St John's College News
Exploring the science of God
Exploring the science of GodWorld-renowned scientist Robert Winston will present the inaugural Bleehen Lecture on “The Science of God” at St John’s College on Tuesday 26 May.Lord Robert Winston, world-leading researcher in Reproductive and Developmental Biology, is to present the inaugural Bleehen Lecture at St John’s College next week, which will discuss the “Science of God”.The lecture will be held on Tuesday 26 May in…read moreSt John’s joins Sustainable Fish Cities Campaign
St John’s joins Sustainable Fish Cities CampaignSt John’s College has joined the Sustainable Fish Cities Campaign, committing to only serve fish from sustainable sources on its menus.St John’s College has joined forces with Cambridge Sustainable Food to help to make Cambridge a Sustainable Fish City. The College has signed a pledge to only serve sustainable fish on its menus such as fish from the Marine Conservation’s ‘fish to eat’ list, and…read morePlaying With Plato: Lectures available online
Playing With Plato: Lectures available onlineTwo lectures by College Fellow Professor Malcolm Schofield, which show how the Greeks used ideas about infancy and childhood to discuss human nature, are now available to hear again online.When Ancient Greek Philosophers wanted to examine the human condition, they often began by contemplating the way in which a young child might see the world, and the toys and games with which they play.In this…read moreThe geopolitics of water: The "Nightmare Series" lectures launched at St John's
The geopolitics of water: The "Nightmare Series" lectures launched at St John'sProfessor Paul Kennedy of Yale University will deliver the inaugural “Nightmare Series” lecture at St John’s College on Friday 15 May, exploring the wide-ranging geopolitical consequences of a sudden, major contamination event.What would happen if two billion people suddenly lost access to clean water? Professor Paul Kennedy will examine this disturbing question in the first of a new “Nightmare…read moreAscension Day carol sung from on high
Ascension Day carol sung from on highThe choir continued a long-standing College tradition today, singing the Ascension Day carol from the rooftop of the College Chapel.The sound of choral music echoed from the rooftop of St John's Chapel today as the choir continued a College tradition going back over a hundred years.Crowds gathered in the College's First Court to hear the choir sing the Ascension Day carol from the Chapel roof,…read moreJohnian wins Wellcome Book Prize
Johnian wins Wellcome Book PrizeMarion Coutts, Johnian and former Kettle’s Yard Artist Fellow, has been awarded the Wellcome Book Prize for her memoir The Iceberg.The Iceberg is Marion Coutts’ powerful account of the diagnosis, illness and death of her husband, art critic Tom Lubbock, who was diagnosed with a brain tumour and died in 2011. This moving memoir on work, art, language and death, published in 2014, tells of the…read moreBlue plaque for Johnian codebreaker
Blue plaque for Johnian codebreakerA WWII codebreaker and former Master of St John's College has been honoured with a Blue Heritage Plaque on his childhood home in Walsall. Sir Francis "Harry" Hinsley, Bletchley Park codebreaker, historian and former St John’s Master, has been formally recognised by English Heritage with a prestigious Blue Plaque on his childhood home in Walsall, near Birmingham.The son of a miner, Hinsley won a…read moreA very important petition
A very important petitionFor students back in the 1860s, College food was as important an issue as it is today. Found amongst the records of the ‘Reform of servants committee’ (1854-1916), this petition, addressed to the then president Rev. Stephen Parkinson, summarizes the various grievances towards catering in the College. This includes: - A lack of tables - A lack of waiters (one waiter to six…read moreMemorial Service for Professor Richard Perham
Memorial Service for Professor Richard PerhamA Memorial Service for Professor Richard Perham MA PhD ScD FRS FMedSci, Emeritus Professor of Structural Biochemistry, Fellow and former Master of St John’s College and Honorary Fellow of Darwin College, will be held on Saturday 13 June at 12pm at St John's College Chapel. Professor Perham passed away on 14 February 2015, aged 77.For tickets to the Memorial Service, please apply online by 29 May…read moreCataloguing the SJC Archive: Introduction
Cataloguing the SJC Archive: IntroductionThe School of Pythagoras now houses the College’s entire archival collection of papers, books and maps. Although listed and catalogued to a basic level much of this material remains inaccessible to the researcher. The production of a full and accessible catalogue of the collection is a priority for Archive staff. The relocation of the Centre to the School of Pythagoras last July has provided us…read moreLessons from the past for disaster relief
Lessons from the past for disaster reliefArchaeological information about historic forms of house-building can teach valuable lessons to humanitarian workers who provide shelter following natural disasters, new research suggests. Long-term perspectives on the ways people built and repaired their houses can reveal valuable insights into providing more effective humanitarian shelter, new research suggests.Disasters such as the…read moreWhat is an Electron? Dirac Lecture 2015
What is an Electron? Dirac Lecture 2015The annual Dirac Lecture will be given by Professor Sir Michael Atiyah this year, and will take place on Monday 11 May at the Centre for Mathematical Sciences, University of Cambridge. The lecture is entitled What is an electron?The Dirac Lecture, established jointly by St John's College and the University of Cambridge's Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics, is part of the…read moreThe Red Queen becomes the White Queen
The Red Queen becomes the White QueenA new chess set has been designed based on the friendly rivalry between Oxford and Cambridge. College foundress Lady Margaret Beaufort has been chosen to represent the White Queen for the Cambridge side. Lady Margaret Beaufort, foundress of St John’s College and mother of King Henry VII, never became Queen in her lifetime. Now, 506 years after her death, she has: in chess form, at least.A…read moreComments & Queries
