MIT Department of Electrical Engineering & Computer Science

MIT's Building 20: The Magical Incubator Story, Anecdote, or Reminiscence

Drafty Windows, Creaky Floors, and a Treasure Trove

Ed Walker
edwalker@ectwalker.com

I occupied an office on the top floor of D-Wing. I say it was an office, but it often felt like an open air tree house - whether or not the windows were open. It was light and airy, to say the least.

Walking the halls of Building 20 always sounded like the sound-track from a Hitchcock thriller. I swear that I could hear footfalls all the way from A-Wing, especially at night. I hope someone thinks to record the sounds of the building before it's gone.

Entering the building at the end of D-Wing did have its advantages for an impoverished Research Associate. Not a few items of basic office furnishings and building supplies in the form of large shipping crates ended up at the house after having been liberated from the trash room.