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MIT's Stata Center Dedicated
AJL writes "On Friday, the long-in-coming, $280M Stata Center was dedicated at MIT. Featuring some pretty cool technology (including a row of Linux computers proclaiming 'Welcome to the William H. Gates Building' by Tux, the Linux Penguin), amazing design, and some pretty neat use of space, Stata is among the first of some high-budget, high-tech buildings being put on campuses these days. See some
Pictures
or go to the Main Stata Site for more details. Richard Stallman is now less than pleased that he has to work in the Gates Building, as well as having some other problems with his new office in general."
I can't believe that he would complain about something like this! Oh wait, yes I can, because he's a fruit cake.
Seriously, I don't understand the privacy concerns with this. Do you need to scan in and out of the bathroom or something? Is he afraid they're going to track his bowel movements?
What I can understand is why they want this info. If there's equipment that goes missing.. it's quite usefull to know who is in the building, or who opened the door to the room.
Ironically, Fox 25 in Boston just ran a report about how insecure college dorms are because even with the magnetic-stripe or RFID based ID cards, somebody with a hidden TV camera could on every attempt get in simply by walking behind another student. In most cases, that other student even holds the door...
This really isn't the strongest security measure, but at least its better than not having any at all.
I've passed by the building a few times on my way back home from the MIT Swapfest. Not only is the architecture itself pretty ugly, but it's surrounded by typical buildings. It's incredibly annoying to be walking down a street full of brick and stone buildings, and then, out of nowhere, you come upon this thing with random chunks of metal coming out at all angles. The design may be "modern" and "chic" (or whatever you want to call it), but I wish they'd picked a design that fit in better. Hell, there are zoning restrictions on height that say you can't have a 40-story building right in the middle of 1-story ones, so why not restrictions on design? Luckily, I rarely have to pass buy it, but I'd hate to live or work right next to it. Frankly, it's the only MIT building I can think of that looks that out of place...
It does look remarkably like architecture done by the artists Hundertwasser,
here is an example of his house he did in Vienna
Hundertwasser House Vienna
"Nimis exaltatus rex sedet in vertice - caveat ruinam!"
RMS isn't in the Gates Building. He's in the "warehouse" section. I've a friend who works on His Majesty's floor. The place might be dramatic to look at, but it's a pain to work in. When I visited it there were way more bizarre problems than any other half-constructed building I've ever seen. And it's really, really easy to get lost in it. I haven't gotten really lost at MIT for over 20 years until I set foot on the main floor of the Stata Center. The building's denizens are hiring architects to help fix it. I think that's part of Gehry's plan for participatory design. Leave it so unfinished that the inhabitants have to make their own nests!
FWIW, I really like the building. I wasn't sure at first, but after having worked in there for about a month now, it's quite nice for the most part.
In the article it says RMS is willing to move his research elsewhere,
_ ________
just out of interest what is his research centered around? and why
does he think leaving MIT will be such a big sacrifice?
Arash Partow
_________________________________________
http://www.partow.net
Arash Partow's Philosophy: Be a person who knows what they don't know, and not a person who doesn't know.
Firstly, the card reader access on camput is pretty minimal. Many outer doors have card readers and are locked after hours, but there are plenty of unlocked doors that grant access to almost all of campus.
More of a problem is that the RFID system has almost no security. No challenge-response, the cards just send out their data when queried. And can be read from a distance. And can be linked to things like student financial accounts. I can't blame Stallman for being a little paranoid.
-InsaneFolder
My other char is '!'
I was thinking about this when I was at the watercooler, so I took the RFID access card I use to open the server room in my workplace, and one of those small steel ( I think they're steel ) business card "wallets" from a managers desk, and to my not very great surprise, once inside it was unable to interact with any of the RFID sensors in my office, even when placed flush against the readers front plate.
This is a possible compromise if Stallman wants to be able to open the doors, but not be remotely scanned as he moves about the campus. You can open the "door" on the wallet to scan the card, and then latch it and slip it back into your jeans. I'm not a physics man, so I have no idea if this defense would be easily broken down by simply pouring more juice out of the reader, however.
One god, one market, one truth, one consumer.