Chapter Twenty-Five: My Favourite Study Spaces (~jinghan)

I came back from my exchange year in America to discover – to my horror- that the mathematics library had been converted into a construction sight. Despite what the academics of the Department had to say about the convenience of all the mathematics books being collated in one place in the ERC with the physics books in close proximity, as a naive undergrad student I missed the enforced quiet and hence highly productive atmosphere of the maths library. And so I was forced to hunt for new places to study on campus.

I liked the ERC ground floor with its big wooden tables and interesting decor and that was my resident study spot in the first two weeks. But it had it’s flaws – it was always a bit too warm in there for winter days when one wears a jumper and is rather intolerant of uncomfortable temperatures. Also by week six when assignments and exams crept up, the demand for desk space exceeded the supply and I couldn’t just wonder over and find a space (or two if I wanted to study with a friend).

I always show the Frank Tate study spaces to impressed visitors when I take tours of the university. With it’s modern furniture and relaxed atmosphere it is in deed a beautiful space  – just one problem though: whoever designed it hadn’t taken into consideration of providing effective desk space or enough chairs (facing useful directions) for more than a handful of students to be studying at once. (Useless at a university, you can never find a place to study unless you like sitting on chairs that are too low at a bench that is too high.)

There is one exception, there’s a room in the basement of the Frank Tate with (not efficiently spaced) but good tables for studying at and most of the time enough space for an extra person or two. I took a liking to it because of how efficiently I studied there the first time, but it’s sauna-like atmosphere was off putting… until I discovered that the windows could be opened and the heaters turned down. I hope that the other students studying there don’t find it obnoxious when I stroll in, claim a desk and set about opening at least three windows before settling down to study. Sometimes there’s quiet chatter and lazy jazz from the nearby cafe outside when I open the windows which is indistinct enough not to me distracting and gives the room the atmosphere of being semi-outside. (There are also nice places to study outside, but it’s winter, and even on a warm sunny day wind does not make for efficient study.)

One week, at the insistence of a friend, I went to study in the Baillieu Library, but there just wasn’t enough natural sunlight and too many people and not enough fresh air for my taste in study spaces. Plus I’m rarely close to that area of campus.

One particularly test-busy and assignment dense week I discovered to my horror that all my previous favorite study spaces were too full to accommodate me without getting my elbows in someone else’s anatomy textbook, or particle physics notes, or something arts students read with lots of words. I had always found the upper levels of the ERC uninviting because they just don’t measure up to the beautiful refurbished ground floor, plus I always feel like upper floors are too far away from fresh air. But in desperation I wondered up. The first floor was noisy… The second floor of the ERC was surprisingly quiet despite its proximity to the first floor. And there: next to a set of windows baring a beautiful view of the rooftops of a historical part of campus and the city in the distance a set of desks, fairly empty, very quiet and the air not too warm. Perfect!

And so now that I have hogged the computer in the Frank Tate basement for over an hour blogging (hey, it’s the last day before mid semester break, give me a break from studying!) and have five minutes to get to class I’ll leave my nerdiness at that. Remember: at university (at least among maths and science students) nerdy is the new cool and you can’t judge me for having written a unexpectedly long and embarrassingly serious blog about my favorite study places.

Enjoy the break everyone!