By Tochi Eni-Kaul

Greek mythology tells us the story of Sisyphus, a former king of Corinth who was condemned by the gods to an eternity of physical and emotional torture. His punishment? Pushing up a large boulder up a hill every single day, only for that boulder to roll back down to the hill when the task was seemingly completed.
Only fools and theoretical physicists would envy the nature of his punishment. He toiled away under the scorching heat of the sun daily, directing his efforts towards the achievement of a single goal; a goal which, by the decree of the gods, was unattainable. Surely, Sisyphus must have been an unhappy man. But was he?
In 1942, a certain man named Albert Camus wrote an essay, “The Myth of Sisyphus,” in which he dismissed the theory of a glum Sisyphus. Mr. Camus, who happened to be a Nobel laureate, argued that the mythological figure was indeed a happy man. Why? Because “the struggle itself…is enough to fill a man’s heart.” In layman terms, Camus was essentially saying that joy is derived from the process of doing.
What, then, do Greek mythology and the opinion of a Nobel laureate have to do with hacking and hackathons?
A lot of the code you write at a hackathon would probably not end up in the final iteration of your hack. Your hardware hack, at times, might begin to resemble an exercise in futility. Participating in a hackathon can seem like a sisyphean undertaking, especially to novices with sparse or no programming experience. This, I believe, is why many non-coders I have spoken to have been apprehensive about going to hackathons. Myths surrounding hackathons have disseminated fallacies about insurmountable challenges requiring herculean feats of heroism (in this case, awesome coding skills) in order to succeed. Despite the explosion in the popularity of hackathons in the last half-decade, a lot of people out there still believe that hackathons are competitive events for code monkeys. According to their logic, the absence of coding ability is a barrier to participation. A hackathon attendee without coding skills is an embarrassment, and thus, has no “shot at victory.”
The very existence of these myths points towards a sizeable problem: a fundamental misunderstanding of why people hack.
The most important takeaway from any hackathon should be the experience of participating in one. Any seasoned veteran would tell you that, in retrospect, you would cherish the long hours spent working on your project and the joy of meeting hackers from other schools more than any success which your project may enjoy. Yes, prizes are handed out at the end of most hackathons, and, yes, some team would walk away with “Best Hack” and a few thousand bucks. That said, no one really cares, nor should you (unless you’re a megalomaniac). Hackers hack for the sake of hacking. It is “the struggle” of cranking out a project that makes hackathon attendance worthwhile, not the acclaim or prizes which a hack may receive.
Anyone can go to a hackathon. You don’t need to be GeoHot, nor do you need to know that Ruby is actually a programming language. If you don’t know anything about code, you will learn all you need to know about code there, but only if you want to. Purists will argue that a hackathon is a more effective way of learning how to program than sitting in a dull, dreary classroom; many will wholeheartedly agree. For someone without a programming background, a first hackathon can be a nervy affair. Learning a programming language in a faced paced environment and using that newly acquired knowledge to make a hack can be challenging, but that doesn’t mean that it’s impossible. After all, everything is hard before it becomes easy.
If you’re still dithering about going to a hackathon, you should probably come to Bitcamp. You’ve missed out on a lot already. Don’t miss out on more.

 

           Often, the pleasure of picking up a good book seems just out of reach. September through November our schedules are packed with classes, meetings, and a long list of other obligations. However, during the holiday season we often find time to pick up our favorite novel or explore the pages of an acclaimed bestseller. Indeed, books are a rare treat from the chaos of everyday life. So while we still have the opportunity, I figured it was about time that QUESTPress published a winter reading list with selections from our very own Quality Guild.

           We have selections from Dr. Herrmann, Dr. Bailey, and Kylie in this article, with a brief description of why they chose their book below:

Dr. Herrmann
“Engineers of Victory: The Problem Solvers who Turned the Tide in the Second World War” by Paul Kennedy

This book is about operations researchers, engineers, and political and military leaders who solved extremely important logistical and technical problems to help defeat the Axis powers in World War II. It discusses protecting convoys, winning control of the air, stopping the blitzkrieg, amphibious landings, and deciding how to regain the vast Pacific. The solutions combined technological, logistical, and organizational innovations. It covers the difficult decisions that were made and gives enough historical background to understand why the problem was important and difficult. I chose it because studying cases of decision-making and problem-solving in the past can help us design systems and improve processes today.

Dr. Bailey
“Creative Confidence” by Tom & David Kelley

This book was given to me by Grace Zhang earlier this semester and I really enjoyed it! Students may know one of my favorite sayings, “while it is easier to criticize than to create, you should create anyway.” Well, this book is great because it describes how every one of us is creative and we shouldn’t just leave the creative arts up to “artists.” If we don’t think we’re creative, it might just be because we haven’t found our best medium. For QUEST students, our medium may be money, numbers, material, or code. While these media are quite different than canvas and plaster, they are still the elements of creativity that we can use every day to express our inner creative “artist.”

Kylie Goodell
“The Happiness Hypothesis” by Jonathan Haidt

This book combines information from a number of areas of research in an interesting and meaningful way. It is witty, insightful, and not too “fluffy”. Reading The Happiness Hypothesis can help you to center yourself after, or in the midst of, the craziness of finals and the holidays!

First, the entrance to the Quest Lab was embellished with pink foam hearts no doubt a bashful sign of affection for our lovely students and faculty. Then, there was a period where our abode was graced with the name of a 1985 hip hop group (stop me if you’ve heard their hit single Can I kick it?). Now, we’re in the age of the Chess-Lab. Aditya Sridhar (Q19), with a single surreptitious move, welcomed the latest craze that’s swept our Quest community. By introducing a simple wooden chess set to the lab, he’s punctuated the relaxed study and lounging atmosphere with brief bouts of competition.

I was propositioned as soon as I walked in.

“DJ, how about a game?” There’s a pause as we size each other up. I take a look at the impromptu score board that is now as much a focal point as the board in his hands. Mark’s record is impressive. “Looks like you’re pretty good, Mark,” I say. He offers a ready smile, “I get better with every game” – a quality riposte. It’s a common trend among Quest students, they are modest in words and instead choose to display their bravado on the battlefield. I watch later as Cohort 20 students Pavan Rangachar and Nicole Blahut wage war. The vibe is intense, yet amiable. It’s clear that they’re both enjoying themselves: Pavan caps each move with a smile.

A chat with Cohort 20 junior Yoni reveals that he once had his chess experience on his college resume. “It was my very first leadership position, the Chess club.” For more than a week this simple game has started friendly rivalries, spurred animated chats over strategy, and drawn together many in an already close knit community. It’s amazing how so many members from a group as diverse a Quest can share such a unique interest. All we need now is some prize money.

 

Written by,

Daniel-Jason Minzie

Philosopher

Q20