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I recently read that Lego released models of The Guggenheim and Fallingwater as a part of its new "Architecture" series. That news inspired me to design a Lego version of the University of Illinois' Thomas M. Siebel Center for Computer Science.

I cannot comment on how Siebel Center's architecture compares to The Guggenheim or Fallingwater, but the building has some interesting features that were a challenge to translate into Lego. In particular, choosing the correct scale, building the angled sections, and sculpting the topology of the courtyard took a lot of experimentation. Fortunately, Siebel Center is one of the most photogenic buildings on campus, so the web is filled with pictures that I could reference [ 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11].

The key to figuring out an appropriate scale came from this detailed floor plan. I needed a scale that provided a good level of detail, allowed walls and other structures to be subdivided into "nice" Lego sizes, and produced a model of reasonable size. As is often the case, the simplest solution was the best: if I used a single 1×1×1 block for each window, then everything fell together like magic. At this scale, the full model is about 70 studs (≈22 inches) long by 60 studs (≈19 inches) wide. I have not yet measured the actual size of Siebel Center's windows to determine the Lego-to-real life scale.

I started with the western wall of the building since it is a sheer face of brick and windows and I had a picture reference handy. From there, I continued roughly counterclockwise until I reached the glass-faced northern facade which angles out from the main body of the building. I built this pie-shaped section separately and slid it into place against an otherwise blank wall. Many angled "wing" pieces hide the gap.

A patio sits in a depression at the bottom of the angled section. I first attempted to orient the depression to the main building and rest of the courtyard but found that the grass and stairways did not meet the patio nicely. Instead, I connected the slope to the patio and slid the slope under the rest of the grass using stubless plates.

You can view the digital model in Lego Digital Designer. I would love to build the model in real life, but according to LDD, it would cost around $850. I could probably reduce the price by refining the design and buying bulk pieces. Maybe the computer science department could sponsor its construction?

The following images show the completed design. There are more perspectives in the gallery.

While browsing Flickr, I came across some fascinating photos of Champaign and Urbana in 1975. Several images have then-and-now comparisons in the comments.

The following are my favorites:

• Downtown Champaign – The streets look so open without warning signs, stop lights, or excessive striping.
• Urbana Cinema – Now an art gallery, though I like that the owners have retained the classic sign.
• Kirby's Firestone – Very little change in 33 years.
• The immortal caution sawhorse – The restaurant is gone, but the caution sawhorse remains.
• Walnut Street Tea Company – I buy most of my caffeinated beverages from this store. On one visit, I mentioned that I had found this image from 1975. The proprietor told me she had bought the suite in the early 1980s.

UIUC is building a bell tower in the south quad.

The tower was funded by H. Richard McFarland, a 1952 UIUC graduate and owner of McFarland Foods Corporation [1], in memory of his wife Sally [2]. Right now it is an ugly and imposing mass of gray concrete, but it will eventually reach 185 feet, be painted to match the surrounding buildings, and contain 49 bells controllable by computer or keyboard [3]. Opinion is mixed, though I agree with others that it looks like the Tower of Barad-dûr from Lord of the Rings.

Since July 13, I have taken weekly pictures of the construction progress.

Not much has happened since the scaffolding came off, but I will add to the gallery (and the animation) as soon as construction continues.

Last weekend, Vilas and I went climbing at Upper Limits Rock Gym. The gym, located in Bloomington, Illinois, is held in a converted grain elevator. What a great way to reuse an old building!

The warehouse-sized main room is covered in climbing surfaces.

But most impressive are several silos containing routes along their inside walls.

Unfortunately, Vilas and I could not go all the way to the top since we were not trained to belay back down. Nevertheless, we both enjoyed the routes available to us and left the gym thoroughly exhausted.

There are more pictures in the gallery.

I watched Champaign and Urbana's Independence Day fireworks from on top of a tall parking garage. It could see several shows at once, but they lost a lot of their impact since I could not feel the explosions.

Afterward, I took some long-exposure pictures of the Carle Hospital campus and the progressing state of the 309 Green and 310 Burnham highrises.

And since I am posting night shots, I'll (re)post my favorite photo. It is a panorama of Purdue's Loeb Fountain, taken from the roof of Matthews Hall.

Allerton Park is a 1,500-acre wooded nature preserve about 40 minutes southwest of Champaign. The University of Illinois administers the park and uses it for conferences, academic retreats, and teaching. Yesterday, Yun-young, Manish, and I went hiking on two of its nature trails. Afterward, we stopped at the day's geohashing coordinates, which were only about two miles away.

We first passed through the meticulously-groomed formal gardens.

Then we entered the peaceful and shadowy nature trail. I periodically pointed out the trees I recognized and the animal tracks that crossed the path.

Eventually, the trail curved to follow the Sangamon River.

It was obvious from the muddy trail and lack of groundcover that the river had recently flooded the area.

We had to detour around standing water or ford small streams several times. The moisture also meant that we had to constantly fight off swarms of mosquitoes. Unfortunately, I had forgotten the insect repellent. When we passed through sunbeams I could see dozens of the insects buzzing around our backs and unprotected arms. At one point, Manish killed five mosquitoes with one slap. Today my shoulders and elbows are covered with red welts.

