Framed by the columns in the second floor lobby, a student consults a librarian at the Card Catalog Information Desk, while many students use the card catalogs in the background.
Professor W.E. Loomis is conducting a class in plant physiology. Students study the green leaf pigments which are responsible for the food production of the world.
At the center of the photograph is a brick structure enclosed by a metal frame on wheels. The man on the left is operating a switch and there are pipes leading from the structure into two oil drums on the right.