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<div style="position: relative; top: -.05em; font-size: 95%;">the site for all things '''[[User:ThePlaz|Michael Plasmeier]]''' ([[My Nicknames|ThePlaz]])</div></div>
 
<div style="position: relative; top: -.05em; font-size: 95%;">the site for all things '''[[User:ThePlaz|Michael Plasmeier]]''' ([[My Nicknames|ThePlaz]])</div></div>
 
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This site is a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wiki wiki].  That means that anybody (including YOU) can edit and change the information found here. ([[Help:Wiki Markup Cheatsheet|Editing help]])</p>
 
This site is a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wiki wiki].  That means that anybody (including YOU) can edit and change the information found here. ([[Help:Wiki Markup Cheatsheet|Editing help]])</p>
 
<p style="clear:both; margin:0 0 0 0; margin-bottom:.2em; text-align: center; font-size: 110%;">My site contains mostly my homework and projects as well as various stuff from my life.  <small>([[Mission Statement|Site Mission Statement]])</small></p>  
 
<p style="clear:both; margin:0 0 0 0; margin-bottom:.2em; text-align: center; font-size: 110%;">My site contains mostly my homework and projects as well as various stuff from my life.  <small>([[Mission Statement|Site Mission Statement]])</small></p>  
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[[Image:Nuvola apps important.png|25px|left]] 12/22/2010 Personal Update Fall 2010
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[[Image:Nuvola apps important.png|25px|left]] 8/25/2013 Yahoo APM!
 
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==Yahoo APM==
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[[File:Marissa and Michael.jpg|thumb|Me with Marissa Mayer]]
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[[File:Yahoo APMs 13.jpg|thumb|The 2013 Yahoo APMs]]
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I am about 1 month into my new job at [[Yahoo]] as an Associate Product Manager or [[APM]].  After I finished classes at MIT, but before I was set to start at Oracle, Yahoo offered me to join Marissa Mayer's new APM program at Yahoo.  Marissa started the program back when she had just joined Google - as a way to find and develop new Product Managers out of school, which she thought would be faster than hiring experienced PMs from the industry.  This article describes the role http://www.wired.com/business/2012/07/marissas-secret-weapon-for-recruiting-new-yahoo-talent/ though that article overblows things slightly.
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I’m super happy where I am at.  This is the type of job I was aiming for throughout MIT; I think I was well-prepared by MIT; and I think .Yahoo is also in a very interesting state at the moment.  They are rapidly redoing everything.  This makes new grads are handed large chunks of the product to manage, because they are so understaffed for what the need is.  In addition, they are in the midst of a huge culture change.  They are replacing their cube farms with open desks.  They are rebuilding teams, which were previously laid off.  It’s very interesting to work with people on either side of the culture change and to experience the before-and-after at the same time.
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I’m in charge of designing the platform Yahoo uses to know where you are, and I help designing the membership, accounts, and security features of Yahoo.  The work is very similar to what I did at MIT – brainstorming solutions, designing schemes, working with other stakeholders to refine plans and achieve consensus. 
  
There goes another semester!  I am writing on the [http://megabus.com Megabus] home after my last final yesterdayAt least the power works this time; usually neither the power nor the WiFi works.  The WiFi only worked for 10 minutes before crashing today.  At least Megabus now goes direct PHL-BOS without having to change in NYC!  Why bother with the bus? Because it's cheap!  I book in advanced, so the fares are only $5 or $10 each wayEven when you book late and pay $30, it's still much better than $80 on [http://amtrak.com Amtrak] or $300 on the airplane.  I learned in [[16.71J]] this year that the PHL-BOS airplane market had the highest yield (fare per mile) of any domestic route!
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As an APM, I’m part of Yahoo’s inner circle – giving it the feel of a small companyMy experience working with administrators at MIT prepared me very well for working with the executives at Yahoo. It's probably the best business/leadership/PM experience possible in the world for someone just out of schoolI think it's rivals management consulting in terms of business experience - since you're directly responsible for something, but still involved at a high level.   I think one learns by doing and by being exposed to stuffThe greater scope and responsibility one has, the more one learns, I believe.
  
Anyway, I am very happy how this semester went. I had my own room this year; I think this allowed me to focus much more. I also came into the year with the mindset of fully dedicating my self to school work; not doing too much work outside of class work, and working all nights and weekends. I think I finally was able to achieve the proper level of focus at MIT, especially since I was taking 6 classes (69 units), which is 190% of "full load"You may remember that [[Learning to Learn at MIT|I struggled my first semester here]].  During my second semester (when I took 54 units), I did not have it all together either; I would sometimes do homework the day it was due, or not at allThis semester, I only did that once, and I don't think I missed any assignments.  I am really proud that I pushed my productivity to an new level by stabilizing my learning.
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==Mountain View==
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[[File:Mountain View Home.jpg|thumb|Mountain View Home]]
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[[File:Chevy Volt.jpg|thumb|Chevy Volt]]
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I'm settled into my new place in [[Mountain View]]. [http://www.flickr.com/photos/theplaz/sets/72157634601732288/ Photos] I'm sharing a house with 2 other guys, who were friends of friendsI've purchased a [[Chevy Volt]].  [http://www.flickr.com/photos/theplaz/sets/72157634595577805/ Photos] It goes 40 miles in a charge, but after that it can use gasIn almost 2 months, I haven't gone to the gas station once!
  
