IAP (Independent Activities Period) is the month (approximately January) between semesters at MIT. For the undergraduates, it is a time to take one fun class and do extra-curricular activities. For us, it is a time to promise to get all the research done that we didn't manage during the previous semester.

And while much research probably does happen during IAP, the AI Olympics are really the essence of IAP at the AI lab. Since 1985, the last week or two of IAP have been set aside for lab bonding. Faculty, staff, students, and friends of the lab divide into four teams to compete in a set of wild and non-standard events.

Tradition requires that the games be kicked off with Trivial Pursuit and end with a final party but the games in between change from year to year. Some of the events are athletic (like ice hockey, ultimate, soccer, or volleyball), some are cerebral (like the egg drop, scavenger hunt, mini-golf, or the stock market), others are artistic (like movie making, web art, the bake off, or the battle of the blues bands), and still others are just a little bizarre (like the VT-100 shot-put, office chair races, or movie night).

Sidenote to current members of the lab: These pages are in constant need of updating and correction. In particular it is important that they don't just represent my opinions. So please, e-mail us at jrennie and aoh or just change the pages if you see something that needs "help."