Before the term hacking became associated with computers, MIT undergraduates used it to describe any activity that took their minds off studying, suggested an unusual solution to a technical problem, or generally fostered nondestructive mischief. The MIT hacking culture has given us such treasures as police cars and cows on the Great Dome, a disappearing door to the President's office, and the commencement game of "Al Gore Buzzword Bingo." Hacks can be technical, physical, virtual, or verbal. Often the underlying motivation is to conquer the inaccessible and make possible the improbable. Hacks can express dissatisfaction with local culture or with administrative decisions, but mostly they are remarkably good-spirited. They are also by definition ephemeral. Fortunately, the MIT Museum has amassed a unique collection of hack-related pictures, reports, and remnants. Nightwork collects the best materials from this collection, to entertain innocent bystanders and inspire new generations of practitioners. |
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18 of 18 found the following review helpful:
Great book, but with a caveat.Jan 31, 2005
By Stacey Tappan
This is a terrific, fairly comprehensive book of the highlights from MIT's long tradition of pranks. However, if you have already read Journal of the Institute of Hacks, Tomfoolery, and Pranks, you'll find you've read most of this before, and in better detail, with better-reproduced photographs (in my opinion.) The good thing about Nightwork is that this is includes hacks from more recent years than the other book.
For me, the time they spent on the new stuff wasn't nearly enough to justify buying a whole new book, but on its own and to someone who has never read its predecessor, it is an excellent and entertaining history.
6 of 6 found the following review helpful:
And yet, the professor pulls off another Hack ...Dec 06, 2004
By Jorge Martinez
"Engineer"
I had a brief opportunity to read this book a while ago. There are plenty of stories about hacks that would make anyone go "why in the name of science these geeks wanted to do that?" And well, you are asking that about people that are pride of being considered geeks. But then again, with this book you will get acquainted with the all-time famous football game between Harvard and Yale where the winner was MIT (??), the 48 unit weight that "cracked" the dome and that the measure of the Harvard bridge is about 364.4 smoots + one ear
And for those of you lucky enough to have established contact with an MIT student/alum, ask them about the secret that lies within the Institute Historian T. F. Peterson and the "hack" that its right there in front of your eyes. Congratulations, you have been hacked.
8 of 9 found the following review helpful:
Interesting Hacks To Fascinate PeopleMar 14, 2004
By roy christopher
"roychristopher-dot-com"
The Massechussettes Institue of Technology has been host to the leaders of innovations in many fields: Artificial Intelligence, media and communication technology, open source development, and on and on. One of its lesser known areas of bleeding-edge innovation has been pranks and hacking. Well, Institute Historian T. F. Peterson is here to set that straight with Nightwork: A History of Hacks and Pranks at MIT. Long before the term 'hacking' was associated with computers (and pejoratively by the popular press), it was an MIT institution. MIT undergrads used the term to describe any activity that took their minds off studying and stress. In Nightwork, the best of the best of the history of MIT hacks is documented, photographed, and explained in great detail. Some of the best (and most visible) hacks at MIT involve The Great Dome. For instance, to celebrate the 2001 release of the movie The Lord of the Rings, MIT hackers made a gold ring around the dome with red Elvish script, "authentically inscribed with Tolkien's text." In the same spirit in 1999, two days before the release of Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, the dome was made up to look like R2D2 (pictured below). Nightwork covers these more obvious hacks as well as the long history of pranks at MIT dating back to the 1940s: Interesting Hacks To Fascinate People. And lest the reader think this is all just mindless fun, a collection of explanitory and philosophical essays is also included. Even if you're not a hacker or a prankster yourself, hack your bookshelf with Nightwork.
4 of 4 found the following review helpful:
 what about all the failed pranks?Jun 21, 2006
By W Boudville
Here is an informal romp through decades of MIT pranks. Reflecting well on the ingenuity and craziness of the undergrads who devoted so much time and sweat to making these happen. Most of the pranks revolve around some high tech gimmick. As you follow the narrative, you might admire the unorthodox nature to which technology has been applied.
The only lack in the book is in anecdotes of failed pranks. These could surely comprise a much larger text.
8 of 10 found the following review helpful:
Super humor from MIT!May 06, 2003
By Elaine C Craven
"Nightwork: a history of hacks and pranks at MIT" is a well-written documentation of the ingenious stunts engineered by the super bright, super creative students at MIT. The author doesn't lose any of the hilarity in his/her description of the student hijinks.
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