MIT: Independent Activities Period: IAP

IAP 2013 Activities by Category - Energy, Environment, and Sustainability

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"Fuel Your Mind" -- A Primer on Transportation Fuels, Current and Future

William H. Green, Professor of Chemical Engineering, Jim Simnick, George Huff

Jan/08 Tue 09:00AM-04:00PM 56-114

Enrollment: Limited: First come, first served (no advance sign-up)
Limited to 63 participants

How is crude oil converted into gasoline and other transportation fuels? Is the gasoline available in Boston the same as what is available in Chicago?  What are biofuels and what is driving the demand for these fuels of the future? Which fuel properties matter for performance? Please join us in this short course offered by engineers from BP and Prof. Green to answer these questions, and to gain a better understanding of transportation fuels, and fuel processing technology. 

Projections and recent history suggest significant shifts in the transportation fuels system over the next few decades, but no one is sure how things will actually develop. This mini-course will give you a more complete perspective on the many issues involved when fuel standards or regulations shift and when new types of fuel feedstocks become available.

Experiences so far with E85 (and CNG) illustrate some of the realities which make it very challenging to introduce alternative fuels which are not compatible with existing engines and infrastructure.

Topics Include:

Sponsor(s): Chemical Engineering
Contact: Prof. William H. Green, 66-352, 617-253-4580, whgreen@mit.edu


"Horses and Thunder" -- Meeting the Energy Needs and Oil Exploration and Production in the Deepwaters

Ahmed Ghoniem, Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Adam Ballard, Ryan Yeley

Jan/29 Tue 09:00AM-04:00PM 66-144

Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up

How will we meet our growing energy needs in the future, especially for transportation, which is heavily dependent on oil? More and more oil is discovered and produced offshore, in deeper and deeper water. How do we know where and how to drill for oil? What are some of the engineering challenges in working at 5000’ of water? How do we produce it efficiently, bring it to shore safely, and beyond? What are some of the recent developments in science and engineering that will take us further? This short course will discuss: 1. Energy needs and role of offshore oil 2. Exploration - the idea phase 3. Drilling - the discovery and development phase 4. Production - the extraction phase 5. Transportation - getting it to market 6. Recent science and engineering developments We will look at the Thunder Horse field located in the Gulf of Mexico. Starting with 1999, this field has contributed > 5% of the oil produced within the United States. Since then, oil has been discovered further out and effort is underway to produce from these fields.

No enrollment limit, no advance sign up, lunch provided.

Sponsor(s): Chemical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering
Contact: Prof. Ahmed Ghoniem, 3-344, 617) 253-2295, ghoniem@MIT.EDU


Brownfield Redevelopment Workshop

Kerry Bowie, Director of Brownfields & Environmental Justice

Jan/25 Fri 09:00AM-05:00PM 9-450A

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required
Limited to 20 participants

Kerry Bowie, Director of Brownfields & Environmental Justice for the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, will lead a one-day Brownfield Redevelopment Workshop (not for credit).  Bowie and other guest speakers will provide a general survey of Brownfields, covering topics such as assessment, cleanup, and redevelopment while examining technical, legal, and financial challenges.  The format of the workshop will include a general overview, guest speakers, discussion, and a field trip to a Boston area brownfields site.  Graduate and undergraduate students welcome; no prior brownfield experience is required.

Signup: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dG9MQ0lRMl8zZUctcG5BbGxyYVBjeXc6MQ

Sponsor(s): Urban Studies and Planning
Contact: Katherine Buckingham, 513.382.8632, kbucking@mit.edu


CityScience Workshop: LEGO and Grasshopper Methods for Compact Urban Neighborhood Design

Kent Larson, Director of City Science Initiative, Ryan Chin, Managing Director, City Science Initiative

Enrollment: First come, first served
Limited to 20 participants
Attendance: participants are encouraged, but not required to go to all sessions.
Prereq: This is a non-credit IAP course. Permission of instr.

Description The world is experiencing a period of extreme urbanization. In China alone, 300 million rural inhabitants will move to urban areas over the next 15 years. This will require building new infrastructure to accommodate the equivalent of the current population of the United States in just a few decades. It is a global imperative to develop systems that improve livability while dramatically reducing resource consumption. This workshop will explore the complex and interdependent nature of housing, mobility, energy, and food production systems for high-density cities.