[[File:MIT Fall 2010 Work.jpg|200px]]
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I'm meeting a lot of new people here. Everyone seems to be a friend of a friend at least, and about 20-30% have heard of me before!  That's kinda scarey!
  
I think 6 classes was just about the limit. If I try and do too much, I will not get enough sleep, and be far less productive.  It's kinda like a control system, like we learned about in [[6.01]].  I need to go right up to the line, without crossing it.  I like being busy.  I find that I am much more productive when I am busy.  I hate just sitting around; I want the pressure to get stuff done in an efficient manner.  Also, I still want to take advantage of my time here, by focusing on stuff I can only do when I am here.
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==Leaving MIT==
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I had my best semester ever, my last semester at MIT.  I had 5 As and one B-.  I was literally 10 points away from a 5.0!
  
This was my first term as a [[Course 15 Management]] major.  The [[Sloan school]] at MIT has a very big MBA program, along with a whole bunch of various programs.  (Each division at MIT has its own way of generating revenue.  Most do it via research, but Sloan does it with students.)  Undergrads take classes with the MBA students.  Harvard does not do this.  In [[15.567]], I was one of only 2 undergraduatesIn addition, the students at Sloan are very international, which brings a wide perspective. 
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[[File:Pens MIT Spring 2013.jpg|thumb|Pens|200px]]
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[[File:Paper MIT Spring 2013.jpg|thumb|Paper|200px]]
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This semester I used 32 inches of paper, as well as 31 pensHere is a chart of usage over time:
  
[[15.567|15.567 The Economics of Information: Strategy and Pricing]] was a mishmosh introduction to doing business online and using information in business.  I don't know.  In general, I was not awed by the experience, compared to other classes at MIT.  The Sloan students are very different from the other MIT students.  Many are only there for a year or two, fly home every weekend, and in general, have a very lose connection to the Institute.  Most put more effort into finding a job; there seems to be much less passion than the rest of MIT.  Their interest seems to be strictly limited to "how can I make money off this," with little tolerance for the details or culture behind it.  Now of course I believe, this attention to details is what leads to success.  For example, any one can put out a buzz-word compliant HR plan, but how do you actually implement it?  No wonder front-line employees are filled with sarcasm about management. Ultimately, I am uninspired.  In this class, I was dubbed the "class technical expert" by the professor.  During presentations, one student said he would now accept questions from anyone in the class except me.  The MBAs were sick of my tough questions.  I got an A in the class, which is the highest grade I have ever gotten at MIT (although the +/-modifiers do not matter).
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[[File:Pens and Paper Usage.png]]
  
[[15.501|15.501 Corporate Financial Accounting]] was very boring.  It is a boring, but necessary subject, but the lectures were extremely boring. Only about 5% of the class came to lecture each weekLuckily, the textbook was very helpful.  The homework felt like busywork (and could be done in a group) and the exams seemed to measure how fast you could pound your calculatorI guess the other students did not take it seriously, since I got an A- for the year.
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I wrote up two white papers on MIT Policy.  [[A Framework for Community Engagement]] is a refinement of the community engagement process which administrators currently follow. [[Problem Solving Teams]] proposes having students work as "management consultants" on the Institute’s biggest problemsThis joins [[Unrelenting Advocacy]], about how stundets should act like lobbyists and consultantsThis rounds up my [MIT Policy White Papers] series.
  
[[14.01|14.01 Principles of Microeconomics]] was another required course for 15. [http://econ-www.mit.edu/faculty/gruberj Jonathan Gruber], who was deeply involved in the writing of the new health care bill, was the lecturer this semester.  It was nice to hear from him, but I wish he would have talked more (both more often and more in depth) about his "day job".  14.01 was largely a review of AP Micro Econ from high school.  However, they teach the Calculus version at MIT.  This was difficult because the units don't really line up in economics.  Also the math parts were not taught very well this semester.  The textbook does not go into the math concepts, and the P-Sets (HW) is due before the math is reviewed in recitation.  In addition, Prof. Gruber invents very difficult exams.  I ended up with a B in the class.  I don't really know how I could have done any better.
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[[File:MIT Graduation.jpg|thumb|MIT Graduation]]
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Graduation was a super rainy affair - it was pretty miserable. [http://www.flickr.com/photos/theplaz/sets/72157634578617238/ Photos] However, I'm happy to say that I've now graduated.  It was sad to leave all of the stuff I really liked about MIT behind.
  
