Lab RATs

EGIL/ IMSLab Student Lab Researchers and Technologists (Lab RATs)

Students Lab RATs work on small-scale, one-off projects, in the lab as their availability allows and, as part this, can use everything in the G11D lab (equipment, instruments, tools, amps, etc.) and the adjacent recording studio in G11B 24/7 for all projects including personal ones. The expected minimal commitment is a few hours a week per semester/two terms (A + B Term, C + D Term), but students are encouraged to be Student Researchers as long as they’d like in consecutive semesters or moving in and out of the position on a "semester basis" to accommodate academic scheduling. What Lab RATs Get Being a Lab RAT is not about being a "lab monitor"; lab hours for courses are limited to scheduled blocks of time and lab monitors. Being a Lab RAT is about working on projects that are nuanced, short-scale, and not really something you’d tackle in a course, and having full access to the labs as-needed. V.J. Manzo and Ryan McKenna will help guide you through various projects (types noted below), so there is an opportunity for you to learn very specific knowledge about, for example, "building effects pedals", "getting a good amp sound", "making musical instruments", and so on. As long as you are an "active" Lab RAT for the term, you can: Swipe in to access/use all equipment in G11D for personal use including: Tools Instruments Strings Pedals Amps/Speakers Recording interface Microphones Request to borrow off-access equipment for personal use outside of the lab including: Guitars Audio Interfaces Microphones Controllers Keep any “Free Treasure” placed in the giant treasure chest in the lab Get first refusal on independent/special/high-profile project offerings that are “for credit”, “for pay”, or “for experience” before any other classes or students List an official position/title “Student Researcher”, “Student Lab Researcher and Technologist”, etc. on your resume Get credited for your contribution to these projects on our high-visibility website (resume/portfolio fodder!) Work on personal projects in the lab (space permitting; no guests, please) Make recommendations about things we should buy for the lab Meet likeminded students and establish potentially lifelong camaraderies that may improve your overall quality of life and contribute to your sense of personal meaning and fulfillment. Reserve time in the studio in Riley G11B

What Is Expected of Lab RATs

Lab RATs are expected to dabble, noodle, tinker, and get involved in various lab project while active; we communication primarily through Slack and Trello and V.J. Manzo and Ryan McKenna host regular 5/10-minute “standup” meetings to check on projects and and talk about new things going on in the lab...when new projects are announced, you'll get a notification in Slack with a link to the Trello card with more details. Projects come in regularly, so volunteer for whatever you can reasonably commit to in the timeframe noted (usually "be the end of the term") given your other academic commitments. When you’re finished with one project, mark the task completed, and pick up another project! The expectation is that you have a few hours a week to work on these things, minimally.

Examples of projects include the following:

• Fixing broken things
  • Fixing pedals
  • Swapping out broken potentiometers
  • Soldering loose connections
• Changing guitar strings
• Doing one-off CAD/CAM/machining projects
  • Oftentimes for sponsors and other famous people like Ken Parker, Ned Steinberger or other well-known names that you might enjoy dropping in the right circles just as they've been dropped in this sentence
• Testing out new and old equipment
• Debugging and Compiling Code
• Building things in “kits” along with guides
  • Pedals
  • Amps
  • Pickups
  • Controllers
• Updating/maintaining/moderating websites and GIT repositories
• Act as liaisons to students who may be using the lab as part of a practicum or class project
  • Ability to train students on specialized equipment, eg: Soldering, Pickup Winding, etc
  • Direct students as to locations of items in the lab
  • Serve as a role model of the rules and protocols of the lab
• Helping the lab stay clean and orderly on a regular basis by putting things back in the appropriate location, consolidating and removing boxes, and so on.

Time Committment: Most projects are not time-critical and can be knocked out in a number of hours; a few projects may have more pressing due dates, but you would know about that before committing to it.

So in short the commitments are:

• Be part of the standup meetings
• Have at least one “task” project going
  • Sink, minimally, a few hours a week into that project

How to Become a Lab RAT

To become a Lab RAT, email Prof. Manzo (vjmanzo@wpi.edu) and say you wanna be a Lab RAT; explain who you are, what you know (skills, major, etc.), and what availability you can realistically commit to over a two-term span. If it's a good fit, request swipe access to the lab here and request access to our Slack channel here.

Working on Projects

When a new project is announced, a card is created on our Trello group and a link is sent on the Slack channel. If you are able/willing to work on this, click the Trello card, "Write a comment..." in the Activity saying so, and get started--there's info in the card description. If more than one person is working on a project, get together and set up some times to meet up and discuss the projects, dividing it up until smaller tasks with some sort of timeline.

Completing Projects

• When this project (or the "project sprint") is completed, open the card in Trello and check the box next to the Due Date.
  
• Push any relevant info back up to the GIT Repo and bring any physical materials back to the lab.

Equipment You Can Borrow and Take Out of the Lab

If you are a Lab RAT, you may borrow items from the lab by simply taking a photo of what you're borrowing and posting to a Slack channel with the message "will return by {date}/{time}".

Equipment in the Treasure Chest You Can Just Keep for Free

From time-to-time, Manzo and other EGIL/IMSLab people will put free things in the large treasure chest in the lab and post a photo of it to this channel; if you are a Lab RAT, anything in the chest is yours to keep as long as you agree to do something "useful" with it; if you’re ever not doing something useful with it, return it to the chest. First-come, first-served on anything in the chest--just go and get it as soon as you see it pop up on the feed!