St John's College News
St John’s staff members and Fellow shortlisted for poetry prize
St John’s staff members and Fellow shortlisted for poetry prizeTwo staff members and a Fellow of St John’s College have been shortlisted for a poetry prize for their first collections.Adam Crothers, Special Collections Assistant, Rebecca Watts, Library Project Assistant, and Alex Wong, Research Fellow in English Literature at St John’s, have all been shortlisted for The Seamus Heaney Centre Prize for First Full Collection 2017.The Seamus Heaney First…read moreJulia Hwang launches debut CD ‘Subito’ on the St John’s label
Julia Hwang launches debut CD ‘Subito’ on the St John’s labelJulia Hwang launches her new CD Subito this week, the first CD by a soloist to be released on the St John’s label.Subito is the début album by Music undergraduate and internationally-renowned violinist Julia Hwang. Julia, who is in her final year at St John’s, is accompanied on the album by pianist Charles Matthews.The album was released on the St John’s label with Signum Records at the beginning…read moreGenes influence ability to read a person’s mind from their eyes
Genes influence ability to read a person’s mind from their eyesTwenty years ago, a team of scientists at the University of Cambridge developed a test of ‘cognitive empathy’ called the “Reading the Mind in the Eyes” Test (or the Eyes Test, for short). This revealed that people can rapidly interpret what another person is thinking or feeling from looking at their eyes alone. It also showed that some of us are better at this than others, and that women on…read moreEvery Eagle edition now available on the College website
Every Eagle edition now available on the College websiteScans of volumes, articles and chapters of the College annual publication The Eagle dating back to the 1850s are now available online.Articles and volumes of The Eagle dating back to the first publication in the later 1850s have been scanned by members of the Library team, and are now available on the St John’s website.The Eagle is an annual review of the College, and features content written by…read moreKhattar Harrison Scholarship
Khattar Harrison ScholarshipFor the first time in 2017, St John's College will proudly award the Khattar Harrison Scholarship, which has been made possible with the generous support of a St John's College alumna and her husband.The Scholarship will be awarded to a woman who has a strong interest in interdisciplinary areas and is passionate about the topic of her study.The Khattar Harrison Scholar will be…read more“Matchmaker” protein essential for bringing plants and fungi together in symbiotic relationship
“Matchmaker” protein essential for bringing plants and fungi together in symbiotic relationshipLifelong symbiotic relationships between plants and fungi are set up thanks to a protein that enables them to “communicate” researchers have found. The study shows that the transporter protein, which was previously unidentified in plants, conditions fungi to establish a mutually beneficial relationship with the plant.Plants such as maize and rice are able to establish a mutually beneficial…read moreMemorial Service for Professor Robert Hinde
Memorial Service for Professor Robert HindeOn Saturday 13 May 2017 members, past and present, friends old and new, convened in the College Chapel for the Memorial Service to Professor Hinde.Professor Robert Hinde, Emeritus Royal Society Research Professor in the Department of Zoology at the University of Cambridge, and a Fellow and former Master of St John's College passed away in December 2016, an article about him may be read here.…read moreMental Health and Wellbeing event to be held at St John’s
Mental Health and Wellbeing event to be held at St John’sAn event aimed at raising awareness about mental health issues is being held at the Old Divinity School, St John’s College.The Mental Health and Wellbeing Event will take place on 2 June, and will include a personal video message from Stephen Fry as well as a screening of his documentary ‘The Secret Life of a Manic Depressive’.The event, organised by GRASP, the Graduate Student and Post-Doc Forum…read moreProfessor Andrew Woods elected as Fellow of the Royal Society
Professor Andrew Woods elected as Fellow of the Royal SocietyProfessor Andrew Woods, Fellow of St John’s College, has been elected to the Fellowship of the Royal Society.Professor Andrew Woods, BP Professor and Head of the BP Institute, University of Cambridge, has been elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society due to his outstanding contributions to science.Andrew Woods studied Mathematics at St Johns and undertook his PhD studies in the Department of…read moreMeet Nora Kalinskij: An international student with a passion for exploring Russian-European relations
Meet Nora Kalinskij: An international student with a passion for exploring Russian-European relationsNora Kalinskij was born in Lithuania and grew up in Paris. She is in her third year studying Human Social and Political Sciences at St John’s College and focuses on the Politics and International Relations subject “track” of her course.In this short film Nora tells us about her interest in Russian-European relations and how her language skills enable her to view current affairs from different…read moreProfessor Richard Samworth wins Adams Prize for statistical analysis
Professor Richard Samworth wins Adams Prize for statistical analysisProfessor Richard Samworth, Fellow of St John’s College, has been awarded the Adams Prize 2016-17.The Adams Prize, one of the University of Cambridge’s oldest and most prestigious prizes, has been awarded jointly to Professor Richard Samworth, Faculty of Mathematics, and Professor Graham Cormode.Richard Samworth is a Professor of Statistics in the Statistical Laboratory, a sub-department of the…read moreShooting hoops in Senegal
Shooting hoops in SenegalWhile in Senegal doing research for his PhD, a Johnian inadvertently ended up coaching a Senegalese wheelchair basketball team. Over the Easter break, History PhD student Jean-Robert Lalancette was doing research in the National Archives of Senegal. While there, Jean-Robert, who is the captain of the St John’s basketball team, ended up coaching Handistar Dakar, a Senegalese wheelchair…read moreMeet Jen McGaley: Plant scientist and freestyle kayaker
Meet Jen McGaley: Plant scientist and freestyle kayakerJen McGaley, who is 20, is from Suffolk and went to Bury St Edmunds County Upper School. She is in her second year studying Biological Natural Sciences at St John’s College and has two great passions in life: plant sciences and kayaking.In this short film Jen tells us about her sporting and academic activities and her experiences as an undergraduate at St John’s so far. She explains how the…read moreDr Christopher Russo wins microscopy medal
