Carnegie Mellon, the Pittsburgh-based college well known for its computer-science program, recently began developing a "West" campus at NASA's Ames Research Center in California. The project is transforming historic buildings into state-of-the-art educational facilities, and has required special attention because a number of the buildings were listed on the register of the State Historic Preservation Office. Architectural Resources Group (ARG) of San Francisco was selected for the project; the company is well known for its preservation work, which includes the well-received restoration of the Flower Conservatory at San Francisco's Golden Gate Park and the design of the Filoli Visitor Center in Woodside, California, a National Trust property. ARG specified curved metal ceilings from Hunter Douglas in several research/classroom and administration spaces. The flowing planes fit with existing elements while enabling installation of modern lighting and other systems. The precise curves recall the flowing metal arches and planes that were icons of the 1950s Space Age.