Splash Biography

Ever wonder what is required to run a huge site such as Facebook or Wikipedia? This class covers the computer hardware and software necessary to run the massive data centers that power sites such as these. Some data centers house tens of thousands of computers and span the area of multiple football fields. How the necessary external resources such as land, electricity, and internet bandwidth are provided will also be explained. The only requirements for this class are an interest in computers and the internet.

Black swans are an extremely rare bird. In fact, the existence of black swans doesn't appear in historical records until the 19th century. This class will explore the disproportionate role of high-impact, low-probability events, for which the black swan is an effective metaphor. The Black Swan Theory was developed by a Lebanese hedge fund manager, Nassim Taleb. It explores the difficulty of predicting such events by scientific methods and examines the limits of human predictive powers. A variety of relevant fields ranging from medicine to business will be covered.

Ever wondered how websites, email, and instant messaging actually work? This class will cover the basics of how the internet and computer networks work. Topics covered will include physical hardware, routing, protocols, servers, information retrieval , and other relevant topics. The class will be taught in a bottom up manner meaning that discussion will start with the physical hardware that drives networks and build in layers up to what a user sees on their screen. A basic understanding of computers and how to use the web are the only prerequisites for this class.

Ever wonder how websites such as Google, Facebook, etc. get put together? This class is an introduction to web programming. The class will cover the HTML, PHP, and MYSQL web languages which are the building blocks behind most websites. The class will focus primarily on PHP and MYSQL and how create database driven websites. Special attention will paid to giving students the tools and information necessary to continue learning outside of this class. A basic knowledge of computers and how to use the web is the only requirement for this class. Some programming experience or knowledge of HTML will benefit the student but is in no way a requirement. Students who are knowledgeable in PHP and MYSQL will find nothing new here.