I have to give a presentation on a technical topic to a bunch of high schoolers for my thesis class, and I chose the JPEG compression algorithm. Naturally, I knew absolutely nothing about said algorithm when I chose it – and it’s absolutely FASCINATING. I thought I’d put up my slides/explanations here so you too can appreciate the genius that is JPEG.

Read the rest of this entry »

I got a package today from a very special sender. :)

Wanna know what was inside? Do ya? Do ya? Huh? Huh? Huh?

Read the rest of this entry »

The view from my window this morning

First off: a nifty picture taken from the rooftop of a friend’s apartment building. This is actually an HDR image, though certainly not the best example of actual HDR. I really liked the effect it gave the clouds – they were moving away from me while I was bracketing the exposure, so you can see the edges are staggered in the composite image. I like it in contrast to the sharpness of the skyline. Head over to my flickr account to view it in higher-res.

Secondly: I’ve finally cemented my summer plans! Last month I got turned down for a PM internship at Google, which was rather surprising and a little devastating at the time. I’d really been counting on that internship, so when they rejected me I had no idea what I was going to do. Luckily, a conveniently timed conversation with a friend reminded me of a program MIT is involved in called MEET: Middle East Education through Technology. I sent in my application at the last possible minute, interviewed a few days later, got my offer this morning, and emailed in my acceptance just a few minutes ago.  MEET is a month(ish)-long program that brings together talented Israeli and Palestinian high schoolers to teach them programming. It’s going to be incredibly rewarding, and I’m actually pretty happy that Google turned me down. I never would have considered this program if that hadn’t happened, and I think I prefer a day of lectures, teamwork, presentations and discussions to 8 hours in front of a computer monitor. But, long story short:

I’m going to Israel this summer! Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!! :D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D:D

These are from a set of portraits I did for my friend Jasmina. She just took a job with a cosmetics company and needed some publicity pictures. I was quite honored to be asked. :)

One morning last week I reeeeaaally wanted a bagel with cream cheese, but to my displeasure we were out of cream cheese. We were out of cream cheese because we had just baked approximately a billion cheesecakes. Thus – I decided to put cheesecake on my bagel. I posted this to facebook and people seemed to like the idea, so here for any of you who missed it is how to make a bagel with cheesecake on it.

Step 1: Get a bagel.

Step 2: Put cheesecake on it.

Step 3 (optional): Top with lox

Step 4: Enjoy! And if you try it, let me know what you think.

Really? Really, Apple? If I spend $150 on someone, it means I love them! But if someone else spends $200 on them, it means they love them even more! Fuck you.

“Revolutionary?” Sure, that’s probably true. “Magical?” No. Fuck you.

I was originally going to blog the posters one by one as the events happened, but then I remembered I’m really fucking busy. So! Here, for your viewing pleasure, are all the rush posters I did for my house this semester.

I live in WILG, the Women’s Independent Living Group, and a lot of campus seems to think we’re all either housewives or raging lesbians. We don’t really help that first stereotype by traditionally having extremely girly rush events – spa night, cookie baking lessons, etc. Most of us actually dislike these activities and we’ve had very poor attendance, even by house members, at these events in the past. This year the awesome rush chairs and I decided to take a bit of a different tactic. We put together a marketing campaign that makes us seem cookie-loving yet tomboyish, feminine yet nerdy, womanly yet badass.

The super bowl one’s my favorite. :) I also updated our dinner menu posters, which used to include lots of sans serif fonts and clip art. This year they look like this:

We’re only 4 days into rush so far and we’ve already had a pretty good turnout. I can’t really say how it compares to last year’s rush, but I’ve seen a lot of awesome people walk through our door, including someone who has become near and dear to my heart. You know who you are. <3 If any of you are around MIT, stop by for dinner or an event (especially if you’re an undergraduate girl!). Dinners are always delicious, but this weekend will include our biiiig parties. And I promise, there will be no painting of toenails or baking of cookies, but neither will there be naked pillow fights. Sorry. You have to pledge to see those.

My house’s rush starts tomorrow and I’ve been putting a looooot of effort into preparing for it. I’m putting together most of the postering and also revamped the website, which is nice looking but not exactly finished, so maybe check it out now but definitely again in a couple of days. :p

I’ll be blogging the poster designs on here as the events draw closer, so check back for pretty pictures AND info on awesome things you should go to if you’re around MIT. :)

This has been a super fun process and I’m really psyched for this year’s rush! A big ol’ shout out to our awesome rush chairs for everything they’ve done this year, including being my willing, if giggly, models. <3 you guys.

I watched V for Vendetta recently (again), which is one of my favorite movies. Not only is it full of deliciously dark political criticism,  it’s absolutely gorgeous, from the cinematography to the graphic design. I’ve always been a big fan of the logo they chose to represent the evil regime.

It shows up whenever the party needs to make itself known, in speeches and meetings and badges. Oh, and all their 1984-esque posters.

It’s a quite attractive symbol, stark and memorable. Easily scrawled on walls and armbands, an essential feature for a representation of any uprising radical government. The shape, known as the “Cross of Lorraine,” was used by the Free French Forces during WWII as an “answer” to the swastika. Very fitting in a lovely twisted way.

Shortly after I watched the movie, I was headed over to Boston on the red line. I sat down, yawned, and then did a huge double take at one of the posters. It was an advertisement for the American Lung Association.

The double-barred cross has been used in a lot of ways through history, but usually as a symbol of some fighting force which presents radical liberation and patriotism, strength and unity. Not words that really come to mind when I think of the ALA, but then again – anything is possible. When our modern day terrorists start disseminating their very own St. Mary’s plague, watch for the ALA to step in to the election and capture our hearts and minds with the promise of health and order. Especially if the illness is an upper respiratory infection. (ba-dum, ch) Seriously though, when I was Googling for that logo I looked up some of the ALA’s posters, and a lot of their old ones are – well, militant looking.

Oh, some of them are sweet enough. Cute kids, caring words, showing how much “your” lung association is working for you.

Things change after they win the election – no smiling faces on the posters anymore, only words. Words of fear.

After that the curfews start. The night patrols are given free reign over civilians and the parts of the city not covered by surveillance dwindle ever smaller. It’s easy to control the news networks and keep the citizens in fear, all that’s left is a little nudging to keep patriotism strong. Keep our country united against the Enemy.

The ALA will gain ever tighter control until one day Hugo Weaving will appear and blow up the headquarters of the National Academy of Sciences, starting a new age of freedom and independence where we can all once again breathe easy.