Bricks and Mortar

The cover of this issue of the alumni magazine shows a photograph of the very dramatic façade of Levine Hall, the latest addition to our Engineering complex. We call it “our Mondrian” because it is a random lattice reminiscent of the geometric paintings by the noted Dutch artist. Actually, there is a lot of mathematics in that façade where, for example, the rectangular units have the Golden Section as their aspect ratio. However, the beauty of the structure speaks for itself and there is no need to invoke any mathematical arguments to appreciate it. And it is not just good looks —the glass enclosure of the building is a so-called active wall. The space between the inner and outer glass panes houses the blinds but also serves as a return for the air conditioning of the building, providing great comfort and considerable energy savings.

Recently we broke ground for our next project, Skirkanich Hall, which will rise on the site of the now-demolished Pender Laboratory on 33rd Street, bounded by the historic Moore and Towne Buildings. Skirkanich Hall will be completed in the fall of 2005 and will serve as the new home of Bioengineering, today the most popular career choice among our undergraduates. Bioengineering is currently housed in Hayden Hall, a magnificent wedding-cake building with soaring ceilings but not well suited for laboratory research. In fact, our long-term plans identify it as the ideal site for a consolidated science and engineering library.

The recently opened Accenture Cyber Café, in the space formerly occupied by the Towne garage, has become a popular hangout for our students, who can now claim to be as caffeinated as any other group on campus. We have also just dedicated the Weiss Tech House, located at the west end of the former GRW building, now part of Levine Hall. Governor Ed Rendell was the keynote speaker at the opening and praised the facility for allowing Penn students to express their technical creativity and entrepreneurial energy.

We are obviously paying a lot of attention to the physical plant of the School. We have already accomplished a lot through the help of loyal alumni and friends but we are not done yet. Plans are being developed for a new nanotechnology laboratory, to be sited on the north side of Walnut Street, adjacent to the materials science building, the LRSM. Is this apparent emphasis on “bricks and mortar” well placed? Isn’t a University about people after all? Indeed it is, and it is vitally important that we never lose sight of our objectives and confuse the means and the ends. Our ultimate aim continues to be the attraction of the best people anywhere. The reason for all this construction is our clear understanding of the important effect of the quality of space on how we teach and on how we learn. Very few other factors have a stronger influence on the attitudes of our students and our professors —how much they enjoy their work, how they think about themselves today and how ambitious they are for tomorrow.

The architecture of a building invariably tells a story about the people and the programs it houses. When our flagship, the Towne Building, opened in 1906 it heralded a new era in engineering education. In fact, sixteen senators traveled from Washington for the dedication ceremonies, drawn by the novelty of an unusual educational building, one with a minimal number of classrooms. The bulk of its space was devoted to the concept that students learn by doing and by building things. It contained laboratories, shops, a foundry, drafting rooms, and a museum. The Towne Building has changed considerably in the intervening century. However, it is that same concept of Engineering as a profession of builders that inspires the Weiss Tech House. Now, like then, we engineers are the best example of American ingenuity. Now, like then, we hold in our hands the tools for progress.