<p>Ok this isn't just for the admission officers, everyone can answer. What is the coolest "hook" you've seen. We know about the kid who worked with Amtrak, are there any other cool hooks you've seen? Thanks!</p>
<p>Also, on a more selfish note, how many marathon runners have you seen? That is my "hook" Is that unique at all? Many people on this site say its not a big deal, but a lot of people I've talked to say its pretty cool. How big of a deal is it? Thanks again!</p>
<p>Not to sound too selfish, conceited or arrogant, but I built a nuclear fusion (hot fusion, as in 200 million degrees) reactor in my basement in my sophomore year. It is one of maybe 12-15 made by an amateur worldwide, one of only 5 made by somebody under the age of 18, and one of the most powerful made by an amateur. I was filmed, along with the device, for a documentary movie on energy that should be in theaters or on TV sometime in the spring. My results were verified and substantiated by a professor at MIT's Space Systems Laboratory who is working on a similar type of device. My website details a lot of what I did: <a href="http://www.brian-mcdermott.com%5B/url%5D">www.brian-mcdermott.com</a> . I could not enter this in a science fair due to hazards like high voltage (50,000 volts), flammble gases and radiation. The rules regarding these things were impossible to circumvent.</p>
<p>I hope the admissions department was at least impressed and inspired, regardless as to whether I was admitted or not. My grades were a bit lower than the 3.8-4.0's that many applicants proudly possess, and my SAT's were certainly not all 800's (I'm a poor test taker).</p>
<p>and the award goes to brian lol ... i can't top that :)</p>
<p>i forced chuck norris to cry, cuz you know, his tears cure cancer</p>
<p>dude where has this chuck norris fad started... i mean everyone in my school is telling chuck norris jokes, i thought it was a locally started thing (my friend was the first person in our school to print a list of 500 chuck norris jokes)</p>
<p>Wow Brian. That's incredible.</p>
<p>Have you recieved your tube yet?</p>
<p>daughter of the US president?</p>
<p>Chuck Norris is Walker Texas Ranger. Conan O'Brien has a Walker Texas Ranger Lever.</p>
<p>salik... come on... chuck norris is the ****, and plus it's been around for a couple months now</p>
<p>Remind me again how we got from hooks to Chuck Norris? ;)</p>
<p>roundhouse kicks? all around?</p>
<p>chuck norris is my father...wait no he isn't. nvm.</p>
<p>(lol)</p>
<p>seriously, that reactor is totally awesome. that definetly will fit in at mit. good job.</p>
<p>I can't beat Brian's, but I think my 'hook' is a bit unique. I design levels for Unreal Tournament 2004 with a team of level designers (aka the Ultimate Community Map Pack). The first version of the pack, I made a level on my own, (which is currently the most played of any in the pack). The first pack had over 50,000 downloads, and was published in PCZone of the United Kingdom. The second pack I co-authored a map. The second version might have been published in an italian magazine, we never recieved confirmation though. :)</p>
<p>(If anyone's interested in it, go to <a href="http://www.ucmappack.org%5B/url%5D">www.ucmappack.org</a> . Mine are DM-UCMP-Contrast and CTF/BR-UCMP2-Sublimity).</p>
<p>Shame this is a bit less appealing than the fusion reactor though. ;)</p>
<p>I own a political forum that is Alexa ranked 70,000 out of 9 million, PR rank 7. The forum had 50k members, 12k threads, and about 300k posts in one year. It is the fastest growing (and possibly largest?) political forum on the net.</p>
<p>I have some other activities, currently working to make them "unique hooks"</p>
<p>Heh... </p>
<p>yeah this couldn't possibly top the fusion reactor, but I'm a pilot. :)</p>
<p>My 'hook' was something i never thought would turn into a 'hook': skateboarding. Basically started an effort to get a skatepark in town, formed a committee, received $25k from town gov't, and am now designing the park. Other **** for skateboarding includes making a video, working at a skateshop, and organizing a demo and building **** for it. I'm glad to see that the people at or trying to be at MIT do the things they love and aren't robots. If anyone here skates and is tired of getting busted by police and business owners, drop a line.</p>
<p>In my interview my EC said he interviewed a girl a few years back who wouldn't have gotten had she not been the 8th best ballerina in the country.</p>
<p>I compose symphonies, and I've recieved a commission from a professional orchestra. I guess that's about par here, haha. The skatepark thing is awesome; it would be so fun to design something like that.</p>
<p>say what?! dangit. I lose.</p>
<p>I go to school during the day and go home to do homework in the evening. Am I bloody screwed or what?!</p>
<p>Oh and I affect British accents.</p>
<p>From reading these posts, I found out that I haven't done anything with my life having significance. But that's not really a hook...</p>