Brown University News Bureau

The Brown University News Bureau

1998-1999 index

Distributed September 28, 1998
Contact: Scott Turner

Dedication of MacMillan Hall

Brown to open new science building for public tours Saturday, Oct. 10

Brown University will dedicate its new undergraduate science instruction center, the W. Duncan MacMillan '53 Hall, on Friday, Oct. 9, 1998. The public is invited to an open house Saturday morning, Oct. 10, featuring special tours, research presentations and refreshments.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Undergraduate science education in the 21st century arrives early with the dedication of W. Duncan MacMillan '53 Hall at Brown University. The building, to be dedicated in ceremonies Friday, Oct. 9, 1998, and opened to the public for tours on Saturday morning, Oct. 10, offers undergraduates the state-of-the-art research space and equipment usually associated with graduate studies.

Named for its principal benefactor, W. Duncan MacMillan, a Brown trustee and 1953 graduate, the new $30-million instructional facility creates a shared interdisciplinary teaching and research space for chemistry, geology and environmental sciences - three disciplines that address common research issues from distinct but overlapping perspectives. Undergraduate research underway in the building includes studies of whole-tree harvesting in New Hampshire, regional air pollution in Taiwan, water withdrawals in California, and nitrogen cycling in Baltimore.

The building's formal dedication will be held during the fall meeting of the Brown Corporation, the University's governing body. Trustees and fellows will attend ceremonies on Friday afternoon and evening, Oct. 9. The University will open the building to the general public on Saturday morning and has planned a number of events to introduce MacMillan Hall to its neighbors:

9:15 a.m.

10 a.m.

10:45 a.m.

11:30 a.m.

Special presentations on chromotography and other research techniques will continue throughout the morning. Refreshments will be available from 9 a.m. until noon. Persons interested in attending should enter from the north end of the building, at Manning Walkway.

Editors: Special access is available for members of the press. Please contact the News Bureau for information. Color and black and white images are available from the News Bureau or from the News Bureau's web site.

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