In a recent essay, I shared my ideas ten years after finishing the MIT Challenge. This venture was an try to study MIT’s complete undergraduate pc science curriculum utilizing their copious, free on-line supplies. In that essay, I admitted my shock that extra individuals hadn’t taken up related efforts.
At present, nevertheless, I’m completely happy to share a narrative of one of many exceptions. A couple of years in the past, Diego Vera determined to tackle an identical problem, however he studied math and physics as a substitute of pc science.
![](https://www.scotthyoung.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Diego-Vera-780x1024.jpg)
I corresponded with Diego through electronic mail to share his story. My questions are bolded, Diego’s responses are in plain textual content.
Interview with Diego Vera
Scott: Might you briefly introduce your venture?
Diego: The essential concept behind the venture was fairly much like yours.
Utilizing largely the MIT degree charts catalog in addition to another on-line sources, I attempted to piece collectively what one would study in a Math and Physics undergrad, excluding normal training lessons—purely math and physics lessons.
For this venture, nearly the entire programs had been from MIT Open Courseware. The unique time constraints I gave myself had been 1 12 months and 6 months. Nonetheless, for a number of causes, corresponding to getting in additional observe, gathering extra proof, and reviewing the programs as soon as extra, I ended up ending it in slightly over 2 years 4 months.
Inform me a bit about your life scenario on the time. Have been you engaged on the venture full-time? What did you do for funds?
The 12 months COVID hit was probably the most transformative 12 months of my life. I used to be 15 on the time. A mix of each private circumstances together with isolation gave me a lot readability—I remodeled 180 levels. Throughout this time, I actually obtained into self-improvement and began understanding, meditating, studying, taking chilly showers and many others.
I additionally discovered your MIT challenge on YouTube—which was a real sport changer for me. I watched all your movies listed within the MIT problem. I began performing some on-line programs whereas nonetheless managing faculty on-line. I even started doing different tasks, corresponding to writing a e-book.
Then roughly round July 1st, 2020, I made a decision to piece collectively my very own form of problem—this time geared in the direction of math and physics.
I initially deliberate the problem over an extended time horizon since I meant to do it alongside faculty. Nevertheless, as I obtained additional forward, issues took fairly a flip. The college I used to be attending on the time dropped down rather a lot by way of high quality—much more than earlier than. And given the actual fact there was additionally a giant hit to my mother’s enterprise (a enterprise surrounding Airbnb leases), she might now not afford the varsity I used to be attending. Combining this with the truth that I actually didn’t like the normal path and that faculty could be an excessive amount of of a monetary burden, a global faculty I used to be going to whereas residing Cuba, I managed to persuade my mother to help me on this problem. She, happily, agreed as she noticed me working actually arduous at it.
How did you consider your self and get observe? I do know numerous the upper-level lessons don’t all the time have full supplies.
Lots of the beginner-level programs had an abundance of drawback units. Nevertheless, it positively was the case that a number of of the higher-level lessons had been fairly troublesome to do, each due to how summary they had been and likewise due to their lack of supplies—particularly issues. For these programs, I largely tried to look by the web and scrape collectively as many issues as I might. Nonetheless, typically instances this wasn’t ok, so sadly, I needed to resort to different strategies corresponding to getting a collective agency grasp of the rules and proof strategies in addition to an intuitive really feel for the totally different mathematical and bodily objects.
What do you are feeling like you are able to do now that you simply couldn’t earlier than the venture? Do you suppose it will likely be helpful for you in your life/profession?
There may be positively a a lot stronger feeling of mastery (of which there was none). Extra lately, in the direction of the tip of the problem, the rules you study from physics and math appear to use naturally to real-life eventualities, which is kind of enjoyable. Moreover, one of many huge upsides is that studying new items of math and physics is now considerably simpler than it was after I was beginning out.
How did you research? Stroll us by a typical day within the lifetime of the venture.