I also took the first [[Course 6 EECS]] class, [[6.01]].  I really liked it.  I was a lot of fun.  I really liked how the class was very well planned out.  The lectures and assignments all fit together well, and I felt like I learned a lot.  I also really like the beauty of [[EECS]] - namely that you reduce everything to reusable, abstract pieces.  I thought that I did well in the class.  I solved every homework problem correctly, I pretty much understood all of the material, I thought I did well on the exams, but I kept getting 80s on them!  I ended up with an 86% for the year which is a B.  I was shocked to see on the distribution that many people did better than me.  I don't know what it is, but it seems like no matter how much I study, a lot of people do better.  How do they pull it off????
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I used the time I was off (3 weeks at MIT, 3 weeks at home, and 3 weeks in CA) to get organized and clean up my stuff.  I emptied some boxes I hadn’t touched in years.  I scanned more paper.  However, I have still not managed to post my MIT stuff or more from the archives.
 
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My hardest class this semester was [[6.041|6.041 Probabilistic Systems Analysis]].  This was a required class for Course 15, surprisingly.  It was very difficult.  I ended up with a C for the semester.  I did spend a lot of time on it.  I read every chapter in the textbook and took notes; I went to every single lecture, recitation, and tutorial (the class was 5 days a week), and I went to office hours almost every week.  However, I was not very good at it, especially compared to the older students.  I was at the same place in the grading curve (1 st. dev below avg) like I was all last year in every class.  I think that I am not very good at abstract math concepts.  When I can put a story behind it, and visualize it, I can do very well.  For example, I did very well on Markov chains on the final.  The one part which I did the worst on, was the part taught in the last week of the class.  Since there is no homework the last week, I did not adequately review that material.  I still think that I would have done far worse if I had not reformed my study skills this year. 
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However, I think that this class, along with my learning to learn experience has shown me that I can do hard classes if I put effort into them.  I think challenging myself like this is worth it.  Combined with my experiences above, It made me think that I would rather do EECS, than Course 15.  I think at this point I will double major.  As part of that, I need to plan out my schedule for the rest of my time at MIT to make sure that it is feasible.
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After the first week of classes this semester, I decided that I wanted to add another class, so I looked through the catalog to see what would fit in my schedule.  I had seen [[16.17J|16.71J The Airline Industry]] in the course catalog, and it filled in a hole in my schedule, so I decided to add itIt ended up being a fairly interested management-style class, since many of the lectures and assignments were about how to schedule operations.  Much of what was taught works with any transportation methods, such as trains, [[transport|which I am interested in]].  Some of it even made me think back to last summer working at [[Deutsche Bahn]], the German national railway.
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Outside of classes at [[MIT]], I am still involved in university governance.  I am still the [[VPFS]] at [[Baker House]], and I am planning on running for reelection.  The Institute [[Athena Committee|Athena and printing committee]]] turned out to be over from last year.  No one wanted to talk about Athena spaces this year.  Our recommendations from last semester are being implemented.  IS&T upgraded all of the Athena cluster printers to new models and is now providing paper and toner to dorm printersThey are currently building the authenticated Pharos system and they are planning on starting a trial during IAP.
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I also became involved in the [[Dining at MIT|dining issue at MIT]].  For those of you who are unfamiliar, dining is MIT's perpetual controversial issue.  I wrote a research paper about it last term.  This semester, I became Baker's representative on the committee to select a new dining vendor.  I proposed a radical idea, and got seriously flammed for it.  At the end of the semester I was also appointed to the main dining policy committee, the infamous HDAG.  My current position can be found [[Current Position on Dining 11/19/2010|here]].
