MISTI Program
Aug 6 2012
Mussels and Brussels
Posted in: Transfer Applicants, Academics & Research
Maggie Lloyd
Class of 2012 Alumna
MIT-Belgium Program
Internship: Carmeuse
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Since my freshman year, I have seriously wanted to participate in MISTI. When senior year rolled around, I decided that a 5-month internship in another nation would be a perfect post-graduation, pre-rest-of-my-life opportunity. It was a great idea in my opinion! So there I am, sitting on the plane taking off from JFK when it finally hits me: I’m going to a country I’ve never been to before that speaks a language I kind of know to work on a project that covers subjects in chemical engineering that I’ve never studied in depth for a company that has never taken an international intern before. A few nerves started to kick in, but I reminded myself that this could only mean that an adventure was about to begin.
I work for a limestone company, and before you conjure up images of me examining rocks while wearing a hard hat over my frizzy hair like some sort of Magic School Bus episode, let me assure... read the post »
Jul 30 2012
Total immersion
Posted in: Academics & Research
Rachel Foley
Junior
MIT-Italy Program
Internship: ENEL
ThIis post was first published on Rachel's Incredible Italian Inquisition: http://rachelsincredibleitalianinquisition.blogspot.com
It has officially been two months since I arrived in Italy, and I must say, I am still discovering something new every day. Recently, I’ve come into a fuller realization of how interconnected Rome is. The first month or so in Rome, I was in my “tentative” phase where I stuck like glue to the bus that took me directly from the apartment to where I work. For that month, I was under the impression that very few people rode the bus, partially because the bus I would take was usually pretty empty, and partially because there was never anyone waiting at my bus stop when I arrived in the morning (which I found slightly odd).
It took me a while to work up the courage to take a different bus to work, and the main reason I found myself on said bus was because there was one week where three or four... read the post »
Jul 26 2012
Salut!
Posted in: Academics & Research
QinQin Yu
Freshmen
MIT-France Program
Internship: Institut Néel at CNRS
Salut! I'm spending my summer in Grenoble, France, at the Institut Néel, a world-famous magnetism research center situated in the heart of the Alps. Our lab works with extremely low temperatures, so I get to work with liquid helium every day! It's very cool (...see what I did there? The French don't quite understand my puns, so you lucky folks get to hear them instead!). We get samples from chemists in all parts of the world and help them determine their magnetic properties. Sometimes we measure samples that can potentially be used for quantum computers; other times, we measure samples that are just plain interesting.
Living in the laid-back southern France culture means that on the weekends, I get to explore the city with friends, go to the farmers market, hike in the Alps, and take advantage of the July sales that happen all across France! There are always music festivals and open-air films happening in... read the post »
Jul 17 2012
Sunrise, Sunset
Posted in: Best of the Blogs, Academics & Research
Ben Bell
Sophomore
MIT-Israel Program
Internship: Ben Gurion University, Prof. Ilana Natan
This post was first published on Ben Bell in Israel: http://benbellinisrael.wordpress.com/
I was trying to think of a clever title for my daily activities and was reminded of the musical, Fiddler on the Roof. If you’ve never seen it, then REMEDY THAT. ;) And while I’m not going to be in a Jewish wedding anytime soon, so far all I can say about the summer is, “swiftly fly the years”.
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Be’er Sheva is a quiet, humble city. When I first arrived, it didn’t take but a morning and early afternoon to see the sights. There are a few attractions to the town that make it pretty homey. Every Wednesday there is a street festival in the old city with musicians, artists, and sellers of trinkets galore. It’s a nice change of pace from the school year, which is practically non-stop from reg day to the last final. However, the Sabbath (institutionalized here in Israel) is something that forces you to... read the post »