Trinity Mathematical Society meetings

This list (up to meeting 524b) was compiled from the original minutes by Paul Taylor, September 1981. It was scanned, edited and extended by Joseph Myers, November 2002 onwards; the list up to 1981 is reproduced from that in the front of the minutes book in REC.11.10 in the Wren Library by permission of Paul Taylor and the Wren Library.

Meeting numbers and page numbers in the minutes were last obtained from the Secretary for 2003–4. Thus, subsequent meeting numbers should be considered provisional and subject to correction to match the actual numbers used in the minutes of subsequent meetings, and page numbers for meetings from 2004–5 onwards (and audience figures for those meetings where available) need to be obtained from the Secretary and added to the list.

The source code for generating this version of the list is available.

1918–1919

22 February 1919: discursive meeting (date uncertain, possibly on the 15th).
Meeting (planning meeting), A1 Great Court, attendance 13.
Minutes: volume 1 page 1.
29 April 1919: inaugural meeting.
Meeting 1 (inaugural meeting), I Great Court, attendance 21.
Minutes: volume 1 page 9.
6 May 1919: Mr E. A. Milne, “Gauss’ Error Law”.
Meeting 2 (talk), I Great Court, attendance 25.
Minutes: volume 1 page 13.
21 May 1919: Mr G. H. Hardy, “The Elementary Theory of Infinite Numbers”.
Meeting 3 (talk), D Nevile’s Court, attendance 30.
Minutes: volume 1 page 17.

1919–1920

15 October 1919: Mr B. M. Wilson, “Diophantine Approximation”.
Meeting 4 (talk), L Great Court, attendance 25.
Minutes: volume 1 page 27.
29 October 1919: Prof. A. S. Eddington, “The Equilibrium of a Gaseous Star”.
Meeting 5 (talk), D Nevile’s Court, attendance 30.
Minutes: volume 1 page 33.
12 November 1919: Mr S. Pollard, “The Lebesgue Integral”.
Meeting 6 (talk), M Great Court, attendance 25.
Minutes: volume 1 page 37.
3 December 1919: Mr D. C. Henry, “Thermodynamics”.
Meeting 7 (talk), A Nevile’s Court, attendance 25.
Minutes: volume 1 page 42.
21 January 1920: Mr W. W. Rouse Ball, “Indigenous Japanese Mathematics”.
Meeting 8 (talk), K6 Great Court, attendance 25.
Minutes: volume 1 page 47.
11 February 1920: Mr E. S. Pearson, “From Pythagoras to Jeans”.
Meeting 9 (talk), L Great Court, attendance 15.
Minutes: volume 1 page 51.
18 February 1920: Mr G. I. Taylor, “Statistical Representation of Random Curves”.
Meeting 10 (talk), L Nevile’s Court, attendance 24.
Minutes: volume 1 page 55.
3 March 1920: Mr A. F. Pullinger, “The Elementary Theory of Radiation”.
Meeting 11 (talk), M Great Court, attendance 16.
Minutes: volume 1 page 59.
28 April 1920: Mr E. A. Milne, “Vectors and Tensors”.
Meeting 12 (talk), L Great Court, attendance 30.
Minutes: volume 1 page 65.
12 May 1920: Mr T. A. Brown, “Cardinal Function”.
Meeting 13 (talk), A Nevile’s Court, attendance 12.
Minutes: volume 1 page 71.
26 May 1920: Mr P. W. Burbidge, “Atomic Structure”.
Meeting 14 (talk; election of officers), K Great Court, attendance 40+.
Minutes: volume 1 page 75.

1920–1921

20 October 1920: Mr S. Pollard, “Jordan’s Theorem”.
Meeting 15 (talk), M Great Court, attendance 20.
Minutes: volume 1 page 81.
4 November 1920: Mr E. C. Francis, “Ideal Numbers”.
Meeting 16 (talk), I Great Court, attendance 30.
Minutes: volume 1 page 85.
17 November 1920: Mr J. H. Grace, “Probability”.
Meeting 17 (talk), C Nevile’s Court, attendance 40.
Minutes: volume 1 page 89.
1 December 1920: Mr N. M. Shah, “Divergent Series”.
Meeting 18 (talk), M Great Court, attendance 20.
Minutes: volume 1 page 91.
27 January 1921: Mr F. P. White, “The Diffraction of Electric Waves by the Earth”.
Meeting 19 (talk), D Nevile’s Court, attendance 30.
Minutes: volume 1 page 97.
16 February 1921: Mr T. M. Cherry, “Vectorial Mechanics”.
Meeting 20 (talk), I Great Court, attendance 20.
Minutes: volume 1 page 101.
23 February 1921: Mr R. H. Fowler, “The Perfect Gas Laws and the Quantum Theory”.
Meeting 21 (talk), D Nevile’s Court, attendance 35.
Minutes: volume 1 page 103.
9 March 1921: Mr T. A. Brown, “Singularities of Taylor Series”.
Meeting 22 (talk; non-election business), A New Court, attendance 9.
Minutes: volume 1 page 107.
4 May 1921: Mr J. E. Littlewood, “Prime Numbers”.
Meeting 23 (talk), D Nevile’s Court, attendance 25.
Minutes: volume 1 page 113.
18 May 1921: Mr C. D. Ellis, “Fields of Force in the Atom”.
Meeting 24 (talk; election of officers), M Great Court, attendance 25.
Minutes: volume 1 page 117.

1921–1922

19 October 1921: Mr C. G. Darwin, “Crystals”.
Meeting 25 (talk), D Nevile’s Court, attendance 38.
Minutes: volume 1 page 125.
9 November 1921: Mr E. F. Collingwood, “Picard’s Theorem”.
Meeting 26 (talk), A Bishop’s Hostel, attendance 20.
Minutes: volume 1 page 133.
16 November 1921: Mr L. L. Whyte, “X-rays”.
Meeting 27 (talk), I Great Court, attendance 28.
Minutes: volume 1 page 139.
30 November 1921: Mr E. Cunningham, “Relativity and the Problem of Measurement”.
Meeting 28 (talk), L Nevile’s Court, attendance 40.
Minutes: volume 1 page 143.
1 February 1922: Mr W. M. Smart, “Navigation”.
Meeting 29 (talk), A Nevile’s Court, attendance 25.
Minutes: volume 1 page 149.
15 February 1922: Mr E. A. Milne, “An Integral Equation”.
Meeting 30 (talk), D Nevile’s Court, attendance 25.
Minutes: volume 1 page 155.
2 March 1922: Mr H. W. Richmond, “Pascal’s Mystic Hexagram”.
Meeting 31 (talk), C Nevile’s Court, attendance 25.
Minutes: volume 1 page 159.
8 March 1922: Mr A. E. Ingham, “Division of the Circle”.
Meeting 32 (talk), A New Court, attendance 25.
Minutes: volume 1 page 165.
10 May 1922: Mr W. M. H. Greaves, “Saturn’s Rings”.
Meeting 33 (talk), Junior Combination Room, attendance 17.
Minutes: volume 1 page 171.
22 May 1922: Mr S. Pollard (proponent) and Mr T. M. Cherry (opponent), “Applied Maths should be instantly and radically revised” (passed).
Meeting 34 (debate; election of officers), Junior Combination Room, attendance 33.
Minutes: volume 1 page 175.

1922–1923

25 October 1922: Prof. Sir E. Rutherford, “Atomic Collisions”.
Meeting 35 (talk), Junior Combination Room, attendance 35.
Minutes: volume 1 page 187.
8 November 1922: Mr C. G. F. James, “Kummer’s Quartic Surface”.
Meeting 36 (talk), Q Great Court, attendance 14.
Minutes: volume 1 page 191.
22 November 1922: Mr J. C. Burkill, “Length and Area”.
Meeting 37 (talk; non-election business), D Nevile’s Court, attendance 24.
Minutes: volume 1 page 193.
5 December 1922: Mr J. S. Bentwich, “Equipartition of Energy”.
Meeting 38 (talk), A Nevile’s Court, attendance 25.
Minutes: volume 1 page 195.
24 January 1923: Mr F. G. Maunsell, “Magic Squares”.
Meeting 39 (talk), B New Court, attendance 10.
Minutes: volume 1 page 199.
7 February 1923: Dr H. Lamb, “Theory of Elastic Plates”.
Meeting 40 (talk), C Nevile’s Court, attendance 20.
Minutes: volume 1 page 201.
21 February 1923: Mr W. J. Webber, “Approximation by Polynomials”.
Meeting 41 (talk), C Bishop’s Hostel, attendance 17.
Minutes: volume 1 page 203.
7 March 1923: Col. Sir G. P. Lenox-Conyngham, “Geodetic Methods”.
Meeting 42 (talk), L Nevile’s Court, attendance 17.
Minutes: volume 1 page 205.
25 April 1923: Dr J. E. Jones, “Kinetic Theory of a non-uniform Gas”.
Meeting 43 (talk), A Nevile’s Court, attendance 18.
Minutes: volume 1 page 209.
9 May 1923: Mr A. Berry, “Continuous Groups”.
Meeting 44 (talk), D Nevile’s Court, attendance 18.
Minutes: volume 1 page 211.
23 May 1923: Mr H. W. B. Skinner, “Magnetism”.
Meeting 45 (talk; election of officers), Q Great Court, attendance 23.
Minutes: volume 1 page 213.

1923–1924

17 October 1923: Mr H. Glauert, “Aerodynamics”.
Meeting 46 (talk; non-election business), C Nevile’s Court, attendance 28.
Minutes: volume 2 page 1.
24 October 1923: Prof. E. Landau, “A Theorem of Minkowski’s”.
Meeting 46a (talk; non-election business), D Nevile’s Court, attendance 35.
Minutes: volume 2 page 4.
31 October 1923: Mr E. C. Francis, “Denjoy-Stieltjes’ Integral”.
Meeting 47 (talk; non-election business), L Nevile’s Court, attendance 25.
Minutes: volume 2 page 6.
14 November 1923: Mr J. B. S. Haldane, “Natural Selection”.
Meeting 48 (talk), Junior Combination Room, attendance 30.
Minutes: volume 2 page 8.
28 November 1923: Mr R. Cooper, “Automorphic Functions”.
Meeting 49 (talk), K New Court, attendance 25.
Minutes: volume 2 page 9.
23 January 1924: Prof. J. J. Thomson, “Speculations as to the Nature of Light”.
Meeting 50 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 65.
Minutes: volume 2 page 11.
6 February 1924: Prof. H. F. Baker, “Our Orderly-Minded Friend”.
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 50a (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 50.
Minutes: volume 2 page 13.
13 February 1924: Dr G. N. Watson, “Approximations”.
Meeting 51 (talk), G Nevile’s Court, attendance 35.
Minutes: volume 2 page 13.
27 February 1924: Mr S. Pollard, “The Thermionic Valve”.
Meeting 52 (talk), D Nevile’s Court, attendance 30.
Minutes: volume 2 page 15.
12 March 1924: Mr W. R. Dean, “Elastic Stability”.
Meeting 53 (talk), L Great Court, attendance 8.
Minutes: volume 2 page 16.
14 May 1924: Mr T. M. Cherry, “Celestial Mechanics”.
Meeting 54 (talk), G Great Court, attendance 25.
Minutes: volume 2 page 18.
21 May 1924: Mr J. Mercer, “Functions of a Positive Type”.
Meeting 55 (talk; election of officers), L Nevile’s Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 20.

1924–1925

5 November 1924: Mr G. I. Taylor, “The Deformation of Metallic Crystals”.
Meeting 56 (talk; non-election business), C Nevile’s Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 22.
12 November 1924: Mr T. G. Room, “Latin Squares”.
Meeting 57 (talk), G Great Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 25.
26 November 1924: Mr L. H. Thomas, “Krönecker’s Theorem”.
Meeting 58 (talk), B New Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 27.
3 December 1924: Dr P. A. MacMahon, “The Foundations of Repeat Geometry”.
Meeting 59 (talk), G Nevile’s Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 29.
28 January 1925: Mr J. E. Littlewood, “Prime Numbers”.
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 59a (talk), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 2 page 31.
11 February 1925: Mr F. S. G. Rawlins, “The Degeneration of Gases”.
Meeting 60 (talk), C Bishop’s Hostel.
Minutes: volume 2 page 33.
25 February 1925: Prof. E. W. Hobson, “A Classical Theorem in the Theory of Fourier Series”.
Meeting 61 (talk), D Nevile’s Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 35.
11 March 1925: Mr F. G. Maunsell, “The Four Colour Problem”.
Meeting 62 (talk), H Great Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 36.
6 May 1925: Mr S. Pollard, “Report of the Sub-Committee on the Revision of Applied Mathematics”.
Meeting 63 (talk), L Nevile’s Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 38.
27 May 1925: Prof. G. Polya, “Geometrical Properties of the Distribution of Zeroes of some Integral Functions”.
Meeting 64 (talk; non-election business; election of officers), D Nevile’s Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 42.

1925–1926

21 October 1925: Prof. G. H. Hardy, “Some Theorems concerning Series of Positive Terms”.
Meeting 65 (talk; non-election business), D Nevile’s Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 45.
4 November 1925: Dr C. D. Ellis, “Conversion of Radiation”.
Meeting 66 (talk), D Nevile’s Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 48.
18 November 1925: Mr H. Jeffreys, “The Age of the Earth”.
Meeting 67 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 2 page 50.
2 December 1925: Dr C. D. Broad, “Kant’s Theory of Space and Geometry”.
Meeting 68 (talk), G Nevile’s Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 51.
27 January 1926: Prof. A. S. Eddington, “The Problem of Sub-Atomic Energy”.
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 68a (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 2 page 54.
10 February 1926: Dr P. Kapitza, “The Gyromagnetic Effect”.
Meeting 69 (talk; non-election business), G Great Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 55.
24 February 1926: Mr R. Cooper, “Some Inequalities”.
Meeting 70 (talk), A New Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 57.
10 March 1926: Mr W. M. Smart, “Stellar Clusters”.
Meeting 71 (talk), D Great Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 58.
4 June 1926: Mr S. Pollard (proponent) and Mr J. W. Brunyate (opponent), “Mathematics is mainly nonsense and commonly dull” (passed).
Meeting 72 (debate; non-election business; election of officers).
Minutes: volume 2 page 59.

1926–1927

27 October 1926: Mr E. F. Collingwood, “Some recent developments in the theory of Integral Functions”.
Meeting 73 (talk), C Great Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 63.
3 November 1926: Mr R. V. Southwell, “The Stability Problems in Hydrodynamics”.
Meeting 74 (talk), G Great Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 65.
17 November 1926: Mr L. H. Thomas, “The capture and loss of electrons by alpha particles”.
Meeting 75 (talk), G Nevile’s Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 68.
1 December 1926: Mr R. H. Fowler, “General Forms of Statistical Mechanics”.
Meeting 76 (talk), H Great Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 69.
26 January 1927: Mr C. T. L. Caton, “The Tensor Calculus and Relativity”.
Meeting 77 (talk), A New Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 71.
9 February 1927: Dr J. Chadwick, “Atomic Nuclei”.
Meeting 78 (talk), D Great Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 73.
23 February 1927: Prof. E. V. Appleton, “Some Wireless Problems”.
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 79 (talk), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 2 page 74.
9 March 1927: Mr S. Pollard, “What is Mathematics?”.
Meeting 80 (talk), D Nevile’s Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 75.
27 April 1927: Mr S. W. P. Steen, “Continued Fractions”.
Meeting 81 (talk), H Great Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 76.
11 May 1927: Mr L. H. Thomas, “Some Applications of Mathematics to Wireless”.
Meeting 82 (talk; election of officers), A New Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 77.
10 June 1927: Business Meeting (Minutes expunged).
Meeting 82a (business meeting; non-election business).
Minutes: volume 2 page 80.

1927–1928

19 October 1927: Mr J. B. S. Haldane, “Mathematical Biology”.
Meeting 83 (talk), M Great Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 82.
2 November 1927: Mr J. A. Gaunt, “The History of the Quantum Theory”.
Meeting 84 (talk; non-election business), G Great Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 85.
16 November 1927: Mr A. S. Besicovitch, “Integral Functions of Order less than one”.
Meeting 85 (talk), Lecture Room 3 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 2 page 87.
30 November 1927: Prof. H. F. Baker, “Some Applications of the Calculus of Matrices”.
Meeting 86 (talk), D Nevile’s Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 89.
25 January 1928: Mr H. S. M. Coxeter, “Regular Polyhedra”.
Meeting 87 (talk), G Great Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 91.
8 February 1928: Mr H. D. Ursell, “Veronese’s Surface and its Projections”.
Meeting 88 (talk), G Great Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 94.
27 February 1928: Mr F. J. M. Stratton, “Recent Eclipses”.
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 88a (talk), Lecture Room 5 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 2 page 96.
7 March 1928: Dr T. M. Cherry, “An Application of the Theory of Sets of Points to Differential Equations”.
Meeting 89 (talk), C Nevile’s Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 97.
2 May 1928: Mr H. W. Richmond, “Outlines of Geometry”.
Meeting 90 (talk), G Great Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 99.
16 May 1928: Dr P. Du Val, “De Sitter’s World”.
Meeting 91 (talk; election of officers), C Nevile’s Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 101.

1928–1929

17 October 1928: Mr F. P. Ramsey, “Mathematical Economics”.
Meeting 92 (talk), G Great Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 104.
31 October 1928: Mr W. L. Edge, “Ruled Surfaces”.
Meeting 93 (talk), D New Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 106.
14 November 1928: Mr M. J. Dean, “The History of Elasticity”.
Meeting 94 (talk), M Great Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 108.
28 November 1928: Prof. J. E. Littlewood, “Some Problems in the Theory of Numbers”.
Meeting 95 (talk), G Great Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 110.
23 January 1929: Miss M. D. Kennedy, “Primitives”.
Meeting 96 (talk), C Nevile’s Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 112.
6 February 1929: Dr P. A. M. Dirac, “Principles of Quantum Mechanics”.
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 96a (talk), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 2 page 113.
20 February 1929: Mr W. M. Smart, “Stellar Motions”.
Meeting 97 (talk), D Nevile’s Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 114.
13 March 1929: Mr F. P. White, “The Contact Problem of Clebsch”.
Meeting 98 (talk), G Great Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 116.
1 May 1929: Mr L. A. Pars, “The Four Colour Problem”.
Meeting 99 (talk), H Great Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 118.
15 May 1929: Prof. J. J. Thomson, “Some Reminiscences of Cambridge Mathematics and Mathematicians”.
Meeting 100 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 2 page 119.
29 May 1929: Dr T. G. Room, “Finite Geometries”.
Meeting 101 (talk; election of officers), K New Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 120.

1929–1930

23 October 1929: Dr H. Lamb, “Mathematical Style”.
Meeting 102 (talk), D Nevile’s Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 123.
6 November 1929: Prof. A. S. Eddington, “The End of the World”.
Meeting 103 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 2 page 125.
20 November 1929: Mr L. C. Young, “Integration in Topological Space”.
Meeting 104 (talk), Lecture Room 3 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 2 page 127.
5 December 1929: Mr J. G. Semple, “Determinantal Quartic Loci”.
Meeting 105 (talk; non-election business), K8 New Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 130.
29 January 1930: Mr H. W. Richmond, “On Some Musical Properties of Cubes”.
Meeting 106 (talk), L Nevile’s Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 133.
12 February 1930: Dr J. A. Carroll, “The Computation and Observation of Eclipses”.
Meeting 107 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 2 page 135.
19 February 1930: Mr G. W. Ward, “Transfinite Numbers”.
Meeting 108 (talk), D Great Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 137.
5 March 1930: Mr R. H. Fowler, “Possible Relationships between alpha, beta and gamma rays of Radium C”.
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 109 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 2 page 139.
14 May 1930:
- Mr D. Shoenberg, “Constructions with only a compass”.
- Mr J. A. Todd, “Kirkman’s Schoolgirls Problem”.
- Mr P. Du Val, “Wallpaper”.
Meeting 110 (talks), E6 Great Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 141.
28 May 1930: Dr L. Wittgenstein, “The Foundations of Mathematics”.
Meeting 111 (talk; election of officers), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 2 page 144.

1930–1931

15 October 1930: Mr J. C. P. Miller, “Archimedean Solids”.
Meeting 112 (talk; election of officers), C2 Great Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 146.
29 October 1930: Mr J. A. Ratcliffe, “The Effective Height of the Heaviside Layer”.
Meeting 113 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 2 page 149.
12 November 1930: Mr P. Du Val, “The Rhind Papyrus”.
Meeting 114 (talk), C4 Great Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 152.
26 November 1930: Mr C. A. Coulson, “Gyroscopes”.
Meeting 115 (talk; non-election business), F Whewell’s Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 155.
28 January 1931: Mr A. E. Ingham, “The Sieve of Eratosthenes”.
Meeting 116 (talk), D4 Nevile’s Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 157.
11 February 1931: Dr A. A. Robb, “The Idea of Order as a Foundation of Space-Time Theory”.
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 117 (talk), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 2 page 158.
25 February 1931: Mr J. B. S. Haldane, “Some Difference Equations arising out of Biological Problems”.
Meeting 118 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 2 page 159.
4 March 1931: Dr P. Kapitza, “Physical Measurements in Short Times”.
Meeting 119 (talk), A5 New Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 161.
13 May 1931: Mr J. C. Burkill, “Non-differentiable Functions”.
Meeting 120 (talk), N New Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 162.
27 May 1931: Mr R. E. A. C. Paley, “Construction with Pencil and Ruler; or, Geometry without Circles”.
Meeting 121 (talk; election of officers), I New Court.
Minutes: volume 2 page 164.

1931–1932

14 October 1931: Prof. G. H. Hardy, “The Theorem of the Arithmetic and Geometric Mean”.
Meeting 122 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 32.
28 October 1931: Mr N. F. Mott, “Wave Mechanics”.
Meeting 123 (talk), I Whewell’s Court.
Minutes: volume 3 page 35.
4 November 1931: Sir F. Dyson, “The Greenwich Observatory”.
Meeting 124 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 38.
18 November 1931: Mr H. S. M. Coxeter, “Black and White Triangles”.
Meeting 125 (talk), E Great Court.
Minutes: volume 3 page 41.
3 February 1932: Mr G. I. Taylor, “Air Flow at speeds greater than that of Sound”.
Meeting 126 (talk), A Nevile’s Court.
Minutes: volume 3 page 46.
17 February 1932: Prof. N. Wiener, “The Brownian Movement”.
Meeting 127 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 48.
24 February 1932: Mr J. Wishart, “Combinatorial Analysis and Statistics”.
Meeting 128 (talk), C Great Court.
Minutes: volume 3 page 50.
3 March 1932: Mr W. L. Edge, “Properties of Certain Twisted Curves”.
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 129 (talk), C Great Court.
Minutes: volume 3 page 52.
11 May 1932: Mr A. J. H. Morrell, “The Strophoid and the Lemniscate”.
Meeting 130 (talk), E Great Court.
Minutes: volume 3 page 55.
25 May 1932: Mr M. H. L. Pryce, “The Tidal Theory of the Origin of the Solar System”.
Meeting 131 (talk; non-election business; election of officers), C Bishop’s Hostel.
Minutes: volume 3 page 57.

1932–1933

19 October 1932: Prof. A. S. Eddington, “The Expanding Universe”.
Meeting 132 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 64.
26 October 1932: Business Meeting.
Meeting 133 (business meeting; non-election business; election of officers), Old Combination Room, attendance 8.
Minutes: volume 3 page 67.
2 November 1932: Mr A. S. Besicovitch, “Some problems connected with the mean value of functions of complex and real variables”.
Meeting 134 (talk; non-election business), A Whewell’s Court.
Minutes: volume 3 page 69.
17 November 1932: Mr E. Cunningham, “Crystal Lattices”.
Meeting 135 (talk), N Great Court.
Minutes: volume 3 page 72.
30 November 1932: Mr J. Bronowski, “The Geometry of One Dimension”.
Meeting 136 (talk; election of officers), P Great Court.
Minutes: volume 3 page 74.
1 February 1933: Mr H. D. Ursell, “Two types of non-rectifiable curves”.
Meeting 137 (talk), C Bishop’s Hostel.
Minutes: volume 3 page 77.
15 February 1933: Prof. P. A. M. Dirac, “Half-Vectors”.
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 138 (talk), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 3 page 77.
28 February 1933: Business Meeting.
Meeting 139 (business meeting; non-election business), C Bishop’s Hostel.
Minutes: volume 3 page 78.
1 March 1933: Mr S. W. P. Steen, “Functions of an infinite number of variables”.
Meeting 140 (talk), L New Court.
Minutes: volume 3 page 78.
8 March 1933: Dr F. P. White, “Differential Geometry—Metrical, Affine and Projective”.
Meeting 141 (talk), E New Court.
Minutes: volume 3 page 79.
10 May 1933: Mr W. R. Dean, “Photo-Elasticity”.
Meeting 142 (talk), O Whewell’s Court.
Minutes: volume 3 page 82.
24 May 1933:
- Mr J. H. Pearse, “A Problem in Number Arrangement”.
- Mr M. Hall, “Diophantine Equations”.
Meeting 143 (talks; election of officers), D2 Whewell’s Court.
Minutes: volume 3 page 83.

1933–1934

21 October 1933: Dr H. Spencer Jones, “The Structure of Space”.
Meeting 144 (talk; non-election business), C2 Nevile’s Court, attendance 37.
Minutes: volume 3 page 92.
1 November 1933: Mr C. A. Coulson, “Mathematics and Chemistry”.
Meeting 145 (talk), M1 Whewell’s Court, attendance 20.
Minutes: volume 3 page 96.
15 November 1933: Mr H. S. M. Coxeter, “Reflections”.
Meeting 146 (talk; non-election business), L1 Whewell’s Court, attendance 20.
Minutes: volume 3 page 99.
29 November 1933: Mr P. Du Val, “The Surfaces of Veronese and Steiner”.
Meeting 147 (talk; election of officers), E1 Bishop’s Hostel, attendance 25.
Minutes: volume 3 page 102.
31 January 1934: Prof. R. Courant, “Some Problems in the Calculus of Variations”.
Meeting 148 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 30.
Minutes: volume 3 page 107.
14 February 1934: Prof. G. H. Hardy, “Fermat’s and Mersenne’s Numbers”.
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 149 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 50.
Minutes: volume 3 page 109.
21 February 1934: Prof. Lord E. Rutherford, “The Transmutation of Matter”.
Meeting 150 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 50.
Minutes: volume 3 page 112.
7 March 1934: Prof. H. F. Baker, “A Differential Equation of the Third Order associated with a familiar Group”.
Meeting 151 (talk; non-election business), I3 Great Court, attendance 21.
Minutes: volume 3 page 115.
9 May 1934: Dr S. Chandrasekhar, “Polytropic Distributions”.
Meeting 152 (talk), C2 Great Court, attendance 18.
Minutes: volume 3 page 118.
23 May 1934: Mr G. W. Morgan, “The Growth of Functions”.
Meeting 153 (talk; election of officers), attendance 24.
Minutes: volume 3 page 120.

1934–1935

17 October 1934: Prof. E. A. Milne, (title not recorded).
Meeting 154 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 49.
Minutes: volume 3 page 123.
31 October 1934: Mr M. Born, “Some Fundamental Conceptions of Physics”.
Meeting 155 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 41.
Minutes: volume 3 page 124.
14 November 1934: Mr T. G. Room, “Freedom in Geometry”.
Meeting 156 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 126.
28 November 1934: Mr M. H. L. Pryce, “The Gamma Function”.
Meeting 157 (talk; election of officers).
Minutes: volume 3 page 127.
30 January 1935: Mr L. A. Pars, “Pfaffian Forms”.
Meeting 158 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 129.
14 February 1935: Mr H. Jeffreys, “Scientific Method”.
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 159 (talk), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 3 page 131.
27 February 1935: Dr R. Rado, “Some Combinatorial Problems”.
Meeting 160 (talk), E2 Bishop’s Hostel.
Minutes: volume 3 page 132.
6 March 1935: Mr H. Davenport, “Greek Mathematics”.
Meeting 161 (talk; non-election business), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 132.
15 May 1935: Mr H. M. Cundy, “Knots”.
Meeting 162 (talk), L1 Whewell’s Court, attendance 19.
Minutes: volume 3 page 134.
22 May 1935: Discussion, “Does it Matter?”.
Meeting 163 (discussion), C4 Great Court.
Minutes: volume 3 page 136.
5 June 1935: Mr J. H. Pearse, “Some Elementary Theorems of Integral Functions”.
Meeting 164 (talk; non-election business; election of officers), I4 New Court.
Minutes: volume 3 page 137.

1935–1936

23 October 1935: Dr H. M. Taylor, “A New Theory of Relativity”.
Meeting 165 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 25.
Minutes: volume 3 page 141.
6 November 1935: Prof. G. I. Taylor, “Turbulence”.
Meeting 166 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 143.
27 November 1935: Dr H. S. M. Coxeter, “The Fifty Nine Icosahedra”.
Meeting 167 (talk), I3 Great Court.
Minutes: volume 3 page 145.
4 December 1935: Mr W. R. Dean, “Biharmonic Analysis”.
Meeting 168 (talk; election of officers), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 147.
12 February 1936: Mr P. Hall, “Fields of Numbers”.
Meeting 169 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 151.
19 February 1936: Mr A. S. Besicovitch, “Geometrical Entities from the point of view of the General Theory of Aggregates”.
Meeting 170 (talk), I4 New Court.
Minutes: volume 3 page 153.
27 February 1936: Mr W. M. Smart, “Variable Stars”.
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 171 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 43.
Minutes: volume 3 page 156.
11 March 1936: Dr E. F. Collingwood, “Integral Equations”.
Meeting 172 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 158.
30 April 1936: Mr E. Cunningham, “Some aspects of Mathematical teaching and examinations at Cambridge”.
Meeting 173 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 160.
20 May 1936: Mr A. Green, “Gliding on the Surface of Water”.
Meeting 174 (talk; election of officers), D8 Whewell’s Court.
Minutes: volume 3 page 162.

1936–1937

21 October 1936: Mr F. P. White, “Eggs”.
Meeting 175 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 165.
11 November 1936: Mr M. H. A. Newman, “Finitist Mathematics”.
Meeting 176 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 168.
25 November 1936: Mr H. Rottenberg, “Graphical and Mechanical Calculations in Engineering”.
Meeting 177 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 170.
2 December 1936: Mr D. M. A. Leggett, “Certain Thin Plate Problems in the theory of Elastic Stability”.
Meeting 178 (talk; election of officers), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 173.
27 January 1937: Mr J. Wishart, “Statistics”.
Meeting 179 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 175.
18 February 1937: Dr S. Goldstein, “The Motion of Fluids”.
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 180 (talk), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 3 page 176.
24 February 1937: Mr H. A. Heilbronn, “The Distribution of Primes”.
Meeting 181 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 178.
13 May 1937: Prof. M. L. E. Oliphant, Visit to the High Voltage Laboratory.
Meeting 182 (visit).
Minutes: volume 3 page 181.
19 May 1937: Mr H. J. H. Sisson, “Ideals”.
Meeting 183 (talk; non-election business; election of officers), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 182.

1937–1938

20 October 1937: Mr A. E. Ingham, “A Little about Numbers”.
Meeting 184 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 186.
27 October 1937: Dr H. Jeffreys, “Earthquakes”.
Meeting 185 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 189.
17 November 1937: Dr G. F. C. Searle, “The Dynamics of Electrified Bodies”.
Meeting 186 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 192.
1 December 1937: Prof. G. H. Hardy, “Partitions”.
Meeting 187 (talk; election of officers), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 195.
19 January 1938: Mr W. T. Tutte, “Bosh(x) and Allied Functions”.
Meeting 188 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 198.
2 February 1938: Dr J. A. Todd, “Pascal’s Hexagram”.
Meeting 189 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 200.
16 February 1938: Mr W. R. Dean, “The Biharmonic Equation”.
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 190 (talk), Lecture Room 3 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 3 page 201.
19 February 1938: Visit to the Solar Physics Observatory.
Meeting 190a (visit).
Minutes: volume 3 page 203.
26 February 1938: Dinner.
Joint with: Trinity College Natural Sciences Society.
Meeting 190b (dinner), attendance 50.
Minutes: volume 3 page 203.
2 March 1938: Dr C. A. Coulson, “Killing Germs”.
Meeting 191 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 204.
17 March 1938: Visit to Differential Analyser.
Meeting 192 (visit), attendance 20.
Minutes: volume 3 page 206.
27 April 1938: Dr N. A. de Bruyne, “Building an Aeroplane”.
Meeting 193 (talk), Lecture Room 3 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 3 page 207.
11 May 1938: Dr R. v.d.R. Wooley, “Eclipses”.
Meeting 194 (talk; election of officers), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 210.
25 May 1938: Society Photograph.
Meeting 194a (photograph), attendance 40.
Minutes: volume 3 page 213.

