MITERS: A Quirky Campus Incubator

The story of the MIT Electronic Research Society (MITERS) is mostly told in short videos these days. Yet there is something of a data trail: A description of the historic group cited in the MIT 150 Exhibition nominations says the student-governed electronics workshop, which held regular Friday night build parties, has been an incubator for decades: “A happy hive for building, learning, experimenting, and having fun.”

The group has described itself this way:

Originally founded as a club to give MIT students free and open access to computers, MITERS now features a mill, lathe, band saws, welders, and other hands-on tools, in addition to a host of oscilliscopes, high-end soldering irons, and other EE prototyping tools. It’s a member-run creative haven and build-anything-you-want, if-you-break-it,-fix-it space.

Now you can trace their activity through brief videos on the MITERS website and blogroll posts. Go to the MITERS site the Wonderful Magical Musical Tesla Coil, freshman Charles Franklin’s clever remix of the Nintendo Wii, a MIDI for Your Motor or how to waste your extra processing power, and an Extreme Rafting Party staged just after a summer downpour.

MITERS Blogroll Highlights:

In “grounds for actuation” in the Blogs are Wrong post by Alex Hornstein ’07, see a video of a gripper made of a balloon, coffee grounds, and an air supply.

On Shane’s Blog, authored by Shane Colton ’08, SM ’10, see recent posts on the development of a Pneu Scooter and the TechTV videos about his work.