Terrascope: Design for Complex Environmental Issues

You and a small team of Terrascope classmates will engage in projects that address or illuminate some aspect of the environmental issue that Terrascope has been exploring throughout the year. Much of your work may be done in the lab, shop, or research area of the mentor advising your project; mentors are drawn from faculty and research staff throughout the Institute, as appropriate to the year’s Terrascope problem. As in all of Terrascope, the focus is on working in teams to accomplish challenging tasks, and you and your teammates may have great freedom to determine the scope, emphasis, and content of your work.

At the end of the semester, the teams join together in a virtual space to create a unique Bazaar of Ideas, a festive gathering in which you can show off the work you have done, both to the MIT community at large and to an expert panel invited specifically for the event. Individual teams design and construct working devices, prototypes, models, or demonstrations, which they use (along with more conventional text/graphic panels and other displays) in presenting their work to attendees. Along the way, you will learn crucial techniques in brainstorming, design development, prototyping, construction, and presentation.

Course Information

Instructor
Ari Epstein, Libby Hsu, Joel Grimm
Semester Offered
Spring (Offered since 2010)
Lecture Location
TBD
Lecture Times
MW3-4:30, F3
Units (credit hours)
3-1-5
Class Size
20 Students
Grading
A/B/C/D/F
Course #
EC.746J / 2.00C / 1.016J