Splish splash, a shower in math

Fine Hall, the 13-story home of Princeton's mathematics department, has so many rooms that even the most dedicated numerophile lacks the time to get acquainted with them all.

It's unsurprising, then, that many people don't know about a certain eighth-floor feature you wouldn't expect to find in a math department: a bathroom with a working shower.

What would statisticians and number theorists do with an office shower? According to Department Manager Scott Kenney, a great deal. He said the shower was built for staff use.

"During Fine Hall's construction," Kenney said, "the senior faculty was part of the team that approved the design for the building, and one of the things on their wish list was a shower."

He added, "Many of our staff members are athletic, and when they come back from working out, they know [the] shower is there."

Information technology manager John Vincent has made the Fine shower a part of his morning routine. "I go to the gym every morning until seven, I do some aerobics there, and then I come [to Fine Hall], shower and work."

He added, "I use [the Fine shower] in the morning because I don't like to shower at Dillon Gym." Equipped with a locking door, the Fine bathroom offers privacy.

Asked to compare it with other shower stalls, Vincent gave the Fine shower high marks. "One thing's for sure," he said, "Princeton University has excellent hot water. I'm always impressed by the fact that you turn it on and it immediately has hot water. Even my home shower doesn't do that."

Staff members are not the only ones to make use of the shower. "I know for a fact that graduate students have used the shower," said Vincent. "Sometimes they get involved in projects and stay [in Fine Hall] for days on end."

These students sleep "in their offices," shower in the building and emerge only to eat "at places like Frist or with meal plans," said Vincent, who has seen several Ph.D. candidates undergo this ordeal.

Many businesses install showers to encourage employee fitness. Vincent, who like all staff must pay for Dillon Gym access, wishes that Princeton "would provide more resources" for staff to work out.

Such a move, he said, would "decrease staff medical costs and improve productivity" as well as decrease stress.

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A good first step might be to add more showers.

"Some of the older buildings [on campus] may be expensive to retrofit," Vincent said, "[but] I would hope that any new buildings would include shower facilities."

Elyse's shower review

The shower curtain was flecked with mold, but the stall was clean.

The spray was surprisingly strong, and my hair wouldn't lie flat for days afterward. If your math professor always has crazy hair, it's probably from Fine shower water.

The shower withstood every test. I scrubbed, lathered, rinsed, repeated, dribbled soap goo on the soap dish for the next visitor, decorated the wall with stray hairs and tried to slip on the floor and break a leg.

At last, only one thing remained to test: acoustics. Grateful for a door lock — and privacy at last — I began a soulful rendition of Sam Cooke's "What a Wonderful World This Would Be." That's when I discovered the Fine shower's true appeal.

I am not a talented singer. On the rare occasions I extend my range beyond a hum, strangers look concerned and offer me cough drops. But if the Tigerlilies had heard me that afternoon, they would have begged me to join.