:

 

Sights seen include the local primary school and shops around the main Junction, or intersection in the village.  The ride is a bit bumpy, but that's because of the rock-filled roads and not because of Anna's driving :)

New year, new tags

One of my favorite things to do leading up to the fall semester is making new door tags for the undergraduate residents I live with.  What made this year's process even more exciting and different was having Marcus to help make them -- not that he hasn't helped in the past, but this time around he is a full-on GRT* instead of a spectator-helper.  Woo!

I was happy to be able to use the random and long-disused supplies I've accumulated over the years in architecture school.  The museum board?  From my stash of model making materials.  The india ink?  From an unopened refill left from my own college days (of yore) when I used to hand-ink drawings on mylar (... those were the days indeed).  All put to good use and finding happy homes.

Color code:
-- left paper strip designates the resident's year
-- right paper strip designates the suite she lives in

This year is also pretty different for another reason: the women for whom we made the door tags live in a completely different part of the dorm.  It was determined at the beginning of the year that I (with Marcus joining me) would be GRTs in the East Tower, moving from my home of two years in the West Tower.  It's a decision that was initially hard to digest, and the reality of it has been on my mind in the past couple weeks of settling into my new apartment and gearing up for the year.  On the one hand, I'm definitely excited to meet all the ladies of 6+7E and to have Marcus join me in making a community (and Tall Man brownies) with them.  It's also bittersweet because I've really grown to love the ladies of 4+5W.  What a mixed bag of emotions...  At least it's good knowing that they'll have great GRTs themselves, and that the space between East and West can be bridged easily.  And there are that many more cool McCormick women to know and bond with.

One thing I've noticed: the boundaries between 'territories' are flexible lines.  We each have a certain 'jurisdiction' of residents in the dorm, but when it comes down to it, the more connections the better the McC experience -- for myself as much as for the ladies who live here.  No one can physically be in two places at once, but we can each be - in some sense - GRTs for everyone.  Sounds cheesy, but somehow it's true.

Hello ladies -- let the new year begin!

(and now I go to bed.)


* GRT = graduate resident tutor

A little taste of Victorian culture, McCormick-style

For the ladies and (select) gentlemen of McCormick:

McCormick Hall Garden Party

Sunday May 13, 2012

two o'clock to four o'clock in the afternoon

The (McC) Courtyard

- - -

Typefaces used: Savoye LET, Rosewood, Type Embellishments

Image: A well-heeled Victorian dame with a fascinator to be proud of (here, attached to her hat) 

Transforming a life with garbage

Screening @ MIT on Monday 2/6, 6:30-8:30 (32-123)

(right before the UCO Reg Day service at 7:30pm, MIT Chapel)

Inventional season-ing

MIT's official holiday greeting - featuring one of my professors (Walter Hood, visiting from Berkeley last semester) and some of my residents (in Ohms)!

[ayiti] Simple rubble math

Let's do some simple math related to rubble and (wo)man power.

The question is, how long would it take to process all the rubble necessary to build a single family home?

This wasn't the question I set out to answer today.  Instead, I just need to crush up some concrete debris some new friends of ours of Maple Hurst Builders gave me as part of thesis research.  The equation was actually

me + sledgehammer + large rubble + a good pair of safety glasses = crushed rubble

And certainly, the assumptions in this equation to answer the above question are that:

1. This is done by purely human power, not mechanical means (potentially applicable to areas where machinery can't be reached)
2. You have a woman doing the work (and a small one at that, given my own size)
3. The measurement is for a rubble gabion house because this building method requires hand-sized pieces.  (A rubble crusher would be necessary to make the debris size any smaller.)

Anyways, when picking up the concrete debris with my trusted strongarm Marcus, we estimated that we hauled back about half a ton of rubble.  (As in, he carried most of it.  Thanks :)  )  I broke almost all of it into hand-sized pieces or smaller in about 1.25 hours.