Student Deliverables Students will explore urban systems at both the neighborhood scale (~1km²) and the block scale.  Participants will develop a process for understanding and resolving a set interdependent urban parameters including building massing, space use, shared mobility networks, streetscape types, parks, urban food production, and energy generation nodes.  Students may elect to work with either 3D physical models using color-coded LEGO bricks as an abstract framework, or parametric computation software such as Grasshopper. Precedents from existing cities and current urban theory will be used to inform the development of urban strategies that maximize livability and positive human interaction while minimizing the consumption of resources.

Research Areas Electric Mobility Ecosystems, Resilient Energy Systems, Transformable CityHomes, Urban Food Systems, and Streetscapes for Compact Urban Cells

 

 

 

Sponsor(s): Media Arts and Sciences
Contact: Ryan Chin, E15-392, 617 253-6828, RCHIN@MIT.EDU


CityScience Workshop

Jan/08 Tue 01:30PM-04:30PM E15-368, Bring your laptop
Jan/10 Thu 01:30PM-04:30PM E15-368, Bring your laptop
Jan/15 Tue 01:30PM-04:30PM E15-368, Bring your laptop
Jan/17 Thu 01:30PM-04:30PM E15-368, Bring your laptop
Jan/22 Tue 01:30PM-04:30PM E15-368, Bring your laptop
Jan/24 Thu 01:30PM-04:30PM E15-368, Bring your laptop

The workshop will meet on Tuesday and Thursdays from 130-430pm for three weeks in January (8th, 10th, 15th, 17th, 22nd, 24th) and will meet in E15-368.

Kent Larson - Director of City Science Initiative, Ryan Chin - Managing Director, City Science Initiative


Climate Interactive: Energy Policy Negotiation

Dr. Travis Franck, Senior Scientist and Policy Analyst

Jan/15 Tue 01:00PM-03:00PM 32-124

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required

Try your hand in addressing climate change.  Dr. Travis Franck, Senior Scientist and Policy Analyst for Climate Interactive brings climate change and energy policy negotiation down to earth.  Teams will use En-ROADS, a model-based simulation tool, to discover possible routes to achieve energy and climate goals through changes in energy use, consumption, and policies.

Registration for event may be found here

Sponsor(s): MIT Energy Initiative
Contact: Ethan Feuer, E19-370, 617 452-3199, EFEUER@MIT.EDU


Climate Policy 101

Michael Davidson, Paul Kishimoto

Jan/31 Thu 01:00PM-03:00PM E51-335

Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up

The inaugural address also mentioned that a "path towards sustainable energy sources will be long and sometimes difficult" and will involve "technology that will power new jobs and new industries". But political opponents sometimes finger climate policy as a "job-killer".

This session will outline how energy use and greenhouse gas emissions are linked to the world economy and the technologies we use, how climate change impacts affect us, and discuss the difference between "mitigation" and "adaptation" with options that governments have for each. It will also survey policies in place, and major challenges and opportunities as the U.S. and other countries work towards coordinated action.

Sponsor(s): Joint Program/Science and Policy of Global Change
Contact: Anthony Tran, E19-411R, 617 253-7492, TONES@MIT.EDU


Climate Science 101/Climate Change 101

Daniel Rothenberg

Jan/24 Thu 01:00PM-03:00PM E51-151

Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up

Obama cited "the overwhelming judgment of science" about "the devastating impact of raging fires, and crippling drought, and more powerful storms." What IS the climate, anyway? How is it changing, and how do those changes give rise to these major impacts?

This two-part session introduces the fundamentals of climate science and provides an overview of what climate scientists know about our current and future climate. The talk will begin with a walkthrough of the greenhouse effect, highlighting key principles that form the base of climate science. It will continue with an overview of of climate change, including an introduction to human-induced and natural climate forcing components such as greenhouse gas emissions, ozone, and volcanic eruptions and aerosols. Emphasis will be placed on the complexity and uncertainty regarding current understanding and future projections of earth's climate.

Sponsor(s): Joint Program/Science and Policy of Global Change
Contact: Anthony Tran, E19-411R, 617 253-7492, TONES@MIT.EDU


Energy and Climate Underground: MBTA Facilities and Tunnel Tour

Ethan Feuer, Student Activities Coordinator

Jan/25 Fri 09:00AM-01:30PM Location TBD, Meetup location will be sent out to participants

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required
Limited to 25 participants

Ever wonder how the MBTA really works?  Join a special tour of public transit operation centers and tunnels with MBTA staff. We will visit sites such as the MBTA Operations Control Center and the Haymarket MBTA Station Central Artery and discuss how America’s oldest subway system is preparing for climate and weather emergencies in the post-Sandy world.

