Modern Blacksmithing and Physical Metallurgy
This MIT seminar treats metallurgy as a hands-on craft rather than only a lecture subject. Students meet weekly for an evening laboratory session covering blacksmithing, metal casting, machining, and welding, using both traditional and modern methods, paired with a weekly discussion session tying the labwork to core materials science concepts: composition, structure, processing history, and resulting properties. Coursework starts with specified introductory projects, then moves to independent design and fabrication of one forged piece and one cast piece. Materials include MIT OpenCourseWare lecture notes and project descriptions. The course suits students who want to understand metals by shaping them directly, not just reading about phase diagrams. No enrollment fee; MIT OCW materials are freely available to any learner.