Comments & QueriesThe Library has installed a new Comments & Queries area, which can be found next to the sofas in the lobby. All students are encouraged to write any feedback or question they have and the Library staff will endeavour to answer them as quickly as possible. This is a trial-run for what will hopefully become a permanent fixture, so please also feel free to leave any comments about the scheme…read moreTelford students experience science at Cambridge
Telford students experience science at CambridgeGCSE students from Telford, Shropshire, visited Cambridge today to learn about studying science at university. Students from Thomas Telford school in Telford, Shropshire, came to Cambridge today to experience what it is like to study science at university.The group of around fifteen Year 9 students visited St John’s College to get a taste of how Natural Science is taught at Cambridge, and…read moreApp that acts as a 'virtual wardrobe' wins first prize for St John’s student and team
App that acts as a 'virtual wardrobe' wins first prize for St John’s student and teamJoseph Mambwe and his team have won first prize in the annual Appathon competition with the SmartWear mobile phone app which allows users to try on virtual clothes and create an online wardrobe.SmartWear lets users try on clothes virtually while shopping in-store by scanning product barcodes. Retailers add their clothing to the SmartWear database, and users can see if the item suits them without…read moreExperience Biology at Cambridge online
Experience Biology at Cambridge onlineTalks given by Cambridge researchers at the College's recent Biology Subject Days have been made available to watch online. If you have ever considered applying to Cambridge to study Biology, you can now get a taste of what to expect by watching lectures from recent Subject Days held at St John's College. The talks, given by Cambridge academics and research students, have been recorded…read moreDetails of medieval graveyard beneath St John's College published
Details of medieval graveyard beneath St John's College publishedArchaeological investigations discovered one of Britain’s largest medieval hospital cemeteries, containing over 1,000 human remains, when excavating beneath the Old Divinity School at St John’s College, a new report shows. One of the largest medieval hospital burial grounds in Britain, containing an estimated 1,300 burials, once stood on the site of what is now part of St John's College,…read moreSchool of Pythagoras wins Cambridge Design Award
School of Pythagoras wins Cambridge Design AwardThe School of Pythagoras has won an award for best conservation of a building at this year’s Cambridge Design and Construction Awards. The 13th century School of Pythagoras has won an award for architectural excellence at this year’s Cambridge Design and Construction Awards.The building, which predates St John’s College by some 300 years and is the oldest secular building in Cambridge,…read moreFilm adaptation of novel and new spy drama for St John’s graduate
Film adaptation of novel and new spy drama for St John’s graduateA film adaptation of a best-selling novel by St John’s alumnus Tom Rob Smith will be released next month, and his new BBC spy drama will be on our screens later this year. Child 44, the award-winning novel by Tom Rob Smith, St John’s graduate and former Harper-Wood student, has been made into a film directed by Daniel Espinosa and produced by Ridley Scott. This international bestseller, the…read moreElmgreen School comes to Cambridge
Elmgreen School comes to CambridgeYear 11 students from The Elmgreen School in Lambeth, London, visited St John’s College on Tuesday to experience life at Cambridge University. High-achieving Year 11 students from The Elmgreen School in Lambeth, London, came to Cambridge on Tuesday to experience University life and learn about Higher Education.The visit to St John’s College gave the students the opportunity to learn…read morePhD student shares his story for Muscular Dystrophy Appeal
PhD student shares his story for Muscular Dystrophy AppealSt John’s student Jonathan Gilmour will be raising awareness of muscular dystrophy for the BBC Lifeline appeal. Jonathan Gilmour, final year PhD student at St John’s College, will be telling his story about living with muscular dystrophy and why funding for research into this condition is so important for the BBC Lifeline Appeal on Sunday 22 March. BBC Lifeline will be hosted by Sue Barker,…read moreSt John’s student stars in hit musical
St John’s student stars in hit musicalSt John’s undergraduate Jonah Hauer-King is starring in the rock musical Rent at the ADC. Jonah Hauer-King, a current undergraduate at St John’s College, is playing one of the lead roles in the highly-acclaimed show Rent, which is currently being staged at the ADC Theatre.First year Theology and Religious Studies undergraduate Jonah plays the role of Roger, a once-successful but struggling rock…read moreBrilliant Club comes to Cambridge
Brilliant Club comes to CambridgeThe Brilliant Club, an educational charity, brought gifted and talented Year 5 and 6 pupils to St John’s last week to experience university-style teaching. Educational charity The Brilliant Club visited St John’s last week with 48 bright and talented Year 5 and 6 pupils, to experience university-style education and see behind the scenes of a Cambridge College.The pupils, from primary schools…read moreLaura Bates wins Georgina Henry award
Laura Bates wins Georgina Henry awardThe founder of the Everyday Sexism Project, Johnian Laura Bates, has won the Georgina Henry Women in Journalism Prize for Innovation.St Johns’s College alumna Laura Bates, who graduated in 2007 with a BA in English, was awarded the Georgina Henry Women in Journalism Prize for Innovation at the Press Awards, held at the London Marriott Grosvenor Square Hotel on Tuesday night. The award ceremony,…read more