University of Cambridge
The Mathematical Bridge over the River Cam
Cambridge and the University of Oxford, referred to together as Oxbridge, vie for the position of best overall university in the UK (see Oxbridge rivalry). Together, they produce a significant proportion of Britain's and the world's prominent scientists, writers and politicians. In addition, both are members of the Russell Group of Universities. Cambridge has produced more Nobel prize winners than any other university, having some 80 associated with it, 70 of whom were students there. It also regularly heads league tables ranking British universities.
The thirty-one Colleges of the University are independent institutions, separate from the University itself, and they enjoy considerable autonomy. For example, colleges decide which students they are to admit (though this is under review in 2003), are responsible for the welfare and domestic arrangements of students and for small group teaching ('supervisions'). They appoint their own 'fellows' (senior members). Many of the colleges are also quite wealthy (in some cases very wealthy), while the university is not.
The first College was Peterhouse founded in 1284 by Hugh Balsham, Bishop of Ely. The second-oldest College is King's Hall which was founded in 1317, though it no longer exists as a separate entity. Many other colleges were founded during the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. A full list of Colleges is given below, though some, such as Michaelhouse (which King Henry VIII combined with King's Hall to make Trinity in 1546) and Gonville Hall no longer exist. The newest college is Robinson, built in 1979.
During the early times, the Colleges were founded so that their students would pray for the souls of the founders and were often associated with chapels, if not abbeys. In conjunction with the Dissolution of the Monasteries, in 1536 King Henry VIII ordered the University to disband its Faculty of Canon Law and to stop teaching "scholastic philosophy." So instead of focusing on canon law, the colleges' curricula then became centered on the Greek and Latin classics, the Bible, and mathematics. The university today teaches and researches a complete range of subjects.
King's College Chapel, seen from The Backs
A Cambridge exam for the Bachelor of Arts degree is known as a Tripos. Although the university now offers courses in a large number of subjects, it had a particularly strong emphasis on Mathematics up until the early 19th century, and study of this subject was compulsory for graduation. The Mathematics Tripos was extremely competitive, and it helped produce some of the most famous names in British science, including Lord Kelvin, Stokes and Maxwell. However, some famous students, such as Hardy disliked the system, feeling that people were too interested in accumulating large numbers of marks in exams and not interested in the subject itself.
There are certain number of leisure pursuits associated with Cambridge. Rowing is a popular sport and there are competitions between colleges (notably the bumps races) and against Oxford (the Boat Race). There are also Varsity Matches against Oxford in many other sports, including rugby, cricket, chess and tiddlywinks. Those who compete for the university are awarded a blue. Theatre clubs include the famous Footlights.
There are also a number of myths associated with Cambridge University, some of which should be taken less seriously than others. One of the most famous is that of the Queens' College Mathematical Bridge (pictured at the top of the article), which was supposedly designed by Isaac Newton to hold itself together without any bolts or screws. It was also supposedly taken apart by inquisitive students who were then unable to reassemble it. The story is false, as the bridge was actually erected 22 years after Newton's death. It is thought that this myth arises from the fact that earlier versions of the bridge used iron pins and screws at the joints, whereas the current bridge uses nuts and bolts (and hence are more visible).
The current Chancellor of the university is HRH The Duke of Edinburgh. The current Vice-Chancellor is Professor Alison Richard.
Cambridge has a partnership with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (see the Cambridge-MIT Institute). The university is also closely linked with the high-technology businesses in the Cambridge area (see Silicon Fen).
| Table of contents |
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2 Institutions 3 Notable alumni 4 Cambridge University in Fiction 5 Related articles 6 External links 7 See also |
Events and organisations connected with the university include:
Colleges
Front of Churchill College, CambridgeInstitutions
Notable alumni
Cambridge University in Fiction
For a list of fictional colleges of Cambridge University see Fictional Cambridge Colleges
Related articles
External links
See also
| Colleges of the University of Cambridge |
| Christ's | Churchill | Clare | Clare Hall | Corpus Christi | Darwin | Downing | Emmanuel | Fitzwilliam | Girton | Gonville and Caius | Homerton | Hughes Hall | Jesus | King's | Lucy Cavendish | Magdalene | New Hall | Newnham | Pembroke | Peterhouse | Queens' | Robinson | St Catharine's | St Edmund's | St John's | Selwyn | Sidney Sussex | Trinity | Trinity Hall | Wolfson |