The design of Boston University’s Data Science building is sure to turn some heads when it completes in 2022. The 17-story, 345,000-sf building will resemble a stack of books rising up from a podium on the university’s central campus. For the first time, BU’s mathematics, statistics, and computer science departments will be under one roof, maximizing collaboration, interaction, and interconnectivity.
The building’s transparent, porous podium will occupy the entire width of the site to complete the streetscape and generate maximum group floor animation on Commonwealth Avenue. It will rise four-stories and accommodate the larger programmatic volumes and offer a series of zones for interaction, including the Cafe, the Cascading Stair, the Street Studio, and the Fireplace Lounge.
Atop the podium will sit an additional 13 floors, each one slightly off center from the one below to create the stack of books aesthetic. Floors three through five will house the mathematics and statistics department (the fifth floor will also have a lunch space and meeting rooms). Floors six through 10 will comprise mainly space for the computer science department. The interdisciplinary Hariri Institute will be located on the top six floors, with floors 11 and 12 housing administrative offices.
See Also: Denning House completes at Stanford University
The building will include a series of terraced platforms for small group interaction, whiteboard walls, and a collaboration ramp stippled with gathering spaces.
On the team: BRA (MEP), Entuitive + LeMessurier (structural engineer), Richard Burck (landscape architect), and Nitsch Engineering (civil engineer). Construction is expected to begin this spring.
Related Stories
University Buildings | Nov 3, 2022
New College of Medicine debuts on University of Houston’s campus
It's part of a planned medical district.
University Buildings | Nov 2, 2022
New Univ. of Calif. Riverside business school building will support hybrid learning
A design-build partnership of Moore Ruble Yudell and McCarthy Building Companies will collaborate on a new business school building at the University of California at Riverside.
School Construction | Oct 31, 2022
Claremont McKenna College science center will foster integrated disciplinary research
The design of the Robert Day Sciences Center at Claremont McKenna College will support “a powerful, multi-disciplinary, computational approach to the grand socio-scientific challenges and opportunities of our time—gene, brain, and climate,” says Hiram E. Chodosh, college president.
University Buildings | Oct 27, 2022
The Collaboratory Building will expand the University of Florida’s School of Design, Construction, and Planning
Design firm Brooks + Scarpa recently broke ground on a new addition to the University of Florida’s School of Design, Construction, and Planning (DCP).
Higher Education | Oct 24, 2022
Wellesley College science complex modernizes facility while preserving architectural heritage
A recently completed expansion and renovation of Wellesley College’s science complex yielded a modernized structure for 21st century STEM education while preserving important historical features.
BAS and Security | Oct 19, 2022
The biggest cybersecurity threats in commercial real estate, and how to mitigate them
Coleman Wolf, Senior Security Systems Consultant with global engineering firm ESD, outlines the top-three cybersecurity threats to commercial and institutional building owners and property managers, and offers advice on how to deter and defend against hackers.
University Buildings | Oct 18, 2022
A carbon-neutral-ready university campus opens in Hong Kong
In early September, the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) officially opened its new, KPF-designed campus in Nansha, Guangzhou (GZ).
University Buildings | Oct 7, 2022
Auburn’s new culinary center provides real-world education
The six-story building integrates academic and revenue-generating elements.
| Sep 14, 2022
Indian tribe’s new educational campus supports culturally appropriate education
The Kenaitze Indian Tribe recently opened the Kahtnuht’ana Duhdeldiht Campus (Kenai River People’s Learning Place), a new education center in Kenai, Alaska.
University Buildings | Sep 9, 2022
Alan Schlossberg, AIA, LEED AP, joins DesignGroup’s Pittsburgh studio as Regional Practice Leader
Alan Schlossberg, AIA, LEED AP, has joined DesignGroup as a principal of the firm and regional practice leader.
