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Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
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Challenge
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• Provide views into the building’s construction, cutting edge research, and MIT culture.
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• Allow for flexible, independent touring of the building via rental devices, especially during non-peak times.
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• Explore the challenges and stories of the new building while honoring Building 20, which was demolished to make way for the Stata Center to the dismay of many nostalgic alumni.
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• Develop a mobile, on-site version of the MIT Press’s popular books Building Stata and Imagining MIT.
Solution
Over the course of six weeks, Untravel developed “Untravel MIT Stata,” a 60-minute tour delivered in the Flash Lite format for mobile phones, rental and desktop computer viewing, featuring interactive quizzes and customizable walking paths. The tour explores MIT voices present in the building and its fascinating features such as microclimates and delicate Moiré patterns on the polished steel of the "Nose.”
Result
Launched during MIT’s Alumni Weekend, the project was a tremendous success, giving alumni the chance to see what the building was all about and to come to terms with the demolition of the infamous Building 20. 140 people took the tour over the course of two days, so many that demand exceeded supply! From surveys filled out by 85 participants, the content averaged 8 out of 10 stars. Interviews with participants revealed special interest in the ability to understand research initiatives (with views to private lab space), to see the architect’s thought process, and to feel like an insider in on the evolving MIT campus.
MIT’s architectural wonder, the Stata Center, was designed by architect Frank Gehry and completed in 2004. Also known as Building 32 (hexadecimal equivalent of “20”), it stands on the old site of Building 20, a “temporary” structure meant to house students during the second world war that lasted until 1998. MIT wanted to convey the human elements as well as the technical elements of this radically new piece of architecture. The production needed to highlight sites of great discoveries, while sharing personal stories of the development and ongoing culture of the building. The Alumni Association foresaw that visitors to events would love to grab a device and tour the building at their leisure and that ongoing visitors would appreciate a tour they could download to their own devices. Furthermore, the project brought elements of MIT Press’ books Imagining MIT and Building Stata into an on-site experience.  
Storytelling
Untravel conducted interviews with major players in the Stata Center development and gathered insider information about the technical details of the building while collecting well-told stories from professors, former and current students, and other key characters during the tour.
Technology
The tour was built for both iPod and Flash Lite devices. The Flash Lite format offered benefits to the tour such as menu screens with customizable walking routes and interactive quizzes and games during the tour. Flash Lite is also viewable on a desktop computer if users aren’t able to experience the tour on-site. Untravel developed the entire interface and functionality for the Stata application.
Untravel conducted two series of user tests for the Stata Center tour. The first was a short survey of users during Alumni weekend in June 2007 and then we conducted a shadowing/interview study of users in September 2007. The aim of the user testing was to investigate the ease of navigation with the auditory directions paired with a paper map, as well as exploring preferred content among users.
Study Summary:
Untravel observed and photographed 17 users taking the Untravel MIT Stata tour, ranging from MIT employees to prospective students and tourists.
Key Findings:
• Biggest audience was comprised of "loose" visitors: prospective students, campus event goers and tourists
• Tour rating averaged 8 out of 10
• People were most interested in the architecture of the building and wanted to learn more details and background stories about the building
• 100% of users would recommend the tour to others
• Users showed a large interest in on-site rental
Click here to download a PDF of the Stata research study!
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