SPACE FOR RESEARCH THINKING GLOBALLY NEW PEDAGOGY GRADUATE STUDIES Planners and faculty Area studies, one of The Center for The university’s first look to ensure that the first interdisciplinary Teaching and Learning vice provost for the intersection of fields, has a new helps professors and graduate education architecture and research life in the Division graduate students pledges to promote is a productive one, of International, design interdisciplinary cross-school pages 2 and 3 Comparative and Area classes, page 8 opportunities for Studies, page 6 graduate students, page 12 inter action ISSUE 6 • SPRING 2007 • STANFORD UNIVERSITY • MULTIDISCIPLINARY NEWS UPDATED AT http://multi.stanford.edu The genius of Leland Stanford’s plan for his new university was its expandability. The structure of the Main Quad, with its east-west axis, lent itself to coherent growth that could elaborate upon the original vision while respecting it. But the university lost its architectural way soon after its founders died. Today, the university community is working hard to recover the old vision and adapt it to a new world of exciting research. See story, page 2 inter action MULTIDISCIPLINARY NEWS UPDATED AT http://multi.stanford.edu “It’s about vision, not space” he genius of Le- where they shouldn’t. There were dis- president in 1992, he also was wor- the Paul Allen Center is the very op- land Stanford’s putes over modern versus traditional ried. So he took a more active role posite of the Gates building; it picks plan for his new architecture. There was no flow. in campus architecture and began up on traditional themes but in very u n ive r s it y wa s There was little consultation with presiding over open competitions for different ways.” its expandability. faculty or other users. “There are ar- new buildings. The SEQ1 buildings, except the The structure of eas with no ‘there there,’ no anchors,” “SEQ is more accepted now, but Hewlett Teaching Center, are de- the Main Quad, campus architect David Lenox said, at first it was controversial,” Casper partmental. Today, as Stanford em- with its east-west gesturing at a campus map. said, referring to the Packard, Se- braces multidisciplinary approaches axis, lent itself to coherent growth His predecessor, David Neuman, quoia, Moore and Hewlett build- to research and teaching, campus Tthat could elaborate upon the origi- also was concerned at how the uni- ings in the Science and Engineering architects’ tasks include ensuring not nal vision while respecting it. versity had gone astray. Quad, which went up on his watch. only that buildings make aesthetic But the university seemed to lose “A disorderly campus affects ev- “The landscape architect worked sense but that they properly house its architectural way soon after its eryone, if only subliminally,” he told with the architect to create an infi- and encourage new types of scientific founders died. So did many other Stanford Today in 1996. “Without nitely lighter, more Mediterranean and intellectual journeys. Flexible great universities in the 20th century; order, you’ve lost the physical oppor- quad,” he said. “The new buildings classrooms and break spaces, central Harvard, for instance, was once de- tunity for chance encounters and the picked up on the themes of the Main workshops, open office space, mov- scribed as “a loose confederation of collegial atmosphere that encourages Quad even though [the Hewlett and able equipment and furniture, op- departments held together by alle- collaboration and creativity.” Packard buildings] are point and portunities for spontaneous meetings giance to the central heating plant.” Gerhard Casper recalled recently counterpoint. Some people said, or huddles—these are all elements of At Stanford, buildings went up that when he became the university’s what is this atrium doing there? And the new university. The faculty has a SchOOL OF Engineering Center: pen with this building.” The SoEC will house the Management Science and much greater role in Engineering Department (MS&E), the Institute for From the Ground Up Computational and Mathematical Engineering (ICME) architectural planning and the dean’s office. The adjacent rotunda, which the Talking about building academic buildings can take architects call “the signature building of the quad,” today than in the past. as long as building them—longer, in fact. There are ar- will house the library and a host of common areas, in- duous conversations about research collaborations, links cluding exhibition space, classrooms, an auditorium among disciplines, proximity to shared facilities such as (used principally by the Stanford Center for Profes- workshops and libraries, likely areas of growth and the sional Development), a research gym, breakout rooms image of their field that scholars want to project. and a café. The second building to go up in the second Science This spring, planning