In le airport

I'm sitting outside our gate waiting for our 12:59 AM flight to JFK airport and then flight to Buffalo and then drive to Niagara falls. We are going on a three and a half week trip to Niagara Falls, various locations in New York around the east coast, and then my one week course at E2@MIT!

This morning I actually got the email asking us to rank our project courses and preferences--the following are all the course descriptions.

Architecture 

This course introduces architecture as a way of thinking and making. Students are taught to use a variety of media including pencil and paper drawing, digital modeling, digital collage, full-scale prototyping, and scale physical models. Students work collectively to design, build and speculate on the implications of a construct that will respond to social and environmental forces. This year, the project is a pavilion for cell phone conversations--a place to wander into in a public setting so as to obtain some privacy and isolation from others. Students design a physical building component, construct with the component, and use representation to imagine the design having been built in various configurations in multiple locations throughout the city.


Electronics 


The one-week investigation into electrical engineering and its applications through the study of core topics and the development of a biomedical-themed final project. Students spend the first three days learning basic concepts in electrical engineering and computer science through a biomedical engineering approach, including circuit theory, amplification, feedback, Python programming and embedded systems. The final two days are spent constructing biomedical/electrical engineering projects in teams.


Fluid Mechanics 
Fluid mechanics is used in almost every form of mechanical engineering. Its applications range from submarine acoustics and drag reduction for vehicles to wind turbines and supercomputer cooling systems. In the E2 Fluid Mechanics course, students will spend the first three days learning the basic concepts of fluid mechanics: the study of fluids at rest (fluid statics), the study of fluids in motion (fluid kinematics), and the study of the effects of forces on fluid motion (fluid dynamics). Students will spend the last two days of the course examining the fundamentals of drag. Using analytical tools and experimental observations, they will determine the optimum shape of a body to minimize drag. With certain design constraints, students will work in teams to build submersibles based on their optimized design. On the last day of the course, students will test out their submersibles in the MIT Tow Tank to determine the drag coefficient of their design and how it compares to the designs of their peers.




Aeronautics-Astronautics *
Aero-Astro program aims to teach students modern engineering techniques while engaging them in a team-oriented design-building process. The students spend the first day learning the relevant physics and conducting experiments with wind tunnel models and paper airplanes. On the second and third days, the students learn and use genetic optimization, computational tools, and machining equipment to design and build a wing for an RC aircraft and fins for a bottle rocket. The wing must achieve the highest average speed during straight flight and a figure 8 maneuver. The students are tasked with making the rocket fly as high as possible as a result of choosing the appropriate amount of water and ensuring a high level of stability with the rocket fin design. It’s our intent that the students experience both intense levels of “engineering anxiety” and accomplishment when it is time to operate their designs equally.


Engineering Design *
This course explores the engineering design process through process of designing, building and testing a high performing loud speaker, students learn both the technical and artistic components required to create a loudspeaker designed for studio, consumer and car audio applications. Upon successful completion of this course, student will have acquired a broad base of theoretical knowledge about the principles of loudspeaker design, loudspeaker testing, basic audio electronics and amplifier design.


Underwater Robotics *
The ocean, covering nearly 70 percent of the planet’s surface, is less than 5% explored and presents a great challenge for engineers. Crushing pressure, cold temperature, lack of light, corrosive salt water, and strong currents all make engineering deep in the ocean an complicated an interdisciplinary challenge. This course will teach the basic principles of engineering design for underwater vehicles. In teams, students will use the engineering design process to design, build, and field-test their own underwater vehicles. This course will teach elements of ocean engineering, mechanical engineering, and electrical engineering. Skills learned will include design, simple mechanical construction, soldering, waterproofing, and troubleshooting.
I ranked them as follows: First choice: Underwater Robotics(really hope I get this, but it's popular so I might end up with a second or third choice :( ), Second: Electronics, then Aero/Astro, Fluid Mechanics, Engineering Design, and Architecture(boo).
Now I have an hour and a half to kill. I'm on this self imposed schedule where I submit all my college applications by November 1st so I should be working on my essays OR I could finish this season of Code Geass.....tough decision. :(