University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign: Difference between revisions
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The University bus system is part of the local [[Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District]]. The university provides a substantial amount of funding for the MTD, which in turn provides free campus bus service and free access to the entire system for university students, faculty, and staff. All students pay a semesterly Transit Fee which provides part of the funding paid to the transit district. As part of this arrangement, the MTD also runs a bus line between Illinois Terminal, the campus, and the university's afore mentioned [[The University of Illinois Willard Airport|University of Illinois Willard Airport]]. In addition, the Illinois Terminal provides connection services to [[Amtrak]] and [[Greyhound Lines|Greyhound]], making it the focal point of [[Champaign-Urbana Metropolitan Area|Chambana's]] public transportation systems. |
The University bus system is part of the local [[Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District]]. The university provides a substantial amount of funding for the MTD, which in turn provides free campus bus service and free access to the entire system for university students, faculty, and staff. All students pay a semesterly Transit Fee which provides part of the funding paid to the transit district. As part of this arrangement, the MTD also runs a bus line between Illinois Terminal, the campus, and the university's afore mentioned [[The University of Illinois Willard Airport|University of Illinois Willard Airport]]. In addition, the Illinois Terminal provides connection services to [[Amtrak]] and [[Greyhound Lines|Greyhound]], making it the focal point of [[Champaign-Urbana Metropolitan Area|Chambana's]] public transportation systems. |
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The university maintains an extensive system of [[Bicycle|bike]] trails on campus. Cyclists are supposed to stay off the sidewalks, and to use the trails instead of roads when available. While [[Pedestrian|pedestrians]] do have [[right-of-way]] while crossing the trails, it is common practice for |
The university maintains an extensive system of [[Bicycle|bike]] trails on campus. Cyclists are supposed to stay off the sidewalks, and to use the trails instead of roads when available. While [[Pedestrian|pedestrians]] do have [[right-of-way]] while crossing the trails, it is common practice for bicycles to refuse right of way making bike trails unsafe for pedestrians. All students are expected to register their bicycles with the campus [[Public Safety|public safety]] department, and to keep their bicycles in a safe operating condition. |
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===Athletics=== |
===Athletics=== |
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Revision as of 17:56, 22 April 2005
The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, also known as UIUC and the U of I (the officially preferred abbreviation), is the largest campus in the University of Illinois system. It is highly ranked in library and information science, engineering, computer science, physical sciences, advertising, psychology, educational psychology, agriculture, and accounting. The university is composed of 18 colleges and institutes that offer more than 150 programs of study.
11 alumni and nine professors from U of I have won the Nobel Prize.
Campus

The campus' main research and academic facilities are divided almost exactly between the twin cities of Urbana and Champaign. The College of Agriculture, Consumer, and Environmental Sciences' research fields stretch south from Urbana and Champaign into Savoy and Champaign County. The University Airport is located in Savoy, Illinois and the University maintains formal gardens and a conference center in nearby Monticello at Allerton Park.
The University is one of the few educational institutions to own an airport. The University owns and operates Willard Airport, named for former University of Illinois president Arthur Cutts Willard. The airport was completed in 1945 and began service in 1954. Willard Airport is home to many University research projects and the University's acclaimed Institute of Aviation.
The Campus is based on the Quadrangle design popular at many universities around the nation. Four main quads make up the center of the University and are arranged from north to south. The Beckman Quadrangle and the John Bardeen Quadrangle make up the center of the Engineering Campus. The Beckman Quadrangle is primarily composed of research units and laboratories and features a large solar calendar composed of an obelisk and several copper fountains. The Main Quadrangle and South Quadrangle follow immediately after the John Bardeen Quad. The former makes up a large part of the Liberal Arts and Sciences portion of the campus, while the latter comprises many of the buildings of the College of ACES (campus map).