entered the schematic phase. and Engineering Quad (SEQ2) will be the School of En- Members of the Portland, Ore., architectural firm gineering Center (SoEC), whose planners are involved BOORA met with users and faculty members to figure in precisely those sorts of conversations with faculty out how they operate and move, where their research members. and teaching takes them in a building, how much space The building has a hard act to follow: the Environ- they need and how it should be distributed. ment and Energy Building (E+E), which will open its Beyond the needs of the individual units, planners doors in October. grappled with the peculiar structure of the School of “We’re interested in the experience of a building,” Engineering and SEQ2. The new building will contain said Sandy Meyer, director of facilities and planning just one of the school’s nine departments; some of the for the School of Engineering and program representa- rest will be in other SEQ2 buildings (which will all be tive for SEQ2. “Instantly when you arrive at E+E, you connected through their basements), but others will be understand what it’s about. We need the same to hap- See FROM THE GROUND UP, page 4 2 SPRING 2007 MULTIDISCIPLINARY NEWS UPDATED AT http://multi.stanford.edu L. A. CICERO Innovation can be expensive or What’s different now is that the what works where you are now; what the building is important. Being able inexpensive, cumbersome or un- process for working out these chal- doesn’t? We talk about access, prox- to work both alone and with col- complicated. “It’s about vision, not lenges includes faculty and staff to a imity, interaction, social engineering. leagues is important. Above all, flex- space,” said Margaret Dyer-Cham- far greater degree than before. Now, “Often people say everything ibility is important. berlain, director of the university’s not only are the buildings better, the should be exactly the same in the “There’s no reason to bolt down Department of Capital Planning. excitement is shared. new building. It’s really hard to en- lab equipment; we don’t do that in The Stanford Challenge fund- “I’ve made three lab moves since vision anything different. So we say, our own homes,” Robertson said. raising campaign includes new or I’ve been at Stanford, and each time what do you love about your current “Technology changes so rapidly, redesigned buildings in the schools I was told, you’re moving there,” said space? What don’t you like? And then we can’t possibly project science 50 of Medicine, Engineering, Law and Channing Robertson, senior associ- they say, well, now that you mention years down the line.” Business, as well as new dorms, an ate dean in the School of Engineering. it, there’s no space for… So where This issue of Interaction takes Arts Path and an expansion of the “The change has come because of should that be? we ask. Closer? Far- a look at how the schools of Medi- social science complex, including the more enlightened planners and also ther? We try to get them to think dif- cine and Engineering are balancing Hoover Institution, the Stanford In- because of resistance from faculty.” ferently about their space.” technology, function, aesthetics and stitute for Economic Policy Research Dyer-Chamberlain calls what she Visibility today is more important finances, among other things, to cre- and Encina Hall. All the projects does “space therapy.” than it was. Running into people is ate spaces for teaching and research share common issues: space, park- “We sit with departments to figure important. The ability to simultane- that will adapt themselves to the ing, mission, linkages, sustainability, out how all the components trans- ously participate in more than one requirements of future decades. If flexibility for an unknown future, late into what they’ll need in the new scientific undertaking and to convey these walls ever talk, they will have architectural intelligibility. building,” she said. “We ask people, that simultaneity to visitors entering a lot to say. L. A. CICERO the school buildings past the Clark Center to the biol- Learning & KNOwledge Center: ogy and chemistry buildings. The paths will formally integrate the off-campus community with the schools of Gained in Translation Medicine, Engineering, and Humanities and Sciences. At the heart of all this—the nexus of research The School of Medicine gets awards and honors for and education and health care—is the Learning and just about everything. But not architectural planning. Knowledge Center (LKC), which will occupy the site At least not yet. of Fairchild Auditorium. Construction will start in late “Right now, over there, there’s one of everything,” spring 2008. The project was designed by the architec- said campus architect David Lenox, including build- tural firm NBBJ. (The building’s website is http://lkc. ings that date back to the school’s move from San Fran- stanford.edu/).