Googles Mother Ship: Futurist or Retro? Edward Tenner Apples stunning new Headquarters 2 will be Ste e !

obs last lega"# when "o$pleted in 2%&'( For better or worse he was thin)ing di**erentl# to the end+ heightening geographi" sel*,su**i"ien"# when $an# other high,te"hnolog# enterprises a"ross the "ountr# were starting to return to "it# li*e( -ill the building renew Apples "ulture o* e."ellen"e or retard it? The "it# "oun"il o* /upertino+ /ali*ornia+ $idwa# between 0alo Alto and San !ose in Sili"on 1alle#+ has appro ed doughnut,shaped design o* Sir 2or$an Foster( /osting an esti$ated 3' billion+ "o ering &4' a"res+ with 2(5 $illion square *eet o* o**i"e spa"e *or &6+%%% e$plo#ees+ it $a# be the ulti$ate in green ar"hite"ture( 7ut the 4%% newl# planted trees that will surround it are dual,use *oliage( As the Los Angeles Times reports *ro$ a planning do"u$ent+ Apples goal was to a"hie e 8the se"urit# and pri a"# required *or the in ention o* new produ"ts b# eli$inating an# publi" a""ess through the site+ and prote"ting the peri$eters against trespassers(9 Apple re:e"ted plans *or trails around the peripher#+ and the Times reporter "lai$ed harass$ent b# Apple se"urit# while :ournalists were on what was still publi" propert#( ;ther "o$panies $a# be se"urit# "ons"ious+ but Apple is al$ost alone in its retreat *ro$ the street grid( <n *a"t+ the trend has been to shed suburban "enters and $igrate to a"ade$i" neighborhoods in "ities( Ro"he+ the Swiss phar$a"euti"al $ultinational+ is "losing the 2utle#+ 2ew !erse# "a$pus where 1aliu$ was de eloped in the &='%s and opening a "enter in 2ew >or) *or bridging drug de elop$ent and "lini"al pra"ti"e( 0*i?er+ 2o artis+ A$a?on+ and Google are building or e.panding *a"ilities in /a$bridge+ Massa"husetts @endall Square+ near M<T( 2ew >or) /it# e.pe"ts to brea) ground ne.t #ear on a three,de"ade rede elop$ent o* Roose elt <sland as a "a$pus *or a new "enter run b# /ornell Ani ersit# and <sraels Te"hnion( 0hiladelphias '%,#ear,old Ani ersit# /it# S"ien"e /enter+ near Bre.el and the Ani ersit# o* 0enns#l ania+ is planning to be"o$e a world nanote"hnolog# "enter( And in San Fran"is"o+ Twitter re"entl# signed a lease *or an al$ost 6%%+%%%,square,*oot building in a seed# downtown neighborhood that lo"al o**i"ials hope will be"o$e a si$ilar $agnet( CThe "o$pan#s "o, *ounder+ !a") Borse#+ has arranged its interior e.pli"itl# as an urban street grid(D The pendulu$ o* urban and rural headquarters goes ba") to Tho$as Edison hi$sel*+ who $o ed his shop *ro$ the industrial hub o* 2ewar) to still,isolated Menlo 0ar)+ 2ew !erse# E and then again ba") to East ;range in Metropolitan 2ewar)( Around &=%%+ industr# was lo"ated in "ities large and s$all+ and resear"h laboratories were usuall# not *ar *ro$ the *a"tor# *loor( General Ele"tri"s S"hene"tad#+ 2ew >or) "enter was one o* the *irst and biggestF the Bu0ont E.peri$ental Station was and re$ains near the "o$pan#s histori" $ill in an otherwise residential neighborhood i* -il$ington+ Belaware( <n &=%% -estern Ele"tri"+ ATGTs $anu*a"turing subsidiar#+ had "onstru"ted a thirteen stor# laborator# on -est Street in downtown 2ew >or)F it be"a$e the headquarters o* a new independent ATGT Anit+ 7ell Haboratories+ in &=2'( 2ew >or)s "on"entration o* "orporate headquarters led the /o$puting,Tabulating, /ontrol /o$pan# Clater <7MD to relo"ate resear"h *ro$ its Endi"ott+ 2ew >or) $anu*a"turing "o$ple. to the "it# in &=22(

