Library hotspots: Top places for serious studying

By Tara Sahdev

For students who desire to be seen in the most hip and happening place on campus this quarter, the new library has become a second home.

With 194,000 square feet on four levels and a maze-like design, the library has plenty of space to explore.

But not every student has cornered its most interesting study spots.

The book abode has become immensely popular. Study rooms must be reserved ahead of time and finding a table for a group at 8 p.m. on a weekend is Mission: Impossible IV.

Here are just five of the most interesting and least visited destinations in the library

Second floor

For a place to take a cute study date, voyage to the second floor. There lies a narrow hallway perpendicular to the staircase, next to the Information Services Administrative Office. At the end of this hallway are two desks, two chairs and a wide window. This intimate "room" is one of the few open places in the library where people can talk without disturbing others.

Junior Clemente Carvajal said this would be the ideal setting for a study date. "No one can see or bother you."

Computer labs

On the second floor next to the east side staircase there are two training and instruction rooms. Both rooms are filled with approximately thirty computers but remain nearly deserted.

Although their intended purpose is to accommodate lectures or classes, they are rarely used in this way, thus almost always open for general use. There are also whiteboards at the front of the rooms, an essential component for any study group.

The Saint Clare room

The Saint Clare Room is for serious students. As an unwritten rule, no noise is permitted in this room. Even the sound of a sneeze or cough will cause heads to turn and surrounding readers to shoot silent, angry glares. The western wall of the room, which is comprised solely of windows, overlooks the beautiful campus. During the day, the sunlight illuminates the maple paneling, making this room both seriously studious and brilliantly beautiful.

The ARS viewing room

The Automated Retrieval System Viewing Room transports visitors into a futuristic atmosphere of metal and robotics. These machines look as if they have come straight out of the Star Wars movies.

Watching the machine retrieve requested book incites awe -- such a simple procedure, yet so fascinating. When looking down into the reflection on the stacks, one can see the librarian retrieving the books that the crane has just collected.

Study rooms

For group study sessions, head into one of the numerous study rooms or reserve a collaborative workroom, which feature 40-inch LCD televisions.

These collaborative workrooms are located on the third floor behind the bookcases on the east side. "The whiteboards and technology in the study rooms are incredible," said freshman Joseph Baini.

Coming soon: The Archive and Special Collections Reading Room. It will be opening at the beginning of the fall 2008 quarter and will be located on the third floor in the southeast corner.

Contact Tara Sahdev at (408) 551-1918 or tsahdev@scu.edu.