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This IAP I will be an extern at [http://statestreet.com State Street Capital] in Quincy, MA.  I picked this experience because I wanted a short induction to the world of finance.  It turned out that this job is in their IT department, similar to last summer where I worked in the IT department of a train company.  Still it should be a promising experience.  I am also thinking about other activities which I can do to stay busy during IAP.  I may be a research assistant with Prof. Brynjolfsson from [[15.567]] at the [[Center for Digital Business]] at [[Sloan]].  I am also planning on taking a night class introducing MatLab.  There is also a Poker competition to build the best poker playing AI.  I just want to listen in on the class, as I highly doubt that I can win.  I also don't know how much time I will have to spend on it.  Lastly, I will try to go to a series of lectures on the [[OLPC]] initiative at Sloan, by the founder of OLPC Walter Bender.
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I have picked out a slate of potential classes for next semester.  [[15.401|15.401 Introduction to Finance]], is a popular core Sloan class.  I want to learn more about the financial markets, and learn more about why the financial crisis happened.  [[15.761]] is another core Sloan class; this one is about making things efficiently.  I also plan on taking the next EECS class, [[6.02]] which deals with communications at a very basic level.  That should be very informative, although some of my friends told me it is not as fun as 6.01.  I also need to take [[7.013|7.013 Biology]] and [[15.279|15.279 Managerial Communications]] as requirements.  I am not looking forward to them.  If they fit in my schedule, I will take them.  If they don't then I will kick the can down the road again.  I also need to take [[14.02|14.02 Macroeconomics]].  I don't remember the currency markets very well, so I can use a refresher.  I don't know what the format of the course is.  I hope that it is taught better than [[14.01]].  I am also signing up for two math classes.  [[18.06|18.06 Linear Algebra]] is supposedly a pre-req for [[6.02]].  I did not see that before, so I am plan on taking it concurrently.  [[18.443]] is one of the two options for a statistics class.  I want to take the [[Course 18 Math]] version, because I think it will be more rigorous than the [[Course 15 Management]] version.  I know this won't be too favorable for my GPA, but my experience in [[6.041]] says I can do it if I try.  I also need to take a HASS class.  I chose [[4.211|4.211 The Present and Future City]] as the one that seemed to be the most interesting this term.  Unfortunately it is not a CI-H or a HASS-D class, which will put me a little behind on those requirements.  The HASS restrictions are just too complex and restrictive at MIT.  Why are more classes not HASS-D classes?  Lastly [[ESD.00]] is a new class for this year.  It is designed to introduce freshmen to the world of systems development, but it looks interesting, so I am planning on taking it as my fun class.   Now I know that this is too many classes.  I will likely end up with 6 of them that fit together in a schedule.
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I have been doing [http://theweeklyspin.com The Weekly Spin] during the term.  Gdovin's internet connection at Kutztown has been bad (not as bad as mine over the summer though), but I hope the show is still informative for people.  We are covering the same issues as always.
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I took about 3,000 photos this term, bringing my [http://flickr.com/photos/theplaz flickr] item total to 54,931.  [http://www.flickr.com/photos/theplaz/sets/72157625013182841/ My family took me on a road trip halfway through the term], and [http://www.flickr.com/photos/theplaz/sets/72157625640512502/ I went on a walk through of the new MIT dorm W1/Massey Hall] which will be completed next year.  I have put the most of the rest of the photos into the [http://www.flickr.com/photos/theplaz/sets/72157625137329916/ Around MIT Fall 2010] set.  These are my first photos with my new [[Samsung HZ30W]] camera.  I am very happy with it; it is much better than my old [[Kodak M1093 IS]] camera.
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I am looking for another internship this summer.  I want something that combines tech with business, like last summer.  However, this seems to confuse most companies I talk to.  I always get pegged for a regular technical position, for which I am only moderately competitive for.  Oh well, here's hoping I find something.--[[User:ThePlaz|ThePlaz]] 16:05, 22 December 2010 (EST)
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==Personal Style==
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I also spent some time to reflect on my [[Personal Style]].  I spent several months iterating on this - and it ended up being quite lengthy!  I wanted to record this, because I know with will update over time, and I wanted to make a record of it.  I think it's also helpful for people to know how I approach problem solving.
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--[[User:ThePlaz|ThePlaz]] ([[User talk:ThePlaz|talk]]) 02:55, 25 August 2013 (EDT)
 