1938–1939

17 October 1938: Prof. F. J. M. Stratton, “New Stars”.
Meeting 195 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 215.
31 October 1938: Mr F. C. Strachan, “Telephone Repeater Stations”.
Meeting 196 (talk; non-election business), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 218.
7 November 1938: Mr C. A. B. Smith, “Fish Functions”.
Meeting 197 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 225.
14 November 1938: Dr M. L. Cartwright, “Convex Regions”.
Meeting 198 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 228.
28 November 1938: Prof. E. V. Appleton, “Solar Radiation Changes during the Sunspot cycle”.
Meeting 199 (talk; election of officers), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 230.
27 January 1939: Prof. E. A. Milne, “Inventing a Theory to fit the Facts”.
Meeting 200 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 60.
Minutes: volume 3 page 237.
13 February 1939: Dr H. J. Bhabha, “The Theory of Cosmic Ray Showers”.
Meeting 201 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 240.
23 February 1939: Mr E. Cunningham, Discussion.
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 202 (talk), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 3 page 242.
25 February 1939: Dinner.
Joint with: Trinity College Natural Sciences Society.
Meeting 202a (dinner), attendance 35.
Minutes: volume 3 page 243.
23 March 1939: Mr A. H. Stone, “Squaring the Square”.
Meeting 203 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 244.
24 April 1939: Dr M. S. Bartlett, “Mathematics and Human Genetics”.
Meeting 204 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 248.
15 May 1939: Dr A. F. Devonshire, “Mathematics and Molecules”.
Meeting 205 (talk; election of officers), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 250.

1939–1940

16 October 1939: Prof. A. S. Eddington, “Why is the Universe Mathematical?”.
Meeting 206 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 253.
30 October 1939: Dr A. D. Thackeray, “The Structure of the Galaxy”.
Meeting 207 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 256.
27 November 1939: Dr B. Swirles, “Precession”.
Meeting 208 (talk; election of officers), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 258.
5 February 1940: Mr M. H. A. Newman, “The Ham Sandwich Theorem”.
Meeting 209 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 262.
12 February 1940: Mr F. J. Anscombe, “What Statistics is About”.
Joint with: Mathematics Research Students’ Tea Club.
Meeting 210 (talk), P1 Great Court.
Minutes: volume 3 page 265.
19 February 1940: Prof. L. Wittgenstein, “The Descent of Mathematics”.
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 211 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 267.
24 February 1940: Dinner.
Joint with: Trinity College Natural Sciences Society.
Meeting 211a (dinner), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 269.
4 March 1940: Dr R. Stoneley, “Earthquake Waves”.
Meeting 212 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 270.
29 April 1940: Mr A. S. Besicovitch, “Normal Sequences of Numbers”.
Meeting 213 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 272.
13 May 1940: Mr I. J. Good, “Infinite Regressions”.
Joint with: Mathematics Research Students’ Tea Club.
Meeting 214 (talk).
Minutes: volume 3 page 277.

1940–1941

21 October 1940: Mr W. T. Tutte, “Bosh(x)”.
Meeting 215 (talk; election of officers), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 282.
4 November 1940: Mr P. Hall, “Something about Galois”.
Meeting 216 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 285.
13 November 1940: Prof. P. A. M. Dirac, “The Interior of an Electron”.
Joint with: New Pythagoreans.
Meeting 217 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 288.
2 December 1940: Prof. G. H. Hardy, “Ramanujan”.
Joint with: New Pythagoreans.
Meeting 218 (talk; election of officers), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 291.
3 February 1941: Mr H. Jeffreys, “Mathematics as a Substitute for Thought”.
Meeting 219 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 296.
17 February 1941: Mr W. R. Dean, “The Biharmonic Equation”.
Meeting 220 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 298.
27 February 1941: Prof. W. V. D. Hodge, “Unexplored Fields in Geometry”.
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 221 (talk), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 3 page 300.
10 March 1941: Dr J. O. Irwin, “Statistical Studies of the Personal Factor in Accidents”.
Meeting 222 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 302.
12 March 1941: Dr J. O. Irwin, Visit to Psychological Laboratory.
Meeting 222a (visit).
Minutes: volume 3 page 304.
28 April 1941: Mr A. H. Wilson, “The History of the Elementary Physical Particles, 1926–40”.
Meeting 223 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 309.
12 May 1941: Dr J. A. Todd, “Morley’s Trisection Theorem”.
Meeting 224 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 312.

1941–1942

20 October 1941: Prof. J. E. Littlewood, “Some Applications of Analysis”.
Joint with: New Pythagoreans.
Meeting 225 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 318.
3 November 1941: Mr A. E. Ingham, “Conjecture and Proof in the Theory of Numbers”.
Joint with: New Pythagoreans.
Meeting 226 (talk), Caius College.
Minutes: volume 3 page 322.
17 November 1941: Prof. A. S. Eddington, “The Size of the Universe”.
Joint with: New Pythagoreans.
Meeting 227 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 3 page 325.
27 November 1941: Mr M. H. A. Newman, “Axiomatics”.
Joint with: New Pythagoreans.
Meeting 228 (talk), Christ’s College.
Minutes: volume 3 page 330.
28 January 1942: Dr D. Shoenberg, “Small Particles at Low Temperatures”.
Joint with: New Pythagoreans.
Meeting 229 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 14.
9 February 1942: Dr J. A. Todd, “The Elements of Euclid”.
Joint with: New Pythagoreans.
Meeting 230 (talk), Caius College.
Minutes: volume 4 page 16.
25 February 1942: Prof. Sir E. V. Appleton, “Some Unsolved Radio Problems”.
Joint with: New Pythagoreans.
Meeting 231 (talk), Caius College.
Minutes: volume 4 page 18.
9 March 1942: Mr A. S. Besicovitch, “Mean Values of Functions”.
Joint with: New Pythagoreans.
Meeting 232 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 20.

(The Society did not meet during Easter 1942.)

1942–1943

19 October 1942: Business Meeting.
Meeting 233 (business meeting; non-election business; election of officers), P3 Great Court.
Minutes: volume 4 page 26.
26 October 1942: Dr J. C. Burkill, “The Area of a Surface”.
Joint with: New Pythagoreans.
Meeting 234 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 28.
9 November 1942: Mr L. A. Pars, “The Differential Equations of Dynamics”.
Joint with: New Pythagoreans.
Meeting 235 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 31.
23 November 1942: Dr C. A. B. Smith, “Growing Fish from Seed”.
Joint with: New Pythagoreans.
Meeting 236 (talk), Emmanuel College.
Minutes: volume 4 page 33.
22 February 1943: Mr W. T. Tutte, “Squaring the Square”.
Joint with: New Pythagoreans.
Meeting 237 (talk), Emmanuel College.
Minutes: volume 4 page 35.

(The Society did not meet during Easter 1943.)

1943–1944

28 October 1943: Mr F. Ursell, “Prime Numbers”.
Meeting 238 (talk; election of officers), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 41.
6 November 1943: Mr A. S. Besicovitch, “Monotonic Functions”.
Meeting 239 (talk), Lecture Room 5 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 4 page 44.
11 November 1943: Mr N. Aronszain, (title not recorded).
Meeting 240 (talk), Lecture Room 5 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 4 page 45.
18 November 1943: Prof. A. S. Eddington, “From Nucleus to Nebula”.
Meeting 241 (talk), Lecture Room 5 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 4 page 47.
25 November 1943: Prof. G. H. Hardy, “The Theorem of the Arithmetic and Geometric Means”.
Meeting 242 (talk), Lecture Room 5 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 4 page 49.
2 December 1943: Dr M. L. Cartwright, “Forty days or forty years”.
Meeting 243 (talk; election of officers), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 51.
20 January 1944: Mr J. Wisdom, “Proof”.
Meeting 244 (talk), Lecture Room 5 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 4 page 57.
27 January 1944: Prof. J. E. Littlewood, “Some Applications of Mathematical Analysis”.
Meeting 245 (talk), Lecture Room 5 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 4 page 59.
10 February 1944: Dr F. C. Powell, “Atomic Theory”.
Meeting 246 (talk), Lecture Room 5 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 4 page 61.
2 March 1944: Miss S. M. Edmonds, “Fourier Series”.
Meeting 247 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 63.
9 March 1944: Mr A. E. Ingham, “Theory of Numbers”.
Meeting 248 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 65.
18 May 1944: Business Meeting.
Meeting 249 (business meeting; election of officers), P3 Great Court.
Minutes: volume 4 page 69.
1 June 1944: Dinner.
Meeting 250 (dinner), Hall, attendance 24.
Minutes: volume 4 page 71.

1944–1945

2 November 1944: Prof. C. D. Broad, “Dunne’s Theory of Time”.
Meeting 251 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 77.
9 November 1944: Hon. B. Russell, “Is Mathematics Superstitious?”.
Meeting 252 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 79.
16 November 1944: Mrs B. Jeffreys, “Atomic Wave Functions”.
Meeting 253 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 82.
23 November 1944: Dr J. C. Burkill, “Sixth Form Mathematics”.
Meeting 254 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 84.
1 February 1945: Prof. Sir G. I. Taylor, “Explosives”.
Meeting 255 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 89.
8 February 1945: Mr A. H. Wilson, “Theory of Elementary Physical Particles”.
Meeting 256 (talk), Lecture Room 5 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 4 page 91.
15 February 1945: Mr R. B. Braithwaite, “Gödel’s Theorem”.
Meeting 257 (talk), Lecture Room 5 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 4 page 94.
1 March 1945: Prof. W. V. D. Hodge, “Invariant Matrices”.
Meeting 258 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 95.
8 March 1945: Mr S. W. P. Steen, “Random Sequences”.
Meeting 259 (talk), Lecture Room 5 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 4 page 97.
26 April 1945: Prof. J. E. Littlewood, “Large Numbers”.
Meeting 260 (talk), Lecture Room 5 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 4 page 103.
10 May 1945: Dr J. A. Todd, “The Elements of Euclid”.
Meeting 261 (talk), Lecture Room 5 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 4 page 105.
18 May 1945: Business Meeting.
Meeting 262 (business meeting; election of officers), N6 Great Court.
Minutes: volume 4 page 107.

1945–1946

18 October 1945: Col. Sir G. P. Lenox-Conyngham, “The Figure of the Earth and Deflections of the Plumb-Line”.
Meeting 263 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 111.
1 November 1945: Mr A. S. Besicovitch, “Area of Surfaces”.
Meeting 264 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 114.
15 November 1945: Mrs O. H. T. Rishbeth, “String Figures”.
Meeting 265 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 117.
22 November 1945: Mr W. R. Dean, “Sir Isaac Newton”.
Meeting 266 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 119.
29 November 1945: Dr D. Shoenberg, “Superconductivity”.
Meeting 267 (talk; election of officers), Lecture Room 5 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 4 page 121.
31 January 1946: Mr S. Wylie, “The Ham Sandwich Theorem”.
Meeting 268 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 127.
14 February 1946: Mr W. T. Tutte, “Hamilton’s Unicursal Problem”.
Meeting 269 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 131.
28 February 1946: Mr M. H. L. Pryce, “Atomic Energy”.
Meeting 270 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 134.
7 March 1946: Dr M. S. Bartlett, “The Mathematics of Population Changes”.
Meeting 271 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 137.
2 May 1946: Mr R. V. Baron, “Symbols”.
Meeting 272 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 143.
13 May 1946: Mr A. H. Stone, “Regular Polygons”.
Meeting 273 (talk; election of officers), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 146.

1946–1947

17 October 1946: Prof. J. E. Littlewood, “Mathematical Study and Research”.
Meeting 274 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 154.
31 October 1946: Dr W. A. H. Rushton, “Recurring Decimals”.
Meeting 275 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 156.
14 November 1946: Mr H. A. Thurston, “Lattices”.
Meeting 276 (talk), P3 Great Court.
Minutes: volume 4 page 158.
28 November 1946: Dr H. A. Brück, “Star Counts and the Structure of the Galaxy”.
Meeting 277 (talk; election of officers), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 160.
27 January 1947: Mr P. Hall, “Galois and his Work”.
Meeting 278 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 4 page 166.
10 February 1947: Mr P. M. Cohn, “Divergent Series”.
Meeting 279 (talk), A4 Nevile’s Court.
Minutes: volume 4 page 168.
24 February 1947: Dr F. Smithies, “The Notion of Rigour in Mathematics”.
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 280 (talk), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 4 page 169.
5 May 1947: Mr N. Kemmer, “The Role of Hyper-Complex Numbers in Relativistic Mechanics”.
Meeting 281 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 4 page 174.
19 May 1947: Dr A. J. Ward, “Partially Ordered Sets”.
Meeting 282 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 4 page 176.
7 June 1947: Business Meeting.
Meeting 283 (business meeting; election of officers).
Minutes: volume 4 page 177.

1947–1948

27 October 1947: Mr A. S. Besicovitch, “Sets of Distances between points on a curve”.
Meeting 284 (talk), Lecture Room 5 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 4 page 180.
10 November 1947: Dr C. A. B. Smith, “What Function has a Function of a Function?”.
Meeting 285 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 4 page 181.
24 November 1947: Dr H. G. Booker, “Propagation of Radio Waves in the Troposphere”.
Meeting 286 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 4 page 182.
19 January 1948: Prof. A. E. Taylor, “A Geometric Theorem”.
Meeting 287 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 4 page 185.
2 February 1948: Mr S. Wylie, “Knots”.
Meeting 288 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 4 page 186.
17 May 1948: Dr H. Bondi, “Cosmology”.
Meeting 289 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 4 page 192.

1948–1949

18 October 1948: Dr J. A. Todd, “Invariants”.
Meeting 290 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 4 page 196.
1 November 1948: Mr R. B. Braithwaite, “The Logic of Probability”.
Meeting 291 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 4 page 198.
8 November 1948: Prof. J. E. Littlewood, “Newton and the Attraction of a Sphere”.
Meeting 292 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 4 page 200.
22 November 1948: Mr P. M. Cohn, “What is Geometry, or, the Erlange Programm”.
Meeting 293 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 4 page 202.
17 January 1949: Prof. W. V. D. Hodge, “Some Problems in Enumerative Geometry”.
Meeting 294 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 4 page 206.
31 January 1949: Prof. O. R. Frisch, “Probability and Chain Reactions”.
Meeting 295 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 4 page 208.
21 February 1949: Discussion on Geometry.
Meeting 296 (discussion), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 4 page 210.
25 April 1949: Mr E. H. Sondheimer, “An Integral Equation in Mathematical Physics”.
Meeting 297 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 4 page 214.
8 June 1949: Dinner.
Meeting 297a (dinner).

1949–1950

17 October 1949: Dr F. Smithies, “Abstract Analysis”.
Meeting 298 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 4 page 220.
7 November 1949: Mr D. V. Lindley, “How to Play Games”.
Meeting 299 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 4 page 223.
21 November 1949: Mr L. Mestel, “The White Dwarfs”.
Meeting 300 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 4 page 225.
23 January 1950: Mr E. S. Barnes, “Minkowski’s Geometry of Numbers”.
Meeting 301 (talk).
Minutes: volume 4 page 228.
6 February 1950: Mr J. Leech, “Geometry (Mod 2)”.
Meeting 302 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 4 page 231.
13 February 1950: Mr D. G. Ashwell, “Relaxation Methods”.
Meeting 303 (talk).
Minutes: volume 4 page 233.
27 February 1950: Dr M. V. Wilkes, “Electronic Calculating Machines”.
Meeting 304 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 4 page 235.
1 May 1950: Prof. J. E. Littlewood, “More Odds and Ends”.
Meeting 305 (talk).
Minutes: volume 4 page 240.

1950–1951

23 October 1950: Prof. A. S. Besicovitch, “The Sequence of Squares”.
Meeting 306 (talk).
Minutes: volume 4 page 244.
6 November 1950: Mr N. Kemmer, “Recent Developments in Quantum Field Theory”.
Meeting 307 (talk).
Minutes: volume 4 page 246.
20 November 1950: Dr M. L. Cartwright, “Rotation Numbers”.
Meeting 308 (talk; election of officers).
Minutes: volume 4 page 249.
15 January 1951: Mr F. Ursell, “Infinite Determinants”.
Meeting 309 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 4 page 254.
29 January 1951: Prof. C. D. Broad, “Kant’s Arguments from the Existence of Incongruent Counterparts”.
Meeting 310 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 17.
12 February 1951: Mr E. J. Watson, “The Splash of a Jet”.
Meeting 311 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 21.
26 February 1951: Dr D. W. Babbage, “Covariants of Binary Forms”.
Meeting 312 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 23.
30 April 1951: Prof. O. R. Frisch, “The Four Colour Problem”.
Meeting 313 (talk; non-election business; election of officers), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 25.

1951–1952

15 October 1951: Dr H. Bondi, “The Formation of Clouds”.
Meeting 314 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 29.
29 October 1951: Mr E. S. Barnes, “The Euclidean Algorithm”.
Meeting 315 (talk; election of officers), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 33.
12 November 1951: Dr F. Smithies, “Continuous Geometry”.
Meeting 316 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 35.
26 November 1951: Dr W. L. Edge, “Felix Klein”.
Meeting 317 (talk), Lecture Room 3 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 5 page 37.
28 January 1952: Mr F. P. White, “Some Geometrical Maxima and Minima”.
Meeting 318 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 39.
11 February 1952: Mr P. Hall, “The Life and Work of Galois”.
Meeting 319 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 41.
25 February 1952: Mr S. Wylie, “The Plaster Theorem”.
Meeting 320 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 43.
28 April 1952: Prof. L. J. Mordell, “Ramanujan, the Indian Mathematician”.
Meeting 321 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 47.
28 April 1952: Business Meeting.
Meeting 321a (business meeting; non-election business; election of officers), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 48.
2 May 1952: Business Meeting.
Meeting 322 (business meeting; non-election business), Y1 Whewell’s Court.
Minutes: volume 5 page 50.

1952–1953

13 October 1952: Mr F. J. Anscombe, “Codes”.
Meeting 323 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 53.
27 October 1952: Prof. J. E. Littlewood, “Odds and Ends”.
Meeting 324 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 56.
10 November 1952: Dr D. R. Taunt, “Algebras at your Service”.
Meeting 325 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 59.
20 November 1952: Business Meeting.
Meeting 325a (business meeting; non-election business), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 61.
24 November 1952: Dr G. K. Batchelor, “Cavitation in Water”.
Meeting 326 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 62.
24 November 1952: Business Meeting.
Meeting 326a (business meeting; non-election business), Junior Parlour, attendance 11.
Minutes: volume 5 page 65.
26 January 1953: Prof. J. Wisdom, “The Accidental and the Inevitable”.
Meeting 327 (talk).
Minutes: volume 5 page 67.
26 January 1953: Business Meeting.
Meeting 327a (business meeting; non-election business), attendance 21.
Minutes: volume 5 page 70.
16 February 1953: Prof. D. R. Hartree, “Railway Signal Interlocking”.
Meeting 328 (talk).
Minutes: volume 5 page 72.
2 March 1953: Prof. W. V. D. Hodge, “Moving Axes”.
Meeting 329 (talk).
Minutes: volume 5 page 74.
4 March 1953: Dinner.
Meeting 329a (dinner).
27 April 1953: Sir C. G. Darwin, “The Way Discoveries are Made”.
Meeting 330 (talk).
Minutes: volume 5 page 75.
27 April 1953: Business Meeting.
Meeting 330a (business meeting; non-election business; election of officers).
Minutes: volume 5 page 77.
12 August 1953: Cricket Match (victorious).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 330b (sporting event), Old Field.
Minutes: volume 5 page 78.

1953–1954

13 October 1953: Prof. Sir G. I. Taylor, “How Animals Swim”.
Meeting 331 (talk).
Minutes: volume 5 page 79.
2 November 1953: Dr H. G. Eggleston, “A Problem of L. Euler”.
Meeting 332 (talk).
Minutes: volume 5 page 81.
16 November 1953: Dr K. V. Roberts, “The Scattering of Waves by a Sphere”.
Meeting 333 (talk; election of officers).
Minutes: volume 5 page 83.
25 January 1954: Prof. R. B. Braithwaite, “The Theory of Games and its application to Inductive Logic”.
Meeting 334 (talk).
Minutes: volume 5 page 86.
14 February 1954: Prof. O. R. Frisch, “The Map-Colouring Problem”.
Meeting 335 (talk).
Minutes: volume 5 page 87.
26 April 1954: Prof. F. J. M. Stratton, “Expanding Stellar Shells”.
Meeting 336 (talk; non-election business; election of officers).
Minutes: volume 5 page 89.

1954–1955

11 October 1954: Prof. N. F. Mott, “Mathematics and Physics”.
Meeting 337 (talk), Lecture Room 1 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 5 page 92.
25 October 1954: Dr P. J. Hilton, “The Nature of Mathematics”.
Meeting 338 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 94.
15 November 1954: Dr I. Proudman, “Aerodynamic Noise”.
Meeting 339 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 96.
15 November 1954: Business Meeting.
Meeting 339a (business meeting; non-election business; election of officers), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 98.
24 January 1955: Prof. J. Wisdom, “Metaphysics”.
Meeting 340 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 100.
14 February 1955: Visit to the Mathematical Laboratory.
Meeting 341 (visit).
Minutes: volume 5 page 102.
7 March 1955: Annual Dinner.
Meeting 341a (dinner).
25 April 1955: Dr R. H. Thouless, “Extrasensory Perception”.
Meeting 342 (talk; non-election business; election of officers).
Minutes: volume 5 page 103.

1955–1956

20 October 1955: Prof. A. S. Besicovitch, “On the Rearrangement of Terms of a Conditionally Convergent Series”.
Meeting 343 (talk), Lecture Room 1 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 5 page 106.
24 October 1955: Dr F. G. Friedlander, “A Mathematical Exercise on a Violin String”.
Meeting 344 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 108.
14 November 1955: Dr J. A. Todd, “e²=0”.
Meeting 345 (talk; non-election business; election of officers), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 110.
23 January 1956: Dr J. F. Thomson, “The Logical Paradoxes”.
Meeting 346 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 113.
23 January 1956: Business Meeting.
Meeting 346a (business meeting; non-election business), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 114.
13 February 1956: Dr E. R. Lapwood, “The Torsion Problem”.
Meeting 347 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 115.
23 April 1956: Dr R. H. Macmillan, “Automatic Control”.
Meeting 348 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 116.
23 April 1956: Business Meeting.
Meeting 348a (business meeting; non-election business; election of officers), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 117.

1956–1957

15 October 1956: Dr E. C. Zeeman, “Knotting a Sphere in five dimensions”.
Meeting 349 (talk), Lecture Room 1 (I Great Court), attendance 80+.
Minutes: volume 5 page 119.
29 October 1956: Dr W. L. Edge, “Conics in a Finite Plane”.
Meeting 350 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 122.
16 November 1956: Mr D. V. Lindley, “The Theory of Games”.
Meeting 351 (talk; non-election business), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 123.
21 January 1957: Mr S. W. P. Steen, “Degrees of Insolvability”.
Meeting 352 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 125.
18 February 1957: Dr H. P. F. Swinnerton-Dyer, “Automatic Computing”.
Meeting 353 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 126.
6 May 1957: Dr G. K. Batchelor, “Non-linearity in Hydrodynamics”.
Meeting 354 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 128.
6 May 1957: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 354a (general meeting; non-election business; election of officers), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 129.

1957–1958

14 October 1957: Dr D. W. S. Sciama, “The Irreversibility of Time”.
Meeting 355 (talk), Lecture Room 2 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 5 page 137.
4 November 1957: Dr M. F. Atiyah, “Omar Khayyam: Poet & Mathematician”.
Meeting 356 (talk; non-election business), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 138.
27 January 1958: Mr S. Wylie, “Orientable Manifolds”.
Meeting 357 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 141.
24 February 1958: Dr I. Proudman, “Rotating Fluids”.
Meeting 358 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 143.
5 May 1958: Dr J. C. P. Miller, “Recurring Decimals”.
Meeting 359 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 145.
6 May 1958: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 359a (general meeting; non-election business; election of officers).
Minutes: volume 5 page 147.
29 May 1958: Cricket Match (abandoned).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 359b (sporting event), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 5 page 146.

1958–1959

20 October 1958: Prof. H. Davenport, “The Nature of Mathematics”.
Meeting 360 (talk), Lecture Room 2 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 5 page 150.
5 November 1958: Dr G. K. Batchelor, “Magnetohydrodynamics”.
Meeting 361 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 153.
17 November 1958: Prof. O. R. Frisch, “The Four Colour Problem”.
Meeting 362 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 155.
19 January 1959: Dr L. Mestel, “Star Building”.
Meeting 363 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 157.
23 February 1959: Dr J. F. Adams, “No More Division Algebras?”.
Meeting 364 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 159.
23 February 1959: Business Meeting.
Meeting 364a (business meeting; non-election business; election of officers), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 161.
4 May 1959: Dr J. W. S. Cassels, “Pi(e) in the Sky”.
Meeting 365 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 163.
4 May 1959: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 365a (general meeting; non-election business), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 165.
5 June 1959: Cricket Match (victorious).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 365b (sporting event), Old Field.
Minutes: volume 5 page 167.

1959–1960

19 October 1959: Prof. R. B. Braithwaite, “How, in theory, to play games”.
Meeting 366 (talk), Lecture Room 2 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 5 page 168.
2 November 1959: Dr D. R. Taunt, “Is Mathematics Reasonable?”.
Meeting 367 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 171.
16 November 1959: Dr B. J. Birch, “Diophantine Equations”.
Meeting 368 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 178.
25 January 1960: Dr P. G. Saffman, “Superaerodynamics”.
Meeting 369 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 180.
22 February 1960: Prof. C. D. Broad, “Charge, Continuity and Discontinuity”.
Meeting 370 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 182.
22 February 1960: Business Meeting.
Meeting 370a (business meeting; non-election business; election of officers), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 184.
2 May 1960: Dr H. P. F. Swinnerton-Dyer, “Machines that Think?”.
Meeting 371 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 187.
2 May 1960: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 371a (general meeting; non-election business), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 5 page 189.
3 June 1960: Cricket Match (victorious).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 371b (sporting event), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 5 page 191.

1960–1961

18 October 1960: Prof. Sir G. I. Taylor, “Thin Sheets of Fluid”.
Meeting 372 (talk), Lecture Room 2 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 6 page 19.
31 October 1960: Dr M. F. Atiyah, “A Survey of Modern Geometry”.
Meeting 373 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 21.
14 November 1960: Dr J. C. Polkinghorne, “Elementary Particles”.
Meeting 374 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 22.
23 January 1961: Dr F. G. Friedlander, “Partial Differential Equations”.
Meeting 375 (talk), S2 Great Court.
Minutes: volume 6 page 24.
20 February 1961: Dr F. Smithies, “Rigour in Mathematics”.
Meeting 376 (talk), S2 Great Court.
Minutes: volume 6 page 25.
20 February 1961: Business Meeting.
Meeting 376a (business meeting; non-election business; election of officers), S2 Great Court.
Minutes: volume 6 page 27.
1 May 1961: Dr J. A. Todd, “Pascal’s Theorem”.
Meeting 377 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 30.
1 May 1961: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 377a (general meeting; non-election business), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 32.
1 June 1961: Business Meeting.
Meeting 377b (business meeting; non-election business), I2 Great Court.
Minutes: volume 6 page 34.
2 June 1961: Cricket Match (victorious).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 377c (sporting event), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 6 page 35.

1961–1962

16 October 1961: Prof. N. F. Mott, “Unsolved Problems in Solid State Physics”.
Meeting 378 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 37.
30 October 1961: Dr J. C. P. Miller, “Polyhedra”.
Meeting 379 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 39.
13 November 1961: Dr G. K. Batchelor, “How to Pinch Plasmas”.
Meeting 380 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 41.
22 January 1962: Dr J. W. S. Cassels, “Factorisation of Polynomials”.
Meeting 381 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 42.
19 February 1962: Dr P. C. Clemmow, “Expanding Waves”.
Meeting 382 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 43.
19 February 1962: Business Meeting.
Meeting 382a (business meeting; non-election business; election of officers), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 44.
7 May 1962: Dr B. J. Birch, “Putting Chairs on Mountains”.
Meeting 383 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 47.
7 May 1962: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 383a (general meeting; non-election business), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 48.
7 June 1962: Cricket Match (defeated).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 383b (sporting event), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 6 page 50.

1962–1963

29 October 1962: Dr J. H. Williamson, “Asymptotics”.
Meeting 384 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 52.
12 November 1962: Dr L. Mestel, “The Rotation of the Galaxy”.
Meeting 385 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 53.
29 November 1962: (no speaker present).
Meeting 386 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 54.
18 February 1963: Dr H. P. F. Swinnerton-Dyer, “The Theory of Games”.
Meeting 387 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 54.
18 February 1963: Business Meeting.
Meeting 387a (business meeting; non-election business; election of officers), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 55.
6 May 1963: Dr A. R. G. Owen, “Quadratic Forms in Population Theory”.
Meeting 388 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 56.
6 May 1963: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 388a (general meeting; non-election business), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 58.
18 May 1963: Cricket Match (victorious).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 388b (sporting event), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 6 page 60.

1963–1964

14 October 1963: Prof. H. Davenport, “Some recent developments in the Theory of Numbers”.
Meeting 389 (talk), Lecture Room 1 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 6 page 61.
28 October 1963: Dr S. G. Hooker, “The Future of Aerospace in Civil and Military Fields”.
Meeting 390 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 62.
11 November 1963: Dr H. K. Moffatt, “The Dynamo Problem”.
Meeting 391 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 65.
20 January 1964: Mr A. E. Ingham, “Prime Numbers”.
Meeting 392 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 66.
17 February 1964: Mr J. F. C. Kingman, “Why a Family Tree Dies”.
Meeting 393 (talk; election of officers), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 67.
4 May 1964: Dr J. Goldstone, “Quantum Logic”.
Meeting 394 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 68.
4 May 1964: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 394a (general meeting; non-election business), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 69.

1964–1965

12 October 1964: Prof. W. V. D. Hodge, “Mathematical Studies in some British and American Universities”.
Meeting 395 (talk), Lecture Room 1 (I Great Court), attendance 60.
Minutes: volume 6 page 71.
26 October 1964: Dr M. V. Wilkes, “Modern Developments in Digital Computing”.
Meeting 396 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 50.
Minutes: volume 6 page 75.
9 November 1964: Dr D. R. Taunt, “Marriage and other Combinatorial Problems”.
Meeting 397 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 79.
18 January 1965: Prof. D. G. Kendall, “How to spread a rumour”.
Meeting 398 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 80.
15 February 1965: Dr F. P. Bretherton, “The Wind Bloweth…”.
Meeting 399 (talk; election of officers), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 82.
3 May 1965: Dr F. Smithies, “Approximation to Continuous Functions”.
Meeting 400 (talk), Lecture Room 1 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 6 page 84.
3 May 1965: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 400a (general meeting; non-election business), Lecture Room 1 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 6 page 86.

1965–1966

11 October 1965: Dr J. C. Polkinghorne, “Elementary Particles”.
Meeting 401 (talk), Lecture Room 1 (I Great Court), attendance 100.
Minutes: volume 6 page 89.
25 October 1965: Dr D. W. S. Sciama, “Quasi-Stellar Radio Sources”.
Meeting 402 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 80.
Minutes: volume 6 page 90.
8 November 1965: Prof. G. K. Batchelor, “Bubbles and Clouds”.
Meeting 403 (talk; non-election business), Junior Parlour, attendance 30.
Minutes: volume 6 page 92.
17 January 1966: Dr J. P. Dougherty, “Counting Electrons by Radar”.
Meeting 404 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 94.
14 February 1966: Dr J. W. S. Cassels, “The Third Man”.
Meeting 405 (talk; election of officers), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 96.
2 May 1966: Dr E. A. Maxwell, “We Have Erred and Strayed…”.
Meeting 406 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 98.
2 May 1966: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 406a (general meeting; non-election business), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 100.

