The Idea Factory: Learning to Think at MIT

White, Pepper

ISBN 10: 0262731428 / ISBN 13: 9780262731423

Published by The MIT Press, Cambridge, MA, 2001

About this Item

Glued binding. xvii, [1], 313, [5] p. Illustrations. Index. This is a personal story of the educational process at one of the world s great technological universities. Pepper White entered MIT in 1981 and received his master s degree in mechanical engineering in 1984. His account of his experiences, written in diary form, offers insight into graduate school life in general--including the loneliness and even desperation that can result from the intense pressure to succeed--and the purposes of engineering education in particular. The first professor White met at MIT told him that it did not really matter what he learned there, but that MIT would teach him how to think. This, then, is the story of how one student learned how to think. There have of course been changes at MIT since 1984, but its essence is still the same. Reprint. First MIT Press edition [stated], later printing.

Seller Inventory # 71909

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Idea Factory: Learning to Think at MIT
• Publisher: The MIT Press, Cambridge, MA
• Publication Date: 2001
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0262731428
• ISBN 13: 9780262731423
• Binding: Trade paperback
• Edition: 1st Edition
• Condition: Good. Crease on back cover.

About this title

Synopsis

This is a personal story of the educational process at one of the world's great technological universities.

This is a personal story of the educational process at one of the world's great technological universities. Pepper White entered MIT in 1981 and received his master's degree in mechanical engineering in 1984. His account of his experiences, written in diary form, offers insight into graduate school life in general—including the loneliness and even desperation that can result from the intense pressure to succeed—and the purposes of engineering education in particular. The first professor White met at MIT told him that it did not really matter what he learned there, but that MIT would teach him how to think. This, then, is the story of how one student learned how to think. There have of course been changes at MIT since 1984, but its essence is still the same. White has added a new preface and concluding chapter to this edition to bring the story of his continuing education up to date.

About the Author

Pepper White owns the consulting firm LCI Energy.