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IN THE PAST SEVERAL DECADES, EVERY FACET OF OUR WORLD AND REALM OF HUMAN ACTIVITY HAS BEEN TRANSFORMED BY ADVANCES IN INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY.
Given the scope and impact of this revolution, the College must do far more than simply keep pace. It must reassert its national leadership in technical research and pedagogy, building on its abiding interest and strengths in both computers and tectonics (the art, culture, and technology of construction).
We are committed to ensuring that our students develop core competencies in new technologies and are well-prepared for whatever future unfolds in the workplace and society. The technologies that must be mastered range from digital design to rapid prototyping, from collaborative systems to Geographic Information Systems (GIS), and from media arts to virtual reality-plus new ones we haven't yet seen. Our responsibility as part of a leading University is not only to implement new technologies, but to ponder and unpack their cultural ramifications. In order to realize the full potential of those technologies, we will pursue a number of new projects and initiatives:
The heart of the information environment is the network, which shapes our institutional identity and allows the College to interact, learn, and produce in new and unexpected ways. To that end, our building has been fully networked, with all classrooms and 400 workstations connected via state-of-the-art electronic equipment that ties faculty, students, and staff together. We have begun this process with the installation of a building-wide wireless network and high-speed wired networking to each studio desktop. To realize the full potential of the network, the College has begun to hire more faculty and staff with expertise in information technology.
Studio culture is a prized, cherished, and valued pedagogical asset. We must upgrade our current design studio to make it capable of electronically sustaining new developments and directions in architectural education.
In that same realm, the College must continue to expand its digital shop with the latest technology in rapid prototyping and laser cutting as well as upgrade Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and tools for virtual reality, environmental simulation, and scale modeling-all with an eye to both proven and new interdisciplinary imperatives and opportunities.
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Upgrade
and add specialized digital equipment.
Install and upgrade high-tech classrooms.
Replace all basic studio workstations with
state-of-the-art equipment.
Add high-tech roof-top research laboratory. |
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This page is an excerpt from
A
Second Century of Leadership:
The Case for Taubman College of Architecture
+ Urban Planning.
Send an email to portico@umich.edu
to request a copy. |
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