If concrete weighs, on average, 150 pounds per cubic foot, then I crushed about 6 cubic feet, or 0.17 cubic meters (because we like meters in Haiti - and in all other parts of the world except for the US).  A rubble gabion house contains 46.3 cubic meters of rubble (calculations based on the Haven/Oxfam gabion pilot house in Clercine).

Therefore, it would take 341 hours or 6 weeks working 9 to 5 to crush enough rubble to make the house, let alone actually build it.

This number isn't particularly significant except to say that although I'm glad I can do this work, that is a LONG time.  At least I am not making a whole house for my thesis, nor am I doing this work alone because there are such people as men and more women, and such things as machines that can help get stuff done faster.  Oh, progress.

But indeed, women aren't afraid to sweat!

On another front, my mini material tests worked and didn't fall apart!  A preview for now:

[Note: no, the one on the right is NOT a big gray cake ... although it does look like frosting.  It's hiding a secret instead!]

[events] Wasteland's Lucy Walker @ MIT

 via Fell Witness

Upcoming ACT event with filmmaker Lucy Walker, who directed the documentary Wasteland.  This documentary has been on my "to watch" list since even before its Oscar nomination.  Hooray for trash people getting press!

///

Monday, October 31 at 7:00 PM
Filmmaker Lucy Walker
99 Is Not 100 – Documenting the Transformative Power of Art, or the Art of Transformative Documentary
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Keynote: Lucy Walker, Filmmaker (UK)
Respondent: Claude Grunitzky, Chairman, True; Sloan Fellow, MIT (USA)

How do we observe or quantify the impact of an artistic intervention or the impact of a documentary film? Lucy Walker will be reflecting on the experience of making and showing the film Waste Land, a documentary about artist Vik Muniz’s collaboration with the self-designated recyclables materials pickers of Jardim Gramacho, the largest landfill in the world. The film has won over thirty international awards and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Documentary.

Lucy Walker has directed four award-winning feature documentaries: Devil’s Playground, Blindsight, Waste Land and Countdown To Zero.

Lucy Walker’s latest film, The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom, is among the eight shortlisted contenders for the 84th Academy Awards’ best Documentary Short Subject category, of which three to five films will earn Oscar nominations.

Location:
MIT Bartos Theater, Wiesner Building (E15)
20 Ames Street, Cambridge
(See directions below.) Free and open to the public.

Studio sunrise

Yuliya and I were privileged to witness a most amazing sunrise the morning of our thesis midreview.  And although the review itself ended up not going so great, I'm still glad I saw this as a reminder that there is beauty in the beginning of a new day.

///
photo courtesy of Yuliya's phone

Be serious or paranoid?

 from Times Online aerial photos

As we in Boston saw with Hurricane Irene, sometimes official predictions of natural hazards and preparations outweigh what actually ends up happening.  Girls in my dorm were decidedly underwhelmed by the winds and rain, leading to a general skepticism about "the boy who cried wolf."

But in other cases such as the L'Aquila earthquake in 2009, seismologists are being charged with manslaughter for NOT being serious enough about the data received before the quake.  An article in The Chronicle of Higher Education describes the start of the trial, leading to questions about the exactness of predictions and human attitudes towards hazards.


Is it paranoia or preparedness?

This semester I am taking a course with Prof. Jim Wescoat, Disaster Resilient Design, which lays out a theoretical and practical framework for thinking about and applying these issues.

The topic also fits in with my thesis and makes me consider the role and responsibility of professionals and academics is within the field, as well as what it really means to "build back better."  This last phrase is thrown around so much by NGOs, the government, and whoever else is involved in Haiti or elsewhere.  Is "better" an objective or subjective term?  If it's the latter, who determines it?  How can we know if one strategy is successful without 'testing' it in the next big quake/fire/hurricane/famine, etc.?

Although I can't address all (or even some) of these questions within the scope of a one-semester MArch thesis, it's worth mulling over in the back of my brain.

[ayiti] Someone to watch over me

I've been going through my photos and picking out ones I want to print for thesis.  I was about to pass this one up before I stopped and took a closer look.

