Last Tuesday, I went to a birthday party for our campus clock and bell tower and –yes- you read that sentence correctly.
UC Berkeley’s Sather Tower, commonly known on campus as the Campanile, is celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2015 and the campus is hosting events all year long to commemorate our beloved landmark.
Around 6:30 p.m., my friends and I gathered with other students, alumni, faculty and visitors to hear a truly unique carillon performance. Usually, Sather Tower helps keeps me on track by tolling on the hour to mark the time but tonight’s performance was unique because the Berkeley Center for New Media used data from UC Berkeley’s seismometer, which is located in the Hayward Fault, to produce a show with both lights and music mirroring real-time movement inside the fault. The performance was truly amazing – it was entertaining to watch, but also amazing to think about the amount of work and creativity that brought it to life. That’s one of my favorite things about UC Berkeley’s students and faculty – creative applications of science. 
Plus, on-campus events like this are always a great way to take a study break with friends! A huge group of my sorority sisters and I really got into the festive spirit and arrived in party attire – complete with party hats.
After the performance, my friends and I enjoyed hot chocolate while listening to a talk from carillonist Jeff Davis. We vowed to ride the elevator to the top of the Campanile more often to enjoy the view from the top – and, perhaps, if it’s clear, peer across the bay.