Registration for this event here

Sponsor(s): MIT Energy Initiative
Contact: Ethan Feuer, E19-370, 617-452-3199, EFEUER@MIT.EDU


Energy Information: Industries and Statistics

Katherine McNeill

Jan/14 Mon 04:00PM-05:00PM 14N-132

Enrollment: Limited: First come, first served (no advance sign-up)

Interested in researching or working in the field of energy? Want to find out how your energy project fits into the landscape of various industries? This session will give you the skills to research the business and statistical information on energy to find industry overviews, market research, news and data.

Sponsor(s): Libraries
Contact: Katherine McNeill, E53-168C, 617 253-0787, MCNEILLH@MIT.EDU


Energy Information: Maps and Data to use with GIS

Jennie Murack

Jan/22 Tue 03:00PM-04:00PM 14N-132

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required
Limited to 40 participants

Where are the power plants and pipelines? How close are they to population centers? In this session, MIT GIS Services will introduce you to energy maps and spatial data available and demonstrate GIS in action on the energy front.

Register here: http://libcal.mit.edu/event.php?id=176640

Sponsor(s): Geographic Information Systems Lab, Libraries
Contact: Jennie Murack, 7-238, 617 258-6680, MURACK@MIT.EDU


Energy Sci/Tech Information: Where to Go, What to Do

Chris Sherratt

Jan/14 Mon 03:00PM-04:00PM 14N-132

Enrollment: Limited: First come, first served (no advance sign-up)
Limited to 30 participants

Information on energy is everywhere! How do you find what you need and keep on the cutting edge of what is published? Attend this hands-on session to find out.

Please register for this event.

Sponsor(s): Libraries
Contact: Chris Sherratt, 14S-134, 617-253-5648, gcsherra@mit.edu


Finding the Energy in E-Books!

Chris Sherratt

Jan/24 Thu 11:00AM-12:00PM 14N-132

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required
Limited to 30 participants

Lots of energy information is available right on your desktop or mobile device. This session will highlight some of the hidden energy gems among the Libraries online books.

Please register for this event.

Sponsor(s): Libraries
Contact: Chris Sherratt, 14S-134, 617-253-5648, gcsherra@mit.edu


Hands-on Weatherization Training

Ethan Feuer, Student Activities Coordinator

Feb/01 Fri 12:30PM-05:30PM Emmanuel Church, Meetup location will be sent out to participants

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required

Buildings account for 80% of energy used in Cambridge.  Maximizing the energy efficiency of building through weatherization is a top priority. MITEI is partnering with the Home Energy Efficiency Team (HEET) to offer students an opportunity to weatherize a Boston-based building. At this training session, you will learn and apply a wide-range of weatherization skills and also learn how to do a thorough energy-use audit.

Event registration form may be found here

Sponsor(s): MIT Energy Initiative, Public Service Center
Contact: Ethan Feuer, E19-370, 617 452-3199, EFEUER@MIT.EDU


Inspecting a Non-Lab or Non-Traditional DLC

Ed Akerley, DoF EHS Manager

Jan/31 Thu 01:00PM-02:00PM N52-391

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required
Sign-up by 01/18
Limited to 25 participants

There are a surprising number of spaces EHS Coordinators and Officers are responsible for that don’t fall under the “lab” umbrella! In this class we will explore the differences and similarities in the Level II inspection of a non-lab or non-traditional space, including mechanical rooms, workshops, and storage rooms. We will also provide pointers on common findings, and perform a mock inspection of a non-lab space.

Intended audience: EHS Coordinators, EHS office personnel, Facilities Supervisors, and managers or supervisors who receive inspection findings.

Register at: http://ehs.mit.edu/site/content/iap-course-registration

 

Sponsor(s): Environment, Health and Safety Office
Contact: Jessica Van, N52-496, 617 452-3233, JVAN@MIT.EDU


MITEI UROP Presentation and Discussion

Ethan Feuer, Student Activities Coordinator

Jan/24 Thu 02:00PM-04:00PM W16, Kresge Lobby

Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up

The MITEI Education Office will be participating in the IAP UROP Expo. The MITEI UROP is an opportunity to be part of a community of students engaged in energy research projects during a summer session. Swing by our table during the session to learn more.

Sponsor(s): MIT Energy Initiative
Contact: Ethan Feuer, E19-370, 617 452-3199, EFEUER@MIT.EDU


Planning Exercise: Managing climate change-related uncertainty in infrastructure planning

Todd Schenk, PhD candidate, Environmental Policy and Planning

Jan/15 Tue 10:00AM-01:00PM TBD

Enrollment: Unlimited: Advance sign-up required

Interested in planning in the face of the risks and uncertainties posed by climate change? Want to practice your negotiation skills in a simulated multi-stakeholder environment? Interested in infrastructure planning?