1966–1967

10 October 1966: Dr H. P. F. Swinnerton-Dyer, “How to Play Games”.
Meeting 407 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 103.
24 October 1966: Dr M. L. Cartwright, “Should Mathematics be Modernised?”.
Meeting 408 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 40.
Minutes: volume 6 page 104.
7 November 1966: Dr J. E. Roseblade, “Dancing Partners”.
Meeting 409 (talk; non-election business), Junior Parlour, attendance 40.
Minutes: volume 6 page 105.
23 January 1967: Dr D. T. Whiteside, “Isaac Newton: Undergraduate Mathematician”.
Meeting 410 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 36.
Minutes: volume 6 page 111.
20 February 1967: Dr E. R. Lapwood, “The Age of the Earth”.
Meeting 411 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 30.
Minutes: volume 6 page 113.
20 February 1967: Business Meeting.
Meeting 411a (business meeting; non-election business; election of officers), Junior Parlour, attendance 10.
Minutes: volume 6 page 115.
1 May 1967: Dr V. E. Cosslett, “Monte-Carlo methods in Electron Scattering”.
Meeting 412 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 24.
Minutes: volume 6 page 118.
1 May 1967: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 412a (general meeting; non-election business; election of officers), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 120.

1967–1968

16 October 1967: Dr H. K. Moffatt, “The Dynamo Problem”.
Meeting 413 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 124.
30 October 1967: Dr H. T. Croft, “On a Metrical Furry Ball Problem”.
Meeting 414 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 30.
Minutes: volume 6 page 129.
13 January 1968: Dr J. H. Conway, “Miserable Games”.
Meeting 415 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 130.
22 January 1968: Dr D. Barden, “On some Infinite-Dimensional Surfaces”.
Meeting 416 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 30.
Minutes: volume 6 page 132.
19 February 1968: Mr W. G. Kellaway, “What is Happening to School Geometry?”.
Meeting 417 (talk; non-election business; election of officers), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 137.
29 April 1968: Dr J. Goldstone, “i is Real”.
Meeting 418 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 30.
Minutes: volume 6 page 140.
29 April 1968: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 418a (general meeting; non-election business), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 142.
6 June 1968: Cricket Match (victorious).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 418b (sporting event).
Minutes: volume 6 page 146.

1968–1969

14 October 1968: Dr P. V. Landshoff, “Quarks and other particles”.
Meeting 419 (talk; non-election business), Lecture Rooms (I Great Court), attendance 90.
Minutes: volume 6 page 147.
28 October 1968: Dr D. W. S. Sciama, “The Structure of the Universe”.
Meeting 420 (talk; non-election business), Lecture Rooms (I Great Court), attendance 120.
Minutes: volume 6 page 156.
11 November 1968: Dr D. Williams, “Getting Positively Nowhere Infinitely Past”.
Meeting 421 (talk), Lecture Rooms (I Great Court), attendance 80.
Minutes: volume 6 page 160.
20 January 1969: Prof. J. C. Polkinghorne, “Oliver Heaviside”.
Meeting 422 (talk), Lecture Room 1 (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 6 page 165.
17 February 1969: Dr D. J. H. Garling, “Spaces of Continuous Dimension”.
Meeting 423 (talk; election of officers), Junior Parlour, attendance 40.
Minutes: volume 6 page 168.
28 April 1969: Dr J. T. Knight, an anonymous subject.
Meeting 424 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 6 page 173.
28 April 1969: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 424a (general meeting; non-election business), Junior Parlour, attendance 31.
Minutes: volume 6 page 174.
2 June 1969: Fiftieth Anniversary Dinner.
Meeting 424b (dinner), Old Kitchens.
Minutes: volume 6 page 175.

1969–1970

13 October 1969: Dr H. P. F. Swinnerton-Dyer, “Decision Making and other games”.
Meeting 425 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court), attendance 90.
Minutes: volume 6 page 176.
27 October 1969: Prof. A. B. Pippard, “Real Electrons in Real metal”.
Meeting 426 (talk; non-election business), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court), attendance 20.
Minutes: volume 6 page 178.
10 November 1969: Dr G. A. Reid, “Ultrafilters”.
Meeting 427 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 6 page 181.
20 January 1970: Dr I. T. Drummond, “Quantum Mechanics and Quantum non-mechanics”.
Meeting 428 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 21.
2 February 1970: Dr A. C. Duncan, “Bones and Red Powder”.
Meeting 429 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 23.
16 February 1970: Prof. M. J. Lighthill, “How do Fishes Swim?”.
Meeting 430 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 25.
16 February 1970: Business Meeting.
Meeting 430a (business meeting; non-election business; election of officers), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 26.
27 April 1970: Dr A. Rae, “Minimal Conditions in Algebra”.
Meeting 431 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 28.
27 April 1970: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 431a (general meeting; non-election business), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 29.

1970–1971

12 October 1970: Dr J. P. Dougherty, “Two for the price of one”.
Meeting 432 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 7 page 33.
26 October 1970: Dr J. H. Conway, “From balls to codes in n-space”.
Meeting 433 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court), attendance 133.
Minutes: volume 7 page 35.
9 November 1970: Sir G. I. Taylor, “Some interactions between mathematics and experiment”.
Meeting 434 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 7 page 37.
18 January 1971: Prof. J. W. S. Cassels, “Cyclotomy”.
Meeting 435 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 39.
1 February 1971: Dr V. Heine, “Exact Mathematics and Real Physics”.
Meeting 436 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 41.
1 February 1971: Business Meeting.
Meeting 436a (business meeting; non-election business), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 43.
15 February 1971: Dr A. F. Beardon, “Sets of nonintegral dimension”.
Meeting 437 (talk; election of officers), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 44.
26 April 1971: Dr A. W. F. Edwards, “Gliding Sums”.
Meeting 438 (talk; non-election business), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 46.

1971–1972

11 October 1971: Dr H. K. Moffatt, “Knotted Vortex Lines—the clue to dynamo action”.
Meeting 439 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 7 page 50.
25 October 1971: Mr A. J. Casson, “Infinite Products and Topology”.
Meeting 440 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 7 page 52.
8 November 1971: Prof. D. G. Kendall, “Mathematical aids for the Medieval Historian”.
Meeting 441 (talk; non-election business), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 56.
17 January 1972: Dr D. R. Taunt, “Loops and other Groupoids”.
Meeting 442 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 60.
31 January 1972: Dr J. R. Willis, “Some Integral Equations in Elasticity Theory”.
Meeting 443 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 63.
14 February 1972: Dr C. R. F. Maunder, “Wild Arcs and Dogbones”.
Meeting 444 (talk; election of officers), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 66.
2 March 1972: Business Meeting.
Meeting 444b (business meeting; election of officers), O3 Whewell’s Court.
Minutes: volume 7 page 72.
24 April 1972: Dr F. G. Friedlander, “Dirichlet’s Problem & Dirichlet’s Principle”.
Meeting 445 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 72.
24 April 1972: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 445a (general meeting; non-election business), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 75.

1972–1973

9 October 1972: Prof. H. P. F. Swinnerton-Dyer, “Games of Pursuit and Evasion”.
Meeting 446 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 7 page 79.
23 October 1972: Dr B. Bollobás, “A Characterisation of the Circle and its connection with Entire Functions”.
Meeting 447 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 82.
6 November 1972: Dr G. F. R. Ellis, “The Edges of Space-Time”.
Meeting 448 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 100.
Minutes: volume 7 page 87.
22 January 1973: Dr P. M. E. Altham, “Some Problems in Applied Statistics”.
Meeting 449 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 89.
5 February 1973: Prof. Sir M. J. Lighthill, “Ocean Science”.
Meeting 450 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 94.
19 February 1973: Dr J. E. Roseblade, “A Theorem of Hall’s”.
Meeting 451 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 101.
19 February 1973: Business Meeting.
Meeting 451a (business meeting; election of officers), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 107.
30 April 1973: Dr N. O. Weiss, “Stirring up Stars”.
Meeting 452 (talk; non-election business), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 111.

1973–1974

15 October 1973: Prof. J. W. S. Cassels, “Eisenstein: the Man and his Work”.
Meeting 453 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 7 page 117.
29 October 1973: Dr J. H. Conway, “Dots and Boxes”.
Meeting 454 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 7 page 122.
21 November 1973: Dr H. Osborn, “Topics in High Energy Physics”.
Meeting 455 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 127.
21 January 1974: Prof. P. Whittle, “Optimal Stopping”.
Meeting 456 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 20.
Minutes: volume 7 page 130.
4 February 1974: Prof. Sir M. Ryle, “The 5km Telescope”.
Meeting 457 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court), attendance 50.
Minutes: volume 7 page 133.
18 February 1974: Dr A. F. Beardon, “Hyperbolic Tessellations”.
Meeting 458 (talk; election of officers), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 137.
11 March 1974: Business Meeting.
Meeting 458b (business meeting; election of officers), I4 Great Court.
Minutes: volume 7 page 140.
29 April 1974: Dr J. P. Dougherty, “World Energy Supplies and Fusion”.
Meeting 459 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 141.
29 April 1974: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 459a (general meeting; non-election business), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 143.
4 June 1974: Punt Race.
Meeting 459b (sporting event), river Cam.
Minutes: volume 7 page 145.

1974–1975

14 October 1974: Dr F. G. Friedlander, “Geometrical Optics and Partial Differential Equations”.
Meeting 460 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 45.
Minutes: volume 7 page 150.
28 October 1974: Dr A. D. Barbour, “Modelling Bilharzia”.
Meeting 461 (talk; non-election business), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 153.
13 November 1974: Prof. J. C. Polkinghorne, Triennial Dinner.
Meeting 461a (dinner), Old Kitchens, attendance 29.
Minutes: volume 7 page 158.
25 November 1974: Dr R. M. Needham, “Protection of Data in Computers”.
Meeting 462 (talk; non-election business), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 159.
20 January 1975: Dr D. J. H. Garling, “Its Probably True: Brownian Motion and Classical Analysis”.
Meeting 463 (talk; non-election business), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 162.
3 February 1975: Dr H. K. Moffatt, “On the Maximum Load of Treacle that can be supported on a Rotating Ideal Knife”.
Meeting 464 (talk; non-election business), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 166.
17 February 1975: Mr F. P. Kelly, “Markov Population Processes”.
Meeting 465 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 171.
3 March 1975: Dr G. A. Reid, “How to Park a Car”.
Meeting 466 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 174.
3 March 1975: Business Meeting.
Meeting 466a (business meeting; election of officers), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 176.
21 April 1975: Dr E. J. Hinch, “Venus’ Dashing Veil”.
Meeting 467 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 180.
21 April 1975: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 467a (general meeting; non-election business), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 7 page 182.

1975–1976

13 October 1975: Dr D. O. Gough, “Sweet and Sour Fluid Dynamics”.
Meeting 468 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 8 page 24.
27 October 1975: Dr A. Mees, “Control Engineering”.
Meeting 469 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 8 page 26.
10 November 1975: Prof. M. V. Wilkes, “Finite Element Methods”.
Meeting 470 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 8 page 30.
24 November 1975: Mr N. Black (proponent) and Mr H. J. Pearson (opponent), “This House does not believe in the existence of Trinity College.” (tied).
Joint with: Adams Society and Magpie and Stump.
Meeting 471 (debate), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 8 page 34.
19 January 1976: Dr J. C. R. Hunt, “Applications of Simple Topology to Fluid Mechanics”.
Meeting 472 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 8 page 41.
2 February 1976: Prof. M. J. Rees, “The Early Universe”.
Meeting 473 (talk; non-election business), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 8 page 45.
16 February 1976:
- Mr D. J. Benson, “Category Theory”.
- Mr H. J. Pearson, “Working for ICI Plastics Division”.
Meeting 474 (talks), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 8 page 53.
1 March 1976: Mr H. J. Pearson, “Funny Fluids”.
Meeting 475 (talk; election of officers), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 8 page 64.
26 April 1976: Prof. Sir H. P. F. Swinnerton-Dyer, “The Three-Body Problem”.
Meeting 476 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 8 page 69.
6 June 1976: Punt Race.
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 476a (sporting event), river Cam.
Minutes: volume 8 page 70.

1976–1977

11 October 1976: Prof. Sir M. J. Lighthill, “Mathematics and the Weather”.
Meeting 477 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 8 page 73.
25 October 1976: Prof. J. W. S. Cassels, “The Greatest Happiness of the Greatest Number”.
Meeting 478 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 8 page 77.
25 October 1976: Business Meeting.
Meeting 478a (business meeting; non-election business), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 8 page 81.
8 November 1976: Dr J. Goldstone, “High-energy Particles and Massless Strings”.
Meeting 479 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 8 page 83.
11 November 1976: Mr D. E. Logan (proponent) and Mr H. J. Pearson (opponent), “Let them eat π” (tied).
Joint with: Magpie and Stump.
Meeting 480 (debate), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 8 page 88.
22 November 1976: Dr E. J. Hinch and Dr D. P. Kennedy and Mr D. J. Goto, “Research Opportunities”.
Meeting 481 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 8 page 94.
17 January 1977: Dr J. K. M. Moody, “String Processing and Computational Theory”.
Meeting 482 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 8 page 98.
31 January 1977: Dr J. A. Hudson, “Moonquakes”.
Meeting 483 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 8 page 101.
14 February 1977: Dr S. M. Edmonds, “Wobbles”.
Meeting 484 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 8 page 106.
28 February 1977: Dr D. P. Kennedy, “Multi-armed Bandits”.
Meeting 485 (talk; election of officers), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 8 page 111.
25 April 1977: Prof. M. S. Longuet-Higgins, “Clifford’s Chain”.
Meeting 486 (talk), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 8 page 116.

1977–1978

10 October 1977: Dr T. W. Körner, “Sod’s Law in the Service of Mankind”.
Meeting 487 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court), attendance 100.
Minutes: volume 8 page 121.
24 October 1977: Prof. M. V. Wilkes, “Early Computers in Cambridge”.
Meeting 488 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 8 page 126.
7 November 1977: Prof. J. F. Adams, “Whatever happened to Geometry?”.
Meeting 489 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 8 page 129.
30 January 1978: Dr B. J. Carr, “Black Pinholes and the First Second of the Universe”.
Meeting 490 (talk), DAMTP.
Minutes: volume 8 page 134.
13 February 1978: Prof. V. Heine, “The Beauty of Exact Mathematics versus the Reality of Approximate Physics”.
Meeting 491 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 8 page 139.
27 February 1978: Dr J. H. Conway, “Sunflowers, Pineapples and Fibonacci Numbers”.
Meeting 492 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 8 page 142.
13 March 1978: Prof. E. Cockayne, “When Greed is not a Vice”.
Meeting 493 (talk; election of officers), Old Combination Room, attendance 23.
Minutes: volume 8 page 150.
24 April 1978: Prof. A. Needleman, “The Shapes of a Spherical Balloon”.
Meeting 494 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 19.
Minutes: volume 8 page 160.
6 June 1978: Cricket Match (victorious).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 494a (sporting event), Old Field.
Minutes: volume 8 page 167.

1978–1979

9 October 1978: Prof. Sir S. Edwards, “The Topology of Chain Molecules”.
Meeting 495 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 50.
Minutes: volume 8 page 168.
23 October 1978: Dr A. Mees, “Deterministic Chaos”.
Meeting 496 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 20.
Minutes: volume 8 page 174.
6 November 1978: Dr R. M. Williams, “Mathematics and Sexual Reproduction”.
Meeting 497 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 25.
Minutes: volume 8 page 178.
20 November 1978: Dr B. Bollobás and Dr M. R. E. Proctor and Mr J. R. Partington, “Research Opportunities”.
Meeting 498½ (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 9 page 16.
29 January 1979: Mrs M. Batchelor, “Supergeometry”.
Meeting 499½ (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 9 page 18.
12 February 1979: Prof. A. Baker, “A Diophantine Conjecture”.
Meeting 500½ (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 9 page 22.
26 February 1979: Prof. S. I. Goldberg, “The Distance-decreasing properties of a class of mappings”.
Meeting 501½ (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 15.
Minutes: volume 9 page 25.
12 March 1979: Dr B. Whiting, “The anomalous propagation of VHF radiation in the troposphere”.
Meeting 502½ (talk; election of officers), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 9 page 29.
23 April 1979: Mr R. H. Lupton, Recitation of three verses of Carroll’s “The Hunting of the Snark”.
Meeting 503½ (talk), the College Bar (Q1 Great Court, 1958–1998).
Minutes: volume 9 page 32.
4 June 1979: Cricket Match (defeated).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 503½a (sporting event), Old Field.
Minutes: volume 9 page 32.

1979–1980

15 October 1979: Prof. Sir H. P. F. Swinnerton-Dyer, “Games of Pursuit and Evasion”.
Meeting 504½ (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 60.
Minutes: volume 9 page 33.
29 October 1979: Dr J. H. Stewart, “The Cosmic Censor”.
Meeting 505 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court), attendance 50.
Minutes: volume 9 page 38.
12 November 1979: Dr J. C. Taylor, “Why is it that Gauge Invariance seems to be an important idea in Physics?”.
Meeting 506 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 55.
Minutes: volume 9 page 45.
26 November 1979: Dr J. H. Conway, “Big Groups”.
Meeting 507 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 71.
Minutes: volume 9 page 51.
28 January 1980: Dr B. Bollobás, “Some applications of combinatorics”.
Meeting 508 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 27.
Minutes: volume 9 page 57.
25 February 1980: Mr A. J. Casson, “Conjectures in Group Theory and Topology”.
Meeting 509 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 28.
Minutes: volume 9 page 60.
12 March 1980: Mr A. J. Baddeley, “Infertility and other twisted topics”.
Meeting 510 (talk; election of officers), Junior Parlour, attendance 17.
Minutes: volume 9 page 67.
21 April 1980: Dr E. J. Hinch, “Long slender drops”.
Meeting 511 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 18.
Minutes: volume 9 page 73.
23 April 1980: Prof. M. F. Atiyah, Dinner.
Meeting 512 (dinner), Old Kitchens, attendance 24.
Minutes: volume 9 page 83.
1 June 1980: Cricket Match (defeated).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 512a (sporting event), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 9 page 84.

1980–1981

13 October 1980: Prof. D. Lynden-Bell, “Isocirculationality”.
Meeting 513 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 29.
Minutes: volume 9 page 85.
20 October 1980: Dr H. Osborn, “Infinite Determinants”.
Meeting 514 (talk), Wolfson Party Room, attendance 30.
Minutes: volume 9 page 92.
27 October 1980: Dr D. B. Singmaster, “Pythagorean Triangles from Plimpton 322 to the Present Day”.
Meeting 515 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court), attendance 56.
Minutes: volume 9 page 97.
10 November 1980: Prof. J. F. Adams, “Local and Global Problems in Topology”.
Meeting 516 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court), attendance 27.
Minutes: volume 9 page 104.
17 November 1980: Dr J. Rallison, “Funny Fluids”.
Meeting 517 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 15.
Minutes: volume 9 page 108.
24 November 1980: Prof. P. M. Cohn, “From codes to FIRs”.
Meeting 518 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 24.
Minutes: volume 9 page 111.
26 January 1981: Prof. H. K. Moffatt, “Strange Attractors”.
Meeting 519 (talk; non-election business; election of officers), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court), attendance 21.
Minutes: volume 9 page 118.
4 February 1981: Prof. J. F. Adams, Dinner.
Meeting 520 (dinner), Old Kitchens, attendance 20.
Minutes: volume 9 page 122.
9 February 1981: Dr B. Thwaites, “A Confoundedly Curious Conjecture”.
Meeting 521 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 10.
Minutes: volume 9 page 124.
23 February 1981: Prof. G. K. Batchelor, “Extraction of Oil from Underground”.
Meeting 522 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 9.
Minutes: volume 9 page 128.
9 March 1981: Dr C. Isenberg, “Geometrical Properties and Shapes of Soapfilms and Soapbubbles”.
Meeting 523 (talk), Wolfson Party Room, attendance 18.
Minutes: volume 9 page 131.
27 April 1981: Prof. D. G. Kendall, “Mathematics in Medieval Theology”.
Meeting 524 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 33.
Minutes: volume 9 page 135.
27 April 1981: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 524a (general meeting; non-election business; election of officers), Old Combination Room, attendance 8.
Minutes: volume 9 page 139.
10 June 1981: Cricket Match (victorious).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 524b (sporting event), Old Field.
Minutes: volume 9 page 148.

1981–1982

12 October 1981: Mrs M. Batchelor, “How to be an impossible Mathematician”.
Meeting 525 (talk), Wolfson Party Room, attendance 60.
Minutes: volume 10 page 7.
26 October 1981: Dr J. R. Partington, “Computer Poetry”.
Meeting 526 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 29.
Minutes: volume 10 page 10.
2 November 1981: Dr M. R. E. Proctor, “Bifurcations and the Transition to Turbulence”.
Meeting 527 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 34.
Minutes: volume 10 page 14.
16 November 1981: Dr B. J. Birch, “Fermat’s Last Theorem”.
Meeting 528 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 48.
Minutes: volume 10 page 20.
30 November 1981: Prof. M. J. D. Powell, “Automatic Smoothing and Error Correction for Tables of Function Values”.
Meeting 529 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court), attendance 14.
Minutes: volume 10 page 25.
18 January 1982: Dr P. M. H. Wilson, “Sylvester, his problem and related topics”.
Meeting 530 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 17.
Minutes: volume 10 page 30.
8 February 1982: Prof. C. A. B. Smith, “Mathematics is a good thing”.
Meeting 531 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 16.
Minutes: volume 10 page 36.
15 February 1982: Rev. Dr J. C. Polkinghorne, “Mathematics, the Key to the Universe”.
Meeting 532 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 25.
Minutes: volume 10 page 42.
1 March 1982: Prof. M. F. Atiyah, “Hyperbolic Polyhedic”.
Meeting 533 (talk), attendance 14.
Minutes: volume 10 page 48.
8 March 1982: Dr G. A. Reid, “Groups of matrices”.
Meeting 534 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 19.
Minutes: volume 10 page 53.
8 March 1982: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 534a (general meeting; election of officers), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 10 page 58.
10 May 1982: Mr J. C. Rickard (proponent) and Mr P. Taylor (opponent) and Mr S. J. Montgomery-Smith (opponent), “This house does not accept the Axiom of Choice” (defeated).
Meeting 535 (debate), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court), attendance 19.
Minutes: volume 10 page 60.
14 June 1982: Cricket Match (defeated).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 535a (sporting event), Old Field.
Minutes: volume 10 page 63.

1982–1983

11 October 1982: Dr T. W. Körner, “Code Makers and Code Breakers”.
Meeting 536 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 46.
Minutes: volume 10 page 65.
25 October 1982: Dr J. M. E. Hyland, “Some Problems Hilbert Had”.
Meeting 537 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 50.
Minutes: volume 10 page 70.
8 November 1982: Dr J. Skilling, “Entropy and Pictures”.
Meeting 538 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 27.
Minutes: volume 10 page 75.
22 November 1982: Dr P. T. Johnstone, “The Ubiquity of Universality”.
Meeting 539 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court), attendance 19.
Minutes: volume 10 page 78.
17 January 1983: Dr B. Bollobás, “Minkowski’s Conjecture”.
Meeting 540 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 45.
Minutes: volume 10 page 84.
31 January 1983: Dr H. Osborn, “How to get to the stars relativistically”.
Meeting 541 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 20.
Minutes: volume 10 page 90.
14 February 1983: Dr W. Sutherland, “Some relations between Topology and Algebra”.
Meeting 542 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 18.
Minutes: volume 10 page 96.
28 February 1983: Prof. R. Penrose, “Conic Cubes”.
Meeting 543 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court), attendance 25.
Minutes: volume 10 page 102.
28 February 1983: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 543a (general meeting; election of officers), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court).
Minutes: volume 10 page 109.
2 May 1983: Mr J. R. Rickard, “Fraction Games”.
Meeting 544 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 19.
Minutes: volume 10 page 111.
2 May 1983: Business Meeting.
Meeting 544a (business meeting; non-election business; election of officers), Old Combination Room, attendance 11.
Minutes: volume 10 page 115.
3 June 1983: Cricket Match (defeated).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 544b (sporting event).
Minutes: volume 10 page 116.

1983–1984

10 October 1983: Prof. J. H. Conway, “Games”.
Meeting 545 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 78.
Minutes: volume 10 page 117.
24 October 1983: Prof. H. K. Moffatt, “Newton’s Apple and Arnold’s Cat”.
Meeting 546 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 37.
Minutes: volume 10 page 123.
7 November 1983: Dr G. J. O. Jameson, “Marriage Problems”.
Meeting 547 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 27.
Minutes: volume 10 page 127.
21 November 1983: Dr A. R. D. Mathias, “Reverse Mathematics”.
Meeting 548 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 29.
Minutes: volume 10 page 132.
23 January 1984: Prof. J. C. Taylor, “Things that Anticommute in Theoretical Physics”.
Meeting 549 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 36.
Minutes: volume 10 page 137.
6 February 1984: Dr G. R. Allan, “The Greening of the Complex Plane”.
Meeting 550 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 21.
Minutes: volume 10 page 143.
20 February 1984: Prof. E. C. Zeeman, “Gears from the Greeks”.
Meeting 551 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 31.
Minutes: volume 10 page 146.
5 March 1984: Mr W. Boucher, “An Energy Crisis in General Relativity”.
Meeting 552 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 25.
Minutes: volume 10 page 152.
5 March 1984: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 552a (general meeting; election of officers), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 10 page 156.
7 May 1984: Prof. J. F. Adams, “Real Numbers, Complex Numbers, Quaternions, Cayley Numbers and …?”.
Meeting 553 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 26.
Minutes: volume 10 page 158.
8 June 1984: Cricket Match (victorious).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 553a (sporting event), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 10 page 162.

1984–1985

15 October 1984: Dr E. J. Hinch, “Fluid Dynamics in Oil Recovery”.
Meeting 554 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 28.
Minutes: volume 10 page 163.
29 October 1984: Dr A. F. Beardon, “Spheres, quaternions, and n dimensions”.
Meeting 555 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 46.
Minutes: volume 10 page 165.
12 November 1984: Prof. D. W. S. Sciama, “Cosmology, Galactic Astronomy, and Elementary Particle Physics”.
Meeting 556 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 71.
Minutes: volume 10 page 171.
26 November 1984: Dr P. M. H. Wilson, “Bernouilli Numbers”.
Meeting 557 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 38.
Minutes: volume 10 page 176.
21 January 1985: Dr D. J. H. Garling, “Whatever happened to the Infinitesimals in the Infinitesimal Calculus?”.
Meeting 558 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court), attendance 52.
Minutes: volume 10 page 181.
4 February 1985: Dr M. T. Barlow, “Sets of Fractional Dimension”.
Meeting 559 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 29.
Minutes: volume 10 page 184.
18 February 1985: Prof. P. M. Cohn, “How to swear in 3 languages without repeating yourself”.
Meeting 560 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 42.
Minutes: volume 10 page 189.
4 March 1985: Mr J. M. Edwards, “Bifurcations and Period Doubling: A possible route to Turbulence”.
Meeting 561 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 17.
Minutes: volume 10 page 193.
4 March 1985: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 561a (general meeting; election of officers), Old Combination Room, attendance 11.
Minutes: volume 10 page 199.
29 April 1985: Dr P. Goddard, “Do we really live in twenty-six dimensions, or only ten”.
Meeting 562 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 44.
Minutes: volume 10 page 200.

1985–1986

14 October 1985: Mr P. Taylor, “Some Things Which Are Not Mathematics”.
Meeting 563 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 52.
Minutes: volume 10 page 207.
28 October 1985: Dr R. G. E. Pinch, “The Love of Large Numbers”.
Meeting 564 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 46.
Minutes: volume 10 page 214.
11 November 1985: Dr J. Skilling, “Monkeys & Kangaroos”.
Meeting 565 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 27.
Minutes: volume 10 page 222.
25 November 1985: Prof. D. Williams, “On the Toss of a Coin”.
Meeting 566 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 17.
Minutes: volume 10 page 226.
3 February 1986: Dr H. T. Croft, “How to cover a Sphere with Congruent Great Circle Arcs”.
Meeting 567 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 17.
Minutes: volume 10 page 234.
17 February 1986: Dr J. C. R. Hunt, “Applied Maths in an Industrial Society”.
Meeting 568 (talk), attendance 12.
Minutes: volume 10 page 236.
24 February 1986: Dr N. Inglis, “How to win a map colouring game without humiliating your opponent”.
Meeting 569 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 20.
Minutes: volume 10 page 240.
3 March 1986: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 570a (general meeting; election of officers), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 10 page 246.
3 March 1986: Dr B. Bollobás, “The Littlewood-Offord Problem”.
Meeting 570 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 37.
Minutes: volume 10 page 246.
28 April 1986: Prof. Sir H. Bondi, “Complexity in Science”.
Meeting 571 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 21.
Minutes: volume 10 page 254.
6 June 1986: Cricket Match (defeated).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 571a (sporting event), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 10 page 254.

1986–1987

13 October 1986: Dr T. W. Körner, “What Gauss Missed: A Bigger Slice of Pi”.
Meeting 572 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 46.
Minutes: volume 10 page 257.
27 October 1986: Dr L. C. G. Rogers, “Constructing a Continuous Strictly Increasing Function with Zero Derivative Almost Everywhere”.
Meeting 573 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 37.
Minutes: volume 10 page 264.
10 November 1986: Dr J. R. Partington, “Mathematical Puzzles in Fantasy Games”.
Meeting 574 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 49.
Minutes: volume 10 page 268.
24 November 1986: Prof. P. Whittle, “Random Bonding & Colouring in Graphs: the beginnings of a selforganising system”.
Meeting 575 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 29.
Minutes: volume 10 page 272.
19 January 1987: Prof. J. F. Adams, “Topology: What is Elementary isn’t Obvious and What is Obvious isn’t Elementary”.
Meeting 576 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court), attendance 39.
Minutes: volume 10 page 275.
2 February 1987: Mr J. M. Edwards, “Sunspots, Flux Tubes and Solar Magnetism”.
Meeting 577 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 21.
Minutes: volume 11 page 5.
16 February 1987: Dr P. Goddard, “A Theory of Everything?”.
Meeting 578 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court), attendance 27.
Minutes: volume 11 page 11.
2 March 1987: Mr I. B. Leader, “Infinite Games”.
Meeting 579 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 33.
Minutes: volume 11 page 14.
2 March 1987: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 579a (general meeting; non-election business; election of officers), Junior Parlour.
Minutes: volume 11 page 19.
16 March 1987: Dr P. T. Johnstone, “Transfinite Iterations and How to Avoid Them”.
Meeting 580 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 33.
Minutes: volume 11 page 21.
23 March 1987: Dr B. Bollobás, “Ramanujan”.
Meeting 581 (talk; televised), Old Combination Room, attendance 51.
Minutes: volume 11 page 24.

1987–1988

19 October 1987: Dr M. T. Barlow, “Random Versions of Conway’s “Life””.
Meeting 582 (talk; election of officers), Old Combination Room, attendance 47.
Minutes: volume 11 page 29.
26 October 1987: Dr A. J. Mestel, “The Connection (?) between Chess and Mathematics”.
Meeting 583 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 61.
Minutes: volume 11 page 34.
9 November 1987: Dr R. G. E. Pinch, “A “Proof” of Fermat’s Last Theorem”.
Meeting 584 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 56.
Minutes: volume 11 page 37.
25 January 1988: Dr P. M. E. Altham, “What a Statistician Actually Does”.
Meeting 585 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 23.
Minutes: volume 11 page 41.
8 February 1988: Mr C. D. Wright, “A Generalisation of the Chromatic Polynomial”.
Meeting 586 (talk), attendance 32.
Minutes: volume 11 page 43.
15 February 1988: Prof. J. H. Coates, “Congruent Numbers”.
Meeting 587 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 25.
Minutes: volume 11 page 47.
22 February 1988: Dr G. R. Allan, “Analysts and Set Theory: A Case History”.
Meeting 588 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 29.
Minutes: volume 11 page 51.
29 February 1988: Mornington Crescent Championship.
Meeting 589 (recreational), Junior Parlour, attendance 25.
Minutes: volume 11 page 53.
7 March 1988: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 590a (general meeting; election of officers), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 11 page 54.
7 March 1988: Mr M. J. Richards, “Pierre de Fermat (1601–65)”.
Meeting 590 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 25.
Minutes: volume 11 page 55.
9 May 1988: Dr J. R. Norris, “Analysis in Path Space”.
Meeting 591 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 17.
Minutes: volume 11 page 58.
16 May 1988: Dr A. R. D. Mathias, “Geometry versus Arithmetic”.
Meeting 592 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 21.
Minutes: volume 11 page 62.
13 June 1988: Cricket Match (victorious).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 592a (sporting event), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 11 page 67.

