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June 15, 2005
unexpected chaos theory
Right now, I'm in the middle of a short course, crash course, or whatever you want to call it. Literally. The middle. The course lasts a week (about 6 hours a day) and I just finished the midterm. A bunch of people that aren't associated with my program or even the department take the course. Don't know why. Probably because they're crazy. I can understand taking it if you need the credit hours or if it's required (like it is for me). But who in their right mind would want to take an entire course that has been compressed into 5 days of hair-raising excitement?
Anyways, yesterday during the morning break, one of these people who, for some reason, have no better way to spend their time this week, asked me how to find the bathroom. I walked with her to the facilities, as I was headed that direction myself, and when we got there, she looked at me and said, "This place doesn't make any sense at all."
In any other place I've ever been, getting from point A to point B would be relatively straightforward, assuming I knew where it was in the first place. But not this place. From the outside, the Frances Searle Building looks like a combination beehive and very small prison. And its layout is so nonsensical that I can't even describe to someone how to get to the bathroom.
The total lack of apparent systematic design in this building is actually a bit deceiving. There aren't any straight hallways and the rooms aren't numbered in standard numerical order (meaning room 1 is not necessary next door to room 2). But there's a system to it and there's only one thing I can think of to which it can be compared:
Chaos Theory is defined as the study of chaotic nonlinear dynamic systems. This building must have been built to demonstrate in a concrete manner the feasibility of Chaos Theory. Close examination of the floor plan of the building shows four distinct quadrants. But one of those quadrants is primarily stairways. Each quadrant is self-contained in the sense that I really don't know if you can get between them without first returning to the center of the building. All of the quadrants look the same. They all have stairwells in the same place. If you're walking through one, and you think you know where you are, you may walk right into an area that appears to be a mirror reflection of the hallway you were looking for. If you're looking for classroom 2-376, you may be in front of 2-375 and still have to walk in circles for another five minutes before you find what you're looking for. It's an unbelievable place. Not in the good way. More in the, 'I can't believe they actually designed this place like this' way.
The long and short of it is that in order to find your way around this maze, I have found it beneficial to start by accepting that no matter how well I think I know where I'm going, I don't. Prior knowledge is of little import here. At least in terms of navigation. After you accept that the building embodies chaos and appears entirely nonsensical, only then can you start to find your way around. Not unlike other things, I must say. Only more abstract concepts like this generally don't apply to geographic situations.
Posted by ben at June 15, 2005 3:00 PM
Comments
Francis Searle is about as complicated as the streets of Valencia.
Posted by: Drew at June 16, 2005 4:51 AM
An uncanny parallel, my friend.
Posted by: ben at June 16, 2005 9:15 AM