Research
A nationally acclaimed research center, UIUC is the site of the National Center for Supercomputing Applications, which created Mosaic, the first graphical Web browser, and Telnet. The University also has the third largest academic library, and the largest public engineering library (Grainger Engineering Library) in the country. The Daily Illini is the (unofficial) student newspaper. In 1952 the University built the ILLIAC (Illinois Automatic Computer), the first computer built and owned entirely by an educational institution. UIUC is also the site of the Department of Energy's Center for the Simulation of Advanced Rockets, an institute which has employed graduate and faculty researchers in the physical sciences and mathematics in some of the most advanced research in the field. This history of excellence continues into the 21st century, both with the recent opening of the Siebel Center for Computer Science, the most technologically advanced academic facility to date, and the anticipated opening of the Institute for Genomic Biology in 2006.
Student Life
Greek Life
The University has the largest intrafraternity system in America. There are currently 44 fraternities and 20 sororities on the campus providing an alternative living style for its 29,000 undergraduate students.
Libraries
The University is recognized as having the largest public library in the world with more than 22 million volumes[1] in the main library alone. The online catalogue is utilized by over one million people around the world every day. In addition to the main library the College of Agriculture, Consumer, and Environmental Sciences maintains the ACES Library on the South Quad, the Grainger Engineering Library Information Center serves the College of Engineering on the John Bardeen Quad, and over 40 departments and schools maintain their own libraries elsewhere on campus.
Transportation
The University bus system is part of the local Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District. The university provides a substantial amount of funding for the MTD, which in turn provides free campus bus service and free access to the entire system for university students, faculty, and staff. All students pay a semesterly Transit Fee which provides part of the funding paid to the transit district. As part of this arrangement, the MTD also runs a bus line between Illinois Terminal, the campus, and the university's afore mentioned University of Illinois Willard Airport. In addition, the Illinois Terminal provides connection services to Amtrak and Greyhound, making it the focal point of Chambana's public transportation systems.
The university maintains an extensive system of bike trails on campus. Cyclists are supposed to stay off the sidewalks, and to use the trails instead of roads when available. While pedestrians do have right-of-way while crossing the trails, it is common practice for bicycles to refuse right of way making bike trails unsafe for pedestrians. All students are expected to register their bicycles with the campus public safety department, and to keep their bicycles in a safe operating condition.
Athletics
See main article: University of Illinois Athletics
The University's Division of Intercollegiate Athletics fields teams for 10 men's and 11 women's varsity sports. The University participates in the NCAA's Division 1-A and forms part of the Big Ten athletic conference. The University's athletic teams are known as the Fighting Illini. The University operates a number of top athletic facilities, including Memorial Stadium for football, the Assembly Hall for men's basketball, and the Atkins Tennis Center for men's and women's tennis.
Organization
Colleges and Schools
- College of Agriculture, Consumer, and Environmental Sciences
- College of Applied Life Studies
- Institute of Aviation
- College of Business
- College of Communications
- College of Education
- College of Engineering
- College of Fine and Applied Arts
- Graduate College
- Institute of Labor and Industrial Relations
- College of Law
- College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
- Graduate School of Library and Information Science
- College of Medicine at Urbana-Champaign
- School of Social Work
- College of Veterinary Medicine
Notable faculty
- John Bardeen - Nobel laureate (Physics, 1956) for co-inventing the transistor, and Nobel laureate (Physics, 1972) for work on superconductivity. Served on the faculty from 1951 until his death in 1991.
- Michael Heath - Engineering Council Award for Excellence (2003), Fulton-Copp Chair (2002), ACM Fellow (2000), Hertz Fellow (1975)
- Nick Holonyak Jr. - Lemelson-MIT Prize (2004), National Medal of Technology (2002), National Medal of Science (1990). He is credited for the invention of the LED and the first semiconductor laser to operate in the visible spectrum.
- Elias Corey - Nobel laureate (Chemistry, 1990). Served on faulty from 1951 to 1959.