''[http://theplaz.com/wiki/index.php?title=User_talk:ThePlaz&action=edit&section=new Leave Plaz a (public) message] [[Image:File_icon.gif]] or [[User:ThePlaz:E-mail me|send me a (private) e-mail.]][[Image:Mail_icon.gif]]'', ''[http://feeds.feedburner.com/ThePlazPersonalUpdates Subscribe via RSS feed], ''[http://www.feedburner.com/fb/a/emailverifySubmit?feedId=786542 Subscribe via email]'', ''[http://friendfeed.com/theplaz Detailed feed]'', ''[[Old Updates|See past updates]]''
 
''[http://theplaz.com/wiki/index.php?title=User_talk:ThePlaz&action=edit&section=new Leave Plaz a (public) message] [[Image:File_icon.gif]] or [[User:ThePlaz:E-mail me|send me a (private) e-mail.]][[Image:Mail_icon.gif]]'', ''[http://feeds.feedburner.com/ThePlazPersonalUpdates Subscribe via RSS feed], ''[http://www.feedburner.com/fb/a/emailverifySubmit?feedId=786542 Subscribe via email]'', ''[http://friendfeed.com/theplaz Detailed feed]'', ''[[Old Updates|See past updates]]''
 
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Recent Activity from around the Web
 
Recent Activity from around the Web
 
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{{#RawHTML:Main_Page:FriendFeed}}
<script type="text/javascript" src="http://friendfeed.com/embed/widget/theplaz?v=2&amp;num=10&amp;hide_logo=1&amp;hide_subscribe=1&amp;width=820"></script><noscript><a href="http://friendfeed.com/theplaz"><img alt="View my FriendFeed" style="border:0;" src="http://friendfeed.com/embed/widget/theplaz?v=2&amp;num=10&amp;hide_logo=1&amp;hide_subscribe=1&amp;width=820&amp;format=png"/></a></noscript>
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<h3 style="-moz-border-radius-topright: 1em;-moz-border-radius-topleft: 1em; background:#90ee90;margin:-2px;padding:4px;"> [[MIT Senior]]
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<span class="edittemplate" style="font-size:8pt; float:right; margin:0 7px 0 0;">[http://theplaz.com/wiki/index.php?title=Template:Main_Page:MIT_Senior&action=edit edit]</span>
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{{Main Page:MIT Senior}}
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<h3 style="-moz-border-radius-topright: 1em;-moz-border-radius-topleft: 1em; background:#90ee90;margin:-2px;padding:4px;"> [[MIT Junior]]
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<span class="edittemplate" style="font-size:8pt; float:right; margin:0 7px 0 0;">[http://theplaz.com/wiki/index.php?title=Template:Main_Page:MIT_Junior&action=edit edit]</span>
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{{Main Page:MIT Junior}}
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<h3 style="-moz-border-radius-topright: 1em;-moz-border-radius-topleft: 1em; background:#90ee90;margin:-2px;padding:4px;"> [[MIT Sophomore]]
 
<h3 style="-moz-border-radius-topright: 1em;-moz-border-radius-topleft: 1em; background:#90ee90;margin:-2px;padding:4px;"> [[MIT Sophomore]]
 
<span class="edittemplate" style="font-size:8pt; float:right; margin:0 7px 0 0;">[http://theplaz.com/wiki/index.php?title=Template:Main_Page:MIT_Sophomore&action=edit edit]</span>
 
<span class="edittemplate" style="font-size:8pt; float:right; margin:0 7px 0 0;">[http://theplaz.com/wiki/index.php?title=Template:Main_Page:MIT_Sophomore&action=edit edit]</span>
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*'''[[:File:Pop Music Binder.pdf|Binder]]'''
 
*[[Pop Music#Unit 0: Intro|Unit 0: Intro]]
 
*[[Pop Music#Unit 0: Intro|Unit 0: Intro]]
 
*[[Pop Music#Unit 1: Elements|Unit 1: Elements]]
 
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[[Image:Nuvola filesystems folder blue open.png|30px]] [[8th Grade]]
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*[[IAG 1]]
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*[[Latin 1]]
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*[[English 8]]
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*[[Geography]]
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*[[8th Grade Health]]
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*[[8th Grade History]]
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*[[8th Grade Science]]
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*[[8th Grade Seminar]]
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*[[8th Grade Tech Ed]]
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[[Image:Nuvola filesystems folder blue open.png|30px]] [[7th Grade]]
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*[[7th Grade History|History]]
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*[[Info Tech 7]]
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*[[7th Grade LA|Language Arts]]
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*[[7th Grade Math|Math]]
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*[[7th Grade Science|Science]]
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*[[7th Grade Spanish|Spanish]]
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*[[7th Grade Music|Music]]
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*[[7th Grade Sci-Sem|Sci-Sem]]
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<span style="margin-right: 5px;"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/apps/application.php?id=2379574490" class="image" title="GridView, for Facebook, lets you put the profile pics of all of your friends onto your profile"><img src="http://wiki.theplaz.com/w/images/footer/gridview.png" alt="GridView, for Facebook, lets you put the profile pics of all of your friends onto your profile" height="26"></a></span>
 
<span style="margin-right: 3px;"><a href="http://911.tecker.net" class="image" title="Tecker 911, a tech help netcast"><img src="http://wiki.theplaz.com/w/images/footer/911_logo.png" alt="Tecker 911, a tech help netcast" height="31"></a></span>
 
<span style="margin-right: 0px;"><a href="http://seniorquoter.org" class="image" title="SeniorQuoter, the easy way for the yearbook staff to collect senior quotes"><img src="http://wiki.theplaz.com/w/images/footer/seniorquoter.png" alt="SeniorQuoter, the easy way for the yearbook staff to collect senior quotes" height="27"></a></span>
 
<span style="margin-right: 3px;"><a href="http://tecker.net" class="image" title="Tecker, my technology help site"><img src="http://wiki.theplaz.com/w/images/footer/tecker_logo.png" alt="Tecker, my technology help site" height="31"></a></span>
 
<span style="margin-right: 0px;"><a href="http://theweeklyspin.com" class="image" title="The Weekly Spin Audio Podcast"><img src="http://wiki.theplaz.com/w/images/footer/theweeklyspin.png" alt="The Weekly Spin Audio Podcast" height="20"></a></span>
 
<span style="margin-right: 0px;"><a href="http://forumsplace.com" class="image" title="ForumsPlace"><img src="http://wiki.theplaz.com/w/images/footer/forumsplace.png" alt="ForumsPlace" height="31"></a></span>
 