1988–1989

24 October 1988: Dr G. Brightwell, “Tournaments—and how to win them”.
Meeting 593 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 38.
Minutes: volume 11 page 68.
7 November 1988: Dr M. T. Barlow, “Diffusion-limited Aggregation”.
Meeting 594 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 19.
Minutes: volume 11 page 72.
14 November 1988: Dr C. J. Read, “My Best Result—From a Mathematical and a Christian Perspective”.
Meeting 595 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 26.
Minutes: volume 11 page 77.
21 November 1988: Dr J. M. E. Hyland, “Games Logic”.
Meeting 596 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 53.
Minutes: volume 11 page 82.
5 December 1988: Dr M. R. E. Proctor, “Patterns in Convection”.
Meeting 597 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 16.
Minutes: volume 11 page 86.
23 January 1989: Dr A. C. Norman, “Mechanizing the Mathematician”.
Meeting 598 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 33.
Minutes: volume 11 page 91.
6 February 1989: Dr P. M. H. Wilson, “Tips for Elliptical Billiards”.
Meeting 599 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 33.
Minutes: volume 11 page 95.
20 February 1989: Prof. J. W. S. Cassels, “Kummer’s Quartic Surface”.
Meeting 600 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 30.
Minutes: volume 11 page 100.
11 March 1989: Prof. Sir H. P. F. Swinnerton-Dyer, Seventieth Anniversary Dinner.
Meeting 601 (dinner), Old Kitchens, attendance 41.
Minutes: volume 11 page 104.
13 March 1989: Mr I. B. Leader, “Ramsey Theory”.
Meeting 602 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 31.
Minutes: volume 11 page 107.
13 March 1989: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 602a (general meeting; election of officers), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 11 page 112.
8 May 1989: Dr L. C. G. Rogers, “How Second Best is as Good as Best”.
Meeting 603 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 22.
Minutes: volume 11 page 113.
15 May 1989: Dr S. T. C. Siklos, “Riemann Zeta Functions”.
Meeting 604 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 15.
Minutes: volume 11 page 116.
22 May 1989: Dr C. T. Sparrow, “Strange Attractors”.
Meeting 605 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 19.
Minutes: volume 11 page 120.
29 May 1989: Cricket Match (defeated).
Meeting 605a (sporting event), Old Field.
Minutes: volume 11 page 124.

1989–1990

30 October 1989: Prof. C. A. B. Smith, “Squaring the Square”.
Meeting 606 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 34.
Minutes: volume 11 page 125.
6 November 1989: Prof. A. Baker, “The a, b, c conjecture”.
Meeting 607 (talk; election of officers), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court), attendance 13.
Minutes: volume 11 page 129.
27 November 1989: Prof. P. Whittle, “Neural Nets—Overexposed or Overdue?”.
Meeting 608 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 27.
Minutes: volume 11 page 134.
29 January 1990: Prof. J. G. Thompson, “Finite Projective Planes”.
Meeting 609 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 18.
Minutes: volume 11 page 138.
12 February 1990: Mr W. T. Gowers, “Dvovetsky’s Theorem”.
Meeting 610 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 10.
Minutes: volume 11 page 141.
24 February 1990: Annual Dinner.
Meeting 611 (dinner), Private Supply Room, attendance 23.
Minutes: volume 11 page 145.
26 February 1990: Prof. C. T. C. Wall, “Roots and Reflections”.
Meeting 612 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 20.
Minutes: volume 11 page 147.
12 March 1990: Dr P. Taylor, “Linear Logic”.
Meeting 613 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 20.
Minutes: volume 11 page 152.
12 March 1990: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 613a (general meeting; non-election business; election of officers), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 11 page 155.
7 May 1990: Dr J. R. Partington, “The Theorem that Time Forgot”.
Meeting 614 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 23.
Minutes: volume 11 page 156.

1990–1991

19 November 1990: Dr E. J. Hinch, “Fractal Aggregation by Sedimentation”.
Meeting 615 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 11.
Minutes: volume 11 page 163.
3 December 1990: Dr R. G. E. Pinch, “The First Billion Digits of π”.
Meeting 616 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 30.
Minutes: volume 11 page 168.
21 January 1991: Dr A. J. Macfarlane, “Discrete Dynamical Systems—Life in One Dimension”.
Meeting 617 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 12.
Minutes: volume 11 page 174.
29 January 1991: Mr M. St.J. Owen (author) and Mr A. W. Sheppard (producer), “Teeko: An Opera in One Act”.
Meeting 618 (opera), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 11 page 181.
18 February 1991: Dr A. F. Beardon, “Jigsaws, Circles and Spirals”.
Meeting 619 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 17.
Minutes: volume 11 page 184.
4 March 1991: Mr M. St.J. Owen, “How to Tune a Piano”.
Meeting 620 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court), attendance 20.
Minutes: volume 11 page 191.
27 April 1991: Sir M. F. Atiyah, Half Gross Feast.
Meeting 621 (dinner), Private Supply Room, attendance 20.
Minutes: volume 11 page 199.
6 May 1991: Dr P. F. Linden, “How to design a green Building”.
Meeting 622 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court), attendance 10.
Minutes: volume 11 page 201.
?? ?? 1991: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 622a (general meeting; non-election business; election of officers).
Minutes: volume 11 page 205.
13 May 1991: Prof. G. B. Segal, “Geometry and Particle Physics”.
Meeting 623 (talk; election of officers), Old Combination Room, attendance 28.
Minutes: volume 11 page 206.
20 May 1991: Prof. Sir H. Bondi, “Theory of Gravitation”.
Meeting 624 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 21.
Minutes: volume 11 page 209.

1991–1992

21 October 1991: Dr T. W. Körner, “Monte Carlo Periodograms”.
Meeting 625 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 14.
Minutes: volume 11 page 212.
4 November 1991: Dr J. G. Thompson, “The monster as a Galois group”.
Meeting 626 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 21.
Minutes: volume 11 page 217.
20 January 1992: Dr I. B. Leader, “Vector Space Marriages”.
Meeting 627 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 19.
Minutes: volume 11 page 220.
3 February 1992: Mr A. W. Sheppard, “Don’t worry if you can’t prove Stoke’s theorem”.
Meeting 628 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 14.
Minutes: volume 11 page 223.
17 February 1992: Prof. J. W. S. Cassels, “Computer Aided Serendipity”.
Meeting 629 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 13.
Minutes: volume 11 page 225.
2 March 1992: Dr S. Gull, Annual Dinner.
Meeting 630 (dinner), Private Supply Room.
Minutes: volume 11 page 227.
27 April 1992: Dr R. R. Horgan, “Random Walks in Physics”.
Meeting 631 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court), attendance 8.
Minutes: volume 11 page 230.
?? ?? 1992: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 631a (general meeting; election of officers).
Minutes: volume 11 page 232.
11 May 1992: Prof. B. D. Josephson, “What’s wrong with reductionism”.
Meeting 632 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 18.
Minutes: volume 11 page 233.

1992–1993

(Details of unminuted cricket matches from 1993 to 2002 provided by Robin Bhattacharyya.)

12 October 1992: Dr R. G. E. Pinch, “Primes and Pseudoprimes”.
Meeting 633 (talk; election of officers), Old Combination Room, attendance 25.
Minutes: volume 11 page 237.
26 October 1992: Dr B. Bollobás, “The Fall of Some Famous Conjectures in Elementary Geometry”.
Meeting 634 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 45.
Minutes: volume 11 page 242.
9 November 1992: Prof. H. K. Moffatt, “The Energy of Knots”.
Meeting 635 (talk), Lecture-Room Theatre (I Great Court), attendance 14.
Minutes: volume 11 page 246.
23 November 1992: Dr R. M. Williams, “Building Blocks of Space & Time”.
Meeting 636 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 19.
Minutes: volume 11 page 250.
18 January 1993: Mr M. A. Wainwright, “Lambda Calculus”.
Meeting 637 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 13.
Minutes: volume 11 page 254.
1 February 1993: Dr W. B. R. Lickorish, “Knots and Polynomials”.
Meeting 638 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 22.
Minutes: volume 11 page 258.
8 March 1993: Prof. J. C. Taylor, “Temperature and the Imaginary Time Cycle”.
Meeting 639 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 11 page 263.
?? ?? 1993: Cricket Match (rained off).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 639a (sporting event), Old Field.

1993–1994

(Details of unminuted meetings in 1993–1994 provided by Robin Bhattacharyya.)

11 October 1993: Dr I. B. Leader, “Derived Sets”.
Meeting 640 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 28.
Minutes: volume 11 page 264.
25 October 1993: Mr K. M. Buzzard, “A Proof That You Can’t Prove Everything”.
Meeting 641 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 40.
Minutes: volume 11 page 272.
1 November 1993: Mr M. A. Wainwright, (ten minute substitute talk on fallacies; scheduled speaker absent).
Meeting 641a (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 23.
8 November 1993: Dr A. C. Norman, “How Fast Can I Do Sums Using Big Numbers, And Why?”.
Meeting 642 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 27.
22 November 1993: Dr W. T. Gowers, “Using the Continuum Hypothesis to Solve a Problem in Plane Geometry”.
Meeting 643 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance 25.
17 January 1994: Dr A. F. Beardon, “Tessellating and Iterating in Curved Space”.
Meeting 644 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 20.
31 January 1994: Dr J. M. E. Hyland, “Sequential Computation”.
Meeting 645 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance 24.
14 February 1994: Dr P. T. Johnstone, “Five Into Six Goes Twice”.
Meeting 646 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 20.
28 February 1994: Dr M. J. Perry, “How Black Is A Black Hole?”.
Meeting 647 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 19.
7 March 1994: Dr K. N. V. Kartha, “The Vedic Identity of Ramanujan’s Identities”.
Meeting 648 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 27.
25 April 1994: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 648a (general meeting; election of officers), Old Combination Room.
30 April 1994: Dr I. B. Leader, Annual Dinner.
Meeting 649 (dinner), Private Supply Room, attendance 12.
16 June 1994: Cricket Match (defeated).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 649a (sporting event), St John’s College.

1994–1995

(If you can improve or add to the information here on talks in 1994–1995, please let us know.)

10 October 1994: Mr K. Buecker, “p-adic numbers”.
Meeting 650 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 39.
Minutes: volume 11 page 306.
24 October 1994: Dr P. M. H. Wilson, “Euler nos & Arrangements of lines in the Plane”.
Meeting 651 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 23.
Minutes: volume 11 page 308.
7 November 1994: Dr H. Osborn, “Quantum Tunnelling”.
Meeting 652 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 21.
Minutes: volume 11 page 311.
21 November 1994: Dr A. D. Gardiner, “Problems, Theories & Applications”.
Meeting 653 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 32.
Minutes: volume 11 page 313.
23 January 1995: Dr C. J. Read, (about making rigorous some applied mathematics used in quantum field theory?).
Meeting 654 (talk), Old Combination Room.
(unknown date): (unminuted).
Meeting 655 (talk).
6 March 1995: Prof. J. H. Coates, “Elliptic Curves”.
Meeting 656 (talk).
23 June 1995: Cricket Match (defeated).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 656a (sporting event), Old Field.

1995–1996

9 October 1995: Dr T. W. Körner, “How to Hunt Submarines”.
Meeting 657 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 60.
Minutes: volume 11 page 316.
23 October 1995: Dr S. P. Bursill-Hall, “The Dangers of Engineers doing Maths”.
Meeting 658 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 72.
Minutes: volume 11 page 322.
6 November 1995: Dr J. Robinson, “What’s wrong with fluid dynamics”.
Meeting 659 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 36.
Minutes: volume 11 page 326.
20 November 1995: Dr S. P. Norton, “Everything’s a Game”.
Meeting 660 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 36.
Minutes: volume 11 page 326.
22 January 1996: Dr J. Rallison, “Fluid Dynamics in the Kitchen”.
Meeting 661 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 46.
Minutes: volume 11 page 328.
5 February 1996: Mr G. J. McCaughan, “Why Leibniz was right”.
Meeting 662 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 24.
Minutes: volume 11 page 335.
22 February 1996: Sir M. F. Atiyah, Annual Dinner.
Meeting 663 (dinner), Old Kitchens, attendance 34.
Minutes: volume 11 page 338.
11 March 1996: Dr W. T. Gowers, “How easy is it for drunkards to escape their past”.
Meeting 664 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 31.
Minutes: volume 11 page 340.
21 June 1996: Cricket Match (defeated).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 664a (sporting event), St John’s College.

1996–1997

14 October 1996: Prof. H. S. Tropp, “Pioneers of Computing”.
Meeting 665 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 34.
Minutes: volume 11 page 344.
28 October 1996: Prof. R. S. MacKay, “Ghost Tori”.
Meeting 666 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 40.
Minutes: volume 11 page 348.
11 November 1996: Dr C. T. Sparrow, “Irrational Rotations”.
Meeting 667 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 37.
Minutes: volume 11 page 351.
25 November 1996: Dr A. C. Norman, “Some Recipes for Pi”.
Meeting 668 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 42.
Minutes: volume 11 page 354.
20 January 1997:
- Mr J. H. Dawes, “Rayleigh Bénard Convection”.
- Mr R. Bhattacharyya, “What now after Fermat?”.
- Mr D. G. Sheiham, “Rotations in 3D”.
- Mr J. E. Hurd, “Cryptography”.
Meeting 669 (talks), Old Combination Room, attendance 36.
Minutes: volume 11 page 358.
3 February 1997: Dr T. E. Forster, “Gödel’s Incompleteness Theorem”.
Meeting 670 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 21.
Minutes: volume 11 page 365.
17 February 1997: Prof. R. R. Weber, “Bargaining, Arbitration and Voting Games”.
Meeting 671 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 25.
Minutes: volume 11 page 367.
3 March 1997: Dr R. Hoyle, “Patterns in Natural Systems”.
Meeting 672 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 18.
Minutes: volume 11 page 370.
4 March 1997: Dr M. R. E. Proctor, Annual Dinner.
Meeting 673 (dinner), Master’s Lodge.
Minutes: volume 11 page 374.
16 June 1997: Cricket Match (rained off).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 673a (sporting event), Old Field.
18 June 1997: Cricket Match (Adams didn’t turn up, TMS played seven a side).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 673b (sporting event), Old Field.

1997–1998

13 October 1997: Dr T. W. Körner, “Marriage, Duels and Such Like Entanglements”.
Meeting 674 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 70.
Minutes: volume 11 page 376.
27 October 1997: Prof. H. S. Tropp, “The Origin of the Mathematical (Computing) Laboratory: 1937–”.
Meeting 675 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 18.
Minutes: volume 11 page 380.
10 November 1997: Dr R. G. E. Pinch, “How to Share a Secret”.
Meeting 676 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 27.
Minutes: volume 12 page 6.
17 November 1997: Dr N. P. Strickland, “Counting Holes”.
Meeting 677 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 20.
Minutes: volume 12 page 11.
19 January 1998: Dr E. J. Hinch, “A Load of Balls in Newton’s Cradle”.
Meeting 678 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 29.
Minutes: volume 12 page 18.
26 January 1998: Dr M. G. Worster, “The Fluid Mechanics of Melting and Solidification: Why does the ice melt so quickly in your whisky?”.
Meeting 679 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 17.
Minutes: volume 12 page 23.
16 February 1998: Dr M. J. Perry, “Time Machines”.
Meeting 680 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 40.
Minutes: volume 12 page 29.
2 March 1998: Dr J. Saxl, “Groups and Graphs”.
Meeting 681 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 26.
Minutes: volume 12 page 35.
9 March 1998: Prof. Sir M. V. Berry, Annual Dinner.
Meeting 682 (dinner), Old Kitchens.
Minutes: volume 12 page 40.
9 June 1998: Cricket Match (defeated).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 682a (sporting event), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 12 page 45.

1998–1999

12 October 1998: Dr S. P. Bursill-Hall, “The Trinity Hangman: Local Boy Makes Good”.
Meeting 683 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 39.
Minutes: volume 12 page 46.
26 October 1998: Prof. W. T. Gowers, “Fractal Geometry: more than just a few pretty pictures?”.
Meeting 684 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 88.
Minutes: volume 12 page 50.
9 November 1998: Dr H. Osborn, “Can relativity be extended to acceleration?”.
Meeting 685 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 35.
Minutes: volume 12 page 55.
23 November 1998: Prof. H. E. Huppert, “How fluid is the earth—did it move for you?”.
Meeting 686 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 26.
Minutes: volume 12 page 59.
18 January 1999: Ms E. F. Shuckburgh, “A stirring tale of mixing: Chaotic advection, transport barriers and ozone depletion”.
Meeting 687 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 35.
Minutes: volume 12 page 64.
1 February 1999: Prof. J. C. R. Hunt, “Does the chaos theory tend to overestimate errors in weather predictions?”.
Meeting 688 (talk), Old Combination Room.
Minutes: volume 12 page 72.
15 February 1999: Dr J. Nekovar, “Symplectic Geometry: from Optics to Number Theory”.
Meeting 689 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 12.
Minutes: volume 12 page 75.
1 March 1999: Prof. T. J. Pedley, “Bioconvection; Pattern forming in swimming Micro-organisms”.
Meeting 690 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 11.
Minutes: volume 12 page 81.
8 March 1999: Dr B. Bollobás, Annual Dinner.
Meeting 691 (dinner), Master’s Lodge, attendance 42.
Minutes: volume 12 page 84.
11 June 1999: Cricket Match (victorious).
[Scorecard]
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 691a (sporting event), Old Field.
Minutes: volume 12 page 88.

1999–2000

11 October 1999: Dr J. R. Norris, “When does coagulation lead to gelation?”.
Meeting 692 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 6.
Minutes: volume 12 page 91.
25 October 1999: Dr A. D. Burbanks, “Gödel, Goodstein and the Edge of Provability”.
Meeting 693 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 30.
Minutes: volume 12 page 94.
8 November 1999: Dr S. T. C. Siklos, “Singularities and the Big Bang”.
Meeting 694 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 42.
Minutes: volume 12 page 101.
22 November 1999: Dr D. J. C. MacKay, “How to Swing”.
Meeting 695 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance 10.
Minutes: volume 12 page 105.
24 January 2000: Dr A. Iserles, “Computation in Lie Groups”.
Meeting 696 (talk), Butler House Party Room, attendance 16.
Minutes: volume 12 page 108.
7 February 2000: Dr P. T. Johnstone, “De Morgan’s Laws and the Axiom of Part 1A”.
Meeting 697 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 32.
Minutes: volume 12 page 112.
21 February 2000: Dr R. M. Williams, “The Twin Paradox—Which twin is older?”.
Meeting 698 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 16.
Minutes: volume 12 page 115.
6 March 2000: Dr E. P. S. Shellard, “Cosmology, Methods and Madness”.
Meeting 699 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 10.
Minutes: volume 12 page 120.
13 March 2000: Prof. E. J. Hinch, Annual Dinner.
Meeting 700 (dinner), Master’s Lodge.
Minutes: volume 12 page 123.
22 June 2000: Cricket Match (victorious).
[Scorecard]
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 700a (sporting event), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 12 page 124.

2000–2001

(There was no Secretary in 2000–2001, and minutes were not taken.)

16 October 2000: Dr S. P. Bursill-Hall, “The Good, the Bad, and the Downright Stupid: Why you don’t believe Copernicus”.
Meeting 701 (talk), Junior Parlour.
23 October 2000: Dr J. M. E. Hyland, “What is the Eckmann Hilton Argument?”.
Meeting 702 (talk), Butler House Party Room.
7 November 2000: Dr D. J. Wischik, “How (not) to Crash the Internet”.
Meeting 703 (talk), Junior Parlour.
22 January 2001: Mr B. J. Green, “Hardy and Littlewood”.
Meeting 704 (talk), Junior Parlour.
5 February 2001: Prof. M. R. E. Proctor, “Patterns and Patches”.
Meeting 705 (talk), Junior Parlour.
19 February 2001: Dr I. B. Leader, “The Axiom of Choice”.
Meeting 706 (talk), Junior Parlour.
12 March 2001: Dr R. E. Hunt, Annual Dinner.
Meeting 707 (dinner), Master’s Lodge.
15 June 2001: Cricket Match (victorious).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 707a (sporting event), Old Field.

2001–2002

(There was no Secretary in 2001–2002, and minutes were not taken.)

15 October 2001: Dr S. P. Bursill-Hall, “And now for something completely different—when engineers did maths and Mathmos talked to God”.
Meeting 708 (talk), Old Combination Room.
29 October 2001: Dr T. W. Körner, “From waves to wavelets: 2000 years in under an hour”.
Meeting 709 (talk), Old Combination Room.
12 November 2001: Ms J. R. Gog, “How to model your favourite disease”.
Meeting 710 (talk), Old Combination Room.
26 November 2001: Mathematical Call My Bluff.
Meeting 711 (recreational), Old Combination Room.
28 January 2002: Dr H. Osborn, “Conformal symmetry”.
Meeting 712 (talk), Old Combination Room.
11 February 2002: Dr A. M. Stacey, “Why greedy isn’t best”.
Meeting 713 (talk), Old Combination Room.
25 February 2002: Dr T. K. Carne, “Geometry for the simple-minded”.
Meeting 714 (talk), Old Combination Room.
4 March 2002: Dr J. R. Lister, “Dykes”.
Meeting 715 (talk), Old Combination Room.
11 March 2002: Prof. M. R. E. Proctor, Annual Dinner.
Meeting 716 (dinner), Master’s Lodge.
Minutes: volume 12 page 129.
13 March 2002: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 717 (general meeting; election of officers), I4 Nevile’s Court.
17 June 2002: Cricket Match (victorious).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 717a (sporting event), Old Field.

2002–2003

14 October 2002: Prof. W. T. Gowers, “A Handful of Unsolved Problems”.
Abstract: If you are not a research mathematician, you may find it hard to imagine just how much is not known. Of course, there are a few famous unsolved problems (the Riemann hypothesis, Goldbach’s conjecture and the like) but I shall not be discussing those. Instead, I shall look at questions that are much less well-known but still interesting and more representative of the sort of mathematics that goes on behind the headlines.
Meeting 718 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 80.
Minutes: volume 12 page 130.
28 October 2002: Dr S. P. Bursill-Hall, “Which came first: God or maths?”.
Abstract: … which will be about how we came to the idea that pure mathematics told us anything about the real or physical world, and how it gained the status of the supreme science in the Renaissance.
Meeting 719 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 60.
Minutes: volume 12 page 132.
11 November 2002: Prof. E. J. Hinch, “Explaining the Flow of Elastic Liquids”.
Meeting 720 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 21.
Minutes: volume 12 page 136.
25 November 2002: Mr E. T. Crane, “Complex dynamics: Julia and the rabbit”.
Abstract: You have probably seen pretty computer-generated pictures of fractal sets, for instance Julia sets and the famous Mandelbrot set. I will try to give you an idea of how much serious mathematics has been done to understand their properties, and what they tell us about more complicated chaotic dynamical systems.
Meeting 721 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 34.
Minutes: volume 12 page 137.
2 December 2002: Mathematical Call My Bluff.
Meeting 722 (recreational), Old Combination Room, attendance 28.
Minutes: volume 12 page 138.
20 January 2003: Dr I. B. Leader, “Van der Waerden’s Theorem”.
Abstract: Suppose we paint each natural number red or blue. Is it always possible to find three equally-spaced numbers (in other words, an arithmetic progression of length 3) that are all the same colour?
Meeting 723 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 30.
Minutes: volume 12 page 139.
3 February 2003: Prof. N. G. Turok, “Can We Understand the Universe?”.
Abstract: The talk will explain how recent observations have dramatically confirmed modern cosmological theory, based on general relativity. I will then review the most popular model for the origin of the big bang, inflationary theory, and a new model we have recently developed, the cyclic universe model, based on notions from M theory. An observational test to discriminate inflation from the cyclic model using measurements of the polarisation of the microwave sky will be explained.
Meeting 724 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 34.
Minutes: volume 12 page 141.
17 February 2003: Dr O. M. Riordan, “The Eternity Puzzle”.
Meeting 725 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 27.
Minutes: volume 12 page 142.
4 March 2003: Prof. G. R. Grimmett, “Random Mirrors”.
Abstract: In 1905, Lorentz posed the problem of studying the behaviour of light particles when moving through a field of heavier particles. This has led over the last 30 years to a collection of very interesting, beautiful, and hard problems for mathematicians, only few of which have been solved. The speaker will summarise such problems, and try to explain why they are so hard.
Meeting 726 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 14.
Minutes: volume 12 page 146.
10 March 2003: Dr I. B. Leader, Annual Dinner.
Meeting 727 (dinner), Master’s Lodge, attendance 29.
Minutes: volume 12 page 149.
11 March 2003: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 728 (general meeting; election of officers), I11 New Court, attendance 7.
Minutes: volume 12 page 150.
19 June 2003: Cricket Match (victorious).
[Cricket photos from 2003 and 2004]
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 728a (sporting event), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 12 page 153.

2003–2004

13 October 2003: Prof. T. W. Körner, “Sorting Things Out”.
Abstract: Applying mathematics to a real world problem is like pulling the handle of a fruit machine. Usually nothing happens, but occasionally the floor is covered with coins. The problem of sorting things gives rise to such an occasion.
Meeting 729 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 80.
Minutes: volume 12 page 157.
27 October 2003: Dr S. P. Bursill-Hall, “More Sex and Virgin Mathmos”.
Meeting 730 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 50.
Minutes: volume 12 page 164.
10 November 2003: Prof. D. H. Fremlin, “Rental Harmony”.
Abstract: Suppose that seven students have agreed to share a house with seven rooms. The total rent is fixed, but they have to agree on both the allocation of rent to each room and on the allocation of rooms to residents. I will sketch a proof that, subject to some fairly natural conditions, this can be done in such a way that no student will want to move to another room.
Meeting 731 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 42.
Minutes: volume 12 page 169.
24 November 2003: Dr R. E. Hunt, “What is Maths Useful For?”.
Abstract: Is maths (as opposed to simple arithmetic) actually relevant to people in the real world? Does it matter whether it is or not anyway? I’ll describe a few examples, some well-known and others obscure – but all interesting or (with any luck) amusing – of where maths has been crucial in solving real-world problems.
Meeting 732 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 37.
Minutes: volume 12 page 174.
1 December 2003: Mathematical Call My Bluff.
Meeting 733 (recreational), Old Combination Room, attendance 39.
Minutes: volume 12 page 177.
19 January 2004: Prof. J. H. Coates, “The Oldest Problem”.
Abstract: I shall discuss the 1000 year old congruent number problem as an illustration of the basic problems of the modern arithmetic theory of elliptic curves, and its tantalizingly simple conjectural solution provided by the conjecture of two Trinity mathematicians Bryan Birch and Peter Swinnerton-Dyer.
Meeting 734 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance 49.
Minutes: volume 12 page 180.
26 January 2004: Dr G. P. Paternain, “The Poincaré Conjecture”.
Abstract: I will try to give an account of some of the main results that paved the way to a possible proof, including Hamilton’s programme and results on the Ricci flow.
Meeting 735 (talk), Adrian House Seminar Room, attendance 29.
Minutes: volume 12 page 183.
16 February 2004: Mr T. J. Barnet-Lamb, “Homage to Hofstadter, or thereabouts…”.
Meeting 736 (talk), Adrian House Seminar Room, attendance 43.
Minutes: volume 12 page 186.
1 March 2004: Dr E. Cheng, “Logic vs illogic: why mathematics is easy and life is hard”.
Abstract: Generations of even well-educated adults are under the delusion that mathematics is difficult, and that mathematicians must therefore be very clever. In this talk I will explode this myth and show that mathematics is in fact easy, and moreover that mathematics is precisely “that which is easy” for an appropriate sense of ‘easy’. We will take ‘easy’ to mean ‘attainable by logical thought processes’. As a corollary, or a converse, or a contrapositive or something, we will discuss the importance of illogical thought processes in non-mathematical life and the fact that life is thus difficult. Hence or otherwise we will deduce that mathematics is not life, nor can it nor should it be.
Meeting 737 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance 46.
Minutes: volume 12 page 187.
4 March 2004: Dr A. C. Norman, Annual Dinner.
Meeting 738 (dinner), Master’s Lodge, attendance 27.
Minutes: volume 12 page 191.
5 March 2004: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 739 (general meeting; election of officers), A8 Bishop’s Hostel, attendance 10.
Minutes: volume 12 page 192.
18 June 2004: Cricket Match (victorious).
[Cricket photos from 2003 and 2004]
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 739a (sporting event), Old Field.
Minutes: volume 12 page 198.

2004–2005

11 October 2004: Prof. W. T. Gowers, “How to think of complicated proofs of simple theorems”.
Abstract: All too often in lectures and books about mathematics, one is simply told a theorem and its proof. This can leave important questions unanswered, such as the following: why should one bother with the theorem, does the proof have certain unavoidable features (this question one may feel particularly acutely if it is long and complicated), and how did anybody think of the proof in the first place? These questions matter because if you can answer them then you understand the theorem in a completely different and much better way. I shall spend this talk attempting to demystify at least one theorem, and encouraging you to think in a similarly critical way about all the mathematics you learn.
Meeting 740 (talk), Adrian House Seminar Room, attendance 140.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
25 October 2004: Prof. H. Osborn, “Anti-commuting Numbers”.
Meeting 741 (talk), Adrian House Seminar Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
8 November 2004: Prof. J. M. E. Hyland, “The Cayley Numbers”.
Meeting 742 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
22 November 2004: Dr B. J. Green, “The mathematics of G.H. Hardy and J.E. Littlewood”.
Abstract: G.H. Hardy and J.E. Littlewood are two of Trinity’s most famous mathematicians. I shall talk about some of their work, a great deal of which is still highly relevant today. In particular I shall talk about Waring’s problem, which concerns writing integers as the sum of 4 squares, or 9 cubes (say), and Goldbach’s problem.
Meeting 743 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
29 November 2004: Mathematical Call My Bluff.
Meeting 744 (recreational), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
24 January 2005: Mr S. L. Webster, “Unanswered Questions in Cosmology”.
Abstract: Cosmology is the study of the dynamics of the Universe as a whole and is, therefore, a subject inevitably riddled with conjecture and unsolved mysteries. Whilst one can make a surprising amount of progress with conventional physics, many fundamental questions remain unanswered, not least where the Universe came from and why it exhibits such remarkable symmetry. I shall give a brief introduction to cosmology, without dwelling on technicalities, before outlining some of these problems and some of the more modern ideas (such as inflation) that go a small way towards solving them.
Meeting 745 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
7 February 2005: Dr M. J. Perry, “M Theory”.
Abstract: A principal goal of fundamental physics has been a unified picture of all of the interactions: gravitational, electromagnetic and strong and weak nuclear forces. Progress towards this goal led to the spectacular development of quantum field theory in the last century. However, a picture emerged that could not contain gravity. String theory provided partial answers to this problem, but the appearance of various magical coincidences led to the development of a series of ideas known as M theory. M theory contains all string theories as different faces of the same fundamental object although the precise details remain unknown.
Meeting 746 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
21 February 2005: Dr T. A. Fisher, “The Geometry of Numbers”.
Abstract: We owe to Minkowski the observation that certain results in number theory can be made almost intuitive by the consideration of figures in Euclidean space. In my talk I will draw some of these pictures and use them to solve some elementary problems.
Meeting 747 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
7 March 2005: Prof. A.-C. Davis, “Exploring Extra Dimensions through Cosmology”.
Abstract: Recent developments in theories in extra spatial dimensions have resulted in the theories being formulated in such a way that they are amenable to testing. I will briefly discuss these recent developments and then show how such theories can be tested with cosmology. I will introduce all concepts needed and will assume no prior knowledge of the subject matter.
Meeting 748 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
15 March 2005: Prof. Sir M. J. Rees, Annual Dinner.
Meeting 749 (dinner), Master’s Lodge, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
16 March 2005: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 750 (general meeting; non-election business; election of officers), Q1 Great Court, attendance 8.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
28 April 2005: General Meeting.
Meeting 751 (general meeting; election of officers), Q1 Great Court, attendance 8.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
24 June 2005: Cricket Match (victorious).
[Match report]
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 751a (sporting event), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.