I am looking for people to participate in a role-play simulation exercise at MIT (with lunch provided). 

As part of my dissertation work, I will be using this short exercise exploring the best ways of handling the uncertainties involved in managing climate change risks on urban waterfront infrastructure with decision-makers and other stakeholders in various locations (Rotterdam, Singapore and New York). I would like to pilot it here first. I hope that this exercise will be beneficial for all involved, providing an opportunity to think about the management of uncertainty in decision-making, along with a chance to practice negotiation skills. I also expect it to be fun.

The location is to be determined, but will be somewhere here at MIT. Please RSVP directly to me if you are willing and able to attend, or if you have any questions.

Sponsor(s): Urban Studies and Planning
Contact: Todd Schenk, (617) 230-8480, tschenk@mit.edu


Strategies for Good Housekeeping in Your Lab or Work Space

Inspection Service Team, Gerry Fallon

Jan/24 Thu 01:00PM-02:00PM N52-391

Enrollment: Unlimited: Advance sign-up required
Sign-up by 01/13

Good Houekeeping in labs and other work areas is an important aspect of developing and maintaining a safe work environment. In this course, we will use a panel discussion to help identify housekeeping practices that require correction, develop strategies to address issues and suggest methods to communicate solutions. Refreshments will be provided.

Register at: http://ehs.mit.edu/site/content/iap-course-registration

Sponsor(s): Environment, Health and Safety Office
Contact: Jessica Van, N52-496, 617 452-3233, JVAN@MIT.EDU


Student Showcase on Climate Adaptation and Mitigation

Amanda Graham, Director of Education, MITEI

Jan/29 Tue 01:30PM-03:30PM 10-105

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required

MIT students: Are you involved in research related to climate adaptation or climate mitigation? Would you like to share your work with state officials leading Massachusetts’ efforts to prepare for climate variability? Apply here by midnight on January 24 to have your work considered for a showcase on January 29, 1:30-3:30 pm on the MIT campus.

Selected participants will present highlights of their research to officials from Massachusetts agencies, including the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs. The event will include brief remarks and 3-5 powerpoint slides by each selected participant as well as informal conversation. MIT community members are welcome to attend the event to learn and discuss.

Co-hosted by the MIT Energy Initiative, the Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change, the Department of Urban Studies and Planning, and the Department of Anthropology.

Space is limited. MIT community members: please register here to attend this event.

Sponsor(s): MIT Energy Initiative, Joint Program/Science and Policy of Global Change, Urban Studies and Planning
Contact: Amanda Graham, E19-370K, 617 253-8995, AGRAHAM@MIT.EDU


Sustainability Workshop: Live Green

Joel Dashnaw, Ruth Davis, and Julie Lindley, Green Committee Co-chairs

Jan/24 Thu 11:30AM-12:30PM 56-154, Feel free to bring your lunch

Enrollment: Unlimited: No advance sign-up
Prereq: None

Live Green: live large in a world that thinks small. 

This workshop is about changing our thinking about recycling, reusing and reducing.  What better way than to educate ourselves on where it all goes, what it turns into and most importantly how can we make changes in our behavior? Join us in having fun while we reduce our impact on the earth.

Sponsor(s): Department of Facilities
Contact: Ruth Davis, NE49-2200, 617 253-7299, RTDAVIS@MIT.EDU


Tour of the MIT Research Reactor

Edward Lau

Jan/16 Wed 10:00AM-12:00PM NW12 1st floor desk, Ring front doorbell for entry.
Jan/18 Fri 10:00AM-12:00PM NW12 1st floor desk, Ring front doorbell for entry.
Jan/25 Fri 10:00AM-12:00PM NW12 1st floor desk, Ring front doorbell for entry.

Enrollment: Limited: Advance sign-up required
Sign-up by 01/24
Limited to 25 participants
Attendance: Repeating event, particpants welcome at any session

Learn how the MIT Research Reactor is operated and utilized. A descriptive lecture and a walking tour of the lab will be given with emphasis on interdisciplinary research and applications. Advance sign up and photo ID required. To register, send email including full name (each full name, if signing up more than one person), relation to MIT, and which tour date you prefer. If no date is specified, then one will be assigned.

Sponsor(s): Nuclear Reactor Lab
Contact: Kristen Ayala, NW12-116, x3-4211, kayala@mit.edu