May 12 2006Computer-Automated Dorm Room System
Two students at MIT have spent the past school year transforming their dorm room into an extremely automated living area. The Multifunction In-Dorm Automation System (MIDAS) controls various aspects of the room, including the lights, electric window blinds, text displays, security cameras, alarms, and music system. The MIDAS is controlled by various computer interfaces and buttons, one of the most prominent being the "party button," which cuts out the lights, shuts the blinds and starts pumping intense techno with random laser lights. Unfortunately, if you spend your entire first year of college working on your computer-controlled dorm room, you might lack the friends required to host an actual party. Oh, wait. They have a fog machine. Well then, the parties will come to them.