2005–2006

10 October 2005: Prof. I. B. Leader, “Clueless voting”.
Abstract: Our starting point is the following obviously silly question. Suppose that you want to vote in a yes/no poll on some issue, and you want your vote to be right, but you have no idea at all about the issue. What should you do?
[Notes]
Meeting 752 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
24 October 2005: Prof. E. J. Hinch, “The flow and non-flow of sand grains”.
Meeting 753 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
7 November 2005: Dr A. C. Norman, “Computers, calculus and confusion”.
Abstract: In some respects quite a lot of calculus is easy to automate in the form of computer programs. However when people have done that they always seem to end up with systems that can be caused to give nonsense results. This talk looks at some of the pitfalls and considers the underlying questions (a) are computers a natural cause of confusion? (b) is calculus a natural cause of confusion?
Meeting 754 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
21 November 2005: Dr Peter J. Smith, “Does Gödel’s Theorem matter to mathematicians?”.
Abstract: Gödel famously showed that, in any theory in which you do enough arithmetic, there will be unprovable true sentences of arithmetic. Is this just a logical curiosity? Or does his Incompleteness Theorem impact on ‘ordinary’ mathematics?
[Slides]
[Handout]
Meeting 755 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
28 November 2005: Mathematical Call My Bluff.
Meeting 756 (recreational), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
23 January 2006: Prof. B. Bollobás, “Thieves, hobbies and maps”.
Abstract: In the talk we shall present some unusual proofs of several combinatorial results.
Meeting 757 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
6 February 2006: Mr D. Vella, “Life at interfaces”.
Abstract: The physics of an air-water interface seems strange to those of us who are too big to stand still on water and too slow to run across it. In the “real world” there are many phenomena that seem counterintuitive but can be understood using mathematics… and a bit of physics. I will discuss some of these phenomena, how animals use them to their advantage and the mathematics that allows us humans to understand what they are doing.
Meeting 758 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
20 February 2006: Mr J. D. Cranch, “Spaces for the stable minded”.
Abstract: Sometimes natural geometric questions in low dimensions can be hard. Despite being much harder to visualize, things can be easier with lots of dimensions. There are ways of replacing some difficult low-dimensional problems with easier high-dimensional ones. These ideas lead naturally to the construction of spectra, the abstract objects that many algebraic topologists really spend their time thinking about. This talk will be a quick tour of these ideas, with several pictures.
Meeting 759 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
6 March 2006: Prof. G. R. Grimmett, “Random triangles”.
Abstract: Drop n points at random into a bounded subset of the plane, and find the area of the smallest triangle thus formed. This elementary problem involves the least arcane geometrical shape, but is related to a variety of questions of current mathematical interest including Poisson convergence, Kolmogorov complexity, and the Heilbronn triangle problem. It is linked also to a beautiful formula discovered by Morgan Crofton of Trinity College (Dublin) and published in the 9th edition of Encyclopedia Britannica in 1868.
Meeting 760 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
14 March 2006: Dr M. R. Tehranchi, Annual Dinner.
Meeting 761 (dinner), Master’s Lodge, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
15 March 2006: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 762 (general meeting; election of officers), C6 New Court, attendance 15.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
14 May 2006: General Meeting.
Meeting 763 (general meeting), R15 Blue Boar Court, attendance 7.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
13 June 2006: Cricket Match (victorious).
[Match report]
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 763a (sporting event), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.

2006–2007

9 October 2006: Prof. W. T. Gowers, “Finding large primes and factorizing large numbers: is there any alternative to a brute-force search?”.
Abstract: Suppose you are given a number n and asked to determine whether it is prime. One time-honoured method is to see whether it is a multiple of 2, then of 3, then of 5, and so on, all the way up to the square root of n. This works fine for a number such as 147, but is not very practical if n has a hundred digits, say. A related problem, of great importance in cryptography, is to factorize a large integer that somebody gives you. Again, it can be done by simply searching through all the primes until you stumble on a factor, but again this takes far too long if the number is large. It is not at all obvious how one might go about finding faster approaches to these computational tasks. However, some very clever techniques have been discovered, and some of these are not especially hard to understand. This talk will present a few of them.
[Notes]
Meeting 764 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance 200.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
23 October 2006: Prof. A. G. Thomason, “Colours, Cycles and the odd Lollipop”.
Abstract: The four colour problem (that the countries of any map can be coloured using only four colours so that no two countries with a common border have the same colour) has generated interest for a long time. Sixty years ago a couple of TMS members, Cedric Smith and William Tutte, made some striking contributions. These will be described, together with more recent developments, in this self-contained talk.
Meeting 765 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
6 November 2006: Dr E. F. Shuckburgh, “The mathematics of weather and climate”.
Abstract: Many aspects of weather and climate can be understood by considering idealised models and using basic physical principles together with standard mathematical techniques used in all branches of applied mathematics. This talk will explore the mathematics behind the weather and climate by exploring two case studies which display rather different physics. The first is that of winter storms that hit the UK, and second is the El Nino phenomena which dominates the year-to-year variability of weather over much of the Pacific region. Understanding the physical mechanisms which drive these weather features and their sensitivity to changes allows us to make short-term forecasts and longer-term climate predictions.
[Notes]
Meeting 766 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
20 November 2006: Prof. M. R. E. Proctor, “Convective and absolute instabilities in large domains”.
Abstract: We are accustomed to thinking of the stability of a configuration of a physical system in black and white terms: either small disturbances grow or they decay. But there are many important situations where the system is ultimately stable, but which can act as a powerful amplifier for a long period of time. The situation is particularly important when the system has a long spatial extent, so that these non-instabilities (convective instabilities) can produce large amplitude structures which can be sustained by small amounts of noise. In contrast, when the system is absolutely unstable no noise is needed to sustain the structures. This dichotomy is related to the behaviour of linear dynamical systems with non-normal matrices.
Meeting 767 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
27 November 2006: Mathematical Call My Bluff.
Meeting 768 (recreational), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
22 January 2007: Prof. I. B. Leader, “Vector Space Marriages”.
[Notes]
Meeting 769 (talk), Junior Parlour, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
5 February 2007: Mr J. D. T. Jane, “The Ricci Flow and some other maths that looks good as pictures”.
Abstract: The Ricci Flow has caused much activity and excitement over the last twenty five years. For surfaces embedded in three dimensions the situation is easily visualised; I will try to give a brief overview of some of the ideas in order that we have a little geometric intuition in the area. Then I will explain a method to investigate the effects the Ricci Flow has on the straight lines of our (not straight at all) space.
Meeting 770 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
19 February 2007: Dr D. Tong, “Quantum Geometry: What the String Saw”.
Abstract: Big circles are the same as small, topology is ambiguous, and quantum geometry is pointless (because there aren’t any points).
[Notes]
Meeting 771 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
5 March 2007: Prof. J. Saxl, “Some classical group therapy”.
Meeting 772 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
13 March 2007: Dr S. P. Bursill-Hall, Annual Dinner.
Meeting 773 (dinner), Master’s Lodge, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
14 March 2007: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 774 (general meeting; election of officers), L4 New Court, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
22 June 2007: Cricket Match (victorious).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 774a (sporting event), Old Field.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.

2007–2008

15 October 2007: Prof. B. Bollobás, “Set Sums and Projections of Bodies”.
Abstract: The sum S of k sets of integers A_1,A_2,…,A_k is defined as S=A_1+A_2+…+A_k={a_1+…+a_k:a_i∈A_i for every i}. For non-empty finite sets A_i, it is easily seen that the size |S| of the sum is at least |A_1|+…+|A_k|-k+1. There are similar classical inequalities for subsets of additive groups – indeed, such an equality was proved by Cauchy and rediscovered by Davenport. In the talk, aimed at first year undergraduates, we shall consider some related inequalities concerning the minima and maxima of set sums. For example, given |A_1+A_2|, |A_1+A_3| and |A_2+A_3|, what can we say about the sum of the three sets? As we shall see, these problems are intimately connected to inequalities involving the volumes of “canonical” projections of a body in R^k.
Meeting 775 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
22 October 2007: Prof. N. G. Turok, “What Banged?”.
Abstract: The last decade has seen huge advances in our understanding of the makeup and history of the universe. Some properties of the universe – its geometry and the nature of the primordial density inhomogeneities – are astonishingly simple. Other properties – like the existence of dark energy – are very hard to reconcile with standard cosmology. And the cosmic singularity from which everything emerged remains a deep mystery. I will discuss a radical new approach, the cyclic model, based on ideas from string theory and M theory, which explains the observations without invoking a period of cosmic inflation. I will describe how future observations could distinguish the inflationary and cyclic models.
Meeting 776 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
5 November 2007: Dr T. E. Forster, “Avoiding the Paradoxes by Typing”.
Abstract: Russell and Whitehead famously avoided the paradoxes by regimenting sets (and languages) into disjoint levels in a system called Type Theory. Over the years this approach and the Zermelo-Fraenkel approach have diverged greatly; since the ZF approach is much better known there are now some interesting backwaters which invite closer attention than they usually get. This talk will be an introduction to the descendents of type theory and will try to make connections with other themes in the philosophy of mathematics.
Meeting 777 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
19 November 2007: Dr M. Dunajski, “Twistor Transform”.
Abstract: Twistor Theory was originally proposed as a way to unify quantum mechanics with general relativity. Its status as a physical theory remains unclear but it found unexpected applications in pure mathematics.
[Notes]
Meeting 778 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
26 November 2007: Mathematical Call My Bluff.
Meeting 779 (recreational), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
21 January 2008: Prof. B. J. Green, “Ramanujan and some of his mathematics”.
Abstract: Every Trinity mathmo ought to know something about the story of the great Indian genius Srinivasa Ramanujan and how he came to Trinity to work with Hardy and Littlewood in the early 20th century. In this talk I hope, in addition, to emphasise some respects in which his work is still highly relevant today.
Meeting 780 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
4 February 2008: Prof. G. W. Gibbons, “The angular sum of a triangle”.
Abstract: If we take light rays as straight lines, and if light is bent by a gravitational field, then the angular sum of a triangle cannot equal 180 degrees. In this talk I will use the Gauss-Bonnet theorem to discuss the angular sum of triangles in the vicinity of black holes, and elsewhere in the universe.
[Notes]
Meeting 781 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
18 February 2008: Dr T. A. Fisher, “Local-to-global principles in number theory”.
Abstract: An important source of problems in number theory is the study of Diophantine equations, i.e. systems of (usually polynomial) equations that must be solved in integers or rational numbers. One hope is that these “global” problems can be attacked by putting together “local” information, that is by looking at the problem one prime at a time (and over the reals). This works particularly well for quadratic forms, but generalisations are surprisingly hard to come by.
Meeting 782 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
3 March 2008: Dr R. B. Gramacy, “Designing Supercomputer Experiments”.
Abstract: Computer experiments often require dense sweeps over input parameters to obtain a qualitative understanding of their response. However, such sweeps are unnecessary in regions where the response is easily predicted; well-chosen designs could allow a mapping of the response with far fewer simulation runs. I explore a modern approach that couples two standard regression models: Gaussian processes and treed partitioning. A Bayesian perspective yields an explicit measure of (nonstationary) predictive uncertainty that can be used to guide sampling. The methods will be illustrated through several examples, including a motivating example which involves the computational fluid dynamics of a NASA re-entry vehicle.
[Notes]
Meeting 783 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
11 March 2008: Prof. T. W. Körner, Annual Dinner.
Meeting 784 (dinner), Old Kitchens, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
12 March 2008: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 785 (general meeting; election of officers), B7 Whewell’s Court, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
16 June 2008: Cricket Match (defeated).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 785a (sporting event), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.

2008–2009

13 October 2008: Dr I. Smith, “Billiards and Beyond”.
Abstract: We’ll discuss some of the surprising mathematics involved in playing billiards (albeit on some unusually shaped tables without pockets). There are connections to number theory, rainbows and electron transport in metals.
Meeting 786 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
27 October 2008: Prof. W. B. R. Lickorish, “Knots and Links”.
Abstract: The study of knots and links of curves in ordinary 3-dimensional space is an easily visualisable example of topology as ‘flexible geometry’. Knots are divided into various classes, tabulations are produced, yet (as with prime numbers) no real classification seems feasible. Even telling whether two knots are really different can be tricky.
Meeting 787 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
10 November 2008:
- Mr S. Z. W. Lip, Cosmology.
- Ms V. R. Neale, Additive Combinatorics.
- Mr I. A. Coomaraswamy, Fluid Dynamics.
Meeting 788 (talks), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
24 November 2008: Prof. J. D. Barrow, “On Pictures in Mathematics”.
Abstract: A look at the role of pictures and images in mathematics, from the first hand-illustrated manuscripts, graphs, and diagrams to the iconic modern images of the atomic bomb, the London Underground map, impossible figures, and the Mandelbrot set.
Meeting 789 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
1 December 2008: Mathematical Call My Bluff.
Meeting 790 (recreational), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
19 January 2009: Prof. Sir H. P. F. Swinnerton-Dyer, “Rational points on cubic curves, or how to be famous without proving anything”.
Abstract: This talk explains how the notorious Birch/Swinnerton-Dyer conjecture came about. In its simplest form, the conjecture gives information about the rational points on cubic curves.
Meeting 791 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
2 February 2009: Dr P. K. Friz, “From Lie groups to option pricing”.
Abstract: Modern financial theory tells us that prices of options are given by expectations of the payoffs with respect to some pricing measure, typically written as infinite dimensional integrals of some functional against Wiener measure. The fast and accurate numerical evaluation of such integrals is an ongoing challenge. I will explain some recent ideas based on the Lie group structure of iterated integrals. The resulting “cubature” formulae can be traced back to no one less than Sir Isaac Newton.
Meeting 792 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
16 February 2009: Prof. M. R. E. Proctor, “Instability and pattern formation”.
Abstract: When physical systems with many symmetries become unstable, the result is a pattern with fewer symmetries. But typically there are an infinite number of such patterns, and the selection between them is due to nonlinear effects. Many cases can be understood by means of ‘equivariant bifurcation theory’. I will give a brief discussion of this with some common examples of patterns that can be predicted on symmetry grounds.
Meeting 793 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
2 March 2009: Dr J. N. Butterfield, “Mixing physics and logic: is a quantum system an object?”.
Abstract: The founding fathers of quantum theory debated whether the peculiar behaviour of quantum systems, such as their non-classical statistics, meant that they were not objects. In current philosophy of physics, the debate continues, using the tools of modern logic and metaphysics. This talk will review the state of play.
Meeting 794 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
9 March 2009: Prof. R. E. Goldstein, Annual Dinner.
Meeting 795 (dinner), Master’s Lodge, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
10 March 2009: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 796 (general meeting; election of officers), Room 17, 4A Bridge Street, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
12 June 2009: Mr L. Z. Zhao and Ms N. Goldberg, “The Dons Problem”.
Joint with: Trinity College Music Society.
Meeting 797 (opera), Hall.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
18 June 2009: Cricket Match (victorious).
[Match report]
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 797a (sporting event), Old Field.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.

2009–2010

12 October 2009: Dr M. R. Tehranchi, “What is Brownian motion?”.
Abstract: Probabilistic modelling plays a crucial role in natural sciences, engineering, and economics. One of the most basic building blocks of these models is the stochastic process called Brownian motion. I will discusss ways in which this fundamental process arises in several diverse contexts in applied and pure mathematics.
[Notes]
Meeting 798 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
26 October 2009: Dr C. P. Caulfield, “Dimensional analysis and similarity solutions: How to get physics to do mathematics for you”.
Abstract: Mathematics is the language that describes the natural world, but it is sometimes a bit hard to read the handwriting. In this talk, I will introduce the concept of ‘dimensional analysis’ as a very powerful tool for understanding the key quantities of interest in a range of physical situations. A particularly famous and appropriate example is the accurate estimation of the (classified) yield of the Trinity nuclear test by the Trinity mathematician G. I. Taylor using (declassified) photographs. I will also discuss some closely related techniques for the identification of ‘similarity solutions’ which often manage to capture the important features of a physical system with surprisingly little mathematical heavy lifting.
Meeting 799 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
3 November 2009: Dr T. E. Forster and Prof. J. M. E. Hyland and Prof. L. C. Paulson and Dr Peter J. Smith, Panel Discussion “Logic and Mathematics”.
Joint with: Trinity College Science Society.
Meeting 799a (panel discussion), Adrian House Seminar Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
9 November 2009: “N is a Number: A Portrait of Paul Erdös”.
Meeting 800 (film night), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
23 November 2009: Dr G. P. Paternain, “Hydrodynamics and contact topology”.
Abstract: I will try to explain connections between some of the equations you study in IB Fluids and the field of contact topology. I will make a deliberate attempt to convince you to read the wonderful book by Arnold and Khesin ‘Topological methods in Hydrodynamics’.
Meeting 801 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
30 November 2009: Mathematical Call My Bluff.
Meeting 802 (recreational), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
18 January 2010: Mr Paul J. Smith, “How to cheat at infinite coin tossing”.
Abstract: Graphs (or networks) have a rich history of study stretching back over 250 years. I shall talk about one particular infinite graph, some of its surprising properties, how it arises naturally out of coin tossing, and how to beat Derren Brown at his own game.
Meeting 803 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
1 February 2010: Dr J. A. Rasmussen, “Vectors and spheres”.
Abstract: The tangent bundle to the n-dimensional sphere is the set of all pairs (x,v), where x is a point in the sphere, and v is a vector in R^{n+1} tangent to x at p. I’ll discuss the geometry and topology of this space and of a more general class of spaces known as vector bundles on spheres.
Meeting 804 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
15 February 2010: Prof. D. J. Spiegelhalter, “Quantifying epistemic uncertainty: How ignorant are you?”.
Abstract: A Bayesian perspective allows probability theory to be used as a formalism for epistemic uncertainty: ie a measure of our confidence in a current or past state of the world about which we are ignorant (although someone else might know the truth). This allows probability to be used to quantify our uncertainty about a suspect’s guilt, the image on the Turin shroud, the average effect of a medical treatment, or whether Jane Austen died before Napoleon. I will look at how these ideas have developed and are being used in practice, and how scoring rules can be used to assess how well you can quantify your doubt. A test will be given at the end, and a small prize awarded for the person who best knows what they don’t know.
Meeting 805 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
1 March 2010: Dr J. N. Butterfield, “The uses of infinity: Emergent phenomena in physics”.
Abstract: ‘Emergence’ and ‘reduction’ are buzz-words in both physics and philosophy. Both physicists and philosophers disagree about the extent to which we can understand large-scale or complex phenomena in terms of their microscopic parts. Examples include everyday phenomena, like the freezing and boiling of liquids, and fancy ideas like fractals. I will pour some oil on these troubled waters by arguing that many cases exemplify both emergence and reduction.
[Notes]
Meeting 806 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
9 March 2010: Prof. M. R. E. Proctor, Annual Dinner.
Meeting 807 (dinner), Master’s Lodge, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
10 March 2010: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 808 (general meeting; election of officers), Blue Boar Common Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
6 June 2010: Cricket Match (victorious).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 808a (sporting event), Old Field.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.

2010–2011

11 October 2010: Prof. I. B. Leader, “Van der Waerden’s Theorem”.
Abstract: Suppose we are presented with a long string of beads. The beads come in two colours, red and blue, but there is not necessarily any ‘pattern’ to the way they are threaded on the string. Can we guarantee to find three equally-spaced beads of the same colour? For example, if the 5th, 7th and 9th beads were all blue then this would count. This question leads on to some beautiful mathematics.
Meeting 809 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
25 October 2010: Dr D. Tong, “Physics and the Integers”.
Abstract: Leopold Kronecker once said “God made the integers, the rest is the work of man”. In this talk I will show that this statement is experimentally wrong. I will explain how the integers arise in Nature and explain that they are emergent objects, no more fundamental than the concept of smell. I will also comment on the yet-to-be-discovered laws of physics and provide some (admittedly circumstantial) evidence that they are not based on the integers. We are not living in the world of “The Matrix”. (Probably).
Meeting 810 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
8 November 2010:
- Mr C. J. Donnelly, “The Excitation of Dynameis; The linear Magnetorotational Instability”.
- Mr D. E. Twigg, “Supersymmetry and the Witten Index”.
- Mr A. D. J. Shannon, “Geometry without Geometry”.
Meeting 811 (talks), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
29 November 2010: Mathematical Call My Bluff.
Meeting 812 (recreational), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
24 January 2011: Prof. T. Tao, “The Universality Phenomenon”.
Abstract: It is a remarkable phenomenon in nature and in mathematics that the statistical behaviour of large complex systems are often governed by _universal laws_ that, miraculously, are almost completely independent of the microscopic mechanics of such systems. Well known examples of such universal laws include the laws of thermodynamics, Benford’s law, and the central limit theorem; the zeroes of the zeta function are also conjectured to be governed by another universal law arising from random matrix theory. We will survey some of these laws, including some recent theoretical developments by several authors (including the speaker) that have rigorously established universality for some random matrix models.
Meeting 813 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
7 February 2011: Dr J. D. Cranch, “Mythical beasts in algebra”.
Abstract: For decades, mathematicians have motivated much work by referring to several deeply interesting algebraic objects which sadly fail to exist under the normal definitions. I will exhibit several of these, including the field with one element and the localisation of the integers at the infinite prime, and discuss what they might really mean. Not much familiarity is required with any algebraic objects which really do exist.
Meeting 814 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
16 February 2011: Football Match (defeated 7:5).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 814a (sporting event), St John’s College, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
21 February 2011: Prof. J. M. E. Hyland, “Quadratic algebras and operads”.
Abstract: Algebras are vector spaces equipped with a multiplication (for example, the cross product in 3-space). Quadratic algebras are a special class of algebra with a duality theory involving the so-called dual numbers. The dual numbers give the algebra of differentiation. One can pass from algebras to suitable algebraic theories, called operads. There is a notion of a ‘quadratic operad’ with an analogous rich theory involving Lie algebras. Using examples, I shall try to explain some of this and its significance.
Meeting 815 (talk), Old Combination Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
7 March 2011: Dr R. Nickl, “Gauss’ invention of the method of least squares and the normal distribution, and its impact on the mathematical foundations of statistics”.
Abstract: Even after C.F. Gauss had published the Disquistiones Arithmeticae, that contain some of his most fundamental number-theoretical work, in 1801, he was known only to specialists in Europe. This changed drastically after he predicted, late in 1801, the position of the planet Ceres after it had ‘disappeared behind the sun’. Gauss immediately achieved fame throughout Europe. A technique that Gauss used in this prediction, as well as in much of his subsequent observational work, was the method of least squares to correct ‘intrinsic’ measurement errors in an efficient way. This method, in conjunction with the normal or ‘Gaussian’ distribution, has been a cornerstone of modern statistics ever since, reaching into the foundations of likelihood-based inference. I shall discuss the main mathematical and methodological ideas behind Gauss’ invention and trace some key aspects of its history into the 21st century, highlighting a variety of key statistical ideas that derive from it.
Meeting 816 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
8 March 2011: Prof. T. W. Körner, Annual Dinner.
Meeting 817 (dinner), Master’s Lodge, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
16 March 2011: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 818 (general meeting; election of officers), Blue Boar Common Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
13 June 2011: Cricket Match (victorious).
[Match report]
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 818a (sporting event), St John’s College, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.

2011–2012

10 October 2011: Dr S. P. Bursill-Hall, “God, as you know, is a Trinity woman”.
Abstract: So you think you know about the world? And just because you’re a mathmo, you understand the world? How unlikely is that? This talk will be about how a bunch of mathmos noticed that they regularly talk to God (like all mathmos do) and this changed the course of history and created the modern world.
Meeting 819 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
24 October 2011: Prof. Z. Ghahramani, “Probabilistic Learning Machines and the Information Revolution”.
Abstract: Information plays a central role in 21st century science, commerce and society. We have huge data sets of measurements collected from large-scale scientific experiments, exciting commercial opportunities arising from exploiting web-scale information, and vast stores of knowledge available to society on the internet. Probabilistic approaches for modelling uncertainty and learning from data are essential to the effective use of these vast stores of information. Modern probabilistic approaches to building learning machines are grounded in the mathematics of the 18th century Reverend Thomas Bayes. I will describe the foundations of this field and our recent work on stochastic processes and nonparametric statistics, along with examples of a number of applications to big data problems such as information retrieval, recommendation, genomic data analysis, financial prediction, and robotics.
[Notes]
Meeting 820 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
31 October 2011: Prof. B. Bollobás, “Long Life Problems”.
Abstract: The solution of a good mathematical problem often leads to new questions that are even deeper and more important than the original problem. In the talk I shall present some questions with close Trinity ties which arose about hundred years ago, have gone through several incarnations, and are still alive today. I shall also present the striking proof of a recent result concerning one of these questions
Meeting 821 (talk), Centre for Mathematical Sciences MR2, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
7 November 2011: Prof. K. M. Buzzard, “Think locally, act globally”.
Abstract: Are there any rational solutions to x²+y²=-1? No, because there are no real solutions. How about x²+y²=3? Again the answer is no, but one way of showing this is by constructing a ‘local field’ — the 3-adic numbers — which contains the rationals as a dense subfield, and in which it’s easy to check that there are no solutions. It is far easier to solve equations in these local fields than in global fields such as the rationals, and conversely, sometimes solutions in all local fields can imply solutions in a global field too.
Meeting 822 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
21 November 2011: Dr N. G. Berloff, “Superfluid states of matter: from superfluid helium to polariton condensates”.
Abstract: When in 1937 liquid helium was first observed to flow with negligible viscosity through a narrow gap, it was clear that, at low temperatures, helium was different from ordinary fluids. The attemps to understand this phenomenon (called superfluidity by Pyotr Kapitza) led to the development of a two-fluid theory by Lev Landau. In this theory the fluid is modelled as an interacting mixture of superfluid and normal fluid components. In more recent times, an aspect of superfluidity that has been emphasized as most central is that the superfluid velocity is associated with the gradient of the phase of the macroscopic classical complex-valued matter field. Such a description impies that the system possesses a Bose–Einstein condensate (a form of matter that emerges when particles collapse into the same lowest-energy state) — with the matter field being the condensate wavefunction — and, therefore, can be described by a nonlinear equation for classical waves, known as the nonlinear Schrodinger equation. This description has the ingredients necessary to produce many of the aspects of superfluidity, such as frictionless flow below the Landau critical velocity, two-fluid hydrodynamics, quantized vortices, and metastable persistent flow in a doughnut-shaped geometry. These features of superfluidity have been experimentally observed not only in liquid helium, but also in ultracold gases and very recently in condensates of semiconductor microcavity polaritons — entities comprising both matter and light. How the condensate model can be modified and applied to study the dynamics of these various superfluid systems is the subject of my talk.
Meeting 823 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
28 November 2011: Mathematical Call My Bluff.
Meeting 824 (recreational), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
6 February 2012: Prof. J. R. Lister, “Stretching, bending, twisting and coiling; building a fluid-mechanical sewing machine”.
Abstract: Anyone awake at breakfast-time can observe that a stream of honey falling onto toast from a little height buckles and coils on impact. This talk will describe the physics and mathematics of a falling viscous thread. Prediction of the coiling frequency is surprisingly complex. And what happens when you move the toast?
[Notes]
Meeting 825 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
20 February 2012: Prof. G. P. Paternain, “Contact geometry in dynamics: the 3-body problem”.
Abstract: We have known for a long time how to write down the equations of motion of a satellite that moves under the influence of the gravitational fields of the Earth and the Moon, but surprisingly, we still do not fully understand the long term behaviour of the satellite since we cannot explicitly solve the equations. At the end of the 19th century, Poincare noticed the presence of chaos in the system and kick-started the modern theory of dynamical systems. Recently a new type of geometry called contact geometry (the odd dimensional relative of symplectic geometry) has been proposed as a tool for understanding this old problem in celestial mechanics. In the talk I will try to explain what contact geometry is and why it is relevant for the 3-body problem.
Meeting 826 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
4 March 2012:
- Prof. Lord M. J. Rees, “From Planets to Universes”.
  Abstract: Improved astronomical instruments have revealed a rich variety of new phenomena: most stars are known to be orbited by retinues of planets; huge black holes lurk in the centres of galaxies; the dominant force in the expanding universe is a mysterious ‘push’ that overcomes normal gravity. Computer simulations are now powerful and realistic enough to be crucial in modelling these phenomena. To extend the limits of our understanding will require a ‘unified’ theory—and we need to take seriously the idea that space is hugely more extensive than the domain we can actually observe.
- Mr L. Z. Zhao, “Branching-selection processes”.
  Abstract: Branching processes with selection can be seen as a probabilistic genetic model for fixed populations. In this talk, I shall concentrate on a class of particle systems first investigated by Eric Brunet and Bernard Derrida in 1997, introducing the model as well as a discussion as to some of the results and expected results I have been working on this past year.
- Mr B. Barber, “Compressions in Extremal Combinatorics”.
  Abstract: How big can a family of finite sets satisfying some property be? One obstacle to answering this type of question is a lack of structure. Compressions are one way of imposing structure on families of sets. What are they, and what can we use them to find out?
- Mr K. Wong, “The Past, the Future and Elsewhere: a Geometric Excursion into Spacetime”.
  Abstract: Applied mathematicians rationalise about the natural world in terms of cause and effect. Causality imposes a geometric ordering on the fabric of space and time. One can concoct oddities – eternal black holes – where it is theoretically possible to access parallel universes and travel back in time.
- Dr T. E. Forster, “Ordinals”.
  Abstract: Ordinals were the last acquisition by the Mathematical Zoo for the Number House, a donation by Cantor in the late 19th century. Unlike naturals, integers, rationals, reals and complexes they can be infinite as well as finite, and therein lies much of their interest. In this talk I shall explain where they come from, what they can do for you, and why (despite their being infinite) you (a mere finite being) need to worry about them.
- Mr W. Sonnex, “Dependent Type Theory—Proving Theorems by Writing Programs”.
  Abstract: A quick tutorial about writing programs in Agda, a language with dependently typed values. In Agda we can write a program, and then a mathematical proof that the program behaves correctly, in exactly the same language, through the magic of dependent types.
- Ms R. Newton, “Local Reciprocity: a Mysterious Map from Number Theory”.
  Abstract: I will start by defining the p-adic numbers, the classic example of a local field. I will go on to state the existence of the local reciprocity map and describe the cases for which an explicit formula has been found. I will end by trying to explain what makes it difficult to compute local reciprocity in the remaining cases.
- Mr P. Ford, “Freezing”.
  Abstract: We will take a whistlestop tour of some of the physics involved in ice formation in oceans, rivers and Antarctica; this will range from turbulent convection to the slow viscous flow of glaciers. We will also look at some the experiments and models being developed in the CMS to study different aspects of ice.
- Dr V. R. Neale, “Adding Integers”.
  Abstract: There are many fascinating questions that one can ask about adding integers. Some of these have been answered, some are open problems, and some have not even been asked yet. A common feature of many of these questions is that they are easy to ask, yet potentially difficult to answer, and finding an answer may use tools from a number of areas of mathematics. I shall try to give a flavour of some of the problems that have been asked (both answered and unanswered), leaving the audience to think of their own unasked questions.
- Mr A. D. J. Shannon, “What’s the Point?”.
  Abstract: he notion of a ‘point’ in geometry seems fairly basic, but during the 20th century a generalised and abstracted notion provided much new insight and intuition. More recently, studying some of the mathematical ideas underlying theoretical physics has led mathematicians to consider so-called non-commutative geometry. ‘Spaces’ in this setting have algebras of functions on them which are non-commutative, but there is no actual classical geometric space underlying them! However, the generalised notion of a point does allow one to develop a certain amount of geometric intuition. In this talk, I shall explain the modern point of view on points in algebraic geometry, and explain in some examples how this allows one to study non-commutative algebras in a way that resembles what we might normally consider geometry.
- Mr M. Chiodo, “Decision Problems in Group Theory”.
  Abstract: Around the 1930’s, Alan Turing developed the concept of a Turing machine, the basic framework for what would eventually become modern computation. However, this construction rests on a paradox: such machines cannot always compute their own future behaviour. Such classes of problems are referred to as “incomputable”, and they appear in many areas of mathematics, from set theory, to algebra, and even to geometry and topology. In this talk I will give an overview of Turing’s construction, outline how this gives rise to some incomputable problems in group theory, and give examples of some corresponding incomputable problems in geometry.
- Mr H. Funakoshi, “Blackhole Thermodynamics”.
- Prof. T. W. Körner, “Back in the Stone Age”.
  Abstract: Doing a PhD in the 1970’s. Reminiscences and (ignorable) advice.
Meeting 827 (symposium), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
4 March 2012: Prof. I. B. Leader, Annual Dinner.
Meeting 827a (dinner), Old Kitchens, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
5 March 2012: Prof. G. R. Grimmett, “Y-Δ”.
Abstract: Since its discovery around 1899, the star-triangle (or Y-Δ) transformation has become an important tool in the theory of disordered physical systems. It turns out in addition to have an important connection to tilings of the plane.
Meeting 828 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
12 March 2012: Prof. W. T. Gowers, “How to define enormous positive integers”.
Abstract: Suppose you and a friend play a game where you each define a positive integer and the person whose number is higher wins. You’re allowed fifteen minutes to do it and your definition has to be self-contained. If you’ve been to this talk and your friend hasn’t, then you will win.
Meeting 829 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
15 March 2012: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 830 (general meeting; non-election business; election of officers), Blue Boar Common Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.

