Learning Resources

Abstract: Book review: Engineering a New Architecture, by Tony Robbins. Yale University Press, 1996. 138 pages. ISBN 0-300-061106-1.

Abstract: Describes the planning and construction of the University of Minnesota’s art museum. The museum is notable for its location and for being built without state funds, thus freeing the construction from many political and aesthetic constraints. The building, designed by Frank Gehry, has become an integral part of the life and art of the campus.

Abstract: In an article excerpted from his inaugural address, Johns Hopkins president William Brody examines a challenge facing all institutions, especially top-ranked research universities: how do new technologies affect institutions in their efforts to discover and disseminate new knowledge? The author suggests three possible effects: increasingly virtual campuses, expanded outlook and outreach, and greater emphasis on lifelong learning.

Abstract: Planning for faculty housing in a crowded city requires some innovative moves. Subtitles: Piercing the obstacles; Money, land, and all that; What the houses will be like; A win-win solution? Pull quotes: "Institutions frequently lose faculty prospects to others which have more affordable housing." "The university decided to take a proactive stance." "We looked to other San Francisco neighborhoods for design inspiration." "Where a university's faculty live surely influences the quality of that institution's academic life.

Abstract: Book Review: Talking About Leaving: Why Undergraduates Leave the Sicences, by Elaine Seymour and Nancy Hewitt. Westview Press, 1997. 429 pages. ISBN 0-8133-8926-7.

Abstract: Motivated originally by fear, the people rebuilt their campus, its programs, and its position in the higher education firmament. Subtitles: The "good " old days; Rethinking the college; Repositioning the college; The remake of Elon; Creating distincstiveness; Quality everywhere; What about tomorrow? Pull quotes: "We thought we would lose students, so we had to scramble." "When the faculty saw the drawings, they were thunderstruck." "The leaders decided to become a different kind of college." "The trustees were highly influential in the repositioning." "You can't design a curriculum for nerds when the students are not nerds." "We chose four values and made them the modern equivalent of old-time religious inculcation." "For us, a new show begins every day at 8 a.m."

Abstract: Book review: Born to Rebel: Birth Order, Family Dynamics, and Creavtive Lives, by Frank Sulloway. Pantheon Books, 1996. 616 pages. ISBN 0-679-44232-4.

Abstract: Book Review: The executive Architect: Transforming Designers into Leaders, by John Harrigan, and Paul Neel. John WIley, 1996. 336 pages. ISbn 0-471-11352-2

Abstract: Between the master plan and the design of single buildings is a neglected province of microplanning. Subtitles: Rice University remembers; The Cal Tech rediscoveries; Irvine lost and found; Stanford's decline, fall, and recovery; Lessons for microplanning. Pull quotes: "It calls for a different kind of expertise--that of microplanning small compus spaces." "Pelli was able to understand the original vision and reapply it in a contemporary way." "The 3-D computer models were able to propose different building and open space configurations." "Signature buildings have done little to clarify the campus organization." "Colleges need to think small as well as large."