Release date: Oct. 31, 2002
Contact: Nancy Seideman, Director, University Media Relations,
at 404-727-0640 or nseidem@emory.edu

Emory Joins Science Building Boom at Campuses Across the Country

Gone are the days when university science research took place in Spartan and windowless buildings, filled with funky chemical smells, harsh florescent lighting and cramped quarters. These institutional structures tend to be as outmoded as the technology of the Cold War era when many of them were built, and universities are taking note.

Across the country, these buildings are fading out and being replaced with modern and sleek ones. Built with an eye toward both pleasing aesthetics and top-notch technology, construction on science facilities is booming at universities and colleges across the country—and Emory University’s $40 million investment in its new Mathematics and Science Center is no exception.

"When the building was designed, the guiding thought was ‘Let’s do it right—make it functional and attractive,’" says Ray DuVarney, chairman of the physics department at Emory. "The center makes science very different at Emory. By putting the departments together, the synergy between the disciplines is creating new opportunities that will provide a better education for students, and foster more creative research ideas."

The five-story, 138,000-square-foot center is home to the departments of physics, math and computer science, and environmental studies, all housed together for the first time. A slate walkway bordered by a floor-to-ceiling wall of windows and copper columns—facing out to a grove of trees—greets people as they enter the structure. The setting is inviting enough to make the most science-phobic person feel comfortable and want to linger a while.

The facility "was built with a purpose. It’s exactly what you want to teach science in the 21st century," says Sidney Perkowitz, Candler Professor of Physics. "It feels good just to walk into the place. It’s a place you want to be, a place you want to hang out—not escape, like some places I’ve worked. I have no doubt it’ll make a tangible difference in how we attract students to the sciences."

Students have been strongly attracted to environmental studies since the department was founded in 1999, with more than 100 majors currently. The new facility gives the department the resources to meet the growing demand and intellectual curiosity of students.

"Our highest aspiration is to foster the imagination and creativity that our students will need to attack and deal with environmental issues," says Lance Gunderson, chairman of environmental studies.

John Wegner, a senior lecturer in environmental studies—who has spent much of his career both in the great outdoors and in dysfunctional, windowless teaching spaces—now has an abundance of resources, including a rooftop, outdoor classroom where students can monitor a solar-powered meteorological station.

"Science education has become more and more hands-on and interactive, so this new building makes all the difference in the world in how we do our jobs," says Wegner, who also served on the building planning committee. "Preparation and teaching are so much easier due to having the space and computer technology to meet every need."

While the exterior resembles the classical architecture of Emory’s older buildings, the interior is filled with the newest technology. The building includes the university’s first planetarium, a 180-seat lecture hall and a rooftop observatory with a 24-inch telescope. Nearly 25 percent of the building is used for laboratory space. The center also is one of the "greenest" buildings in the country, and is on track to be among the first structures in the Southeast to attain Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification through the U.S. Green Building Council. First place honors belong to Emory’s Whitehead Biomedical Research Building.

For mathematics and computer science department chairman Dwight Duffus, the center provides—for the first time—facilities designed specifically for his department.

"We’re just now getting used to all of these new resources," he says, which include greatly enhanced computational power with an upgrade of all computer servers and data networks, two 32-seat computer labs and seven classroom spaces devoted to the department, each equipped with state-of-the-art audio-visual equipment.

"Some things never change in that nothing replaces good teaching and the ability to relate ideas," Duffus says, "but with better facilities and modern technology, you can help everyone go further."

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