<n "he$i"al and phar$a"euti"al $anu*a"turing+ there were enough ben"h resear"hers and e.e"uti es in 2ew >or) b# &=&& to warrant a handso$e /he$ists /lub building near the 2ew >or) 0ubli" Hibrar# with the usual a$enities E plus a resear"h librar# and e en laborator# spa"e on the top *loors( The Se"ond -orld -ar $a# ha e been the high point o* A$eri"an urban s"ien"e( The Manhattan Bistri"t was $ore than a "ode na$eF thousands o* wor)ers+ nearl# all unaware o* plans *or a nu"lear bo$b+ were e$plo#ed in pro:e"ts dispersed through the boroughs( CThe Wall Street Journal re"entl# re ealed that radiation tra"es are still s"attered around the "it#(D And a "onsortiu$ o* phar$a"euti"al "o$panies+ prodded b# the war e**ort+ "ooperated in one o* the $ost stri)ing a""o$plish$ents o* "he$i"al engineering+ s"aling up the produ"tion o* peni"illin( 0*i?er+ a "o$pan# still $aintaining its headquarters and laborator# spa"e in the "it#+ opened the worlds *irst peni"illin *a"tor# in 7roo)l#n in &=I6( Then the trend began to re erse itsel*( 7# the earl# &=I%s 7ell Habs was $o ing $an# resear"hers into a new *a"ilit# it was building in Murra# Hill+ 2ew !erse#( The in ention o* the transistor in &=IJ there+ and other wor) o* 2obel 0ri?e "aliber+ suggested to other "o$panies that e.urban laboratories "ould help "reate brea)throughs o* their own( R/A "onsolidated its resear"h and de elop$ent *ro$ 2orth and South !erse# urban "o$ple.es to a then,quiet stret"h o* AS & near 0rin"eton Ani ersit#( <n the &=J%s and &=4%s+ the Finnish,born ar"hite"t Eero Saarinen designed stri)ing "o$ple.es *or <7Ms new Tho$as !( -atson Haborator# in >or)town Heights+ 2ew >or) and *or 7ell Habs in Hol$del+ 2ew !erse#+ both in outer suburbia( <roni"all#+ these er# laboratories helped set in $otion inno ations li)e personal "o$puting and $obile telephon# that *or"ed their parent "o$panies to adapt( 1erti"all# integrated giants li)e <7M and ATGT "hanged their strategies and redu"ing the need *or in,house basi" resear"h( Man# o* their stars a""epted uni ersit# pro*essorshipsF a *ew prospered as te"hni"al anal#sts in enture "apital and pri ate equit#( The da# o* the te"hnologi"al "itadel see$ed to be o er( ;ne o* 7ell Habs su""essors+ Hu"ent,Al"atel+ *inall# "losed its i"oni" Hol$del *a"ilit# in 2%%J( Apple is thus betting against the industr# in building a ast+ sel*,"ontained headquarters in the heart o* relati el# open Sili"on 1alle#( <t $a# be right( -ho needs openness when se"re"# and spe"ulation E along with e.a"ting attention to the details o* design E ha e helped $a)e #our brand so uni ersall# ad$ired? 0erhaps the se"urit#+ and the end o* the old Apple "a$pus sou enir shop+ will onl# heighten the $#stique+ e en i* the site is less than i$pregnable in the age o* "#berespionage and superha")ing( <n an# "ase+ Apple sold 66(5 $illion i0hones in the last quarter alone( <ts s#ste$ati" re*ine$ent o* produ"ts $a# be planned obsoles"en"e+ but it has breathed new li*e into the old Betroit *or$ula o* the annual $odel "hange( ;bsoles"en"e E theres the rub( A stru"ture on this s"ale "o$$its a "o$pan# to a philosoph# o er at least a generation as te"hnolog#+ tastes+ and priorities "ontinue to shi*t( The 7ell Habs Hu"ent headquarters were also designed b# a superb ar"hite"t to support a st#le o* resear"h that was the en # o* the world( 7ut the stru"ture lo")ed in a te"hni"al st#le a*ter the world had $o ed on+ :ust as ATGT "o$pleted its land$ar) 0hilip !ohnson o**i"e tower in 2ew >or) in &=5I E the #ear when it *inall# bro)e up( /an Apple re$ain an e."eption to the "urse o* Kanadu?