“The Biggest Open House in Texas” that has always seemed like an accurate description of Explore UT to me. Perhaps because it was a perfect spring day, Saturday’s event seemed even bigger and more crowded than usual. Kids were everywhere. I was one of the few adults walking around campus without a gaggle of children lined up behind me.

Explore UT always has tons and tons of children’s activities, both outside and indoors. After carefully searching the gigantic schedule, I found a few lectures that seemed to be  targeted for adults. I wasn’t sure if the Make the Most of your iPhone lecture would be a waste of time, but the speaker had some useful tips for accessories, password handling, and apps.

I was less successful with my next selection, Sherlock Holmes: Probably the Greatest Statistician Who Never Lived. I think the presentation could have been interesting, but the lecturer had to adjust his talk to an audience of mostly middle-schoolers.

Each year I try to visit a few buildings that I’ve never been in before. I viewed student exhibits in the Art building and checked out rock displays in the Jackson Geological Sciences Building. I also went into the relatively-new Bill and Melinda Gates Computer Science Complex to see a demonstration of the Robocup (soccer) robots.

In the basement of the Architecture building, I got my first look at one of those 3D printers, busily making two miniature versions of the UT Tower. The student guide explained that they would take about four hours to complete. Very cool.

No visit to the UT campus would be complete without observing some Texas traditions. I hadn’t signed up for a Tower or Stadium tour, but I did watch Bevo for a few minutes while quietly humming The Eyes of Texas. This should be enough school spirit for me until football season starts…