<span style="margin-right: 5px;"><a href="http://socialview.com" class="image" title="SocialView"><img src="http://wiki.theplaz.com/w/images/footer/socialview.png" alt="SocialView" height="31"></a></span>
 
<span style="margin-right: 3px;"><a href="http://wiki.theplaz.com/Teckcasts" class="image" title="Teckcasts combine the best of Tecker 911, w3life, and SJTechZone into one podcast channel on iTunes"><img src="http://wiki.theplaz.com/w/images/footer/teckcasts.png" alt="Teckcasts combine the best of Tecker 911, w3life, and SJTechZone into one podcast channel on iTunes" height="31"></a></span>
 
<span style="margin-right: 0px;"><a href="http://wiki.theplaz.com/Conflicter" class="image" title="Conflicter, dedicated to ending global conflict through frank discussions about current issues"><img src="http://wiki.theplaz.com/w/images/footer/conflicter_logo.png" alt="Conflicter, dedicated to ending global conflict through frank discussions about current issues" height="31"></a></span>
 
<span style="margin-right: 2px;"><a href="http://dictionaryrobot.com" class="image" title="Dictionary Robot, lets you look up a bunch of words at once"><img src="http://wiki.theplaz.com/w/images/footer/dictionaryrobot.png" alt="Dictionary Robot, lets you look up a bunch of words at once" height="27"></a></span>
 
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<div style="font-weight:bold;font-size:15pt; text-align: center">Michael Plasmeier</div>
 
<div style="font-weight:bold;font-size:14pt; text-align: center">"ThePlaz"</div>
 
<div style="font-weight:bold;font-size:12pt; text-align: center">MIT 2013 student</div>
 
<div style="font-weight:bold;font-size:10pt; text-align: center">Web developer and project manager with a focus on user experience and design</div>
 
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Latest revision as of 07:31, 25 August 2013

Resume

Welcome to ThePlaz.com

the site for all things Michael Plasmeier (ThePlaz)

This site is a wiki. That means that anybody (including YOU) can edit and change the information found here. (Editing help)

My site contains mostly my homework and projects as well as various stuff from my life. (Site Mission Statement)

Leave Plaz a (public) message File icon.gif or send me a (private) e-mail.Mail icon.gif

MIT Senior edit

Fall
  • Schedule
  • 7.012 Intro to Biology
  • 6.046 Advanced Algorithms
  • 6.858 Computer and Network Security
  • 14.72 Capitalism and its Critics
  • STS.085 Ethics and the Law on the Electronic Frontier
  • 2.009 Product Design Process (Listener)
  • 15.062 Data Mining (Listener)
Spring

MIT Junior edit

Fall
  • 6.004 Computation Structures
  • 6.005 Elements of Software Construction
  • 6.034 Artificial Intelligence
  • STS.011 Ethics and Politics in Science and Technology
  • 15.387 Technology Sales and Sales Management
  • 15.665 Power and Negotiation
  • 18.03 Differential Equations
  • Working out a System - How I take 7 classes at MIT and thrive
Spring
  • Spring Schedule
  • 6.033 Computer System Engineering
  • 6.813 User Interface Design and Implementation
  • 6.006 Introduction to Algorithms
  • 15.571 Business Strategy and the Role of IT
  • 15.565 Digital Evolution: Managing Web 3.0
  • 15.301 Managerial Psychology Laboratory
  • 18.06 Linear Algebra

MIT Sophomore edit

Fall
  • 6.01 Intro to EECS (Potpourri Introduction)
  • 6.041 Probabilistic Systems Analysis
  • 14.01 Principles of Microeconomics
  • 15.501 Corporate Financial Accounting
  • 15.567 Econ of Information
  • 16.71 Airline Industry
Spring
  • 4.211 The Present and Future City
  • 6.02 Intro to EECS 2 (Communications)
  • 6.042 Math for Computer Science (Potpourri Introduction)
  • 14.02 Microeconomics
  • 15.279 Intro to Managerial Communications
  • 15.401 Intro to Finance
  • 15.761 Operations Research
  • ESD.051 Engineering, Innovation, and Design (Listener)
Politics

MIT Freshman edit

Fall

  • 8.01 Physics: Mechanics - Prof. Greytak
  • 3.091 Intro to Solid State Chemistry - Prof. Sadoway
  • 18.01 Single Variable Calculus - Prof. Brubaker
  • MAS.110 Fundamentals of Computational Media Design - Prof. Bove
  • 6.A53 Entrepreneurship and China Advising Seminar - Dr. Eng
  • SocialSaver UROP at the MIT Media Lab
  • Learning to Learn at MIT - My "near fail" experience that caused me to pull it together

Spring

Other Stuff

Nuvola apps kpovmodeler.png AP Physics (Science)

30px-OneNote.png Open OneNote Notebook

Note: Works only in Internet Explorer and Opera. Firefox refuses to support MHT. More info

Nuvola USA flag.png AP US Government (History)

