At the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology,
hacks are creative
pranks which take place fairly frequently
around campus. A good
hack is
non-destructive,
entertaining, and
well-engineered. The
hacking phenomenon has been around since at least the
1920's,
when
cars and
cows appeared on the roof of the
East Campus dormitory. Today, there is a lively
oral tradition
describing the
best and most interesting hacks from the past
century. Most years,
students at
the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology pull at least
a few
hacks, usually including
objects on the
Great Dome or
games with lights on the
Green Building.
Hacks are not class pranks, but are instead the product of various groups of students working together. There are self-enforced rules among the community, known as Hacking Ethics, to prevent destructive "hacks", injury,
and theft.
Also associated with hacking, the practice of exploring interesting places such as roofs and tunnels. (The appropriate verb for hacks is "to pull a hack", not "hack".) There is a great deal of overlap between the two varieties of hackers.
For more information on hacks, visit the MIT web site at http://web.mit.edu, read the Journal for the Institute of Hacks, TomFoolery and Pranks, published by the MIT Press, or ask your friendly neighborhood roof and tunnel hacker.