Despite that, we all enjoyed the hike. The forest was lush and beautiful, and I found it fascinating to see the effects of the flood.

We made it to the opposite end of the park and returned along the higher and dryer access road. We passed a family attempting to break into their car, having locked their keys inside. I called AAA for a nearby service station, but the father decided to break a back window instead. That idea excited his young daughter who enthusiastically ran into the woods to find a big rock. We left before she found one.

After returning to my car, we circled the park to the day's geohashing coordinates. In a drastic departure from previous coordinates, which fell in cornfields, Saturday's coordinates fell in a soybean field. I placed a marker flag while Manish and Yun-young took some pictures. Unfortunately, we arrived late and did not meet any other geohashers.

It was a fun day trip, and all three of us look forward to exploring the rest of Allerton south of the river.

Yun-young posted her pictures in this Facebook album.

On Wednesday, the wonderful XKCD posted a comic that coined the term "geohashing": an algorithm for calculating a (pseudo-)random trip destination based on one's location and the most recent Dow opening. The destination is the same for all readers in an integral latitude and longitude, so it becomes the location of a spontaneous gathering of other XKCD readers.

There is a wiki, several implementations, a REST-ful web service, and an "official" meeting time every Saturday at 4 PM.

I love everything about the idea. First, it can't help but be spontaneous, since one cannot know the location in advance. If someone could predict the stock market, I doubt he or she would use it to plan for an XKCD meetup. Second, it gives one a reason to travel off the beaten path (vis. the "Achievements"). Third, one gets to play with GPS, maps, and satellite imagery à la geocaching. Finally, and most importantly, one can meet other geeky webcomic fans who like the outdoors.

Today I attended the first meetup for the 40, -88 graticule. The destination was in the middle of a cornfield about 20 miles west of Champaign.

I first drove to the intersection at the northwest corner of the field. I got out and surveyed the silent, open countryside around me. There was a farmer feeding his cattle near where I parked. He looked at me curiously when I started walking along the road, holding my camera and GPS. I realized I could park closer to the destination, so I retraced the road east about half a mile to the northern edge of the field. From there, the destination was only a half a mile directly south.

I could not see anyone on the road or field—not surprising since UIUC is out for the summer and most of my CS friends were either busy or out of town— so I started walking along the grassy drainage ditch toward the destination. I had traveled about 300 yards when a car pulled up behind mine. I waved at the occupants as they started walking toward me. The internet delivers!

I returned to the road to introduce myself and shook hands all around. Kyle, Kim, and Matt were former UIUC students now living in Champaign. They hadn't expected anyone else to show up either.

We set off toward the destination, chatting about UIUC and XKCD. We had to be careful not to step on the rows of corn seedlings. It did not take long to walk across the field. When our GPS units told us we had arrived, we took some pictures of the thoroughly nondescript cornfield and discussed how we could mark the spot. I will have to bring a flag to next week's meetup.

We did not stay long, but like any trip, the journey was more important than the destination.

I have often said that Champaign and Urbana seem bigger than their populations would imply. There are two interesting and walkable town centers (three if you count campustown); a reasonably dense street plan; and a good amount of culture through the university. Champaign is even getting a skyline thanks to several impressive construction projects. I recently took pictures of the most visible projects.

The imposing 18-story Burnham 310 building is just two blocks from my apartment. Every morning I see the construction crane from my bedroom window. The building, scheduled to open in August, will house retail shops and a grocery store. It will be nice to be able to walk down the street for groceries. Right now, the outer walls are nearing completion.

One can see Burnham 310 and the Tower at Third for miles, but the 24-story highrise at 309 East Green Street will eventually become the tallest building in Champaign. It sits on the former location of a Burger King, hence its nickname "The Whopper". It does not look like much right now, but it will eventually have a fitness center, pool, and 17 floors of apartments over parking and businesses.

There are three comparatively short infill projects nearby, one at 507 East Green Street, Presby Hall on John Street, and the Saint John's Catholic Newman Center on the western edge of campus.

The university is also renovating the Memorial Stadium for reasons that no one seems to be able to explain.

Finally, M2 on Neil will provide nine floors of retail, office space, and high-end condos in the center of downtown Champaign. I heard a story that the university bought one of the condos to house rich alumni for fundraisers and sporting events.

It has been interesting to watch these construction project progress over the winter. A fellow Champaign resident named Dan O'Brien has posted some more pictures of construction around town.

Several minor earthquakes occurred in southeastern Illinois this morning. I slept through the first at 4:37 AM, but felt a second at 10:14 AM just as I was leaving my apartment. It felt like a gentle shifting. My curtains swayed, but nothing fell over or made noise.

I did not feel a single earthquake during my summer in California. Honestly, I felt a bit cheated. The only other ground movement I have felt happened in Indiana whenever a quarry near my home blasted rock.

Update (4/21/08)

Last night I felt a third earthquake just as I went to bed.

Yesterday I finished some classwork earlier than expected, so I took part of the afternoon off to enjoy the beautiful spring weather. I brought my camera and took some pictures of campus.