Michael Hammond (Class of 2008)

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The above quote is from Michael Hammond (Class of 2008). Read the full memory below:

My favorite carrel in the Rock was on the 4th floor, the SW corner, overlooking downtown, the Biltmore, and the water. I loved working there, whether it was reading a play or writing an agonizing essay—I would always come there when I needed to get something done.

I also loved falling asleep in the Rock—I’d usually fall asleep on top of my desk and then curl up underneath. I got some of my best sleep there. And I’d wake up at 4 or 5 and finish my paper.

David C. Brock (Class of 1990)

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The above quote is from David C. Brock (Class of 1990). Read the full memory below:

In the middle 1980s, I spent many, many hours in a silent and, more importantly, smoking study room on a lower level of the library. How else would the cool kids have known that I was doing my reading for “Introduction to the Theory of Signs”?

Larry Aronoff (PhD 1974)

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The above quote is from Larry Aronoff (PhD 1974). Read the full memory below:

Working on my dissertation during ’73-’74, at a carrel on the third floor, with a view of downtown Providence. The view helped take the pressure off and clear my mind.

Paul Richard (Class of 1972)

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The above quote is from Paul Richard (Class of 1972). Read the full memory below:

My favorite memory of the Rock occurred during the year following my graduation when I worked full-time in the Circulation Department. During my assigned turn at the circulation desk, a frazzled graduate student rushed from the card catalog, and tossed a card onto the desk, demanding to know the location of the book she was desperately seeking. As it happened, I recognized the book as one I had shelved a few hours earlier. Assuming my best Great Karnak demeanor, I held the card to my forehead, and intoned, “this book can be found on the 4th floor, stack XYZ, 7 shelves from the beginning of the stack, 5th shelf from the top, 12th book from the left.” The student left in a huff, convinced that I was fobbing her off with deliberate misinformation. A few minutes later she returned to the checkout desk, book in hand. “How did you know exactly where it was?” she asked. Without missing a beat, I replied, “We’re a full service library – anything we can do to please our customers.”

Harry William Holt Jr. (Class of 1984)

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The above quote is from Harry William Holt Jr. (Class of 1984). Read the full memory below:

I was an engineering student who attended Brown from 1980 to 1984. Most engineers studied in the Science Library. I could never study there. I found the Sci Li as we affectionately called it cold and dreary. I enjoyed studying in the Rock back in the stacks in a carrel with bad lightening by myself. I was able to be so productive amongst the old books of diverse knowledge. I would take mini-breaks and go out in the lobby and other students would be around chatting. This I found inspiring. I did some of my best studying at the Rock.

Judson Brandeis (Class of 1989)

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The above quote is from Judson Brandeis (Class of 1989). Read the full memory below:

My favorite rock memory was that one night I was studying at the rock and it just so happened to be the 350th birthday of Providence. The city was launching fireworks from downtown and they were exploding at just about the height of the Rock. I have never seen fireworks so spectacular as when I was at the level of the fiery colored plumes.

Lori Schack (Class of 1987)

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The above quote is from Lori Schack (Class of 1987). Read the full memory below:

I remember the long treatises and conversations that were written in the women’s bathrooms’ stalls, about campus issues of the day and often personal aspects of peoples lives. They were an anonymous forum in the same spirit of some of today’s social media. They were written with passion and thoughtfulness you’d expect from Brown students. They were a great break from studying!! I haven’t seen anything like it since—at least in a bathroom! Does this still exist or has it been replaced by social media?

Christopher Baker (Class of 2010, Med School 2015)

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The above quote is from Christopher Baker (Class of 2010, Med School 2015). Read the full memory below:

I remember like it was yesterday. I had just gotten admitted to Brown as a RUE and gained entrance into my first research laboratory in the bio-medical center. Initially, I was tasked with developing a new silver ion detection assay. Being a new scientist and not being very knowledgeable of Brown’s library system. I unknowingly used a humanities literature search tool on the library’s website. I had allot going on in my life in addition to the new path I was travelling on and things seemed quite overwhelming. None the less, I printed out my references locations and went out in search of some knowledge. Upon arriving at the Rock I was greeted by stacks of books bearing coordinates which I could use to search for my references. Ironically, the first book I found on my list was not a scientific journal but a compilations of works, the first of which was titled “Who am I and where am I going”. I found this to be one of my most memorable moments at Brown. Here I was, a new scientist, lost in the wrong library and still the books gave me a sense of direction and purpose.

Andy Padden (Class of 1966)

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The above quote is from Andy Padden (Class of 1966). Read the full memory below:

Remember being alone in the stacks a lot in ’65, writing a paper on Stalin. Feeling very grim about it, seeing fellow students lounging w girlfriends in the main lib. Very clear memory, and to this day I can’t stand Stalin.