2012–2013

8 October 2012: Dr S. P. Bursill-Hall, “Why Mathmos Rule the World: Always Have, Always Will”.
Abstract: Bursill-Hall was educated – at least in some sense – in France, America, Canada, and England; most of his learning coming from dubious public houses in Devon and he ended up at Cambridge University, and has managed to avoid the workhouse or madhouse ever since. He has taught undergraduate courses in history of mathematics and most aspects of history of science at Cambridge and a few other places foolish enough to invite him to talk. It is not known where his ‘off’ button is, but chocolate usually shuts him up temporarily. He is currently 39 years old, and has been for many years.
Meeting 831 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
15 October 2012: Prof. D. J. Spiegelhalter, “Numeracy and the Media: is it a Lost Cause?”.
Abstract: I shall look at the portrayal of numbers in the news, with particular attention to risk stories of the ‘cats cause cancer’ variety, and the use of ghastly statistical graphics. After (with luck) getting some cheap laughs, I shall consider whether things are getting better or worse, and make a few tentative suggestions for how we all might help.
Meeting 832 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
22 October 2012: Dr D. J. Acheson, “What’s the Problem with Maths?”.
Abstract: Why are so many people scared stiff of mathematics? Quite apart from anything else, the subject is full of wonderful surprises, and I will consider several of them, suitable for a wide spectrum of ages, and ranging from a piece of mathematical ‘conjuring’ to the question of whether mathematics can explain the legendary Indian Rope Trick.
Meeting 833 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
29 October 2012: Dr J. R. Gog, “Why Biologists Need Mathmos”.
Abstract: It is impossible to think about physics without mathematics. What about biology? Here, Dr Gog will argue that the biologists need us mathematicians. The genome revolution has changed everything, and we are entering an amazing time. It does not matter if you think you are a pure or applied mathematician, there’s something going on here that you should keep an eye on…
Meeting 834 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
12 November 2012: Prof. B. J. Green, “The Sylvester-Gallai Theorem”.
Abstract: The Sylvester-Gallai Theorem states that, given any set P of n points in the plane, not all on one line, there is a line passing through precisely two of them (and ‘ordinary line’). I will discuss the history of this theorem and a couple of proofs of it. After that I will hint at some more recent work which establishes that there must in fact be at least n/2 ordinary lines for all sufficiently large enough n. I’ll also discuss some examples of sets with few ordinary lines, which involve some quite interesting constructions involving elliptic curves. The talk will be accessible to Part IA students.
Meeting 835 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
19 November 2012: Prof. H. Osborn, “Pulling Oneself Up By One’s Bootstraps in Theoretical Physics”.
Abstract: Baron von Munchhausen escaped a swamp by pulling on his bootstraps. Sometimes it may be possible to derive results in physics or other areas from general principles with little apparent input. I will describe how such bootstrap methods were once all the rage, then fell out of fashion, but may be enjoying a resurgence.
Meeting 836 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
26 November 2012: Mathmo Call My Bluff.
Meeting 837 (recreational), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
21 January 2013: Dr T. E. Forster (proponent) and Prof. I. B. Leader (opponent), “This House Does Not Accept the Axiom of Choice” (defeated).
Meeting 838 (debate), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
28 January 2013: Prof. J. M. E. Hyland, “Understanding the Lambda Calculus: 40 Years in the Dark”.
Abstract: The lambda calculus is the foundation for modern functional programming. The pure calculus first appeared in a paper by Alonzo Church in 1932. I encountered it 40 years later, but only 40 years after that did I begin to understand what it is. The story is indicative of the nature of abstraction in mathematics.
Meeting 839 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
4 February 2013: Prof. M. G. Worster, “Marine Ice Sheets”.
Abstract: Melting of the great ice sheets of Antarctica and Greenland has the potential to raise sea level significantly. Whereas many inland ice sheets are controlled by a balance between accumulation of snow at high altitudes and melting at low altitudes, marine ice sheets, which flow into the ocean, are controlled dynamically by the rate at which ice detaches from the submarine bedrock along which it flows to form floating ice shelves. Fundamental aspects of the flow of marine ice sheets can be understood using viscous fluid dynamics. I shall describe recent laboratory and mathematical studies of marine ice sheets, which are helping us to understand what controls them from collapse.
Meeting 840 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
11 February 2013: Dr S. M. Pitts, “Risk and Ruin”.
Abstract: Mathematical models for premium income and claim payments are important in the assessment of risk in insurance. I will describe some current risk models, and illustrate the use of mathematical ideas and techniques in ruin theory.
Meeting 841 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
18 February 2013: Dr J. Goedecke, “Abstraction in Mathematics”.
Abstract: The word abstraction often sounds daunting to many non-mathematicians, and probably also to some mathematicians. However, abstraction is all around us: not only in mathematics, but also in the way we form terms and concepts in our language. For example we all group together houses, schools, college chapels and skyscrapers under the word “building”. So if we know something that is common to all buildings (for example that they have to be maintained), then we know this for every building we meet without having to work it out anew in each case. Mathematics builds heavily on abstraction. Some even say that abstraction is the main ingredient in mathematics. I will present some examples of mathematical concepts that arise as abstractions of well-known situations which every undergraduate has met. My research area – category theory – can be called the most abstract area of mathematics. We will try to explore the point of view and underlying principles that drive category theorists to their very abstract way of thinking.
Meeting 842 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
24 February 2013:
- Prof. Sir W. T. Gowers, “Some Open Problems in Additive Combinatorics”.
- Mr K. Wong, “Even physicists use group theory!”.
  Abstract: An ex-IMO mathmo once explained to me that mathematical knowledge is divided into the good (pure), the bad (methods) and the ugly (physics). Obviously it was thought that cute ideas like group theory are purely recreational and have no place in the ugly business of modelling the real world. The reality is rather different. Theoretical physics is a quest for beauty, and symmetry is its guiding principle. In this talk, I’ll show you how group theory is used to solve mechanics problems where symmetry plays a role. This talk should be accessible to first years – I’ll assume that you vaguely recognise the words “group” and “vector space” but I’ll introduce representation theory from scratch in an intuitive way.
- Mr H. Funakoshi, “Simulating Quantum Mechanics on Computers”.
  Abstract: There are many physical situations which are heavily influenced by quantum mechanical effects, which we just can’t deal with analytically. This raises the question: while it might be (relatively) obvious how to do simulations involving classical physics, for example as with computational fluid dynamics, how might one go about simulating quantum mechanical systems on computers? I’ll begin by describing the path integral picture of quantum mechanics, and then demonstrate that by looking at the resulting formulae in the right way, we end up with various probabilistic methods of doing such computations.
- Mr F. R. W. M. Manners, “Finitary and Infinitary Mathematics, Regularity and the Crossover Between Combinatorics and Analysis”.
  Abstract: Szemeredi’s regularity lemma is a powerful tool in combinatorics, and has been described as a “structure theorem for graphs”. Both the statement and the proof can seem rather unenlightening—unless you see the analogy with some very well-known results in analysis and probability. More precisely, regularity is what you get when you take the proofs of these results and accidentally try to run them in a finite world. I’ll try to present this picture while finding time to say what regularity is good for, and maybe touch on the machinery of compactness and ultrafilters that does all this stuff for you.
- Dr M. B. Batchelor, “Making it Count: Looking Forward to a Life in Mathematics”.
  Abstract: Working with the Part III students and PhD students has been a terrific privilege. Getting to know some of them well, following their progress through PhD’s, or not, on into the working world, in academia or out, has given me a chance to observe what the employment options are in this difficult economic climate. Difficult, but exciting too, in that as a group, Cambridge mathematics students, undergraduates, Part III’s and PhD’s have considerable influence. It’s a time when using that potential to best advantage could make a real difference to the relationship between mathematics and other areas of technological research. Using that potential, making that difference, does require a bit of thought. I will talk about some of the trends I have seen, how they might develop, and invite you to start thinking.
- Ms K. Wan, “Tails of our ancestors”.
  Abstract: In the beginning… {insert favorite deity here} created the universe, and with it life started with tiny microscopic organisms. It soon transpired that locomotion in general, and swimming in particular, was a good idea. So these microorganisms evolved tails, which they moved around to propel themselves in their fluid environments. These tails are what Biologists call “cilia and flagella”, made up of microtubules and motor proteins, but to the logical eye of the mathematician these are fascinating, nonlinear structures which are subject to large-amplitude deformations and stochastic periodic actuation. We ask the question, how can one use the wisdom of mathematics, to better appreciate the wisdom of Nature?
- Mr T. Gillespie, “Proof by Picture”.
  Abstract: In this talk I will try and show how pictures and diagrams are used to give insight into (and even proofs of) many theorems in mathematics. I will take a few examples of theorems from different areas (although mainly geometry) and demonstrate how their proof can be summarized by a simple picture. I want my talk to be accessible to everyone, so I intend to start very basic, but will hopefully have time to include some examples from fields such as knot theory and homotopy theory.
- Mr S. Loesch, “Programming Languages, Treated Formally”.
  Abstract: Ever since the first computer programs were written, programming errors have been a fundamental problem for developers as well as users. They cause computers to crash, medical equipment to malfunction and rockets to explode. To make sure that a program is free of error, one can run it to test if it behaves correctly. In practice however, programs have infinitely many possible inputs and behaviours. Alternatively one can try to formally verify by rigorous mathematics that a program is correct. To give this a sound basis, one has to formally define what a program (of a certain programming language) is and what it actually does. In my talk I will explain how this can be done and give an overview of the general research area.
- Mr D. Civin, “Noether, Bruhat, Morawetz”.
  Abstract: I will present a brief, non-technical overview of how the geometry of a physical system can be used to predict its evolution in time. In particular, I will focus on Einstein’s Field Equations which describe the physical phenomenon of gravitation. After a (very) short description and history of the general theory of relativity, I’ll go on to discuss the pivotal contributions of three mathematicians to this theory, namely Emmy Noether, Yvonne Fouret-Bruhat and Cathleen Morawetz.
- Mr Z. L. Low, “The Humble Arrow in Mathematics”.
  Abstract: There are two prominent notions in mathematics denoted by an arrow: one is the idea of a mapping from one sort of thing to another, and the other is implication. Prima facie, these two notions seem rather unrelated, but in fact there is a deep connection between the two which manifests itself in several different ways. The fundamental idea came from the Brouwerian school of intuitionism and has since been developed from an informal principle into various rigorous equivalences, and it remains a topic of research even today.
- Dr H. Hunt, “The remarkable accuracy of the Trinity College Clock”.
  Abstract: The Trinity Clock in Great Court is quite a prominent feature of the college, at least to look at. And it has a rather curious way of announcing the hours, once for Trinity and a second time for St John’s. It is always within a second or two of the correct time and yet it hardly ever requires adjustment. Does this mean that the mechanism is unaffected by the elements? What about temperature, pressure, humidity? And does the gravitational pull of the moon make any difference? The pendulum on the Trinity Clock has been instrumented to measure period and amplitude to great accuracy. The time is compared with UTC obtained from a GPS receiver. All of this data is streamed continuously to the web at http://www.trin.cam.ac.uk/clock/. If you thought that the physics of a pendulum was simple, then think again!
Meeting 843 (symposium), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
24 February 2013: Prof. D. J. Spiegelhalter, Annual Dinner.
Meeting 843a (dinner), Old Kitchens, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
4 March 2013: Prof. S. Tavaré, “Combinatorics and Cancer”.
Abstract: It is difficult to follow the evolution of a cancer over large numbers of cell divisions. Instead of using direct measurements, it is possible to infer features of this evolution from indirect measurements such as patterns of mutations in the tumour. I will give an overview of two stochastic processes that arise in understanding tumour heterogeneity, the spatial structure of mutations in tumour cells. Time allowing, I will describe how Approximate Bayesian Computation can be used for inference in this setting. Biological context will be provided!
Meeting 844 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
11 March 2013: Prof. M. R. E. Proctor, “So Many Dynamos”.
Abstract: Dynamo theory is concerned with the generation of magnetic fields by motion in electrically conducting fluids. This process, quite straightforward in a conventional generator, is more complex in homogeneous fluids. I will discuss various different mechanisms of dynamo action and their application to the magnetic fields of astrophysical bodies.
Meeting 845 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
13 March 2013: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 846 (general meeting; election of officers), Blue Boar Common Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
16 June 2013: Cricket Match (defeated).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 846a (sporting event), Old Field.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.

2013–2014

14 October 2013: Dr S. P. Bursill-Hall, “God, as you know, is a Trinity man, but is She a mathmo?”.
Abstract: This will be about how mathematics became the supreme way of knowing, but for all the wrong reasons … sufficiently wrong for you to think twice about telling the world you’re a mathmo, let alone a Trinity mathmo. It just might have been better to have come up to read sociology …
Meeting 847 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
21 October 2013: Prof. I. B. Leader and Dr T. E. Forster, “Does Mathematics need a philosophy?—A discussion.”.
[Notes]
Meeting 848 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
28 October 2013: Dr H. Hunt, “Maths problems in Engineering—handling infinity”.
Abstract: I am an engineer who uses a lot of maths. One of the difficulties I encounter regularly is dealing with zero and infinity, because these are abstract concepts (nothing in the real world is infinite, and nothing that exists is zero). Mathematical models are comfortable with zero and infinity, for instance Hooke’s law for springs – the spring can extend to infinity, and the maths says that a bouncing ball will bounce an infinite number of times before stopping. As for zero, an infinite wire of finite mass has zero width. But there is more. Can we assume that a rail (on a train track) is infinitely long? This is a useful assumption for sound radiation. What about a power cable between its supports – can that be thought of as infinite? A lot hinges on the answers to the integral over sin and cos from 0 to infinity, which are 1 and 0 respectively. An engineer can prove these results very simply.
Meeting 849 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
4 November 2013: Prof. T. W. Körner, “Thinking at Random”.
Abstract: When we are at school we are told that you cannot get proofs by just throwing things down at random. However sometimes we are so stupid that choosing at random may be the only way to show that something happens.
Meeting 850 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
11 November 2013: Prof. A. J. Mestel, “Carry on taking Fluids!”.
Abstract: Thus was I instructed by my G.P. when I was a Trinity undergraduate all too many years ago. So I took his advice, and here’s some of the farrago that followed.
[Notes]
Meeting 851 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
18 November 2013: Prof. S. M. Bird, “Do pharmacological interventions reduce drugs-related deaths? What statistical methods are there—and how can we use them to find out?”.
Abstract: Powerful well-designed randomized controlled trials together with intelligence gleaned from the clinical follow-up of research cohorts of HIV-infected patients have transformed the life expectancy of HIV-infected persons from less than 10 years in the 1980s to the loss of 10 years from life-expectancy in the 21st century. By contrast, Scotland lost more lives to opiate-related deaths in the five years from 2006–2010 than to HIV /AIDS in 30 years. Why? To what extent do pharmacological or criminal justice interventions reduce opiate-related deaths? How do we find out…? Sheila describes discoveries in the heroin injectors’ story from 1980 to 2012, and how they were made.
Meeting 852 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
25 November 2013: Dr V. R. Neale, “Some unsung mathematical heroines”.
Abstract: I’ll pick some interesting female mathematicians of the past, and talk a little about their lives and work in mathematics.
Meeting 853 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
2 December 2013: Mathmo Call My Bluff.
Meeting 854 (recreational), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
20 January 2014: Prof. B. Bollobás, “Ancient Problems Today”.
Abstract: Whenever one thinks of problems that have occupied the attention of mathematicians for centuries, number theoretic problems spring to mind: Fermat’s Last Theorem, Goldbach’s Conjecture, and the Twin Primes Conjecture. But, as it happens, there are some problems of geometry which, in various incarnations, have been around for two millennia. In the talk I shall present a number of results about such problems, starting with results obtained in antiquity and the Middle Ages, continuing with theorems of Cauchy and Cayley, and ending with some recent results and unsolved problems. The talk will be accessible to freshmen, but will hold challenges for research students as well.
Meeting 855 (talk), Centre for Mathematical Sciences MR2, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
24 January 2014: Prof. I. B. Leader, CUSU Shadowing Scheme: “Think of a Number”.
Joint with: Trinity College Science Society.
Meeting 855a (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
27 January 2014: Prof. R. E. Goldstein, “Synchronization of Cilia”.
Abstract: From unicellular green algae to the lining of our respiratory systems are found hair-like appendages, known as cilia, whose coordinated beating results in transport of fluid essential for life. For decades there has been speculation about the origins of the synchronization seen in nature, but it is only recently that theory and experiments (mostly carried out here in DAMTP ) have combined to provide quantitative analysis of this problem. This talk will describe the fascinating stochastic nonlinear dynamics underlying the synchronization problem.
Meeting 856 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
3 February 2014: Prof. Sir M. F. Atiyah, “Mathematicians I have known”.
Abstract: In April 2013 my wife and I opened a picture gallery of 70 mathematicians who had played a key part in our mathematical lives. My lecture will be based on this gallery and I will say a few words about a selection of these mathematicians. It is important to emphasize the human aspect of mathematics.
[Notes]
[Pictures]
Meeting 857 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
10 February 2014: Prof. D. Tong, “Magnetic Monopoles”.
Abstract: A story of geometry and particle physics.
[Notes]
Meeting 858 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
17 February 2014: Dr H. E. Mason, “Our Active Sun”.
Abstract: The Sun should be at the peak of its activity cycle, but actually it has been rather feeble. Several solar space observatories have been watching the Sun over the past few years: SoHO, Stereo, Hinode, SDO and IRIS . We now have high spatial and spectral resolution images of the Sun, with a high cadence. This talk will review what we have learnt about the active Sun, in particular what we know (and don’t yet know!) about solar active regions and flares, and how they might affect the Earth’s environment (via space weather).
Meeting 859 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
23 February 2014:
- Prof. P. H. Haynes, “Some Mathematical problems in Climate Science”.
- Mr B. Narayanan, “Bootstrap Percolation and Algebra”.
  Abstract: Bootstrap percolation is a cellular automaton used to describe the spread of an infection. I will talk about some very natural combinatorial questions arising from this model and how algebraic methods can be used to answer them. I’ll assume almost nothing in the way of background; the talk should be accessible to everyone.
- Mr A. Dutta, “Stability of Predictive Control without Terminal Conditions”.
  Abstract: The stability of constrained finite horizon optimal control problem has been widely addressed in the literature in (1) state-space formulation and by (2) inclusion of terminal constraints, terminal cost, terminal control law. In my research, both these restrictions are removed i.e. stability is ensured for (1) input-output formulation and (2) without any of the three stabilizing ingredients. In this case, the predictive controller is certified by proving infinite feasibility of the problem through set invariance.
- Mr R. Jha, “God is a Quantum Field Theorist”.
  Abstract: I’ll try and argue that much of our current understanding of the universe – from its origins to its most fundamental components – rests crucially on the framework of quantum field theories. After a general overview, time permitting, I’ll talk about the much dreaded concept of renormalization, the difficulty of introducing mass and the celebrated Higgs mechanism.
- Dr J. Goedecke, “Doing a PhD: Academic Career Move or just Putting off the Real World?”.
  Abstract: I will hope to help you think about the following questions: Is doing a PhD in Maths the right choice for me? What should my motivation be? What other options are there? What are the challenges and difficulties of working towards a PhD? What can I do with a PhD afterwards? I’ll be happy to answer any questions you might have about the application process or about doing a PhD.
  [Notes]
- Ms J. French, “Counting your way to Quantum Groups”.
  Abstract: We will start by looking at how counting certain sequences of maps allows us to define a multiplication on the isomorphism classes of objects of a category with some conditions. From there, we will introduce some quantum groups and describe how the algebras obtained through counting give rise to these.
- Mr J. Lloyd, “How to build an automatic Statistician”.
  Abstract: I will present the beginnings of an automatic statistician, which has the potential to aid in the exploratory analysis of data. Specifically, I will discuss a system which can build statistical models in an open-ended language of models and then describe them in natural language. I will briefly review the class of regression models which the system constructs and how their properties allow for a modular description generation algorithm. The talk will conclude with examples of the output of the system and a discussion of future research directions.
- Mr W. Sonnex, “Dependent Type Theory”.
  Abstract: What is a mathematical proof as a mathematical object? How do we axiomatize mathematics so that computers can check our proofs, or construct their own (my research)? This talk answers these questions using Dependent Type Theory, and I will show how complex modern mathematics can be built out of this simple starting language (all checked by a computer too). At the end I will discuss some of the exciting recent developments in Homotopy Type Theory.
- Mr M. Grayling, “Phase II Clinical Trial Designs: Then and Now”.
  Abstract: Over the past few decades, clinicians have been forced to deal with a revolution in the proposed procedures for the progression of a drug through phase II trials. Historically, a single-arm phase II design, in which all patients receive the experimental treatment, was employed as the principal way to determine whether to proceed to a randomised controlled phase III trial. However, single-arm trials are commonly associated with high type-I error rates, as well as biased estimated treatment effects. As a result, it has become increasingly clear that this classical phase II design performs poorly in predicting the likelihood of phase III success. Consequently, there has been much interest recently in the use of randomised phase II designs, and a more commonly accepted phase II development plan today has become to utilize a single-arm designed trial, followed by a pilot randomised study if the null hypothesis is rejected at the single-arm stage. In my talk, I will detail how the most common single-arm and randomised two-arm trials are optimally designed and the roles each play today, before discussing a simple way in which the expected sample size of the single-arm followed by randomised two-arm development plan may be reduced over current practice.
- Mr G. Peng, “Viscous Peeling of an Elastic Sheet”.
  Abstract: When viscous fluid is injected in the gap between an elastic sheet and a rigid base plate, the sheet peels away from the base at a speed which depends on various factors. In this talk, I will describe how to model this problem mathematically using lubrication theory, and how to solve it using a matched asymptotic expansion. The method generalizes to yield over 50 different asymptotic solutions for spreading of viscous fluid under an elastic sheet.
- Prof. Sir A. J. Wiles, “Ideals”.
Meeting 860 (symposium), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
23 February 2014: Prof. B. Bollobás, Annual Dinner.
Meeting 860a (dinner), Old Kitchens, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
3 March 2014: Dr M. R. Tehranchi, “Fun with Gaussian measures”.
Abstract: The standard normal distribution is probably most famous for its starring role in the central limit theorem. This talk will explore useful and unexpected properties of normal distributions, also known as Gaussian measures, and how they arise in a variety of contexts. A few old open problems will also be discussed.
Meeting 861 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
10 March 2014: Dr R. D. Camina, “Conjugacy Classes in finite groups”.
Abstract: If we know the sizes of conjugacy classes in a finite group what does this tell us about the group? We will discuss this problem.
Meeting 862 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
12 March 2014: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 863 (general meeting; non-election business; election of officers), Blue Boar Common Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
13 June 2014: Cricket Match (victorious).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 863a (sporting event), Old Field.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.

2014–2015

13 October 2014: Dr S. P. Bursill-Hall, “Pythagoras Never Existed. You Have Been Lied to, and All School Maths is False”.
Abstract: Everyone in the Universe has heard of Pythagoras, and knows about the Theorem, and how the Pythagoreans discovered that root-two is irrational. And all of that is false: in fact, just about everything you have been told about ancient mathematics is wrong and rubbish. Hey: Welcome to Cambridge.
Meeting 864 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
20 October 2014: Dr P. Sousi, “A lost man will reach home, but a lost bird will be lost forever”.
Abstract: Suppose you are lost while trying to get home. At every corner you decide to take a random direction independently of what you did previously. Will you ever get back home? The answer depends on which dimension you live in. What if you give a preference to roads you have used before. Does the answer change?
[Notes]
Meeting 865 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
27 October 2014: Dr J. R. Gog, “Embarrassing diseases”.
Abstract: The use of mathematical systems for modelling the spread of infectious disease has been around for quite a while now. Mathematical biologists have developed a world of intricate models including things like distribution of household sizes, population flows such as commute to work, airline transportation networks, seasonal and climate factors and what everyone had for breakfast. So we know in glorious detail how a decent pandemic ought to spread, right? Thing is, no one told influenza what it was supposed to do.
Meeting 866 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
3 November 2014: Dr D. D. Baumann, “The Quantum Origin of Structure in the Universe”.
Abstract: Quantum fluctuations in the vacuum play an important role in fundamental physics. In this talk, I will show that these fluctuations get stretched to cosmic scales if the early universe experienced a period of inflationary expansion. Using little more than the quantum mechanics of a simple harmonic oscillator, I will compute this effect and explain how it provides the primordial seeds for all structure in the universe. I will show how these predictions compare to recent observations of the cosmic microwave background. Finally, I will speculate about the physical cause for the inflationary expansion.
Meeting 867 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
10 November 2014: Dr J. D. Cranch, “Which Real Numbers are Pleasant?”.
Abstract: Every well-educated fresher has already been indoctrinated with the right answer to this question: reals are either algebraic or transcendental. Algebraic numbers are obviously fantastic. By contrast, the transcendental numbers are utterly hideous and deserve no attention whatsoever, with the two exceptions of pi and e (bless their little cotton socks). Contrary to this received opinion, I’ll explain why it should be a major goal of 21st-century mathematics to reclaim more of the reals for explicit use by mathematicians, and I’ll tell you about some difficult problems that need to be solved along the way.
Meeting 868 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
17 November 2014: Prof. B. C. Allanach, “Possible Hints for Supersymmetry at the Large Hadron Collider”.
Abstract: The Large Hadron Collider is about to start operation again at a higher energy at the beginning of 2015. I shall introduce the machine, particle physics and the discovery of the Higgs boson. Standard theory predicts that the quantum fluctuations should make the Higgs boson much heavier than it is observed to be, but a speculative theory of particle physics (supersymmetry) explains why the quantum fluctuations are small. This theory predicts a host of new particles for the LHC to find. There were a few small anomalies in LHC data already that can be interpreted as the production of certain supersymmetric particles. Such interpretations are ready for further experimental testing next year.
Meeting 869 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
24 November 2014: Dr N. E. Berestycki, “Emergence of symmetry in planar probability”.
Abstract: I will describe several simple and natural random systems which exist on the two-dimensional infinite square grid. Often there is a “critical point” for these systems. At this point, it has been predicted for more than 30 years that these systems acquire an unexpected symmetry: invariance under conformal transformations of the complex plane. I will explain what that means, discuss some examples, and try to convey a few ideas about remarkable progress which has taken place in the last 15 years to describe these objects rigorously, notably Schramm’s famous SLE random curves.
Meeting 870 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
1 December 2014: Mathmo Call My Bluff.
Meeting 871 (recreational), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
19 January 2015: “A Beautiful Mind”.
Meeting 872 (film night), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
26 January 2015: Prof. Sir W. T. Gowers, “Can interesting mathematics problems be solved systematically?”.
Abstract: Solving a mathematics problem that is not a routine exercise can often feel more like an art than a science. Different people attack problems in different ways, and ideas can appear to spring into one’s mind from nowhere. I shall argue that solving problems is a much more systematic process than it appears, and shall also try to explain why, if that is the case, it has the features that make us think that it isn’t. For the bulk of the talk, I shall attempt, with help from the audience, to solve an Olympiad-style problem that I have not seen before, and to do so systematically rather than by waiting for a clever idea to appear out of the blue. The attempt is not guaranteed to succeed, but I hope that it will be informative whether or not it does.
Meeting 873 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
30 January 2015: Dr J. R. Gog, CUSU Shadowing Scheme: “Embarrassing Diseases”.
Abstract: The use of mathematical systems for modelling the spread of infectious disease has been around for quite a while now. Mathematical biologists have developed a world of intricate models including things like distribution of household sizes, population flows such as commute to work, airline transportation networks, seasonal and climate factors and what everyone had for breakfast. So we know in glorious detail how a decent pandemic ought to spread, right? Thing is, no one told influenza what it was supposed to do.
Joint with: Trinity College Science Society.
Meeting 873a (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
2 February 2015: Dr M. Vojnovic, “How to divide prize money?”.
Abstract: The question of how to split a prize purse between position prizes in a contest has a long and rich history going all the way back to the work by Galton (1902). The economists’ approach to this question is to assume that contestants strategically invest efforts aiming at selfishly maximizing their payoffs, which combine in some way the value of winning a prize and the cost of production. How should a contest owner split a prize purse with the goal of maximizing the expected total effort in an equilibrium? What if the goal is to maximize the expected maximum individual effort?
Meeting 874 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
9 February 2015: Dr P. Birrell, “The anatomy of an influenza pandemic”.
Meeting 875 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
16 February 2015: Dr H. J. R. Wilton, “The Banach-Tarski Paradox”.
Abstract: The Banach-Tarski Paradox is the counter-intuitive fact that a sphere can be cut into finitely many pieces and reassembled into two copies of itself. Of course, you can’t do this in real life, but it’s more than just a curiosity. In fact, it’s the start of a beautiful mathematical story at the heart of modern group theory, geometry, logic and analysis. I’ll try to tell some of that story.
Meeting 876 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
22 February 2015:
- Dr N. M. Vriend, “Using mathematics in my journey to deserts and mountains”.
  Abstract: In this presentation, I will show you how applied mathematics plays an important role in the understanding of our natural environment. My research expertise covers granular materials and I have traveled to various places on this earth to investigate the behavior of snow avalanches in mountains and sand dunes in deserts. Our research group combines field experiments with laboratory experiments, in the GK Batchelor laboratory underneath the courtyard of CMS, and uses mathematical tools to model these observations. Our goal is to understand the dynamic behavior of granular flows and potentially even predict some outcomes of avalanches.
- Ms M. D. Fortune, “All About That Bayes: Making Inference from Data”.
  Abstract: As you go through life, you reinterpret your beliefs about the world based on what you observe. When you perform a scientific experiment, you want to update your conclusions about the underlying system based upon the results. But how can we do this rigorously? Bayes theorem is a simple equation; you probably encountered it in high school. But it is also the foundation for an entire field of statistical inference. I will reintroduce the theorem, and discuss some applications.
- Mr A. Morgunov, “The theory behind co-evolution based methods for protein structure analysis”.
- Ms C. Kirchhoff-Lukat, “Generalised Geometry: Double the Fun”.
  Abstract: I will give an introduction to Generalised Geometry: This fairly new extension of differential geometry allows us to generalise and unify different structures on smooth and complex manifolds. String theory is a primary motivation for the study of generalised metrics; using these, it is possible to describe massless string states in terms of a single geometric object. Delving further into the theory, we find a structure that encompasses the concepts of Poisson, symplectic and complex geometry. In my talk, I hope to give an impression of this wealth of possibilities which generalised geometry offers to both mathematics and theoretical physics.
- Dr J. Nelson, “Statistical modelling in tennis: a case study using world rankings”.
  Abstract: In recent years, statistical modelling has played an increasingly important role in the sports industry – from player evaluation systems and tactical decision tools used by team managers (as popularised by films such as Moneyball) to predictive models deployed by bookmakers and gamblers to forecast future results. In this talk I will demonstrate that simple statistical methods – combined with a healthy dose of pragmatism – can generate surprisingly powerful models for predicting tennis… and explain how a pure mathematician came to be working on them.
- Ms A. Lappala, “Molecular Dynamics Simulations of Polymers and Polymer Brushes”.
- Mr B. Fackovec, “Chemical dynamics and rare events in soft matter physics”.
- Mr D. Vasak, “Local to global principles: the Birch and Swinnerton-Dyer conjecture explained”.
- Mr Y. Gal, “Representations of Meaning”.
- Mr Z. L. Low, “The method of universal instances”.
  Abstract: Suppose you want to check some propositions P_1, P_2, P_3, … about a class C of mathematical objects. In this situation, a universal instance is an object A in the class C such that, for each n, P_n is true for A if and only if P_n is true for every object in the class C. Universal instances do not exist in general, but sometimes we can find exceptionally nice universal instances where it becomes much easier to check the propositions of interest. I will give some simple examples of this phenomenon, and time permitting, I may discuss general results.
- Prof. R. J. Anderson and Dr R. Brady, “Can mathematics be heretical?”.
Meeting 877 (symposium), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
22 February 2015: Dr J. D. Cranch, Annual Dinner.
Meeting 877a (dinner), Old Kitchens, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
2 March 2015: Dr T. E. Forster and Prof. I. B. Leader, “This house believes the continuum is not always a continuum”.
Meeting 878 (debate), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
9 March 2015: Dr E. J.-M. Lauga, “The mathematical life of microbes”.
Abstract: While we all know that fluid dynamics allows planes to fly and boats to sail, it is less known that it also plays a crucial role in many biological processes. Here we will illustrate a particular biological phenomenon which actively uses the presence of a flowing liquid, namely how small organisms such as bacteria and algae use hydrodynamic forces to self-propel.
Meeting 879 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
11 March 2015: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 880 (general meeting; non-election business; election of officers), Blue Boar Common Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
12 June 2015: Cricket Match (victorious).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 880a (sporting event), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.

