When one walks through the Paul G. Allen Center for Computer Science & Engineering, it quickly becomes clear that the local technology community wanted this building to be built.
The signs are everywhere.
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There is one above the first-floor stairwell naming the spectacular and spacious Microsoft Atrium, which rises six stories to a glass ceiling. And one outside the door to the building鈥檚 premier conference room, identifying it as the Bill and Melinda Gates Commons, a sizeable space on the sixth floor with a spectacular view and an AV system that鈥檚 a techie鈥檚 dream. Another through the door that connects the commons to an adjacent open-air deck tells visitors they鈥檙e getting a birds-eye view of Husky Stadium and Lake Washington from the Alberg Terrace.
Additional signs name labs, lounges, breakout areas and study spaces, thanking supporters for their generosity.
鈥淲hat is great is that 250 people stepped up and donated $42 million to keep us a top-10 program,鈥� said Ed Lazowska, Bill & Melinda Gates Chair in Computer Science and one of the driving forces behind the new $72 million facility. 鈥淎nd almost every penny came from the Puget Sound area.鈥�
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| Several skywalks connect the Allen Center to the adjoining Electrical Engineering Building. |
That鈥檚 a powerful endorsement, particularly when one considers that the support coincided with a major financial slump in the tech community, added Computer Science & Engineering Chair David Notkin.
鈥淭hey see the role that a major research university plays in attracting opportunity to the region,鈥� Notkin said. 鈥淎nd this building gives us freedom. It allows us to go in completely different directions than we could before.鈥�
The community can take a peek at the facility today during a 1:30 p.m. dedication. Building namesake Paul Allen is the main speaker, accompanied by Gov. Gary Locke, Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels, UW Dean of Engineering Denice Denton and others. Tours will follow from 2 to 4 p.m.
The excitement that has been building since construction started was evident as Notkin walked through the building on the first day of class for the new fall quarter. At one point, passing one of the center鈥檚 many laboratory spaces, he spied students 鈥� a lot of them 鈥� parking at new computers, first thing in the morning, on the first day at school. And he couldn鈥檛 contain his enthusiasm.
鈥淵eah!鈥� he whooped, shaking his fists in the air as students on the other side of the large window that separated the lab and the hallway looked up, startled. 鈥淭his is great 鈥� just GREAT!鈥�
Seeing the source of the outburst, they grinned at each other and went back to their computers.
The center has numerous high-tech features 鈥� building-wide wireless access, super-fast network connections for every computer 鈥� to make life easier for occupants as they engage in computer-intensive research. But technology wasn鈥檛 the main focus of the design, according to Lazowska. The emphasis was on people.
鈥淲e had 10 desiderata that we gave the architects at the start of the project, and only two or three of them were technical,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he rest were about people.鈥�
As a result, the Allen Center is loaded with places where faculty and students can bump into each other and chat about their work 鈥� natural light is the standard, plush chairs and sofas the norm, with some down-to-business additions to balance the creature comforts. Breakout spaces just off the stairwells, for example, have floor to ceiling whiteboards. Already, informal groups can be seen gathering at the spaces, discussing their ideas while some members pen equations on the wall.
鈥淎ll of the best spaces in the building are public spaces,鈥� Lazowska said. 鈥淥n the top floor facing the lake, there are no private offices for geezers like me. It鈥檚 entirely conference rooms with a student lounge and a view deck that runs the full width of the building.鈥�
Notkin and Lazowska realize that expectations are even higher for the program now. Based on past performance, they鈥檙e confident that the technology sector鈥檚 faith is well placed.
鈥淥ur program has a long record of committing to excellence and delivering on our commitments,鈥� Lazowska said. 鈥淚f it had been just hot air, we would still be in Sieg Hall.鈥�
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| The wide-open Microsoft Atrium floods the building with natural light. |
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Creative explosion could lead department to new company
Oren Etzioni has a metaphor to describe what moving to a shiny new facility means for the UW Department of Computer Science & Engineering.
鈥淚magine a huge amount of intellectual and creative energy squeezed into a tiny space,鈥� said Etzioni, a CSE associate professor. 鈥淲hen you open it: 鈥楤oom!鈥� In the next five years I predict an explosion of creativity and success beyond anything we鈥檝e experienced.
鈥淚 guess another way to put it is the computer science genie is out of the bottle.鈥�
Leaders in the department fully expect that genie to work some major magic, setting what is already a nationally ranked top-10 program on an even higher trajectory.
The department鈥檚 old home, Sieg Hall, was increasingly becoming a liability, according to CSE Professor Ed Lazowska.
鈥淚t was falling down around our ears and we had less than half the space of comparable programs,鈥� Lazowska said. The new Allen Center has 2陆 times the overall space and 3 times the lab space of the old building. 鈥淚t鈥檚 the tool we need to remain highly competitive.鈥�
The ramping up has already started. During the past five years, CSE has attracted a number of top computer scientists with the promise of a new facility. Last spring, department leaders encouraged faculty to apply for grants that depended on having the new space. Etzioni is just one of several who have netted funding for projects that would have been impossible in Sieg.
鈥淥ren has about $3 million in new grants starting this fall,鈥� Lazowska said. 鈥淥ur people will now be able to do what they came here to do.鈥�
Being among the top 10 in the nation is great, Etzioni said. But he and his colleagues have higher aspirations.
鈥淲hat we would really like is to be a top-five department.鈥