Dr Christopher Russo wins microscopy medalDr Christopher Russo, College Research Associate at St John’s, has been awarded the Microscopy Society of America Burton Medal.Chris Russo, Leverhulme Early Career Fellow, has won the Microscopy Society of America Burton Medal for 2017. The medal is awarded annual to an individual under 40 years old who has made distinguished contributions to the field of microscopy and microanalysis.Chris is an…read moreKeep off the Grass: Archive exhibition celebrates the work of College gardeners
Keep off the Grass: Archive exhibition celebrates the work of College gardenersThe neatly-mowed lawns and well-maintained grounds at St John’s are often taken for granted, but a new exhibition in the College Archive Centre celebrates the great work of the College gardeners during the 19th and 20th centuries.The exhibition entitled ‘Keep Off The Grass: SJC Gardeners Through Time’ showcases photographs of garden staff, balance sheets and wages books, contracts, garden reports…read moreUnder the Knife at St John’s: New exhibition showcases a medical history of disease and dissection
Under the Knife at St John’s: New exhibition showcases a medical history of disease and dissectionMedieval health at the mercy of the stars, human dissections that revolutionised the study of anatomy, and the great taboo surrounding female reproductive organs: A new exhibition at St John’s College explores what the treasures from the Library’s Special Collections reveal about the history of medicine.The original owner of a 16th-century anatomy book now held in the Special Collections at St…read moreFace of ‘ordinary poor’ man from St John’s medieval graveyard revealed
Face of ‘ordinary poor’ man from St John’s medieval graveyard revealedNew facial reconstruction of a man buried in a medieval hospital graveyard discovered underneath St John’s College sheds light on how ordinary poor people lived in medieval England. The audience of an event held at St John’s as part of this year’s Cambridge Science Festival found themselves staring into the face of a fellow Cambridge resident – one who spent the last 700 years buried beneath…read moreMythical College beasts scoop craftsmanship award
Mythical College beasts scoop craftsmanship awardThe craftsmanship prize at the Cambridge Design and Construction Awards has been awarded to the creator of two stone sculptures at St John’s. The winning carvings are of yales - mythical beasts found in European mythology and one of the symbols of the College.Yales feature on the coat of arms of Lady Margaret Beaufort, mother of King Henry VII who founded St John’s in 1511. The curious animals…read moreSt John’s hosts Cambridge international student film festival
St John’s hosts Cambridge international student film festivalThis weekend, Watersprite – Cambridge University’s free film festival designed to tear down barriers to the film industry – is taking place at St John’s. Watersprite, Cambridge’s free international student film festival, will take place at St John’s this weekend. The events schedule will feature talks from industry-leading guest speakers and showcase outstanding student films.Over the course…read moreMadonnas and Miracles: Library treasures from St John’s on display as part of major new exhibition
Madonnas and Miracles: Library treasures from St John’s on display as part of major new exhibitionTwo remarkable texts from the Special Collections at St John’s College are featuring in a major new exhibition now open at the Fitzwilliam Museum.The Beneficio di Cristo was perhaps the most influential devotional work in 16th-century Italy. Printed in Venice in 1543, 40,000 copies of this hugely popular work, which communicated an accessible version of Reformed ideas on salvation through faith…read moreRe-animating the nameless dead? Encountering the people of medieval Cambridge
Re-animating the nameless dead? Encountering the people of medieval CambridgeAs part of the Science Festival 2017 a talk in the Old Divinity School at St John’s College aims to reconstruct the lives of the 400+ skeletons found in a medieval burial ground discovered beneath the building’s foundations.During the rebuilding of the Old Divinity School at St John’s College, archaeological investigations unearthed one of Britain’s largest medieval hospital cemeteries containing…read moreThe St. John's Hungarian Ball, 1957
The St. John's Hungarian Ball, 1957In the early hours of the 4th November 1956, Soviet tanks thundered through the streets of Budapest. Their objective was to seize power of the capital and bring Hungary back under Soviet control, after several weeks’ worth of intense social unrest, a nationwide revolt, and the instigation of a new liberal Hungarian government (directed by Imre Nagy) in October 1956. Orders for the attack on…read moreProposals for peace and stable government in a post-conflict Syria
Proposals for peace and stable government in a post-conflict SyriaStudents of the University of Cambridge and the Moscow State Institute of International Relations have produced a joint policy paper for an undergraduate research project which offers a blue print for bringing peace and stable government to a post-war Syria.In March 2011 crowds gathered in cities across Syria to protest against the torture of 15 teenagers by intelligence services for writing anti…read moreProfessor Azim Surani to give this year’s Linacre Lecture
Professor Azim Surani to give this year’s Linacre LectureThe annual Linacre Lecture will take place at St John’s College on 20 February and will be given by Professor Azim Surani.This year’s Linacre Lecture presented by Professor Surani will be entitled ‘Human Germline: The eternal link between all generations’.Professor Azim Surani PhD CBE FMedSci FRS was born in Kenya and received a PhD in 1975 at the University of Cambridge. He joined the Babraham…read moreDeo nominated in the BBC Music Magazine Awards 2017
Deo nominated in the BBC Music Magazine Awards 2017Deo, a recording by The Choir of St John’s, Cambridge, has been nominated for the Choral Award in the BBC Music Magazine Awards 2017, and you can show your support by voting to make it the category winner.Deo, which was released in May, was the first recording for the College's new recording label, an imprint on Signum Classics. It features a collection of sacred works by Jonathan…read more