2015–2016

12 October 2015: Prof. I. B. Leader, “Tournaments”.
Abstract: Throughout Cambridge, you will struggle to find a stronger believer in the beauty of pure mathematics than Imre Leader. During this talk on tournaments, he will illustrate just how combinatorics is more than simply a bag of clever tricks, but instead a wonderfully elegant and interconnected branch of mathematics.
Meeting 881 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance 270.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
19 October 2015: Dr J. W. H. Luk, “Stability of Minkowski spacetime”.
Abstract: General relativity is a theory of gravity described by the celebrated Einstein equations, which relate the geometry and matter content of spacetime. The Minkowski spacetime, the spacetime of special relativity, is a special solution to these equations. It depicts a vacuum spacetime with no curvature. A monumental result in mathematical physics, discovered in 1993, is the proof that Minkowski spacetime is dynamically stable in the framework of the evolution problem in general relativity. I will describe the theorem and some of the fascinating ideas behind it.
Meeting 882 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
26 October 2015: Dr R. Louth, “Inside the Black Box: from big data to quant trading algorithms”.
Abstract: Dr. Richard Louth, a former Cambridge alumnus, will discuss the approach he takes when formulating Jump Trading’s predictive models, using statistics, probability, machine learning and other mathematical techniques. Moreover, Dr. Louth will talk about how they use one of the largest supercomputers in the world to take on the challenge of dissecting terabytes of data from financial exchanges. Furthermore, for those thinking about a career after Cambridge, he will also speak about why so many maths and science students go into quant trading and how your skills can be transferable to the world of quant trading.
Meeting 883 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
2 November 2015: Prof. A.-C. Davis, “The Accelerating Universe”.
Abstract: Observations suggest the Universe had undergone periods of accelerated expansion during the course of its evolution. I will discuss modern ideas about the evolution of the early Universe from the big bang to the present time and consider a model of the late Universe which goes beyond the usual theories of gravity. Ways of testing this will be discussed. I will not assume knowledge of cosmology or general relativity, but the talk will contain some simple differential equations.
[Slides]
Meeting 884 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
9 November 2015: Prof. M. W. Gross, “An Introduction to Tropical Geometry”.
Abstract: Algebraic geometry is the study of solution sets to polynomial equations. Usually, one is interested in solving equations over algebraically closed fields such as the complex numbers, but these solutions sets can be quite hard to visualize. However, a recently discovered type of geometry, which is called “tropical geometry” for rather silly reasons, helps us visualize these solution sets and at the same time solve rather difficult problems in algebraic geometry via purely combinatorial arguments. I will give an introduction to some of the basic ideas of the subject.
Meeting 885 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
16 November 2015: Dr G. Ray, “Random Fractal Surfaces”.
Abstract: How does a typical random surface or curve look like? How different are they from the “flat” surface we are familiar with? How are they related? These are some of the biggest questions in the field of random geometry these days and this will be the subject of this talk. There will be many nice pictures and simulations.
Meeting 886 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
30 November 2015: Mathmo Call My Bluff.
Meeting 887 (recreational), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
18 January 2016: “Mean Girls”.
Meeting 888 (film night), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
25 January 2016: Dr S. Antonakoudis, “On Schmidt’s games, badly approximable numbers & winning sets”.
Abstract: Schmidt introduced a simple and powerful way to study certain important sets of real numbers, that although they exhibit remarkable rigidity features, they are ‘too thin’ to be detected using classical methods in analysis. The set of real numbers which badly approximable by rationals is an important example of such a set. In this talk, we will discuss Schmidt’s games, their applications and generalisations in geometry and dynamics.
Meeting 889 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
1 February 2016: Prof. R. E. Goldstein, “Upside down and inside out: the biomechanics of cell sheet folding”.
Abstract: Deformations of cell sheets are ubiquitous in early animal development, often arising from a complex and poorly understood interplay of cell shape changes, division, and migration. In this talk I will describe an approach to understanding such problems based on perhaps the simplest example of cell sheet folding: the “inversion” process of the algal genus Volvox, during which spherical embryos literally turn themselves inside out through a process hypothesized to arise from cell shape changes alone. Through a combination of light sheet microscopy and elasticity theory a quantitative understanding of this process is now emerging.
Meeting 890 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
2 February 2016: Prof. D. B. Zagier, “Sums of squares and sums of cubes”.
Abstract: Prof. Zagier finished high school aged 13 and subsequently studied at MIT for three years, completing his bachelor’s and master’s degrees at the age of 16. He then received his Phd under Friedrich Hirzebruch aged 20 and was named professor when he was 24. He has been a scientific member of the MPIM in Bonn since its founding and has been one of its directors since 1995. Prof. Zagier’s main area of work is in number theory, but he has also done extensive work in seemingly unrelated areas. In collaboration with Benedict Gross he proved the Gross-Zagier formula which played an instrumental role in the solution of the Class Number Problem. He has also done work relating modular forms to string theory and black holes. Together with his former doctoral student Maxim Kontsevich he introduced the notion of ‘periods’ in a paper which features, among other things, L-functions and motives. He is perhaps best known for his “one-sentence proof of Fermat’s two squares theorem”. He is the winner of both the Cole Prize and the Von Staudt Prize.
Meeting 891 (talk), Centre for Mathematical Sciences MR2, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
8 February 2016: Prof. J. M. E. Hyland, “Why Euclid was a genius and (maybe) other stories”.
Abstract: It is often said that we know very little about Euclid. But we do have (most of) his Elements – perhaps the most widely studied secular book of all time. I claim that it is the expression of a remarkable mathematical personality. There are two distinct proofs of Pythagoras’ Theorem in Euclid’s Elements. I believe that we can reconstruct Euclid’s thinking in giving these two proofs. When we do so, we see what is an unrecognised depth to Euclid: not only was he a remarkable geometer and arithmetician but he also had the instincts of a modern logician.
Meeting 892 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
21 February 2016:
- Ms A. J. Thompson, “Tissue Mechanics in Early Brain Development”.
  Abstract: Neuronal growth is essential for nervous system development and is also required for regeneration after nervous tissue injury. Recent in vitro studies suggest that neuronal growth can also be regulated by mechanical properties of the substrate; however, the role of mechanical cues in axon pathfinding in vivo, and the spatiotemporal dynamics of tissue mechanics during early nervous system development, are still largely unknown. I am investigating the role of tissue stiffness in axon guidance within the early embryo, using the Xenopus laevis optic tract as a model system. I find that the path of optic tract growth is correlated with stiffness gradients in the living brain, before growth stalls after reaching the softer region. This is consistent with a role for substrate mechanics in axon pathfinding.
- Ms M. D. Fortune, “So Your Experiment Hasn’t Worked: How to Lie with Statistics”.
  Abstract: Lab work can be so hard sometimes. Is your discovery that your patented snake oil formula (available from your website for the low price of only $199 a bottle) can cure cancer being prevented from seeing the light of the day by science’s unreasonable demand for evidence? Well, worry no more! With a few simple statistical fallacies, you can quickly produce significant results, and even the most disappointing dataset can become a published paper.
- Dr J. Nelson, “Smashing the Racket: Detecting Match-fixing in Tennis via In-play Betting Irregularities”.
  Abstract: An unfortunate consequence of the recent growth in tennis betting markets has been a heightened incentive for match-fixing – particularly at lower levels of the sport, where earnings are modest, and where the market for one match may dwarf the prize money for an entire tournament. Against this backdrop, an unscrupulous player may be tempted to profit from their position of influence by secretly agreeing to “throw” a particular match, with a complicit third party betting on the result. This talk summarises the results of a match-fixing study spanning over 5,000 in-play tennis betting markets. After developing a natural point-by-point probabilistic model, featuring novel mechanisms for selecting parameters robustly from the data, we demonstrate that the observed market trajectories correlate extremely closely with this model. We argue that substantial discrepancies represent a “red flag” that something is amiss – either an injury, or something more covert. We also provide visualisations of recent matches where the market evolved pathologically, and assess the evidence that these matches were fixed.
- Mr J. Pichon-Pharabod, “Semantics”.
  Abstract: Programs never do what you want them to do. To figure out what a program means, if you are lucky, you just have to wade through long, tedious, imprecise, and ambiguous prose documents. If you’re unlucky, the meaning is left as an exercise to the reader. In this talk, I will discuss how to formally give meaning to programs using elementary mathematics: sets, functions, and inductive relations. I will show how this makes it possible to actually make sure programs do what we want them to do.
- Dr T. E. Forster, “Axiom of Choice”.
  Abstract: The Trinity Mathematical Society has had a long-standing relationship with Dr. Thomas Forster, who has given us number of excellent talks and spoken at various debates. At the Symposium, he will be talking about that intriguing thing in mathematics called the Axiom of Choice.
- Mr P. Short, “Mutations in Developmental Disorders”.
  Abstract: The majority of children with severe developmental disorders remain without a genetic diagnosis. Families often describe the road to reaching a diagnosis as an ‘odyssey’ lasting years and involving dozens of different medical professionals. The Deciphering Developmental Disorders (DDD) study has collected detailed clinical phenotypes and genome sequence data from 14,000 children with undiagnosed developmental disorders and their parents as an effort to quickly and definitively reach a genetic diagnosis. Using data from the first 4,000 DDD patients, my computational analyses have already generated hypotheses relating to specific variants in individual genomic functional elements. This work will contribute to an improved understanding of the role of the regulatory genome in developmental disorders and provides a scalable model for the interpretation of non-coding elements in rare disease cohorts.
- Prof. M. J. Perry, (Black Hole Information Paradox).
  Abstract: Prof. Malcolm Perry has recently collaborated with Prof. Stephen Hawking (DAMTP) and Prof. Andrew Strominger (Harvard) on a paper, which is said to have made genuine progress in solving the black-hole information paradox. He may or may not speak about this in his talk.
- Mr L. Barrott, (Mirror Symmetry).
  Abstract: Mr. Barrott is currently working on mirror symmetry. He may or may not speak about this in his talk.
- Prof. M. A. Reid, “Finite Subgroups of SL(2,C) and SL(3,C) and their Role in Algebraic Geometry”.
  Abstract: Felix Klein classified the finite subgroups of SL(2,CC) around 1860; there are two infinite families corresponding to regular polygons in the plane, together with three exceptional groups of order 24, 48 and 120 that are “spinor” double covers of the symmetry groups of the regular polyhedra (the tetrahedron, octahedron and icosahedron). The finite subgroups of SL(3,CC) are also classified (and also SL(n,CC) for higher n), although the problem gets harder and it is not clear how to view the assortment of solutions with any pretence to elegance. The quotient spaces X = CC^2/G by Klein’s finite subgroups G in SL(2,CC) form a very remarkable family of isolated surface singularities, that were studied by Du Val during the 1930s (aided by Coxeter). Du Val’s work was central to the study of algebraic surfaces during the 1970s and 1980s, and played a foundational role in the study of algebraic 3-folds from the 1980s onwards. In the 1980s McKay observed that the representation theory of the group G is reflected in the geometry of the resolution of singularities of X. This correspondence has been generalised to 3-dimensions, with the same proviso concerning the nature of the problem and its solutions.
Meeting 893 (symposium), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
21 February 2016: Annual Dinner.
Meeting 893a (dinner), Old Kitchens, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
26 February 2016: Prof. B. Bollobás, “A Glimpse of the Mathematics of Bill Tutte, The Greatest Code-Breaker of WWII”.
Abstract: Bill Tutte, who came up to Trinity to read Natural Sciences, specialising in chemistry, was the greatest codebreaker of WWII, and one of the founders of modern combinatorics. In this talk I shall say a little about his work as a codebreaker, and a little more about some of his revolutionary ideas in mathematics.
Joint with: Trinity College Science Society.
Meeting 894 (talk), Centre for Mathematical Sciences MR2, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
29 February 2016: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 895 (general meeting; election of officers), Blue Boar Common Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
29 February 2016: Prof. M. B. Green, “The Scope of String Theory”.
Abstract: This talk will explain why string theory is such a compelling approach to understanding the fundamental particles and the physical forces, even though it is not yet a complete theory and it has yet to make precise experimental predictions. It will give an overview of the theory, illustrating how it describes physics at ultra-short distances in a manner that is radically different from more conventional theories. I will illustrate how the structure of string theory is influencing our understanding of quantum gravity as well as having profound connections with aspects of modern mathematics. The talk will end with an overview of recent ideas, which suggest that the string theory may have applications in areas of physics far removed from the ones it was originally intended for.
Meeting 895a (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
1 March 2016: Prof. M. E. Cates, “Mathematical Models of Cellular Locomotion”.
Abstract: Many types of cell in our bodies are not static but actively move around. The effects can be good, such as when immune cells search and destroy invading organisms, or bad, such as when cancer cells spread to distant parts of the body. Many biochemical circuits are implicated in cell movement, but cell fragments with no such circuits also move spontaneously — the cellular equivalent of a headless chicken. This observation suggests the presence of an autonomous “motility engine” whose operation is controlled, but not maintained, by the complex biochemical circuits present in real cells. I shall describe a simplified mathematical model for this engine, using ideas borrowed from the study of liquid crystalline materials, as found in every mobile phone and laptop screen.
Joint with: Trinity College Science Society.
Meeting 896 (talk), Centre for Mathematical Sciences MR2, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
7 March 2016: Prof. G. R. Grimmett, “Counting Walks”.
Abstract: Paul Flory was a chemist who is known especially for his work on polymerization, and he has given mathematics a beautiful and as yet unsolved problem: how to count the number of so-called long-chain polymers. This problem, while easy to state, is part of a major challenge for mathematicians and physicists to understand singularities in two dimensions. I will attempt to communicate some of the vitality of the area, and to report some modest progress.
Meeting 897 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
10 June 2016: Cricket Match (victorious).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 897a (sporting event), Old Field.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.

2016–2017

10 October 2016: Prof. D. Tong, “The Quantum Hall Effect”.
Abstract: Take a bunch of electrons, restrict them to move in a plane, and turn on a magnetic field. This gives rise to some of the most beautiful and surprising results in physics. I’ll give an overview of this subject and describe the deep connections with the mathematics of topology and knots.
Meeting 898 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
14 October 2016: Prof. B. Bollobás, “Polynomials in Combinatorics and Topology”.
Abstract: Although polynomials are not prominent in either combinatorics or topology, they are important tools in both. In the talk I shall introduce several polynomials with beautiful and surprising applications in combinatorics and topology. The talk will be accessible to freshmen but should be of interest to research students as well.
Meeting 899 (talk), Centre for Mathematical Sciences MR2, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
24 October 2016: Dr M. B. Batchelor, “The Rewards of Thinking Coalgebraically”.
Abstract: The theory of coalgebras is not taught in the undergraduate syllabus, nor yet in Part III or even as a graduate course, but not because of any great conceptual difficulty. Indeed most toddlers who grow up with at least one sibling and an aunt foolish enough to provide but a single box of chocolates for the two of them to share have a keen instinctive understanding of the essential idea. As an example of the advantages of thinking coalgebraically, I will talk about the enrichment of the category of algebras over coalgebras, and specifically the consequent benefits afforded to the concept of “maps between modules”.
Meeting 900 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
31 October 2016: Prof. A. J. Mestel, “More Fun than a Barrel of Monkeys”.
Abstract: Imagine millions of small monkeys in a barrel, all pressing and rubbing against each other. More simply, imagine a cylinder of fluid – water, ink, metal, blood or tar. Proverbially, the fun of all activities is to be measured against this yardstick. This talk will demonstrate why.
Meeting 901 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
7 November 2016: Dr P. Sousi, “Percolation and Random Walks”.
Abstract: Consider the two dimensional lattice and keep every edge with probability p, independently over different edges. It is known that there exists a critical probability p_c so that for all p > p_c there exists a unique infinite connected component. But how well connected is this infinite cluster? One way to evaluate this is by examining the rate of spread of a simple random walk on the cluster.
Meeting 902 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
14 November 2016: Prof. I. B. Leader, “Cops and Robbers”.
Abstract: Some cops are chasing a robber around a finite network. Moves alternate: the robber moves from where he is to an adjacent place, then all the cops move to adjacent places, and so on. For a given network, how many cops are needed to catch the robber?
Meeting 903 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
21 November 2016: Dr S. P. Bursill-Hall and Dr T. E. Forster, “Infinitesimals”.
Abstract: Think of infinitesimals as the mathematical equivalent of fat, sugar, and salt. They are evil, bad for your health, bad for the environment, bad for society, racist, sexist, ageist, class-ist (does that even exist?), cause cancer, lumbago, scrofulous, melancholy, quantum mechanics, and premature ageing. In any reasonable mathematical universe, they would be banned. The ancient Greeks knew how unhealthy they were, and banned them, thoroughly and soundly. Yet they kept coming back in western, European mathematics, and they proved to be something mathematicians couldn’t resist – sort of like Nutella. And for all that everyone knew they were completely and irredeemably paradoxical, they were essential to large parts of geometry, and by the Scientific Revolution they formed the foundation stone of contemporary, cutting edge new pure and applied mathematics. In the Enlightenment the house of cards started to collapse, threatening all of civilisation. They were finally, permanently expunged from mathematics in the earlier 19th century, never to return. A huge sigh of relief all around. Except … In the second half Dr Forster will sketch a couple of ways in which the twentieth century has been able to put infinitesimals on a secure footing.
Meeting 904 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
28 November 2016: Mathmo Call My Bluff.
Meeting 905 (recreational), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
23 January 2017: Dr T. von Glehn, “Logic in other universes”.
Abstract: When doing ordinary mathematics, we don’t usually think too hard about exactly what logical rules are being used. But sometimes using for example the law of excluded middle or the axiom of choice can have unexpected consequences. In this talk I will explore some alternatives of classical logic. There are other ‘mathematical universes’, or toposes, in which different logical axioms can hold. I will introduce some of the structures used to express this logic, and describe what mathematics can look like inside a topos.
Meeting 906 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
30 January 2017: Prof. J. R. Lister, “Stretching, bending, twisting and coiling: how to build a fluid-mechanical sewing machine”.
Abstract: Idlers at breakfast watching a stream of honey falling from a knife, may notice it buckle and coil as it reaches the toast. What happens if you move the toast (or the knife) steadily sideways? This talk will outline the mathematical description of the dynamics of a falling viscous thread, with possible diversions via chocolate fountains and Viennetta ice-cream.
Meeting 907 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
6 February 2017: Dr J. R. Gog, “Hunting for viral packaging signals”.
Abstract: Influenza has a genome split into several segments, and this complicates virus particle assembly as each particle must have one of each of the segments. This means that each of the RNA segments must contain some signal, and that this signal ought to be fairly conserved. Is this enough to go and hunt them down using mathematics? The answer turns out to be yes. However, this required some creativity in algorithm design, drawing inspiration from a number of apparently unrelated problems. This hack seems to work, but leaves some interesting mathematical problems. I’ll also briefly talk about some of the other problems in influenza and infectious disease that interest me, and general joys and challenges of being a mathematician trying to research biology.
Meeting 908 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
13 February 2017: Dr T. M. Sauerwald, “Multiple Random Walks”.
Abstract: Consider a simple random walk on a finite network. The expected time it takes for a single walk to visit all nodes is a well-studied quantity and has been computed for many topologies including paths, grids, random graphs and hypercubes. But how long does it take for two or more independently running random walks? This talk will explain why this may be an interesting question and present a few surprising results.
Meeting 909 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
16 February 2017: Dr S. Dieleman, “Deep learning for music recommendation and generation”.
Abstract: The advent of deep learning has made it possible to extract high-level information from perceptual signals without having to specify manually and explicitly how to obtain it; instead, this can be learned from examples. This creates opportunities for automated content analysis of musical audio signals. In this talk, I will discuss how deep learning techniques can be used for audio-based music recommendation. I will also briefly discuss my ongoing work on music generation with WaveNet.
Joint with: Trinity College Science Society.
Meeting 910 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
20 February 2017: Prof. T. J. Pedley, “Spherical squirmers—models for swimming micro-organisms: how a Tripos question led to a new field of research”.
Abstract: In 1952, Sir James Lighthill (FT) introduced the simplest possible model of a swimming microorganism of finite size, intended as a model of a single-celled protozoan covered in beating cilia. The model consisted of a sphere, on the surface of which material points undergo small-amplitude oscillations. In 1971, Lighthill’s student, John Blake (FT), completed the calculations and in particular showed how to model the ‘metachronal’ wave patterns exhibited by beating cilia. In 1986 the speaker set a Part II Tripos question, to analyse an even simpler model consisting of a sphere whose surface moves tangentially with time-independent velocity: a steady spherical squirmer. This has led to a substantial body of research on the optimisation pf the swimming and nutrient uptake of individual squirmers (Eric Lauga, FT), and on the hydrodynamic interactions between pairs of steady squirmers and their influence on self-diffusion in suspensions. The final topic describes measurements and modelling of metachronal waves in Volvox, the only truly spherical multicelled ‘organism’, culminating in the prediction of the mean swimming speed and angular velocity of free-swimming Volvox. The predictions are compared with experimental observations. [FT ≡ Fellow of Trinity]
Meeting 911 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
26 February 2017:
- Dr H. Hunt, “The Trinity College Clock, its accuracy and its pigeons”.
  Abstract: The Trinity Clock in Great Court is quite a prominent feature of the college, at least to look at. And it has a rather curious way of announcing the hours, once for Trinity and a second time for St John’s. It is always within a second or two of the correct time and yet it hardly ever requires adjustment. Does this mean that the mechanism is unaffected by the elements? What about temperature, pressure, humidity? And does the gravitational pull of the moon make any difference? The pendulum on the Trinity Clock has been instrumented to measure period and amplitude to great accuracy. The time is compared with UTC obtained from a GPS receiver. All of this data is streamed continuously to the web at http://www.trin.cam.ac.uk/clock/. The clock has become quite a sensitive pigeon detector!
- Mr S. O. Tickle, “Dr Changelove (or how I learned to stop worrying and realise everything is a changepoint problem)”.
  Abstract: You don’t have to go further than Paul McCartney to find that it is, in fact, a changing world in which we live in. Due to recent efforts, particularly at Cambridge and Lancaster, understanding with respect to the changepoint problem is at a much more tolerable state from the perspective of the researcher. However, several key questions remain. How does one efficiently deal with multivariate data? Can new methodologies keep pace with the ever growing demands of industry? And, perhaps most importantly, why, no matter how hard we might shut our eyes to it, is everything a changepoint problem?
- Mr C. Riccio, “The genetic and transcriptional diversity of C. elegans wild isolates”.
  Abstract: In 1963, Sydney Brenner, who spent 20 years of his career in Cambridge, established Caenorhabditis elegans as a model organism in biology. It is in C. elegans that many apoptotic genes were discovered. Later on, homologous genes in humans were found to also be involved in apoptosis. The work of Nobel Prize winners Andrew Fire and Craig Mello on RNA interference has also been conducted in this animal. Most of the work in C. elegans has been conducted in a strain isolated in Bristol many decades ago. Until recently, little was known about the natural habitat of this nematode and its genetic and phenotypic diversity. In this talk, I will present how we can use the natural genetic and phenotypic diversity of this animal to study the relationship between its phenotype and its genotype.
- Mr S. K. Moss, “Homotopy Type Theory”.
  Abstract: I will give an introduction to Homotopy Type Theory, which is a formal foundational system where the basic objects are spaces rather than sets and every function that one can define is automatically continuous. Among its advantages is that it provides a ‘synthetic’ version of homotopy theory convenient for computer-formalized proofs.
- Dr B. Narayanan, “Symmetric structures in extremal combinatorics”.
- Mr J. Munro, “Paradoxes in Fluid Dynamics”.
  Abstract: Applied mathematics tries to explain the world around us with mathematical models, but what do you do if the answer from your model just doesn’t make any sense? I’ll describe two paradoxes that plagued fluid dynamics for hundreds of years, explain what we learnt from their resolution, and show you how this new understanding is being applied to current research problems.
- Mr J. Sahasrabudhe, “Exponential Patterns in Arithmetic Ramsey Theory”.
  Abstract: If the integers are partitioned into finitely many pieces, what can be said about the arithmetic structure of the parts? Indeed, it is perhaps remarkable that anything interesting can be said about such general partitions. One of the first results along these lines was proved over 100 years ago by I. Schur, who proved that if the positive integers are partitioned into finitely many parts, then one of the parts must contain two integers x,y and their sum x+y. In this talk I’ll discuss a host of new results about exponential patterns that can be found in arbitrary finite partitions of the integers.
- Mr R. Snyder, “Finding structure in graph theory using high minimum degree”.
  Abstract: If H is a collection of graphs, we say that a graph G is H-free if it contains no copy of a graph in H as a subgraph. Many problems in extremal graph theory involve investigating the behaviour of various graph parameters, or determining the structure of H-free graphs for specific families H. It turns out that we can say quite a few fascinating things about the structure of graphs which forbid some finite collection of subgraphs and, in addition, have large minimum degree. In this talk I shall describe several results of this type, both old and new, and hopefully convey why they are interesting.
- Mr V. Gruslys, “Tilings of ℤ^n”.
  Abstract: Let T be a finite subset of ℤ^2. We can view T as a tile consisting of |T| unit squares. Must it be possible to cover the plane by non-overlapping copies of T? (We allow translations, rotations and reflections of T.) The answer is, of course, no: just take a tile with a hole. However, if we replace every unit square of T by a unit cube, then we get a 3-dimensional analogue of T. We now ask: does T tile ℤ^3? Or, does T tile ℤ^n for some, possibly very large, n? We prove that the answer to the latter question is yes, confirming a conjecture of Chalcraft. This talk is based on joint work with Leader and Tan.
- Mr B. J. Barrett, “Group theory and highly connected networks”.
  Abstract: A well-designed computer network should allow quick and reliable communication between any two computers while keeping the number of computers any single computer is directly connected to small. Such networks are called expanders. The first construction of such networks due to was based on a deep property of certain groups, called Property T. In this talk I will define expanders and describe their links with group theory.
- Dr C. Druțu, “Geometric Group Theory”.
  Abstract: In a way, this academic year has been a Geometric Group Theory year, with a large scale research programme held from August to December 2016 at the Mathematical Sciences Research Institute in Berkeley, California, followed by a programme from January to June 2017 at the Newton Institute in Cambridge. These events have been particularly timely, as the area recorded a series of recent breakthrough results, ranging from the work of Ian Agol (who answers the remaining four of Thurston’s conjectures on the structure of 3-manifolds), to the work of Cheeger, Kleiner, Naor and Young (solving the Sparsest Cut Problem, and the related Goemans-Linial conjecture, in Theoretical computer science). So, what is Geometric Group Theory? In my talk I will try to overview this area, and convey its general philosophy of reformulating in geometric terms problems from diverse areas of mathematics and then solving them with a variety of tools.
Meeting 912 (symposium), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
26 February 2017: Annual Dinner.
Meeting 912a (dinner), Old Kitchens, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
6 March 2017: Prof. S. Peyton Jones, “Escape from the ivory tower: the Haskell journey”.
Abstract: Haskell is my first baby, born slightly before my son Michael, who is now in his mid-20s. From somewhat academic beginnings as a remorselessly pure functional programming language, Haskell has evolved into a practical tool used for real applications and, amazingly, is still in a state of furious innovation. In this talk I’ll discuss Haskell’s birth and evolution, including some of the research and engineering challenges we faced in design and implementation. I’ll focus particularly on the ideas that have turned out, in retrospect, to be most important and influential, as well as sketching some current developments and making some wild guesses about the future. It has been a long journey, but it starts at Trinity College, where I was a maths undergraduate, and Arthur Norman first introduced me to the joy and beauty of functional programming.
Meeting 913 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
13 March 2017: Prof. Sir W. T. Gowers, “A problem about triples of integers”.
Abstract: I shall talk about a problem that sounds like a reasonably easy IMO-style question, but which, rather surprisingly, is still unsolved. I shall talk about some non-trivial partial results, which are joint work with Jason Long, that fall well short of what is believed to be true.
Meeting 914 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
15 March 2017: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 915 (general meeting; election of officers), Blue Boar Common Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
15 June 2017: Cricket Match (defeated).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 915a (sporting event), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.

