Grammy winner & so much more
The 2025 Technical Grammy Award winner, Leo Beranek ’36, is widely considered the pioneer of modern acoustic technology. But before laying the foundation for noise control and concert hall acoustics, the man called a “genius” in his New York Times obituary put himself through college, in part, by running a radio business.
One of his customers was Cornell, who hired him to wire Rood House and install a radio antenna system in Merner Hall. Although those projects no longer exist, his later innovations have become part of everyday life. His research led to international noise standards for public buildings and airports, and his company—Bolt, Beranek & Newman—built Arpanet, the direct precursor to the internet.
One Notebook At A Time
Although the Cornell Bookstore stocks five- and three-subject notebooks, they don’t fly off the shelves. “The one-subject notebooks tend to work great for a block’s worth of notes,” says Bookstore Manager Vicki Moore. After all, what else would you need around here?
Prince Albert in a wall
We were reminded of an old joke when crews working in King Chapel recently discovered a vintage Prince Albert crimp-cut pocket tobacco tin hidden between the lath and stone of a wall.
Do you have Prince Albert in a can?
Well, it turns out we do. And after more than a century, we let him out.
Oh, baby
The future Cornell Ram in your life deserves a Cornell onesie. Check out this and other infant designs online.
Drone standoff ends peacefully
Those who read the nightly Campus Safety reports likely cracked a smile when they came across Director Zach Barrett’s write-up about a recent interaction with a drone stranded on McLennan College Hall roof:
“Campus Safety officers arrived and attempted to reason with the drone to come down off the roof peacefully. The drone refused. Campus Safety contacted Facilities to remove the drone from the roof forcefully. Drone was removed without incident!”
The drone, belonging to the Office of Marketing & Communications, was forced to land when freezing temperatures zapped its battery. A few days later Facilities received a package of homemade treats sent from the drone with a note that read, “Enjoy a cookie from my overlords.”
Got hobbies? We’ve got Makerspace
The Digital Liberal Arts Makerspace just opened in Cole Library’s Academic Technology Studio. Looking for a laser cutter? A sewing and embroidery machine? Helpful staff? It’s all there and available for students, faculty, and staff.
In addition to previously existing 3D printers, a large plotter printer, and a vinyl cutter, they’ve also added numerous tools and supplies for making and crafting. There are knitting needles and crochet hooks for checkout, cross-stitching and weaving supplies, and a multitude of fabrics, markers, and craft paint.
STEM equipment? We’re getting more of that
The Sherman Fairchild Foundation awarded Cornell College a $500,000 grant to upgrade STEM facilities and add new equipment and technology to our classrooms. These students are using the new GIS lab in Norton Geology Center, and soon the college will have a high-performance computing cluster.