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Campus Life - Letters from MIT

Hacking thrives at MIT

By Shin Kuwaki


MIT 名物のいたずら

いたずらも、悪意のないものなら人の心を和ませてくれるもの。マサチューセッツ工科大学 (MIT)と聞くとなんとなく堅そうですが、実は140年の「いたずら」の伝統を持っています。いたずらといっても、そこはさすが MIT、どれも創造力と技術を要するスグレモノ(?)ばかりです。では、その一部をご紹介しましょう。

MIT の歴史に残る偉大ないたずら(http://hacks.mit.edu/Hacks/Gallery.html)
It never hurts to get a good laugh from a practical joke when times are stressful, and "hacking," or playing practical jokes, has remained a lasting tradition at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), ever since the first hack took place in the late 1860s. Infamous to the administration and a delight to the MIT community, these hacks come in all colors, shapes and sizes, and although they may appear to be simple acts of mischief, in reality, hacks often involve intense creativity, craftsmanship and agility - particularly when escaping the scene before the Campus Police arrive.

When I toured MIT for the first time, I was shown an extraordinary photograph: a real Campus Police car sitting on top of the Great Dome. I remember thinking to myself, "This can't be real," and I was even more skeptical when I was told the car had appeared over the course of just one night. The photograph was indeed real footage of a famous hack that took place back in 1994. The car had been assembled from old car parts and wood, and made to look as though there were a policeman sitting inside with his coffee and a box of doughnuts.

Hacking at MIT is not, as you may have thought, about breaking into other people's computers, or programming viruses and spreading misery to computer users through the Internet. It is about using one's creative potential, and creating something that is harmless, safe and funny. Most hacks are well-received by the MIT community, because they contain themes that everyone can relate to - popular movies, holidays like Halloween and Christmas.

Sometimes they take the form of things appearing where they don't normally belong. In one hack, a fully functional shower along with instructions was set up in the computer study area for no apparent reason. In another, a fire hydrant suddenly appeared one day in the student center, hooked up to a water fountain. This hack was a reference to the quote by former MIT President Jerome Weisner: "Getting an education from MIT is like taking a drink from a fire hose."

Other hacks are more decorative, such as the gigantic witch's hat placed on the small dome of Building 10. No matter the size and scale of the hacks, there is always a hack somewhere on campus, and it is certainly an integral part of student life.

Although hacking seems well accepted and relatively harmless, it is not approved by the administration. Hackers who are caught must face the necessary consequences, especially since many hacks involve entry into restricted areas and interfering with equipment and places that are off-limits to students. Despite these risks, the hackers continue to pursue bigger and better hacks. Ironically, this mindset of challenge and risk-taking are qualities that are often proudly used to describe an ideal MIT student.

The MIT curriculum cultivates a student's creativity in various forms, including scientific research, engineering skills and problem solving, and often this is manifested in hacking. A lot of the hacks involve designing complicated circuits and mechanical devices to produce certain effects. For example, hackers played with a lecture-room sound system, causing the lecturer's voice to gradually rise in pitch during his lecture by installing handmade equipment and other electric devices. These are no simple, overnight tasks: Great care and much planning are required to pull them off. For this reason, some of the greatest hackers in MIT history receive unanimous acclaim and respect.

To this date, I have never participated in the act of planning or carrying out a hack. I sometimes feel envious of those hackers who have the creativity and dexterity to pull off great hacks. I hope that the tradition continues, and MIT will continue to embrace students who are not afraid of breaking rules for the benefit of creating something new and exciting.



Shukan ST: May 16, 2003

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