30px-OneNote.png Open OneNote Notebook

Note: Works only in Internet Explorer and Opera. Firefox refuses to support MHT. More info

Nuvola apps package wordprocessing.png English 12 (English)

Nuvola apps kbrunch.png Calculus (Math)

30px-OneNote.png Open OneNote Notebook

Note: Works only in Internet Explorer and Opera. Firefox refuses to support MHT. More info

Nuvola apps edu languages.png AP Psychology (Psychology)

Nuvola apps package editors.png AP Micro Econ (Economics)

Nuvola apps bug.png Biology (Science)

Nuvola apps kmplot.png PreCalc (Math)

Nuvola USA flag.png American Studies (History)

  • Projects
  • Notes from Out of Many Textbook
  • FTCE test : FTCE test failure reveals how to rip through the FTCE test.
developed Headline Notetaking Format

Nuvola USA flag pen.png English 11 (English)

Nuvola apps edu mathematics.png IAG 4H (Math)

Nuvola apps edu science.png Chemistry (Science)

Nuvola apps package network.png World Cultures (History)

Nuvola apps korganizer.png AP Macro Economics (Economics)

Nuvola apps file-manager.png English 10 (English)

Nuvola apps kig.png IAG 3H (Math)

Nuvola apps bookcase.png English 9 (English)

Nuvola apps kverbos.png Western Civ (History)

Projects

Outlines

Maps and Creative
French Revolution Napoleon-peque.jpg

Essays and Reports

Nuvola apps edu phi.png IPS (Science)

Nuvola apps kcalc.png IAG 2H and IAG 1H (Math)

Nuvola apps kate.png Latin

Latin 3

Projects
Notes
Journals

Double Entry Journals have 2 components: What I Learned (a summery), and Personal Response (a reflection)

Latin 2

Projects
  1. Roman Travel Project
  2. Sejanus
  3. Echo and Narcissus Myth
  4. The Journey of the Hero
Journals

Latin 1

Money-256x256.png Entrepreneurship (Business)

30px-OneNote.png Open OneNote Notebook

Note: Works only in Internet Explorer and Opera. Firefox refuses to support MHT. More info

Nuvola apps personal.png Business Law (Business)

30px-OneNote.png Open OneNote Notebook

Note: Works only in Internet Explorer and Opera. Firefox refuses to support MHT. More info

Nuvola apps amarok.png Pop Music (Music)

Nuvola filesystems folder blue open.png Other edit

Nuvola filesystems folder blue open.png 8th Grade

Nuvola filesystems folder blue open.png 7th Grade

Nuvola apps kuser.png About Me edit

Michael Plasmeier Spring 2009 Narrow.JPG
Michael Plasmeier
"ThePlaz"
Yahoo APM: Membership and Geo Platforms

My name is Michael Plasmeier, but almost everyone calls me Plaz. I am a Associate Product Manager at Yahoo - working on the Membership and Geo-related platforms teams. I graduated from MIT in 2013 in Computer Science and Management. I am halfway between the tech and the business world, doing both web development and product development. My interest in doing both started while I was working on GridView, an app I built after 10th Grade that reached 1.3 million users on Facebook.

Internships

Last IAP, I was a Software Development Extern doing testing in Ruby on the back end at CardSpring. Last summer, I was Product Manager at Disney Parks and Resorts Online where I worked on a project for Disney Cruise Line. Last January, I worked in management/strategy consulting at Altman Vilandrie & Company. The previous summer, I was a web developer at NextJump, an online affiliate advertising firm in New York. Prior to that, I was an extern in the Office of the Chief Scientist at State Street. My freshman summer I worked at Deutsche Bahn, the German national railroad, where I designed the smartphone version Touch&Travel, an app that lets you pay for the train with your phone.

MIT

At MIT I was heavily involved in classes, usually taking 7 classes a term, while being involved in student government. (I wrote about how I do it in Working out a System.) senior was dedicated to wrapping up requirements. Junior year at MIT I focused on EECS classes, as well as being elected president of Baker House. My second year at MIT focused on management classes. I was also involved in the vendor selection and implementation of the new dining plan. Freshman year, I took core classes and served on the Athena and Printing Committee. (I wrote about just hanging on freshmen year in Learning to Learn.)

Websites

I built a lot of web projects in high school. My most popular project, was GridView [1], an app for Facebook which lets you add the profile pics of all of you're friends to your Facebook profile. GridView had over 1.3 million users and made me some money.

I hosted and produced the video podcast Tecker 911 [2] along with some of my friends. Tecker 911 was a series of 100 5-15 minute shows each which covers a technology topic in a way which is relevant for ordinary people, with a focus towards students and our community. Tecker 911 was also shown on our local public access channel Channel 11.

I started SeniorQuoter, [3] an open-source web application for senior quotes collections for high school yearbooks. In 11th Grade, I lead a Dynamic Website Building Instruction and Practical Experience Group Study at my high school. I helped 4 other students learn PHP and MySQL and then I project managed version 2 of SeniorQuoter, the administration interface.

