Moffitt Library

Moffitt Library invites undergraduate students to submit their art or design works for the 2017-2018 academic year to be displayed on floors four and five. This opportunity is open to current undergraduates at UC Berkeley. Current pieces on display and full guidelines can be viewed online.We are interested in flat, wall-mounted works, including (but not limited to):

• Paintings
• Drawings
• Photography
• Data visualizations
• Architectural designs
• Research posters
• Graphic designs

Submission deadline lis April 7, 2017. Decisions will be announced in early May. Please direct all questions and inquiries to Jean Ferguson, Learning and Research Communities Librarian, at jean.ferguson@berkeley.edu.

Apply here!

This exhibition highlights a collection of Brazilian chapbooks or Literatura de Cordel in the Moffitt Library. These chapbooks are still produced for mass consumption in the Northeastern Brazil. These are called literature de cordel as they are hung from a cord in the book-stands so that the consumers can browse them and select them according to their desires. There are several themes that are portrayed in these chap-books. A story is narrated within the cordel in a poetic form and themes can vary from religious, political, social and romantic. The curatorial team that consists of Dr. Liladhar Pendse, Aisha Hamilton and Kevin Cloud invites to visit the physical exhibit in the Moffitt Library through June 30, 2017. However for those who cannot come to the campus, we have prepared an online counterpart of this physical exhibition.

Library social media interns Chadwick Bowlin and Rika Pokala survey the new study spaces on Moffitt floors four and five.

After a year of rebuilding, the fourth and fifth floors of the Moffitt Library reopened on Wednesday, Nov. 2. Hundreds of students and staff thronged the reimagined floors, which are expected to become a top study destination thanks to new student-friendly policies, technology services, and a wide variety of flexible spaces.

As the open house attendees explored the new floors, many students buckled down and applied themselves to their work, such as four political science majors who began studying for their midterm in a group room. One said “we were kind of freaking out when we first came in, because Moffitt is so nice now!”

This group expected to be up until about 4 am, because of the exam the next day. “We will use Moffitt a lot,” one said. “Most places on campus, you’re kicked out at 2 am, which isn’t enough time.”

Another added, “I’m all about the snack-friendly policy. To be able to sustain myself while studying is great. No more sneaking!” They praised the quietness of the study room they had claimed, along with the handy USB ports and walls that could be written on.

Up on the fifth floor, a dozen or so new Brody chairs — individual all-inclusive work areas — were soon completely occupied. Marycon Jiro, a biology major, noted “It’s really hard to find one’s own space on campus. A personal space like this, with walls around a comfortable chair, plus my own light and a desk, cuts out visual distraction. It helps me to relax and to concentrate.” Jiro also looks forward to rehearsing presentations in the new Van Houten Presentation Studio.

New Features on 4 + 5
During the afternoon celebration, student demos included virtual reality, drones and 3D printing. Meanwhile, library staff, student groups, and campus partners showed off services and features such as:

• tech help support
• expanded tech lending
• a presentation practice studio
• a web conferencing studio
• an instruction room
• BearWALK service
• gender inclusive restrooms
• writeable glass walls to aid in collaboration and brainstorming
• work lounges
• art work

A new wellness room earned lots of smiles as students tried out the comfortable lounge chairs and the MetroNap EnergyPod. “It’s great to have a place to go take a quick break and chill out,” one undergrad remarked, “right next to where you’re studying.” Another joked, “I may come here too often.”

The chairs were provided by the ASUC for the REST-Zone initiative, and are reservable for one hour periods.

Moffitt floors four and five now boast living room-like spaces with larger seating areas, and casual chairs and tables which can be flexibly re-arranged. Expansive windows allow for abundant natural light and sweeping views of Memorial Glade.

Student Reactions
Matthew Hahn, an MBA/MPH candidate (’17), commented that “Campus really needs new study spaces, especially collaborative ones. The new Moffitt study spaces are ideal because the future of education is about collaboration and teamwork.”

Hahn is also happy about group rooms where he can project from his laptop onto a screen; the wellness room as a place to take a quick break; and the lockers, noting that now he won’t have to lug his belongings around campus all day long.