One of many issues I discovered fairly helpful was to collect sources that spoon-fed me perception within the shortest/most compressed time potential. Though this appears apparent in hindsight, one of many issues I discovered over and over with the problem was how I might spend a number of hours making an attempt to study one thing based mostly off of 1 useful resource, then flip to a special useful resource and perceive it inside minutes. Spending time accumulating compressed but insightful sources, I feel, can have a huge effect.
One of many issues I discovered helpful right here was to get quick observe as soon as I knew simply sufficient. I feel this is without doubt one of the causes project-based studying may be so highly effective: you will have an issue and analysis your method into it versus researching your method into it after which seeing what to use. On this method, the relevance of the mandatory concepts or strategies turns into obvious.
[As for the schedule] I’m not so certain how fascinating this could be to individuals, however the schedule I’ve been following for the final 2-3 years since I made the transformation is the one beneath (though it has barely modified over time the essence is similar):
- 3:50-3:55 Wake Up, Wash Face, Go to the Rest room
- 3:55-4:00 Make Mattress
- 4:00-4:20 Meditate
- 4:20-5:50 Research
- 5:50-6:00 Make Breakfast and Take heed to podcast
- 6:00-7:05 Research
- 7:05-7:10 Put together for Exercise (Place Mat and placed on Audiobook)
- 7:10-8:10 Exercise
- 8:10-8:17 Bathe and Lively Recall
- 8:17-8:23 Placed on Garments and Freshen Up
- 8:23-9:50 Research
- 9:50-10:05 Nap
- 10:05-12:00 Research
- 12:00-12:25 Lunch and Take heed to Podcast/Audiobook/Lectures
- 12:25-3:30 Research
- 3:30 – 3:40 Snack and Take heed to Podcast/Audiobook
- 3:40-6:50 Research
- 6:50-7:00 Plan the following day
- 7:00 – 7:25 Dinner
- 7:25-8:30/8:50 Research
- 8:30/8:50 – 3:50 Sleep
How shut do you suppose you bought to the total training? Are there gaps out of your venture? Which subjects do you are feeling most/least assured with?
I feel that there have been sufficient sources on-line (excluding assignments for the upper-level lessons) for math and physics. I really feel I obtained fairly near what I needed to perform, studying what you usually would study in math and physics undergrad. The exception to this could have been to include extra sensible experiments into among the physics programs since I feel it might aid you get a greater grasp on the ideas.
Now, to not say that the opposite programs had been simple by any stretch of the creativeness, however these are the programs I felt I struggled with probably the most by a landslide. As may not be a shock, they’re particular upper-level lessons. Right here had been the toughest ones, I felt:
Each Evaluation programs had been insanely troublesome, largely as a result of their abstraction and particularly the extreme originality and considering forward one must do to resolve the issues. I’d typically suppose to myself, “How the hell did somebody know that was the way in which to go together with the proof?”
Atomic physics was difficult for 2 causes, I entered it considering that the prerequisite information from 8.05 and 8.06 Quantum mechanics wouldn’t be that a lot, and I hoped to study them concurrently. It turned out I couldn’t have been extra unsuitable about this as they assume information from 8.05 and eight.06, as a lot as higher-level physics or engineering programs assume some form of fluency in calculus and linear algebra. It was solely the third time going by a big a part of the lecture sequence that issues began to sink in. Another excuse why I discovered it troublesome was the truth that the professor, though tremendous insightful, would typically take issues as a right and label them trivial—this induced me to spend so much of time making an attempt to piece collectively what he was saying.
Lastly the pc programming course I largely discovered to be troublesome as I had a tough time understanding this explicit professor (and switched to different sources solely in the direction of the tip) together with getting used to python syntax.
What are your plans for the long run?
- Self-Research tasks in Math, Physics, Pc Science and Philosophy
- Begin doing precise analysis in these fields and making an attempt to take action through a non-traditional path
- Entrepreneurship (particularly aligned with the earlier two objectives)
I wish to thank Diego Vera for sharing his story. For those who’re considering studying extra about him or his venture, you’ll be able to go to his website.