The Arnold O. and Mabel M. Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign was established in 1985 with a gift from Arnold and Mabel Beckman. The purpose of the Institute is to apply a new approach to interdisciplinary research in the biological and physical sciences. The Institute was divided into two major areas: The Center for Materials Science, Computers, and Computing and the Center for Biology, Behavior, and Cognition. The Institute emphasizes research on solid-state materials, large-scale integration and systems, computer sciences, information sciences, molecular life sciences, cell biology, neuroscience, and cognitive science.