  We present undergraduate-friendly instructions on how to produce light pulses
propagating through warm Rubidium vapor with speeds less than 400 m/s, i.e.,
nearly a million times slower than c. We elucidate the role played by
electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) in producing slow light pulses,
and discuss how to achieve the required experimental conditions. The optical
set up is presented, and details provided for preparation of pump, probe, and
reference pulses of the required size, frequency, intensity, temporal width,
and polarization purity. EIT-based slow light pulses provide the most widely
studied architecture for creating quantum memories. Therefore, the basic
concepts presented here are useful for physics and engineering majors who wish
to get involved in the development of cutting-edge quantum technologies.
