I lived in Senior House 82-87 and it was a lot of fun. Definitely helped me graduate. The fact that the institute was a collection of subcultures was perfect.
Of course I spent more time in the lab than I did in the dorm, so the level of influence might not be the same as it might have been at a different school. In fact right now I'm doing a startup with a friend from that period, and I know him from the lab, not dorm (he lived in Bexley, another dorm MIT was happy to shut down).
I wonder if the institute simply wants the real estate, and to move all the undergrads to the west side of campus for simplicity.