Tecker and Conflicter were question and answer services I built in 10th Grade. They never really caught on, but they were the perfect way to learn PHP. Dictionary Robot is something I tarted last year, but abandoned later. In 10th Grade, I was a member of Team 484 and in 11th Grade I was their webmaster.

In 8th and 9th Grades I wrote bunch of programs for the TI-83+.

Tech

My first two years at MIT, I was a regular on The Weekly Spin, a weekly take on tech stories and tech policy.

On my Tech page I have had a few pages about Devices I own and other small things that I have built. For example, I also made some improvements for MediaWiki, the software that runs ThePlaz.com and Wikipedia. I made a new skin for MediaWiki and a few MediaWiki extensions


Other Accounts

I also tag a lot of stories on Delicious. I also have over 70,000 photos on Flickr. I Tweet kinda regularly. I also post things to YouTube. And of course I have a Facebook. It all comes together on my FriendFeed.

Website Content

On my site you will find:

  • Updates on what I am involved in
  • Links to my other projects
  • My comments on the world
  • Photos and videos I have taken
  • School work and notes I have made
School Work

I hope that this knowledge will help people less-fortunate than me persevere and succeed. All of my work is under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.5 license, meaning that you may use it and re-post it anywhere as long as you post my name/nickname, provide a link back to my site, and don't make money off my work. Many people visit my site from overseas where the school system is not as good. See Site Mission Statement for more

    • For 9th Grade I have posted projects I did on the computer
    • For 10th Grade I have posted not only my work I made on a computer but laboriously scanned all of my handwritten notes and worksheets
    • For 11th Grade I am only posting my own notes (no worksheets) from very structured classes; I am scaling back
    • For 12th Grade I used a tablet PC, so I have posted my OneNote notebooks from the class
    • For MIT Freshman year, I used a tablet PC for the first semester; realized this was a bad idea; so I used paper which I scanned and released as large PDFs the second semester. Note MIT actually does the same thing I do with MIT OCW.
    • For MIT Sophomore I will continue to post large, comprehensive PDFs.
    • See also my Notes Key
Tech

Theweeklyspin.png The Weekly Spin

The Weekly Spin is a weekly rant about technology and tech policy with Michael Gdovin. We often cover the cell phone industry, the FCC, DRM, and Michael likes to throw in some Apple rumors.

Download the latest episodes: TheWeeklySpin.com Audio Podcast

Nuvola apps laptop pcmcia.png Student Tools edit

Nuvola apps knewsticker.png News edit

ThePlaz in often mentioned or interviewed in the news

MIT
MIT Dining
MITx/EdX
Baker Piano Drop
Tecker 911
GridView
ThePlaz.com Praise
  • Sam's Praise about my site
  • Baron Harkonnen's Thanks
  • Thanks for uploading Flickr photos
  • Uses Many ThePlaz.com Wiki features
  • A Drexel professor told me on the first day of class that I take very good notes and I would graduate suma cum laude from Harvard due to the quality of my notes at Gov School
  • Hi I saw your page about that download for the ferris wheel unit for IMP4, I didn't download it but even the info you had on the page helped me out. I have no idea what I'm doing and just started this year- i really get stuck on my homework EVERY night. Right now im working on HW 2 "As the ferris wheel turns" and i have no idea what I'm doing. But i just wanted to say thanks cause I'm gonna download that once I'm farther into the unit!--A Facebook user (J. S.)
  • Just wanted to let you know: I stole your headline method of note taking from your website and it is completely saving my life in American Studies. -Rebecca C.
  • Hey, you do have one of the best designed websites I have seen lately. Good job. A little flashy, but still functional. --Email comment 8/18/2010
Videos

Nuvola apps multimedia.png Video edit

Tecker 911 Logo.png Tecker 911

Nuvola filesystems camera.png Photos edit

Trips/Vacations
Universities
MIT
Haverford High School
Places/Events/Daytrips

(need to update)

Tech/Unboxing/Products
Pictures on the Wikimedia Commons

TI-83--rotated.png TI-83+ Stuff edit

Nuvola apps kcmprocessor.png Tech Stuff edit

I am a lot into technology. Here are links to some of my web sites as well as modifications and how-to articles about other software.

My Websites
Devices
MediaWiki Tweaks
Essays/Thoughts
Other

Nuvola apps gaim.png Miscellaneous edit

Nuvola apps remote.png Site Statistics edit

For up-to-date info see Special:Statistics

There are 6,499 total pages in the database, including 1,578 pages in the main namespace and 5,000 files uploaded. These counts do not include OneNote notebooks on minisites or SkyDrive, and count multi-page files (PDF and Word) as one page.

There have been a total of 5,163,449 page views, and 16,470 page edits since ThePlaz.com was setup. That comes to 2.53 average edits per page, and 313.51 views per edit.