- Paul Lauterbur - Nobel laureate (Physiology or Medicine, 2003). Joined the faculty in 1985.
- Anthony J. Leggett - Nobel laureate (Physics, 2003). Joined faculty in 1983.
- Salvador Luria - Nobel laureate (Physiology or Medicine, 1969). Served on faculty from 1950-1959.
- Rudolph Marcus - Nobel laureate (Chemistry, 1992). Served on faculty from 1964-1968.
- Franco Modigliani - Nobel laureate (Economics, 1985). Served on faculty from 1948-1952.
- Abram L. Sachar - Founding President of Brandeis University. Served on faculty from 1923-1948.
- Carl Woese - Crafoord Prize Recipient (Bioscience, 2003). Professor of Microbiology
Notable alumni
Alumni with Nobel Prizes
- Edward Doisy, B.S. 1914, M.S. 1916 - Nobel laureate (Physiology or Medicine, 1943)
- Vincent Du Vigneaud, B.S. 1923, M.S. 1924 - Nobel laureate (Chemistry, 1955), faculty member of UIUC
- Robert W. Holley, B.A. 1942 - Nobel laureate (Physiology or Medicine, 1968)
- Jack Kilby, B.S. 1947 - Nobel laureate (Physics, 2000). Inventor of the microchip.
- Edwin G. Krebs, B.A. 1940 - Nobel laureate (Physiology or Medicine, 1992)
- Polykarp Kusch, M.S. 1933, Ph.D. 1936 - Nobel laureate (Physics, 1955)
- John Schrieffer, M.S. 1954, PhD 1957 - Nobel laureate (Physics, 1972), faculty member of UIUC
- Phillip Sharp, Ph.D. 1969 - Nobel laureate (Chemistry, 1993)
- Wendell Stanely, M.S. 1927, PhD. 1929 - Nobel laureate (Chemistry 1946)
- Rosalyn Yalow, M.S. 1942, Ph.D. 1945 - Nobel laureate (Physiology or Medicine, 1977)
Alumni with Pulitzer Prizes
- Barry Bearak, M.S. 1974 - awarded the 2002 Pulitzer Prize (International Reporting)
- Michael Colgrass, B.A. 1956 - awarded the 1978 Pulitzer Prize ( Music )
- George Crumb, M.A. 1952 - awarded the 1968 Pulitzer Prize ( Music )
- David Herbert Donald, M.A. 1942, Ph.D. 1946 - awarded the 1961 Pulitzer Prize(Biography), 1988 Pulitzer Prize(Biography)
- Roger Ebert, B.S. 1964 - movie critic, awarded the 1975 Pulitzer Prize (Criticiscm)
- Roy J. Harris, B.A. 1925 - awarded the 1950 Pulitzer Prize (Public Service)
- Hugh F. Hough, B.S. 1951 - awarded the 1974 Pulitzer Prize (Local General Spot News Reporting)
- Paul Ingrassia, B.S. 1972 - awarded the 1993 Pulitzer Prize (Beat Reporting)
- Monroe Karmin, B.S. 1950 - awarded the 1967 Pulitzer Prize (National Reporting)
- Allan Nevins, B.A. 1912, M.A. 1913 - awarded the 1933 Pulitzer Prize (Biography), 1937 Pulitzer Prize (Biography)
- James Reston, B.S. 1932 - awarded the 1945 Pulitzer Prize (National Reporting), 1957 Pulitzer Prize (National Reporting)
- Robert Lewis Taylor, B.A. 1933 - awarded the 1959 Pulitzer Prize (Fiction)
- George Thiem, B.S. 1921 - awarded the 1950 Pulitzer Prize (Public Service)
- Carl Van Doren, B.A. 1907 - awarded the 1939 Pulitzer Prize (Biography)
- Mark Van Doren, B.A. 1914 - awarded the 1940 Pulitzer Prize (Poetry)
- Abe Zaidan, B.S. 1953 - awarded the 1971 Pulitzer Prize (Local Reporting)
Technology and Innovation

- Sohaib Abbasi, B.S. and M.S. 1980, President and CEO of Informatica
- Marc Andreessen, B.S. 1993, co-creator of the Mosaic web browser, and later co-founder of Netscape
- Bruce Artwick, M.S. 1976, creator of Microsoft Flight Simulator.
