100 Years of Carnival
In a nostalgic look at the century-old Carnegie Mellon University tradition, this year's Spring Carnival participants will be treated to the "Best of the Best" from days gone by, as the university honors the event's most memorable booth themes, traditions and more.
Spring Carnival's history will be on display in the University Center, from photos taken through the decades to models of buggies past and present.
"From its humble 'Qualification Day' beginnings in 1915 to today's sleek buggy designs and multi-level booths, Spring Carnival has seen loads of creativity over the years," said Jackson Gallagher (A'14), co-chair of the Spring Carnival Committee along with Emily Hrin (DC'14). "It seems only right to honor the creativity of generations of CMU students as we reach this special milestone."
One tradition making a comeback this year is chain-link stamping. Prior to the 1940s, each class beginning with 1908 had their class year stamped into the link of an iron chain, now kept in University Archives. The chain represents the unbreakable bond of the individual classes as well as all students who pass through CMU's doors. The tradition was lost when the university's forge was dismantled during World War II.
Pittsburgh City Council also commemorated the anniversary by proclaiming today "Carnival 100 Day." CMU President Subra Suresh and Pittsburgh Mayor William Peduto will be on hand to help open the Carnival Midway.
National Robotics Week also is being celebrated as part of Spring Carnival festivities. Marc Raibert, chief technology officer and founder of Boston Dynamics, will deliver the annual Teruko Yata Memorial Lecture in Robotics at noon today, in Rashid Auditorium.
His talk, "Walk, Bound, Gallop, Climb," will discuss dynamic robots with advanced control. Some of the robots being developed at Boston Dynamics — recently purchased by Google — include LS3, the DARPA-funded follow-up to BigDog; Cheetah, a fast-running quadruped; and Atlas, an anthropomorphic robot designed to explore real-world tasks.
Boris Sofman, co-founder and CEO of ANKI, a robotics startup he founded with two fellow Robotics Institute (RI) alumni and that now employs 11 RI graduates, will present a special talk, "Consumer Robotics: Story and Lessons" in the Rashid Auditorium.
The School of Computer Science also will host a satellite performance and screening of the Robot Film Festival at 8 p.m. tonight, Rashid Auditorium.
On April 11, the Robotics Institute will host demonstrations from noon to 4 p.m. in the Planetary Robotics Laboratory on the first floor of the Gates and Hillman centers.
The School of Computer Science will host the 20th annual Mobot Races from noon to 2 p.m. on April 11. Participants, including undergraduates and alumni, will race small autonomous vehicles through a slalom course on the paved walk outside Doherty and Wean halls. The award ceremony is at 3 p.m. in Rashid Auditorium.
Other Spring Carnival highlights include:
Thursday, April 10
Sweepstakes Buggy Design Competition
10 a.m. – 2 p.m., Wiegand Gym,
University Center (UC)
Bigger and better than ever, the design competition includes Buggy history and an interactive display for kids.
Steamrolled Prints
10 a.m. – 5 p.m. CFA Parking Lot
Watch five tons of power make art.
Carnegie Tech Radio Club 100th Anniversary Celebration
5 – 8 p.m., Singleton Room,
Roberts Engineering Hall
Join current members and fellow alumni at a reunion event celebrating 100 years of the Carnegie Tech Radio Club.
Friday, April 11
Preliminary Sweepstakes Races
8 a.m., Schenley Park
Mayor William Peduto will serve as Grand Marshal.
Alumni House Open House
10:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.
Tour the newly renovated Alumni House; learn about its history and what the Alumni Association has to offer alumni, students, parents and friends.
Naming Ceremony for the Jared L. Cohon University Center
12:15 p.m., Kirr Commons, UC
Please join President Subra Suresh and members of the Board of Trustees for a special ceremony naming the University Center in honor of President Emeritus Jared L. Cohon, University Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering and Engineering and Public Policy.
Dunk a Cop for Special Olympics
New to the Midway, carnival goers can try their luck at dunking a CMU police officer to benefit charity.
Zero Waste BBQ
Noon – 2 p.m., Merson Courtyard, UC
Celebrate campus sustainability while enjoying the Zero Waste All Campus BBQ. Students from CMU's Solar Splash, Engineers without Borders, Project Greenlight, Sustainable Earth and the Carnegie Mellon Community Garden Group will share projects, demos and hands-on activities. (Loyal Scots: Wear your Loyal Scot pin to gain access to the "fast-pass" lane and bypass the crowd.)
JGC60: A Celebration of the Life and Work of Jaime G. Carbonell
4:30 p.m., 4401 Rashid Auditorium, Gates and Hillman centers
CMU will celebrate the 60th birthday of University Professor Jaime G. Carbonell, the Allen Newell Professor of Computer Science and director of the Language Technologies Institute, by hosting a symposium honoring his life and work, April 11-12, in Rashid Auditorium of the Gates and Hillman centers.
Celebration of Hugh Young's Life and Legacy
6 – 8 p.m., Kresge Theatre and Great Hall, College of Fine Arts
Hugh D. Young's 52-year career at CMU left an indelible mark on generations of students, colleagues and alumni.
Larry Cartwright Celebration
6 – 9 p.m., Singleton Room,
Roberts Engineering Hall
Celebrate the impact Larry Cartwright, teaching professor emeritus, has made on the Civil and Environmental Engineering department and CMU over the past 35 years.
Saturday, April 12
Sweepstakes Final Races
9:15 a.m., Schenley Park
Following Final Races, a special alumni Grudge Match is new this year, so be sure to cheer on your favorite team! Watch the Buggy Alumni Association website for updates and announcements regarding additional alumni races.
Decade Reunions (1970s, 1980s, 1990s and Young Alumni)
Join classmates and friends in a celebration for all alumni from each decade. Check the schedule for specific times.
Scotch'n'Soda Gala
6 p.m., Rangos Ballroom, UC
(Adults: $25; Students: $15). The evening will feature a one-night-only dinner theatre performance of Scotch'n'Soda's 100th Carnival Show, "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee," as well as the world premiere of a new documentary about Scotch'n'Soda Theatre. Attendees will have a chance to bid in a silent auction and share their favorite S'n'S memories to be stored in a 100th Carnival time capsule.
For updates and the full schedule of events, see www.cmu.edu/alumni/carnival.
If you are a CMU alumnus in the Bay Area and can't make it back to Pittsburgh, join other CMU alumni for CMU Silicon Valley's 4th Annual Carnival West, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday, at Moffett Field, Mountain View, Calif.
Related Links: Spring Carnival | Schedule | Traditions | Webcam | National Robotics Week | Robotics Institute