Thursday, September 26, 2002

by Alexis Reedy
News Editor

Students got their first inside glimpse of the Dupont construction site this
past Tuesday
and Wednesday as Chas Ricciardi, project manager for the site, led them on
in-depth tours of
the rapidly-developing science center.

To set the stage for the visit, Ricciardi informed participants that
construction has been
split into 7 phases, each with its own opening date.

The first phase involves the Cornell addition and the chiller plant – spaces
that are due to
open this January. Next up is the 200-seat lecture hall and the commons area in
front of
Dupont, which will be set to open in March. The third phase is the Chemistry
addition on the
east end of Dupont, to be completed July. Fourth is the Martin renovation that
is scheduled
for unveiling in November 2003. The fifth phase is the Research Annex
renovation, due to be
finished in December 2003. Second-to-last will be the Physics wing renovation,
opening in
May 2004. The final piece of the science center puzzle will be put in place with
the
Chemistry wing renovation – currently set to open in June 2004.

Ricciardi says that the entire project is about 30% done at the moment. This
puts the
construction progress firmly within the scheduled timetable, as Jane Semler, of
Facilities
Management, notes: “We anticipated and are working through some tight dates for
the first
phase, but we don’t expect the occupancy date to be delayed.  All of the other
phases are on
schedule.”

The Cornell addition will consist of classrooms on the ground floor and
introductory biology
labs on the second floor. However, the classrooms will be used as temporary
physics offices
while the renovation of Dupont is completed during the 2003-2004 school year.

Currently, the basic frame, walls, piping and wiring have been installed in the
Cornell
addition, yet there’s still much, more to do.

“Major items [that need to be installed] are the installation of windows to make
the
building weathertight, installation of the wall separating the new building from
the Cornell
Library (there is a temporary wall now on each floor), interior walls, ceilings,
flooring,
lab casework, lighting, final components of the HVAC (heating, ventilation, air
conditioning) and electrical systems, plumbing fixtures for the toilet rooms,
doors,
interior windows, paint, carpet, locks,” said Semler.  “All of the building’s
critical
systems–HVAC, power and lighting, plumbing, sprinkler and fire alarm will be
tested and
inspected before we occupy the building.”

In the Commons Area, the base of the roof has been laid to allow for a
“V”-shaped
construction so that rainwater can drain off of it and replenish the irrigation
water used
in the quad beween Martin, Beardley, Dupont, and Kohlberg. A similarly-shaped
roof has been
built over the breezeway between the commons and the chemisty addition. The
runoff from this
roof will be diverted back into Crum Creek.  Meanwhile, the bridge that will
join Martin and
Cornell together will be made of special glass embedded with white dots to
discourage birds
from flying into it.

As demonstrated by these special features, environmental friendliness was one of
this
project’s major considerations from the beginning. The center was designed using
Leadership
in Energy and Environmental Design guidelines to make the project less harmful
to the
surrounding ecosystems. These guidelines called for a number of specialized
considerations,
include erosion control, stormwater management, and pollution reduction.

The commitment to technology is equally apparent.  For instance, both the
200-seat lecture
hall and the smaller 80-seat hall (in the chemistry wing) were designed to allow
for future
installation of advanced data and power wiring.

And while many of these developments are still months away, students can expect
to see some
major construction milestones during the coming weeks.

“Stone and granite installation is continuing,” said Semler.  “The four air
handlers for the
Chemistry penthouse will be delivered next week, along with a large exhaust fan
for the
Commons smoke exhaust system.  The exhaust fan will be placed on the roof of
Cornell.  The
second chiller is also due, and will be placed in the Chiller Plant.”  Perhaps
most
impressive of all will be the installation of a giant ring to support the
astronomy
department’s new observatory dome, an event also scheduled for the next few
weeks.

* After ravaging parts of Cuba and Mexico, Tropical Storm Isidore is expected to
hit the US
South this morning, doing damage from Alabama to Texas.  New Orleans, which has
already
experienced a foot of rain and heavy flooding, is expected to bear the brunt of
the storm’s
fury.  Some 16,000 have been evacuated, with many more standing by depending on
the storm’s
progress, although meteorologists don’t expect Isidore to be ugraded to
hurricane status.

* National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice announced yesterday that the US has
evidence
linking Iraqi President Saddam Hussein and the al-Qaeda terrorist network.  Rice
claimed
that Hussein has been sheltering terrorists in Baghdad, as well as helping al-Qaeda
members
create chemical weapons.  The specific details of the evidence, which is reputed
to come
mostly from senior-level al-Qaeda operatives captured during the war in
Afghanistan, were
not released, but Rice suggested that they would be presented in the future.

* Amidst the chaos of a failed coup in the Ivory Coast, 100 American children
were rescued
from their mission school in Bouake by French and American forces yesterday. 
While the
insurgency, led by 800 ex-soldiers who were dismissed from the Ivorian army for
political
ties to an old leader, has squandered in its attempt to overthrow the current
regime, many
of the rebels remain holed up in Bouake and Korhogo.  Though President Laurent
Gbagbo has
promised to rid the country of the insurgents, the US Embassy is urging all
American
citizens to leave the country immediately.

*****

Senior Class Election Voting
Alumni Office – Parrish, 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

Aikido Club Practice
Wrestling Room – Lamb-Miller Field House, 7:00 p.m.

Annual History Lecture: Paul Beik
Scheuer Room – Kohlberg, 7:00 p.m.

Party Associate Training
Kirby Lecture Hall – Martin, 7:00 p.m.

Latin American and Spanish Film Festival
Kohlberg 115, 7:30 p.m.

Feminist Majority Meeting
Parrish Parlor – East, 9:00 p.m.

————–
SASS Friday Lineup:
– Soul Shak (8-10 pm in the IC Courtyard), featuring Subtle Ground * Cee
Knowledge (formerly
Infectious Organisms) * Natural Selection * Saigon Slim * Medicine Man *
Kiersten Gray *
Patrice Berry and Gabriel Tajeu
– After Party (10 pm-2 am in Upper Tarble), starring DJ Ansa

*****

SPORTS UPDATE

The women’s soccer team lost to Franklin and Marshall in double overtime
yesterday, 2-1.
Though Shavaugn Lewis ’05 scored her fifth goal on the season, and Catherine
Salussolia ’04
recorded 20 saves in goal, the Garnet fell when, just twenty seconds into the
second
overtime period, the Diplomats squeezed in a second goal.  The squad is now 5-5
on the
season (1-2 in the Centennial Conference), and they next play at Gettysburg this
Saturday in
a Conference matchup.

*****

In a game with little output offensively from either team, the Garnet lost to
Neumann 1-0 in
non-conference play.  The lone goal came when Swarthmore failed to clear a
Neumann corner
kick.  Though goalie Reuben Heyman-Kantor ’06 dove to block the Knights’ blast,
he could not
stop the shot.  With a 4-4-1 record (0-1 in Centennial Conference), the Garnet
next hosts
McDaniel on Saturday at 2:00.

*****

Today:
Field hockey at Chestnut Hill, 4:30 p.m.

Tomorrow:
There are no contests scheduled for tomorrow.

*****

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“If little else, the brain is an educational toy.”
–Tom Robbins

*****
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