Freshman MIT Students Automate Dorm Room

Inessa writes "Two freshman MIT students have automated their dorm room, complete with a big red party button which generates an instant party. Their custom-engineered system is called MIDAS, the Multi-Function In Dorm Automation System. According to the MIT News office, "Gone are the light switches and glaring fluorescent lights of a typical dorm room. Zack Anderson and RJ Ryan's room has several lighting schemes, remote web access, voice activation, a security system, electric blinds and more ... With the touch of one red button, their dorm room becomes a rave. The lights go out, the blinds close, the displays read, "feel the energy" as a voice repeats the same phrase over a deep bass beat.""

Comments

Otherwise it wouldn't be MIT... would it?

[ravee]

This inculcation of curiosity and resourcefulness is what makes studying at MIT truly unique. No wonder it is one of the premier educational institutions in the world.

Thanks, Mom and Dad

[ScentCone]

Why, when we were in college, we couldn't afford to have all of that expensive automation gear. We had to get up off of our asses and actually turn lights off on and on, and we liked it that way. In-room fridge? Hah! We were so poor, we had to keep a little piece of Velveeta frozen on the dorm room window sill, saving it up for our big Friday night celebrations. But tell that to kids today, and they won't believe you. No sir.

Re:Bit small for a party

[CokeBear]

I'm not sure how other folks do it, but in my year in a dorm, I introduced my roommate to my girlfriend's roommate, and they seemed to get along well enough that by the end of the year, girlfriend and roommate had basically traded rooms.

Re:MIT's drug abuse problem

[kimvette]

Sorry, but I would not dump all MIT grads in the same bucket. They're just like anyone else - there are the folks who can't work with others and need to do things their own way, even when their way is the hard way, and then there are the truly brilliant and personal folks. I've worked with MIT grads at software companies and some of them have been simply amazing - although not the best. The absolute best architects and programmers I have worked with were the folks who picked up programming out of necessity on the job back when standards were only beginning to emerge, and loved the work so much they went to technical schools to immerse themselves in good programming and design courses. I suppose it comes down to experience and practicality; if all you know is theory you're not going to be any good in solving real-world problems.

I would not discount all MIT grads based on one negative experience you've had.

Re:great, but

[aibrahim]

Dude... they go to MIT. Have you been there ?

The chicks are geeks. Some of them are probably reading this now, and hoping to have a chance to check it out. Many will understand MIDAS well enough to build their own.

Basically these guys have designed a perfect solution for their environment. It might not work that well at another school, but at MIT they have it made... for a while at any rate. Like most geeks the chicks at MIT will want to see upgrades, new versions and bugfixes.

Re:MIT students definition of a party...

[Nutria]

if you are paying for sex you are doing something wrong.

All sex is paid for.