As teachers it is important to interject real-world applications with science and math whenever possible.  Students often do not connect the principles to the career opportunities.  In our society, advanced manufacturing is creating many exciting careers that incorporate these scientific principles and provide excellent salaries.  This project will require students to determine and design methods that will move a selected product in a designed assembly process.

The subject of this course is the historical process by which the meaning of "technology" has been constructed. Although the word itself is traceable to the ancient Greek root teckhne (meaning art), it did not enter the English language until the 17th century, and did not acquire its current meaning until after World War I. The aim of the course, then, is to explore various sectors of industrializing 19th and 20th century Western society and culture with a view to explaining and assessing the emergence of technology as a pivotal word (and concept) in contemporary (especially Anglo-American) thought and expression.
Note: In the interests of freshness and topicality we regard the STS.464 syllabus as sufficiently flexible to permit some — mostly minor — variations from year to year. One example of a different STS.464 syllabus can be found in STS.464 Technology and the Literary Imagination, Spring 2008.

The “Einstein Project” is a framework that is designed to help you find a solution to an everyday problem that makes you passionate in your thinking and designing. This project is designed to make you think outside of the box as active learners and create solutions in uncommon ways, forget about failing or succeeding and take chances.

In this activity, learners explore the question "What is paper?" Learners discover the processes and materials required to make paper while experimenting with different recycled fibers and tools.

Our linked subjects are (1) the historical process by which the meaning of technology has been constructed, and (2) the concurrent transformation of the environment. To explain the emergence of technology as a pivotal word (and concept) in contemporary public discourse, we will examine responses — chiefly political and literary — to the development of the mechanic arts, and to the linked social, cultural, and ecological transformation of 19th- and 20th-century American society, culture, and landscape.
Note: In the interests of freshness and topicality we regard the STS.464 syllabus as sufficiently flexible to permit some — mostly minor — variations from year to year. One example of a different STS.464 syllabus can be found in STS.464 Cultural History of Technology, Spring 2005.

According to the United States Agency for International Development, 20 million people in developing countries require wheelchairs, and the United Nations Development Programme estimates below 1% of their need is being met in Africa by local production. Wheelchair Design in Developing Countries (WDDC) gives students the chance to better the lives of others by improving wheelchairs and tricycles made in the developing world. Lectures will focus on understanding local factors, such as operating environments, social stigmas against the disabled, and manufacturing constraints, and then applying sound scientific/engineering knowledge to develop appropriate technical solutions. Multidisciplinary student teams will conduct term-long projects on topics such as hardware design, manufacturing optimization, biomechanics modeling, and business plan development. Theory will further be connected to real-world implementation during guest lectures by MIT faculty, Third-World community partners, and U.S. wheelchair organizations.
This class is made possible by an MIT Alumni Sponsored Funding Opportunities grant with additional support from the National Collegiate Inventors and Innovators Alliance, the MIT Public Service Center, and the MIT Edgerton Center; special thanks to CustomInk.com.