Vadding
Vadding is a verb which has become synonymous with urban exploration. The word comes from MIT where, for a time in the late 1970s, some of the student population was addicted to a computer game called ADVENT (also known as ''Colossal Cave Adventure''). In an attempt to hide the game from system administrators who would delete it if found, the game file was renamed ADV. As the system administrators became aware of this, theRoof hacking
Many buildings at American universities have flat roofs, whereas pitched roofs designed to shed snow or heavy rain present safety challenges for roof hackers. Entry points, such as trapdoors, exterior ladders, and elevators to penthouses that open onto roofs, are usually tightly secured. Roofers bypass locks (by lock picking or other methods), or use unsecured entry points to gain access to roofs. Once there, explorers may take photographs or enjoy the view; pranksters may hang banners or execute other sorts of mischief. Bell towers in some colleges are also prone to being a target for rooftopers.Tunnel hacking
Some universities have utility tunnels to carry steam heat and other utilities. Utility tunnels are usually designed for infrequent access for maintenance and the installation of new utilities, so they tend to be small and often cramped. Sometimes, utilities are routed through much larger pedestrian access tunnels (MIT has a number of such tunnels, reducing the need for large networks of steam tunnels; for this reason, there is only one traditional steam tunnel at MIT, built before many buildings were connected). Tunnels range from cold, damp, and muddy to unbearably hot (especially during cold weather). Some are large enough to allow a person to walk freely; others are low-ceilinged, forcing explorers to stoop, bend their knees, or even crawl. Even large tunnels may have points where crisscrossing pipes force an explorer to crawl under or climb over a pipe—a highly dangerous activity, especially when the pipe contains scalding high-pressure steam (and may not be particularly well insulated, or may have weakened over the years since installation). Tunnels also tend to be loud. Background noise may prevent an explorer from hearing another person in the tunnel—who might be a fellow explorer, a police officer, or a homeless person sheltering there. Tunnels may be well lit or pitch-dark, and the same tunnel may have sections of both. Tunnel access points tend to be in locked mechanical rooms where steam pipes and other utilities enter a building, and through manholes. As with roofs, explorers bypass locks to enter mechanical rooms and the connected tunnels. Some adventurers may open manholes from above with crowbars or specialized manhole-opening hooks. Tunnel Bob is a prominent example of an individual who has gained notoriety for tunnel hacking within the University of Wisconsin-Madison steam tunnels.Shafting
Buildings may have maintenance shafts for passage of pipes and ducts between floors. Climbing these shafts is known as shafting. The practice is similar to buildering, which is done on the outsides of buildings. Regular use of a shaft can wear down insulation and cause other problems. To fix these problems, hackers sometimes take special trips into the shafts to correct any problems with duct tape or other equipment. A dangerous variant of shafting involves entering elevator shafts, either to ride on the top of the elevators, or to explore the shaft itself. This activity is sometimes called elevator surfing. The elevator is first switched to "manual" mode, before boarding or exiting, and back to "automatic" mode after, to allow normal operation (and avoid detection). Switching elevators, getting too near the ceiling (or under the elevator) or the counterweight (or cables), or otherwise failing to follow safety precautions can lead to death or injury. Crackdowns may increase in both frequency and harshness, both legally and with respect to physical access to coveted locations. Some shafts (such as those intended for but lacking an elevator) are accessible by use of rope but are not actually climbable by themselves.Dangers
Legal dangers
Universities generally prohibit roof and tunnel hacking, either by explicit policies or blanket rules against entry into non-public utility spaces. The reasoning behind these policies generally stems from concern for university infrastructure and concern for students. Consequences vary from university to university; those caught may be warned, fined, officially reprimanded, suspended, or expelled. Depending on the circumstances, tunnelers and roofers may be charged with trespassing, breaking and entering, or other criminal charges. MIT, once a vanguard of roof and tunnel hacking ( books have been published on hacks and hacking at MIT), has been cracking down on the activity. In October 2006, three students were caught hacking near a crawl space in the MIT Faculty Club, arrested by the MIT police, and later charged with trespassing, breaking and entering with the intent to commit a felony. The charges raised an outcry among students and alumni who believed that MIT ought to have continued its history of handling hacking-related incidents internally. Charges against those students were eventually dropped. In June 2008, another graduate student was arrested and faced charges of breaking and entering with intent to commit a felony and possession of burglarious instruments after being caught after-hours in a caged room in a research building's basement.Risks to building infrastructure
Utility tunnels carry everything from drinking water to power to fiber-optic network cabling. Some roofs have high power radio broadcast or radio reception equipment and weather-surveillance equipment, damage to which can be costly. Roofs and tunnels also may contain switches, valves, and controls for utility systems that were not designed to be accessible to the general public. Due to security concerns there has been a trend towards installing intrusion alarms to protect particularly hazardous or high-value equipment.Personal hazards
Roofs are dangerous; aside from the obvious risk of toppling over the edge (especially at night, in inclement weather, or after drinking) students could be injured by high-voltage cabling or by microwave radiation from roof-mounted equipment.See also
* Columbia University tunnels * Elevator surfing * Hacks at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology * Hacker (term) * Rooftopping * Urban exploration * Wayfinding (urban or indoor)References
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