1985: the start of my BSc degree, and, what I didn’t know at the time, my long association with Monash University.
As a full time student my colleagues and I had ~30 contact hours per week and we spent a considerable amount of time in the western corner of the campus. The layout of this precinct, almost 20 years later, has not changed very much.
The S lecture theatres (S for Science) were the playground for all undergraduate students of the Faculty of Science, haphazardly strewn across the campus. S1-4, now supporting a Chinese-restaurant-style foyer design with flocked lilac walls and Luna Park wall murals, was the hub for first year mathematics lectures. Floor to ceiling blackboards on both sides of the room were filled, rotated, and filled again in the course of an hour-long lecture. There were no PowerPoint slides, lecture notes or handouts, no audio taping… just chalk dust and your own notes which were hastily scribbled down during the lecture. And what if you were late for a lecture? You entered via the back of the theatre (if you were lucky) but often they were locked if you didn’t get to the lecture in time. Lectures were therefore very well attended, on time, and lecture notes were highly prized!
Outside this theatre complex was a grassy expanse running alongside the chemistry first year undergraduate laboratory. It was a popular place to sit, particularly from the vantage point of two sculptural aluminium domes centered at each end of the lawn.
The domes, the work of Clive Murray- White, were intended to be ‘both puzzling and mysterious’ with a ‘quasi-scientific appearance’. And indeed they were! As objets trouvés, installation of the reclaimed telecommunication antennae was highly controversial in 1970 but by 1985 they were colloquially known as the ‘pair of double Zs’. The original work became damaged and was removed in 1991, but in 1993 ‘Retrospective’ was commissioned and installed on the lawn. It can still be seen today; it consists of a grassed earth parabolic mound with inspection hatch and a flat two-meter polished concrete ring.
Lecture theatres S5 and S6 were the domains of physics and chemistry respectively. At the end of each lecture, technicians would magically appear from an adjacent prep room and expertly clean the chalkboards for the following lecture.
In times of great boredom, one could ponder the gigantic periodic table mounted on the sidewall (now removed) or review the latest collection of graffiti scribbled on lecture theatre desks. Pen, liquid paper and sometimes compass points were used to create ‘lecturer self-destruct’ buttons and messages to engage even the most disengaged student. (Has social media replaced graffiti?)
1985 was also the height of mid-lecture paper plane throwing and each time a lecturer’s back was turned a squadron of folded B52s would descend to the front of the theatre. A bin was often placed at the front of the room to encourage precision (and clean-up I suspect). Occasionally a plane would silently float from the back row and drop directly into the bin. A hearty round of applause would always follow.
The S7 and S8 theatres, rarely used by first year students, were the domain of biology (R1 was used to accommodate the large biology classes). Clifton Pugh’s bats, five in number and made from scrap metal, still fly on the side of the building and still serve as a useful compass reference for all students trying to navigate through to lab class.
All of the S-badged lecture theatres were hugged by two libraries, the BioMed library and the Hargrave library, the latter complete with Hargrave’s box kites and Perceval’s ceramic babies. These libraries were later amalgamated to become the Hargrave-Andrews Library which continues to serve the needs of science students today.
While the way lectures are delivered may have changed, surprisingly the physical environment in the science precinct has remained constant and familiar. Excitingly, this is about to change.
A new science landscape is currently being crafted and will rise from the rubble over the next 18 months to reveal the Green Chemical Futures Building, a five-star green teaching and research facility. The surrounding area will also be re-landscaped and new student hubs will be generated. With any luck, the buildings will also be surrounded by new art commissions!
The noise, dust and commotion will be worth it and you will be part of the rebirth. Congratulations for being a student at just the right time in history.
I hope you make the new space your space, just as my colleagues and I did back in 1985. Enjoy!
You can find out more about the exciting changes underway in science by visiting http://monashscienceprecinct.blogspot.com.au