You first notice the woman carrying the basket of fruit on top of her head.  Everywhere you see extraordinary women (and sometimes boys) like that, who can confidently and deftly saunter down the street without so much of a teeter.  Most of the time, these are the 'traveling salespeople,' walking around with their wares and advertising them to passersby.  Marcus and I learned to pick up the sound of "sashay dlo," which means "bags of water" for the thirsty.  These are the most common and convenient ways to get clean water, although you still find water bottles all over the place - mostly tossed into road-side canals.

Then you have the man watching up in the corner.  This is a common sight, particularly along Boulevard Toussaint L'Ouverture - one of the major thoroughfares that runs by the airport, UN Logbase, and other MINUSTAH compounds.  Someone is constantly watching.  What I found funniest, though, was that Haitian merchants and artisans have been able to profit from this constant official presence.  Because most all of the peace keeping soldiers and other relief workers are foreign, they make for a bizarre class of tourist.  Want a souvenir to show family and friends that you went to Haiti and back?  Artisans have shrewdly set up their wares right outside compound walls for easy browsing.

It's nice to come home

What a great message.  <3 residents !

I feel old

Yesterday we had training for graduate resident tutors, in which we learned all about the nuances of what incoming freshmen will go through as they navigate their first year of MIT.  I already met one of my fresh(wo)men, and the other will be moving in this coming weekend.  To get into their psyche, one of the administrators in charge of the 'First Year Experience' sent us "The Mindset List" for the class of 2015 ... which instantly made me feel old.  Some items aren't very significant to me, but the ones of note include:

• Ferris Bueller and Sloane Peterson could be their parents.
• Amazon has never been just a river in South America.
• Life has always been like a box of chocolates.
• They’ve often broken up with their significant others via texting, Facebook, or MySpace.
• Frasier, Sam, Woody and Rebecca have never Cheerfully frequented a bar in Boston during primetime.
• “PC” has come to mean Personal Computer, not Political Correctness.

[FAST] Lightbridge illuminates the crossing

LightBridge from Pol Pla

These videos of the FAST installation Lightbridge came out recently.  The project, conceived by the Media Lab's Susanne Seitinger and Pol Pla of the Fluid Interfaces Group, illuminated the Harvard Bridge with 10,000 LED lights back in May 2011.

See more images and animations on the project's Flickr site.

The first days

I was asked to unearth evidence from our first two projects in architecture school, and as I dug around I swear I could smell the must of dust-encrusted work.

Exercise 1 //  The Bridge
a project I liked but which induced many of my first all-nighters of grad school, as well as my first introductions to the laser cutter

Exercise 2  //  The Circulation Project
(aka interstitial space, or how many stairs and ramps are needed to get from one place to the next)
a project I liked only in diagram form but really didn't like in physical form, and which manifested in a model bigger than my body

Oh Level 1... how long it's been since then.  How far we've come (hopefully).  How different Level 1's are today.

What's your secret life?

One of our very own in the architecture (and EECS) department, Emily Whiting, was recently featured in NOVA's "Secret Life of Scientists" series:

 

Although I personally don't know her, I feel somewhat of a kinship because 1) we share the same great name, and 2) we've both done research with the same professor - her adviser and now my thesis committee reader, John Ochsendorf.  I guess we also both like bricks, stone, and masonry, so that might be the #3 commonality.

What is my secret life?  I'm not exactly sure.  Part of me thinks that architecture school attempts to squelch out any other life than studio, although I've resisted.  Would mine be loudspeaker?  Bible study leader?  Trash enthusiast?  Flutist (if I practiced more)?  Sustainability blogger?  Design-builder?  Stationary and sketchbook enthusiast?  Maybe the first question is, rather - can I be considered a scientist?

What's your secret life?

Graduation from the back door

on a recent Friday, dated June 3, 2011

It's a bit belated, but congrats to all our dear MIT grads from GCF, ArchPlan, MArch, and more.  Even from the back door, the view was pretty great.

The beginning of a new era, with open doors and open skies.