Principal Investigator
Steven Wasserman, Department of Biological Engineering; Dr. Natalie Kuldell, Department of Biological Engineering; Dr. Maxine Jonas, Department of Biological Engineering; Ms. Julie Sutton, Biological Engineering
Fund:
Alumni Class Funds
Funding Period:
AY2018
Department/Lab/Center:
Biological Engineering
MIT’s culture of independent exploration and hands-‐on learning defines the undergraduate experience. There are more than 130,000 ft2 of facilities on campus devoted to the fabrication of “hard” objects made out of things like metal, wood, glass, and silicon chips. Despite strong demand, there are few opportunities for students working with “squishy” (biological) materials to participate in the kinds of self-‐directed experiences available to students in other disciplines. We believe that these kinds of activities will enhance the learning experience of life-‐science students, and furthermore that all of the human precursors of a vibrant bio-‐maker community exist on campus in large quantities. We propose to use Alumni Class Funds to seed and sustain a biological maker movement on campus.