Akira Bai, likely the first student to eat a meal in the renovated Moffitt, said how glad he was to have a space where he can study and eat at the same time. “There aren’t many places on campus where you can eat indoors. I’m totally happy about the new Moffitt!”

One visitor to the gender-neutral restrooms described himself as “totally in support. I consider myself a progressive and even though these take some getting used to, after that it’s no big deal.” Another student praised the U-shape, and said he thought gender-neutral was a good model for all restrooms.

A low-tech feature in ample supply, whiteboards, came in for repeated praise by students at the open house. One computer science student described them as “essential for every study session.” Another student, Tinh Nguyen, added, “being able to write stuff and have everyone see it is so important. Moffitt has always been my #1 choice of library, and now I’ll be here even more.” When he learned that Moffitt will be open after Thanksgiving for 24 hours, he said “Wow! I’ll always be here.”

Beth Dupuis, who has led the re-envisioning process for Moffitt, commented “It has been a tremendous journey to create a new vision for Moffitt Library. I am so proud to work with all the amazing people who helped develop the ideas and make them come to life. Hearing students rave about the new services and spaces is so satisfying — I can’t wait to see what they do here.”

Francisco Peralta’s enthusiasm for product design and technology is outpaced only by his love of outreach and collaboration. Co-founder of EnableTech, a student-run group that designs solutions to minimize the difficulties of disability, he’s excited about the new Makerspace in Moffitt Library for all those reasons.

The location, Peralta (‘18) says, couldn’t be better. “When a friend and I were first setting up the 3D printers, lots of people approached us to find out what we were doing.” Since the Makerspace is in an open space and not walled off, “it’s going to be a great ecosystem where everyone can communicate and collaborate.”

The 3D printers in Moffitt’s Makerspace enable users to create three dimensional objects by laying down successive layers of material. The advent of this technology has spurred on the Maker movement, a diverse subculture that is reconnecting people to the possibilities of hands-on creation and construction.

EnableTech was cofounded by Peralta with mechanical engineering students Drew MacPherson (’17) and Kevin Haninger (B.S.’12, M.S.’15). Peralta says, “It’s cool because EnableTech offers a platform where people with disabilities can get help. Could be someone like me with my prosthetic leg, or someone with Parkinson’s or in a wheelchair, who needs help with tasks like opening windows.” Current or potential projects include:

• a glove that provides greater grip strength for people with spinal cord injuries
• an app that will make it easier for people with physical disabilities to get emergency assistance, and
• a low-cost robotic arm to assist people in wheelchairs.

Along with product design, prototyping and manufacturing, the organizational side of EnableTech is a focus for Peralta. As in industry, team projects follow timelines and multiple design reviews, including a final project review and self-evaluation. “I’m a perfectionist,” he acknowledges, “and I enjoy constantly thinking how to make things better and better.”

UC Berkeley’s long history with disability rights and the nationally recognized
Disabled Students’ Program were part of Peralta’s attraction to the school. “I couldn’t think of a better place to be,” says Peralta, who was born without a femur.

Raised in Chile and in southern California, Peralta studied robotics in high school and arrived at Berkeley as a mechanical engineering major. But when he took a cognitive science class suggested by a fraternity brother he “fell in love,” as he puts it, and changed his major.

“Understanding the brain will enable me to design better — and it also helps me to get through rough moments, like dealing with stress and setbacks.” This semester he is especially enjoying a philosophy course on the theory of meaning, which helps him “think more expansively about the world and about people.”

Despite the demands of his coursework and EnableTech, Peralta finds time for an active social life and for exercise. In October he participated in his second triathlon through the Challenged Athletes Foundation, completing the swimming relay. “I’ve learned enough about dopamine in my cognitive science classes to really appreciate the value of exercise!,” he says.

Support from the UC Berkeley Student Technology Fund made the purchase of Moffitt’s 3D printers possible. The venture represents a partnership between the University Library, Educational Technology Services, and Student Affairs Information Technology.

We’ve transformed the top floors of the Moffitt Library into an innovative, 24-hour study and collaboration space. The next step is to reimagine the lower floors and create a connected learning hub that further inspires and empowers all Berkeley students.