Standing in front of Memorial church
Arches and Pillars everywhere
Photo links are here
Sunday evening around 5 p.m Vivek said let us drive to Stanford university which is about 20 miles from our house. We were going to only spend an hour or two. This is my preliminary visit and I am surely going to spend a day there. There is so much to see.
We drove to the university quadrangle thro' a picturesque drive famously known as "Palm drive" as the road is lined with palm trees on either side and does remind u of IIT Mumbai entrance.
One only dreams of Stanford. I could never imagine my dream will come true but it did. I wish I had studied here but I am consoling myself that atleast I am visiting this great place.
The sprawling lawns, rows and rows of huge trees, pillars and arches carved of yellow stones
I have collected these facts about this great univ. from their website
On Oct. 1, 1891, Stanford University opened its doors
Jane and Leland Stanford established the university in memory of their only child, Leland Jr., who died of typhoid fever at 15. Within weeks of his 1884 death, the Stanfords determined that, because they no longer could do anything for their own child, they would use their wealth to do something for “other people’s” children.
They donated more than 8000 acres of their farm land
Approximately 16000 to 17000 students + faculty strength
Stanford Univ. is mainly responsible for the birth and sustenance of the Silicon Valley. Most of the entrepreneurs (google for e.g.) are Stanford alumni. The alumni list is world famous personalities.
Appr. 36000 $ per year fee
Original research on issues that are of fundamental concern to human welfare and progress is the main objective of the university. Many path-breaking inventions and discoveries are credited to the research here
Many Faculty are noble prize winners
There are more than 4,500 externally sponsored projects throughout the university, with the total budget for sponsored projects at $1.060 billion during 2008-09
The university is a self-sustaining community with:
- With more than 49 miles of roads
- 49-megawatt power plant
- Two separate water systems
- Three dams and lakes
- 88 miles of water mains
- A central heating and cooling plant
- A high-voltage distribution system
- A post office
- Stanford also provides or contracts for its own fire, police and other services.
- Designated a Gold-Level “Bicycle Friendly Community,” Stanford boasts more than 12,000 racks for bikes and 11.7 miles of bike lanes.
- The award-winning transportation program includes the free, 39-bus, 13-route Marguerite system running on biodiesel; the 7,000-member Commute Club; free passes on Caltrain, VTA, Dumbarton Express and AC Transit’s Line U; Zipcar; commute planning; charter services; and a bicycle program.
There are more than 670 major buildings at Stanford that incorporate 13.1 million square feet.
Ninety-five percent of undergraduates live on campus, as do about 52 percent of graduate students and 30 percent of faculty members.
There are 850 owner-occupied housing units for faculty on campus,
628 rental units for faculty and staff.
Stanford is one of the most energy efficient institutions among California research universities.
- There are about 43,000 trees on the Stanford campus
- The Coast Live Oak the most common.
- Many of Stanford’s picturesque redwoods, cedars, Canary Island palms and eucalyptus trees have survived a century or more of drought, flood and change.
- There are more than 800 different species of plants on campus.
- The inner campus includes :
- More than 1.4 million square feet of shrubs
- 190,000 linear feet of groundcovers
- 1.2 million square feet of lawns
- 2,300 automatic irrigation valves.
- There are 23 fountains.
Stanford has a 70-acre shopping complex with five major department stores and 140 retail stores. It is one of the nation’s leading super-regional centers in revenue and sales per square foot.
Well I am awe-inspired by all these massive figures and am looking forward to my next detailed visit.