- Arnold O. Beckman - BS 1922, MS 1923, inventor of pH meter, founder of Beckman Instruments and Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation, major donor to U of I. The Beckman Institute and Beckman Quadrangle are named after him.
- Donald L. Bitzer & H. Gene Slottow, 2003 Emmy Award in Technical Achievement for the invention of the plasma display.
- Ed Boon, B.S. 1986, creator of Mortal Kombat video game
- Steve Dorner, B.S. 1983 creator of Eudora
- Michael Hart, B.A. 1973, founder of Project Gutenberg
- Max Levchin, B.S. 1997, co-founder of PayPal
- Bob Miner, B.A. (mathematics) 1963, co-founder of Oracle Corporation
- Ray Ozzie, B.S. 1979, creator of Lotus Notes
- Jerry Sanders, B.S. 1958, co-founder and former CEO of Advanced Micro Devices
- Tom Siebel, B.A. 1975, M.B.A. 1983, M.S. 1985, founder of Siebel Systems
- Jack Welch, M.S. and Ph.D. 1960, former CEO of General Electric
Science
- Charles W. Woodworth, BS 1885, MS 1886, founder of the Division of Entomology, University of California, Berkeley. The PBESA gives the C. W. Woodworth Award.
- Alfred Y. Cho, B.S. 1960, M.S. 1961, Ph.D. 1968 - father of Molecular beam epitaxy. He also received the National Medal of Science in 1993
- Donald Johanson, B.S. 1966, paleoanthropologist
Literature, Media, and Entertainment
- Iris Chang, B.A. 1989, author of The Rape of Nanking
- Roger Ebert, film critic
- Dave Eggers, writer
- Hugh Hefner, B.A. 1949, founder of Playboy magazine
- Robert Johnson, founder of BET Television Network
- Ang Lee, movie director
- Carol Marin, former news anchor, 60 Minutes correspondent, and Illinois Journalist of the Year (1988)
- Andy Richter, actor/comedian
- Douglas Wilson, television personality/designer
Society
- John Anderson, congressman and 1980 presidential candidate
- Ronald Cohn, co-founder of The Gorilla Foundation, researcher and cameraman who helped document Koko, the mountain gorilla
- Jean Driscoll - wheelchair marathoner, 8-time winner of the Boston Marathon
- Atef Ebeid, former prime minister of Egypt
- Donald Johanson, anthropologist
- Annette Lu, vice-president of the Republic of China
- Lynn Martin, B.A. 1960 - Congresswoman from Illinois (1981-1991) and Secretary of Labor in George H.W. Bush's Cabinet (1991-1993)
- Robert Novak, B.A. 1952 - Political Commentator
- Francine Patterson, co-founder of The Gorilla Foundation, researcher who taught a modified version of American Sign Language to a mountain gorilla named Koko
- Fidel Ramos, former president of the Philippines
- Jack Welch, PhD 1960 - CEO of General Electric (1981-2001)
Astronauts
- Scott Altman, B.S. 1981 - NASA astronaut
- Lee J. Archambault, B.S. 1982, M.S. 1984 - NASA astronaut
- Dale A. Gardner, B.S. 1970 - NASA astronaut
- David H. Matthiesen, B.S. 1980, M.S. 1982 - NASA astronaut
- Steven R. Nagel, B.S. 1969 - NASA astronaut
- Joseph R. Tanner, B.S. 1973 - NASA astronaut
Other Famous Attendees
- Lawrence Ellison, founder of Oracle Corporation
- Gene Hackman, actor
- Jesse Jackson, civil rights activist