Great New Spaces Now Open in D. H. Hill

New technology-enabled study rooms

It may be a little less crowded with less of us on campus during the summer, but group study spaces have always been a rare prize at the D. H. Hill Jr. Library, no matter the time of year. Now six more group study rooms are making your chances much better when you're looking for a quiet place to hammer out the work with friends.

Remember the large study rooms just as you exit the elevators in the south tower book stacks? On floors 3 through 8, they've now been divided in half, outfitted with new plug-and-play furniture that makes it easy to share and display your group work, and geared up with electronic sound dampening that wraps your group in a cocoon of quiet. One entire writeable wall in each of the twelve rooms is also available to work out problems, outline your project ”or just to doodle on to relieve a little stress. The Herman Miller SAYL chairs around the tables seem just right for NC State: bold design, environmentally smart engineering, and a preference for some comfort while we work hard ”that's us.

The large group study room just off the elevator on the second floor of the south tower has also been redone with the same great new furniture and technology.

All these rooms can be reserved at www.lib.ncsu.edu/studyrooms/getaroom.php .

D. H. Hill Jr.'s new living room 

Speaking of comfort, you also need to check out the library's new living room. On the second floor of the West Wing (up the large steps just past the Creamery), you'll find sofas, eye (and foot)-pleasing rugs, the most comfortable loungers on campus, a great view of Hillsborough Street ”and a quiet place to retreat when the hours with the books and laptop get long. This may be the most pleasing space in the library (well, except for maybe that great view from the Conservatory Astral Bench ). Eight new tables and chair sets in this quiet area add some more much-needed quiet study space in D. H. Hill Jr..

What do you think?

As we're sprucing up D. H. Hill Jr. this summer, we're experimenting with the new spaces to try out new types of furniture and technology that we may be using in the new James B. Hunt Jr. Library when it opens in the fall of 2012. We'd love it if you'd leave us any comments you have about the furniture and technology on our Facebook page .

Bonus points

Kudos to the first of you who goes to our Facebook page and tells us what famous bridge inspired the design of the SAYL chairs.