2017–2018

9 October 2017: Prof. I. B. Leader, “Infinite Games”.
Abstract: Suppose that we are playing a game, but the game might go on forever and so not end. How could we assign a winner or loser in that situation? This sounds like a silly question, but in fact it isn’t, and it leads to some very interesting phenomena.
Meeting 916 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
16 October 2017: Dr A. Zsák, “Embedding Structures with Distortion”.
Abstract: There is a wide variety of structures that are equipped with a distance. A familiar example is three-dimensional Euclidean space: here the distance is the length of the straight line segment joining two points. In this example there is an additional feature: the presence of vector addition and scalar multiplication. There are examples, however, that do not possess such additional features, and it is an important question to determine whether such arbitrary structures can be embedded into ones with a vector structure like Euclidean space. This has consequences for large data, algorithms, compressed sensing, etc., some of which have emerged in unexpected and surprising ways.
Meeting 917 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
23 October 2017: Dr M. R. Tehranchi, “The Prices of Call Options”.
Abstract: A call option is a basic example of a financial derivative. Black, Scholes and Merton published in 1973 a theory for ‘rational pricing’ of call options, for which the Nobel Prize was awarded in 1997. This talk will briefly explain this theory, and discuss how the pricing of call options has some interesting mathematical properties – touching on probability, convex analysis and even algebra.
Meeting 918 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
30 October 2017: Pub Crawl.
Meeting 918a (recreational), attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
6 November 2017: Dr J. Miller, “Random Trees”.
Abstract: A tree is a graph without any cycles. Since there are only a finite number of trees with n vertices, one can imagine picking such a tree at random just like one can pick a card from a deck at random. It turns out that random trees have many applications and are ubiquitous in modern probability theory. In this talk, I will describe some of the basics of random trees and how they are related to some very exciting recent mathematical developments.
Meeting 919 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
13 November 2017: “Hidden Figures”.
Meeting 920 (film night), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
20 November 2017: Dr E. F. Shuckburgh, “From Flatland to Our Land—A Mathematician’s Journey Through our Changing Planet”.
Abstract: Mathematics is central to our understanding of the world around us. We live in a vast dynamical system, the many dimensions of which can be interrogated with mathematical tools. In this talk I will consider our changing climate. I will describe the scientific evidence that tells us how and why our climate is changing, and what the future may hold. In this journey I will pause at various waypoints to describe in more detail some of the insight different branches of mathematics are providing. Diverse examples will include applying ideas from dynamical systems research to create novel strategies for measuring the ocean mixing processes that are critical to the flow of heat and carbon through the Earth system, through to employing statistical learning techniques to improve future predictions of Arctic sea ice, currently in perilous decline. Climate change is one of the greatest challenges facing humanity. Responding to the challenge requires robust scientific evidence to inform policies. Opportunities for mathematicians to contribute to this important issue abound.
Meeting 921 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
27 November 2017: Mathmo Call My Bluff.
Meeting 922 (recreational), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
22 January 2018: Dr S. K. Andres, “Loop Erased Random, Uniform Spanning Trees and Percolation”.
Abstract: In graph theory spanning trees have been investigated already since the 19th century. They appear for instance as objects in a number of algorithms. On the other hand, in modern probability theory certain random spanning trees, so called uniform spanning trees, have had a fruitful history. Most notably, around the turn of the millennium the study of these spanning trees led Oded Schramm to introduce the SLE process, work which has revolutionised the study of two dimensional models in statistical physics. One reason for the importance of uniform spanning trees is their intimate relation to another model, the loop-erased random walks. In this talk we will introduce both models and explain their connection by means of Wilson’s algorithm. In the last part we will discuss some relations to percolation theory.
Meeting 923 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
5 February 2018: Dr H. C. Krieger, “A Tour of the Mandelbrot Set”.
Abstract: The Mandelbrot set is a famous image, but its mathematical content is much less widely known. We’ll take a mathematical walk around the Mandelbrot set, visiting the minibrots and the Feigenbaum point. We’ll stop at the rabbit, corabbit, and airplane, and answer the question: what happens when you twist the ears of the rabbit? We’ll find the freshman sum and the Fibonacci sequence. Finally, we’ll provide one answer to the question every mathematician wonders when they first meet the Mandelbrot set: why do we care about this pretty picture?
Meeting 924 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
19 February 2018: Dr T. G. Griffin, “Adventures in Algebraic Path Problems”.
Abstract: The classic problem of finding shortest paths in a directed graph can be generalised to finding paths taking path weights in a large class of semirings. This approach has been developed over the last fifty years, with many interesting applications. However, if we try to model some existing Internet routing protocols using semirings we see that the distributivity law [a(b + c) = ab + ac] is often violated. Since distributivity is vital in semiring theory, we are forced to explore what, if anything, can be accomplished with such “impoverished” algebraic structures.
Meeting 925 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
25 February 2018:
- Ms C. Kirchhoff-Lukat, “Gromov’s non-squeezing theorem or the principle of the symplectic camel”.
  Abstract: Symplectic geometry provides the framework for classical mechanics, but it is also a rapidly evolving major area of modern pure mathematics. I will give a brief introduction to symplectic structures, and then discuss a fundamental property of symplectomorphisms, maps which preserve the symplectic structure. Gromov’s non-squeezing theorem is one of the first major results about such maps, answering the question why a symplectic camel cannot pass through the eye of a needle: Its ribcage cannot be symplectically compressed! Finally, I will touch on quantum mechanics and how the non-squeezing property manifests itself there in the form of the Heisenberg uncertainty relation.
- Mr M. Leonhardt, “CFT of IQNF via EC with CM”.
  Abstract: In this talk, we will go on a journey through the realm of algebraic number theory. We will talk a little bit about Galois theory before moving on to class field theory (CFT). The goal of class field theory is to describe all abelian extensions of a given number field. We will first do this for the field of rational numbers, using roots of unity. Then we will give an introduction to elliptic curves (EC) and the theory of complex multiplication (CM). This allows us in the end to describe all abelian extensions of a given imaginary quadratic number field (IQNF).
- Ms V. Siska, “A metapopulation model of the spread of the Devil Facial Tumour Disease predicts the long term collapse of its host but not its extinction”.
  Abstract: The Devil Facial Tumour Disease (DFTD), a unique case of a transmissible cancer, had a devastating effect on the Tasmanian Devils, leading to an overall population decline of over 80%. A number of single-population epidemiological models have predicted the likely extinction of the Tasmanian Devils. However, despite extensive surveys across Tasmania providing data on the spatial and temporal spread of DFTD, the metapopulation dynamics of this disease has yet to be modelled. Here we fit a stochastic spatial metapopulation model of the origin and spread of the DFTD to empirical observations of local disease trajectories and time-stamped observations of diseased animals across Tasmania, using the Approximate Bayesian Computation statistical method to account for the randomness of the population dynamics and spread of the disease. We confirm a most likely origin of the disease in the north-east corner of the island, and highlight the importance of interpopulation contacts in the fast spread of the tumour. We then use the inferred metapopulation dynamics to predict the fate of this host-pathogen system. Surprisingly, we find that the devils are predicted to coexist with the tumour, in contrast with predictions from single population models. The key process allowing long-term persistence of the species is the repeated reinvasion of extinct patches from neighbouring areas where the disease has flared up and died out, resulting in a dynamic equilibrium with different levels of spatial heterogeneity. However, this dynamic equilibrium is predicted to keep the population of this apex predator at roughy 10% of its original density, with possible dramatic effects on the Tasmanian ecosystem.
- Ms K. Wyczesany, “Surprising phenomena of high-dimensional convex bodies”.
  Abstract: How well can you imagine high-dimensional objects? What can you say about the behaviour of convex bodies in n-dimensional space as n grows to infinity? During the talk I will try to convince you that our intuition based on low dimensional geometry can be far off and that unexpected phenomena occur. For example, we will see that the mass of a high dimensional ball is concentrated on a thin band around any equator. This result plays an important role in many theorems in asymptotic geometric analysis, such as Dvoretzky’s theorem, which suggests that all convex bodies admit “almost ellipsoidal” sections. We will make this statement precise.
- Mr P. Velickovic, “Towards practical convolutional neural networks on graphs”.
  Abstract: A multitude of important real-world datasets come together with some form of graph structure: social networks, citation networks, protein-protein interactions, brain connectome data, etc. Extending neural networks to be able to properly deal with this kind of data is, therefore, a very important direction for machine learning research, but one that has received comparatively rather low levels of attention until very recently. Unlike the structure that one might typically find in an image or text, the graph structure is often highly irregular, and producing a general operator (such as a convolution for images or a recurrent cell for text) that satisfies all the criteria we would like for an operator like this is known to be very difficult. Several approaches that have been recently proposed (a lot of them only in 2017!) attempt to handle the problem from a variety of perspectives: structural, stochastic and/or spectral. In this talk I will give a comprehensive overview of these approaches, outlining their relative strengths and limitations, and exposing some cool application areas where they’ve been applied. Special emphasis will be given to the work I’ve done in collaboration with Adriana Romero and Yoshua Bengio (Montréal Institute for Learning Algorithms), on Graph Attention Networks (GATs: https://arxiv.org/abs/1710.10903), which might offer the first neural network layer to satisfy all of the desirable criteria simultaneously.
- Dr A. Beskos, “Exact Solution on Non-Linear Stochastic Differential Equations”.
  Abstract: Non-linear (Ordinary) Differential Equations (ODEs) are typically impossible to solve analytically – instead one has to refer to one of the many available *approximate* methods (accompanied by an enormous amount of research on the characterisation of their convergence properties) to numerically represent the ODE and develop an understanding of its behavior. A similar scenario arises in the context of *Stochastic* Differential Equations (SDEs). However, it appears that the presence of randomness allows for much more flexibility compared to the deterministic case. We describe a recent, surprisingly simple algorithm, that solves non-linear SDEs without any approximation error. We stress that exact solution of SDEs is a notorious problem within the applied probability community, and the talk will present a direction toward the solution of this problem.
- Prof. R. Cont, “Taming roughness—the calculus of irregular functions”.
  Abstract: Newton’s differential calculus provides a framework for studying smooth transformations of smooth functions. Many quantities of important in physics, engineering and economics follow an irregular time evolution, leading to irregular and non-differentiable signals whose (ir)regularity may be described by the notion of p-th order variation along a refining sequence of time partitions. We will show that smooth transformations of such irregular functions obey a higher-order version of Newton’s calculus. In the case p=2, one retrieves the Ito formula from stochastic calculus, but without any probabilistic assumptions.
Meeting 926 (symposium), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
25 February 2018: Annual Dinner.
Meeting 926a (dinner), Old Kitchens, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
5 March 2018: Prof. C. P. Caulfield, “The Mathematics of Spin”.
Abstract: Dynamical systems where there is significant rotation or “spin” are (perhaps) surprisingly common. In this talk, I will discuss the fascinating, and often deeply counter-intuitive, mathematics and physics underlying several examples of interest, including fidget spinners, sport balls, hurricanes and, of course, cocktails.
Meeting 927 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
8 March 2018: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 928 (general meeting; election of officers), Blue Boar Common Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
15 June 2018: Cricket Match (victorious).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 928a (sporting event), Old Field.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.

2018–2019

12 October 2018: Prof. B. Bollobás, “Distances: Problems, Results & Conjectures”.
Abstract: (The following abstract was for the originally announced title, “A Simple Proof of a Major Result”.) The solutions of highly rated problems that have remained unsolved for decades tend to be long and complicated. Although this is what we have come to expect, this is not always the case: occasionally a novel approach leads to a remarkably short and beautiful solution. In my talk I shall give a particularly striking example of a simple solution of a notoriously difficult problem emerging out of the blue.
Meeting 929 (talk), Centre for Mathematical Sciences MR2, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
22 October 2018: “Travelling Salesman”.
Meeting 930 (film night), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
29 October 2018: Prof. R. J. Samworth, “Stein’s Paradox”.
Abstract: Stein’s paradox is one of the most striking results in Statistics. Although it appears to be a toy problem in mathematical statistics, it turns out to have profound implications for the analysis of modern, high-dimensional data. I will describe both the result and some of its consequences.
Meeting 931 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
12 November 2018: Dr A. Iserles, “Approximation on the Real Line”.
Abstract: The purpose of the exercise is simple, to design an orthogonal basis in the space of square-integrable functions on the real line such that the linear map taking the basis to its derivatives is skew symmetric. Such bases possess numerous advantages in the computation of ODEs and PDEs. In this talk, based on a joint work with Marcus Webb, I will completely characterise all such orthogonal systems using Fourier analysis and the theory of orthogonal polynomials. The extension of this work to complex-valued skew-Hermitian ‘differentiation matrices’ is trivial but it leads to a beautiful outcome, an orthogonal system of rational functions designed (in a different context) almost a century ago by Malmquist and Takenaka and which exhibits some truly miraculous properties.
Meeting 932 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
19 November 2018: Prof. M. R. E. Proctor, “Rolls, Squares and Hexagons: pattern formation through instabilities”.
Abstract: It is an experimental fact that when an extended system in a simple amorphous state becomes unstable, the new realised state is typically one exhibiting a pattern. It can be shown even for very complicated physical systems that the dynamical processes near the point in parameter space where stability is lost can be represented by a small number of ordinary differential equations. The form of these equations, and the interactions of any possible patterns that can result from the instability, is strongly influenced, and in many cases determined, by the symmetries of the system being studied. One the symmetry group is known, the different patterns can be identified with different representations of the group. I will discuss a number of examples of varying complexity.
Meeting 933 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
26 November 2018: Mathmo Call My Bluff.
Meeting 934 (recreational), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
28 January 2019: Dr A. C. L. Ashton, “Solitons: An Introduction”.
Abstract: Solitons are a very special type of solution to some nonlinear, dispersive PDEs. I will discuss some of the history of solitons, as well as some of their remarkable properties. The talk should take us from canal boats to pseudospherical surfaces, with some mathematics in between.
Meeting 935 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
4 February 2019: Prof. D. Tong, “Are we living in the matrix?”.
Abstract: Here is an interesting fact: no one knows how to write down a discretised version of the laws of physics in a manner that allows them to be simulated on a computer. The obstacle is known as the Nielsen-Ninomiya theorem. I will describe this result and some attempts to circumvent it.
Meeting 936 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
11 February 2019: Prof. I. B. Leader, “The Continuum Hypothesis”.
Abstract: We’ll explore a statement known as the Continuum Hypothesis, which states that there are no ‘sizes’ of sets between the natural numbers and the reals — or, more precisely, that every uncountable subset of the reals bijects with the reals.
Meeting 937 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
18 February 2019: Dr H. Fawzi, “Sum-of-squares proofs”.
Abstract: A polynomial that is a sum of squares of other polynomials can only take nonnegative values. This trivial observation is surprisingly powerful: many inequalities in mathematics have simple sum-of-squares proofs. I will discuss algorithms that can automatically search for sum-of-squares proofs for polynomial inequalities, and the extent to which they can be considered as “automatic proof machines”.
Meeting 938 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
23 February 2019:
- Dr S. P. Bursill-Hall, “Industrial Strength Total Failure”.
  Abstract: What was the state of mathematics – and particularly the foundations of mathematics – when Russell came up to Cambridge, and what would have driven him to the project of the Principia Mathematica … one of the most extraordinary and important failures of 20th century mathematics.
- Prof. M. A. Reid, “Trinity Around 1970 – student life and math activities”.
  Abstract: The talk will consist mainly of self-indulgent recollections of student life in Trinity 1966–1972, including a few anecdotes about Peter Swinnerton-Dyer and some of the many other great characters who were around, and with a few brief sections on math studies.
- Prof. C. A. Tout, “Milne and the Dawn of the Theory of Stellar Structure”.
  Abstract: Between 1921 and 1937 Edward Arthur Milne published around 90 papers on stars. This was a period of very rapid change in our understanding of these fascinating objects that make up the visible Universe and Milne was a key player in these changes. In 1925 Cecilia Payne found the first indications that hydrogen is the major constituent of the Sun. Though Eddington was already convinced that nuclear fusion is the source of a star’s luminosity it was not until 1928 that Gamow applied quantum mechanical tunnelling to alpha particle emission and it became feasible that fusion could operate at the temperatures expected at the centres of stars. Milne’s early contributions concerned stellar atmospheres, including the formation of spectral lines and limb darkening. Later he delved into many aspects of stellar structure, including rotating stars, pulsating stars, binary stars and collapsed degenerate stars. It was Milne’s work on collapsed stars that caught the attention of Chandrasekhar and led him to determine the maximum mass for a white dwarf in 1931. I shall endeavour to portray these exciting times and how the ideas have developed into our present-day theory of stellar structure and evolution.
- Dr R. G. E. Pinch, “From CATAM to Quantum”.
  Abstract: I plan to explore how mathematics, both pure and applied, has interacted with computation from the 1970s to the present day. I’ll illustrate with some of my own experiences from student days through to advising government on post-quantum cryptography, and how my research related to (but did not solve) three of the notorious Clay Millennium Problems.
- Mr R. Chapling, “G.H. Hardy: The leading mathematician in England”.
  Abstract: Hilbert is reported to have said that Hardy was “the best mathematician, not only in Trinity but in England”. But there’s more to Hardy than just brilliant research. I will discuss the larger role that Hardy played in mathematics, from Tripos reform to international relations.
- Prof. Sir D. R. Cox, “Frank Anscombe and Cambridge in the 1940’s and 50’s”.
  Abstract: The talk will be in two parts, one about undergraduate life in Cambridge in the early 1940’s and the second about Frank Anscombe and the Statistical Laboratory in the early 1950’s.
- Prof. J. R. Gog, “Mathematical biology: the trickiest branch of mathematics?”.
  Abstract: Mathematical Biology certainly would not have made sense to the members of TMS as a research field 100 years ago. Now, most decent maths degree include a course on it, and Math Bio continues to grow as a research field. Aside from a bit of wild speculation and generalising, I will focus on the bits of Math Bio that I know: the dynamics of infectious disease. I will introduce some recent work, and some thoughts on the potential for this area in future.
- Prof. C. P. Caulfield, “How the Titanic Tragedy transformed Trinity: Turbulence Theory and Taylor in the Teens”.
  Abstract: George Ingram Taylor (Trinity undergraduate 1905–1908; elected fellow 1910) was one of the most influential applied mathematicians of the 20th century, who made a huge number of contributions to fluid and solid mechanics. This talk will focus on the significance, for both Cambridge Mathematics and the world at large, of the work presented in his Adams Prize Essay of 1915 on “Turbulent Motion in Fluids”. Some of the key results presented in this essay, the partial manuscript of which is held in the Trinity Library, rely on data taken by Taylor himself on the first “Ice Patrol” cruise, triggered by the tragedy of the sinking of the Titanic. The essay was actually written when Taylor was participating in the first world war effort designing aircraft at Farnborough for the precursor of the Royal Air Force, and the talk will also consider the lasting influence on applied mathematics of Taylor’s philosophical approach to research.
- Dr F. G. Woodhouse, “Mechanics meets biology”.
  Abstract: Unlike an ordinary gas, biological systems are never in equilibrium: cells constantly use chemical energy to grow and move, forming a clear arrow of time. The recent creation of artificial versions of these ‘active’ systems raises the tantalising prospect of soft robotic systems fuelled by as simple a source as oxygen. After a tour through the mathematics of elastic networks, marrying linear algebra, graph theory and dynamics and invoking plenty of tenuous Trinity connections, we will see how endowing such a network with biologically-inspired activity can create intricate self-actuating mechanisms.
Meeting 939 (symposium), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
23 February 2019: Prof. I. B. Leader, Centenary Dinner.
Meeting 939a (dinner), Hall, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
24 February 2019:
- Dr M. D. Fortune, “Designing Dementia Trials Embedded Within a Cohort”.
  Abstract: Clinical trial recruitment sounds like it should be a job for the medics, not the mathematicians. But what if you already have access to decades of data about your prospective participants, and want to select those who you wish to invite to take part based on mathematical predication of how their disease will progress? In many dementia trials, the focus is upon patients who are asymptomatic or at an early stage in the disease. We would like to choose trial participants who are likely to benefit from the treatment. However, if our recruitment is too selective, we may not be able to say anything about the effect of the treatment in the whole population. Any strategy needs to balance the pay-off between these two factors.
- Mr O. Y. Feng, “Maximum likelihood estimation of a log-concave density”.
  Abstract: A density on R^d is said to be log-concave if its logarithm is a concave function, and the estimation of a unknown log-concave density based on i.i.d. observations represents a central problem in the area of non-parametric inference under shape constraints. In contrast to traditional smoothing techniques, the log-concave maximum likelihood estimator is a fully automatic estimator which does not require the choice of any tuning parameters and therefore has the potential to offer practitioners the best of the parametric and non-parametric worlds. I will discuss some recent theoretical results on the performance of this estimator, with a particular focus on its ability to adapt to structural features of the target density.
- Dr C. P. Turner, “Introduction to Topological Phases of Matter”.
  Abstract: I will talk a little about how we traditionally classify states of matter, and then blow this out of the water by introducing the idea of a topological phase of matter. The idea is that even fairly innocuous interactions between particles can result in striking collective behaviours at low energies; this includes sensitivity to the topology of the surface that the system is built on, and emergent “anyonic” particle-like objects, exhibiting properties that are impossible for fundamental particles in our universe. These phases of matter have connections to many areas of ongoing research, from pure mathematical classification problems, through dreams of quantum computation and quantum error correction, to condensed matter experiments. I will try to give a brief overview of how all this arises through simple examples.
- Mr K. P. Kalinin, “Networks of non-equilibrium condensates for global optimisation of spin Hamiltonians”.
  Abstract: The majority of optimisation problems are computationally impractical for conventional classical computers and known as NP-hard optimisation problems. Such problems deal with scheduling, the dynamic analysis of neural networks and financial markets, the prediction of new chemical materials, and machine learning. Incredibly, it is possible to reformulate these optimisation problems into the problem of finding the ground state of a particular spin Hamiltonian. In my talk I will address various physical platforms that can simulate such spin Hamiltonians in order to solve optimisation problems orders of magnitude faster than can be achieved on a classical computer. In particular, the spin Hamiltonians can be simulated experimentally with polariton condensates. These are effectively comprised of a “mix” of the states of light and matter, and can be explicitly mapped into problems such as the travelling salesman problem. Using such mappings, one can study physical systems experimentally and effectively “read out” the solution to an optimisation problem one wishes to solve. A possible speedup opens a path to global minimisation of large-scale, real-world problems not accessible by classical simulations.
- Ms Y. I. Li, “The non-equilibrium characteristics of active matter”.
  Abstract: Active matter consists of a large number of “active” particles, each of which is capable of consuming energy locally, causing them to move with deterministic or stochastic rules that break the time reversal symmetry. Examples of active matter are commonplace in biology: bird flocks, bacteria colonies, tumour growth, self-organising bio-polymers etc. As a result of this constant injection and dissipation of energy at the microscopic level, these systems are permanently driven away from equilibrium, where many familiar principles of statistical physics don’t apply. Recent progresses have enabled us to capture the collective behaviours of many complex biological systems in terms of simpler models, making it easier to trace the non-equilibrium nature of such systems. Specifically, the talk will focus on self-propelled bacteria with quorum sensing and population dynamics.
  [Slides]
- Mr A. J. Chamolly, “Why sperm doesn’t have fins”.
  Abstract: Have you never wondered? Alright, I forgive you. But, if you somehow did produce sperm with fins you’d soon realise that it’s actually an existential question — literally — as with such equipment you’d never have come to be. Lacking inertia, the physics of fluids on the microscale is vastly different from our everyday experience, and so sperm, bacteria and other microswimmers had to develop unique strategies to survive. I will present some surprising theorems, highlight how nature has adapted in response to them and how they challenge current designs for artificial microrobots. Expect wet jokes and dry puns.
- Dr M. C. Gomez, “Elastic snap-through: from the Venus flytrap to jumping popper toys”.
  Abstract: Snap-through buckling is a type of instability in which an elastic object rapidly jumps from one state to another. Such instabilities are familiar from everyday life: children’s popper toys rapidly ‘pop’ and jump after being turned inside-out, while snap-through is harnessed to generate fast motions in applications ranging from soft robotics to artificial heart valves. In biology, snap-through has long been exploited to convert energy stored slowly into explosive movements: both the leaf of the Venus flytrap and the beak of the hummingbird snap-through to catch prey unawares. Despite the ubiquity of snap-through in nature and engineering, its dynamics is usually only understood qualitatively, with many examples reported of delay phenomena in which snap-through occurs much more slowly than would be expected for an elastic instability. To explain this discrepancy, it is commonly assumed that some dissipation mechanism (such as material viscoelasticity) must be causing the system to lose energy and slow down. In this talk we examine how viscoelasticity influences the snap-through dynamics of a simple truss-like structure. We present a regime diagram that characterises when the timescale of snap-through is governed by viscous or elastic effects, and relate this to the creep behaviour we see in jumping popper toys.
- Mr M. Leonhardt, “Why is e^π√163 almost an integer?”.
  Abstract: e^π√163=262537412640768743.99999999999925 is very close to an integer. Coincidence? Not at all. In this talk, we will see how this is related to the j-function, a certain holomorphic function on the upper half plane. We will interpret the j-function as a function on the space of elliptic curves, and then see how symmetries of elliptic curves and of this space have far-reaching consequences — not only for e^π√163.
- Mr O. Janzer, “A generalization of the off-diagonal Ramsey numbers”.
  Abstract: The Ramsey number R(s,t) stands for the smallest positive integer N such that whenever the edges of the complete graph on N vertices are 2-coloured with red and blue, then there is a red clique on s vertices or a blue clique on t vertices. In this talk, I will review the known results about this function, mentioning some famous open problems. I will also talk about how random graphs can be used to prove lower bounds on R(s,t). Then I will present a generalisation of this function and state a recent result of Gowers and myself, which is based on an unusual random graph construction.
- Mr A. J. Carlotti, “Uniform Bounds for Non-negativity of the Diffusion Game”.
  Abstract: I will discuss a variant of the chip-firing game known as the diffusion game. In the diffusion game, we begin with some integer labelling of the vertices of a graph, interpreted as a number of chips on each vertex, and then for each subsequent step every vertex simultaneously fires a chip to each neighbour with fewer chips. In general, this could result in negative vertex labels. In this talk I will answer the following question: do there exist values f(n), for each n, such that whenever we have a graph on n vertices and an initial allocation with at least f(n) chips on each vertex, then the number of chips on each vertex will remain non-negative. I will also consider the possibility of a similar bound g(d) for each d, where d is the maximum degree of the graph.
Meeting 940 (symposium), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
25 February 2019: Dr J. Wolf, “Addition, multiplication, and why they don’t get along”.
Abstract: The sum-product conjecture, put forward by Erdős and Szemerédi in the 1980s, states that the set of all pairwise sums and the set of all pairwise products of a finite subset of the reals cannot simultaneously be close to minimal in size. Despite the simplicity of its statement and a significant amount of research effort devoted to its resolution, the conjecture remains open to this day. In this talk I will explain the motivation for the conjecture as well as some fascinating partial results.
Meeting 941 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
4 March 2019: Prof. P. M. H. Wilson, “Elliptical billiards and Poncelet trajectories”.
Abstract: Given an elliptical billiard table, to any ball trajectory which doesn’t cross the line segment joining the two foci, there is an associated smaller confocal ellipse inscribed in the trajectory. A Poncelet trajectory is one which is closed after a finite number of bounces. We’ll see that if there is one such closed trajectory with n segments, then starting from every point on the outer ellipse, there is a similar closed trajectory with n segments and the same inscribed ellipse, and indeed all these trajectories have the same length. Analogous geometric properties hold more generally for any pair of conics in the plane, and in modern terminology the existence of analogous Poncelet polygons is related to the torsion points on an associated elliptic curve.
Meeting 942 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
8 March 2019: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 943 (general meeting; election of officers), Blue Boar Common Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
11 March 2019: Prof. E. J.-M. Lauga, “How to Build Mathematical Models”.
Abstract: Everybody knows what “Mathematics” is but ask around and you will quickly realise that nobody really knows what “Applied Mathematics” means. In this talk I will use research drawn from the world of physics and biology to convey what it means to be an applied mathematician. In particular, I will explain how one goes about building a mathematical model, what approximate solutions are and why sometimes you don’t have a choice and need to use a computer.
Meeting 944 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.

2019–2020

14 October 2019: Prof. I. B. Leader, “Higher Dimensions”.
Abstract: We are all used to thinking about shapes in 2 or 3 dimensions. But what about in 4 dimensions? Or even n dimensions, where n is large?
Meeting 945 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
21 October 2019: Dr R. Bauerschmidt, “The Universality Phenomenon”.
Abstract: Many complex systems in mathematics and physics show universal behaviour, i.e., behaviour that is independent of the details of the system. I will illustrate this universality phenomenon in several examples, some well-understood, some still mysterious.
Meeting 946 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
28 October 2019: Prof. M. Dafermos, “Is classical physics deterministic?”.
Abstract: We are all taught that quantum mechanics suffers from lack of determinism. But classical, i.e. non-quantum, physics is supposedly deterministic: complete knowledge of initial conditions in the present uniquely determine the future. This notion of determinism is often associated with the name of Laplace, and finds a mathematical realisation in the standard existence and uniqueness theorems for differential equations. But is it really true that the classical equations of mathematical physics uphold this notion? This talk will explore one of the most spectacular ways that Laplacian determinism can in fact fail.
Meeting 947 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
4 November 2019: Pub Quiz.
Meeting 948 (recreational), Junior Parlour, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
11 November 2019: Prof. R. E. Goldstein, “Coffee stains, cell receptors, and time crystals: lessons from the old literature”.
Abstract: A paradox of our digital age is that while we can access the older literature more easily than ever before, all too often our focus is only on the latest postings to the arxiv. The purpose of this seminar is to illustrate, by means of a few key examples, the benefits than can come from reading the old literature. My goal here is to be mentorial, particularly toward younger scientists, to emphasise that the ability to ferret out the origins of ideas is an important skill. Besides being the right thing to do, it can make for more interesting papers and seminars, and can often reveal motivations that have been lost in time.
Meeting 949 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
18 November 2019: Dr R. D. Shah, “High-dimensional data and the Lasso”.
Abstract: How would you try to solve a linear system of equations with more unknowns than equations? Of course, there are infinitely many solutions, and yet this is the sort of the problem statisticians face with many modern datasets, arising in genetics, imaging, finance and many other fields. What’s worse, our equations are often corrupted by noisy measurements! In this talk I will introduce a statistical method called the Lasso that has been at the centre of the huge amount of research that has gone into solving these problems.
Meeting 950 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
25 November 2019: Mathmo Call My Bluff.
Meeting 951 (recreational), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
2 December 2019: Prof. C. Birkar, “Some elements of algebraic geometry”.
Abstract: Algebraic geometry occupies a central place in modern mathematics. It has deep connections with various parts of mathematics. It is also deeply related to mathematical physics and has found applications in a wide range of topics. In this talk I will introduce some basics of algebraic geometry and then discuss some applications.
Joint with: Archimedeans.
Meeting 952 (talk), Centre for Mathematical Sciences MR2, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
20 January 2020: Dr T. Crawford, “Using maths to clean-up our oceans”.
Abstract: This talk will provide a more in-depth look at the content of the Numberphile video: where does river water go? Rivers are the major source of pollution in the oceans and if we are to clean them up, we first need to know where the majority of the pollution is concentrated. By creating a mathematical model for river outflows – verified by laboratory experiments and fieldwork – the goal is to be able to predict which areas are most susceptible to pollution from rivers and thus coordinate clean-up operations as effectively as possible.
[Numberphile video]
Meeting 953 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
24 February 2020: Prof. J. R. Lister, “The fluid-mechanics of CO2 sequestration”.
Abstract: Atmospheric CO2 levels are rising rapidly due to anthropogenic emissions. One proposal to reduce emissions and mitigate climate change is to capture and compress the CO2 before emission, and pump it underground into deep porous rock formations such as old oil reservoirs. What happens next? Is this safe? I will describe some mathematical modelling of the resultant porous flows and illustrate the ideas with movies of analogue laboratory experiments and numerical simulations.
Meeting 954 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
7 March 2020:
- Mr A. Ivašković, ““I just want to be pure”: graded monads for program analysis”.
  Abstract: Functional programmers (especially the Haskell ones) are obsessed with making their functions pure, so they resemble mathematical (partial) functions. The most common way effectful code is written in Haskell is by using monads. In this talk, I will show how recent developments in the research of graded monads can be used to automatically verify useful properties of programs.
- Ms J. Yan, “An introduction to descent calculations on elliptic curves”.
  Abstract: The explicit rank of the group of rational points of an elliptic curve is a center of interest in computational number theory. This is because the ranks are closely related to explicit rational solutions to certain algebraic equations. One common method of obtaining an upper bound for the rank is via the descent calculation. This talk begins with an introduction to elliptic curves and descent calculation. We will explore how the descent calculation can bound the rank of elliptic curves. In the end, we will briefly discuss some generalisation of this method.
- Mr T. G. Marge, “Gaussian Latent Tree Models and their Statistics”.
  Abstract: Signal processing strategies and statistics for identifying the presence of evolution in continuous signals is investigated. Consider a feature to be a function on the original signal which contains information about the signal. Under this framework, a model for multivariate Gaussian features observed across related signals is described. The model considers the possibility that some features in the signal are tree amenable while others are not. A model for identifying candidate features using wavelet transforms is also described. Tree amenability is then explored from the perspective of data thresholding. Because of the high type-1 and type-2 error rates of know tests for Gaussian tree amenability, a measure of how tree amenable a feature is has been developed. A methodology is proposed for reconstructing only the tree amenable components of a signal to improve interoperability of the model. Rigorous statistical methods are then defined to test for both tree amenability as well as general structure in the data. To test and better understand these methods, strategies are described to randomly generate tree amenable data.
- Mr E.-P. J. Räty, “Intervals in the Hales-Jewett theorem”.
  Abstract: The Hales-Jewett theorem for alphabet of size 3 states that whenever the cube {1, 2, 3}^n is r-coloured there exists a monochromatic line for n large. Given a line l, the set of active coordinates of l is the set of those coordinates that are allowed to vary. In this talk I will consider the following question: given r, what is the smallest number t so that for any r-colouring of [3]^n (n large) there exists a monochromatic line whose active set of coordinates is an union of at most t intervals.
- Mr S. N. Alperin, “Multiply-Charged Vortices in Nonconservative Quantum Hydrodynamics”.
  Abstract: It is well understood that in quantum fluidic systems, rotational flows are restricted to quantized vortex singularities. However, despite being predicted to have extraordinary scientific and technological potential, due to dynamical instabilities, quantized vortices of higher-than-unit topological charge have remained elusive. Here, I show that the steady-state fluxes inherent to nonconservative quantum fluids allow for the spontaneous formation of stable quantum vortices of high topological charge.
- Ms M. Tătulea-Codrean, “Locomotion: from basilisk lizards to bacteria”.
  Abstract: Swimming, flying, crawling, hopping, gliding, ballooning, cartwheeling… the list could go on. Nature displays an astonishing diversity when it comes to locomotion. In this talk, I will give some examples of interesting locomotion starting from the animal kingdom and ending with the swimming of bacteria, which is the topic of my research. Along the way, I will highlight the role of physics and mathematics in understanding locomotion, and I will refer to some recent research done on this topic.
- Mr P. Boyle-Smith, “The importance of Diophantine equations in the Standard Model”.
  Abstract: Charges of particles have to be integers. A careful study reveals that for quantum field theory to be consistent, these charges must obey certain sets of polynomial equations. We’ll look at how this plays out beautifully in the Standard Model, and at appearances of discrete mathematics in other related contexts.
- Mr G. T. Fortune, “Bubble Sucking Tadpoles and other Animals: Using Mathematical Models to Explain Biological Phenomena”.
  Abstract: All across the natural world, organisms perform strange behaviours in order to help them survive in their chosen ecological niche. In this talk, I will chose a couple of such behaviours and discuss the mathematics behind these phenomena. Through constructing simple reduced mathematical models, we are not only able to bring to the surface the key underlying physics but also explain a myrid of experimental observations.
Meeting 955 (symposium), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
7 March 2020: Annual Dinner.
Meeting 955a (dinner), Old Kitchens, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
12 March 2020: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 956 (general meeting; election of officers), Blue Boar Common Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.

2020–2021

12 October 2020: Prof. B. Bollobás, “Problems, Results, Conjectures – Old and New”.
Meeting 957 (talk), Zoom, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
19 October 2020: Prof. F. A. Wilczek, “Quanta of the Third Kind: Anyons”.
Abstract: According to traditional understanding, quantum particles are either bosons or fermions. This so-called “quantum statistics” has important consequences for their behavior. In the late 70-ies the mathematics of topology was employed to get a deep understanding of quantum statistics, and led to the realization that in two spatial dimensions there are alternatives beyond bosons and fermions. The new possible particles go under the general name “anyons”, coined in 1982. In 1984 it was demonstrated, theoretically, that quasiparticles in the states of matter known as fractional quantum Hall liquids (FQHL) are fractionally charged anyons. Since then, theoretical and numerical work on states of two-dimensional matter has predicted many types of anyons, and in particular “nonabelian” anyons that could be a powerful resource for quantum computers. Until very recently, experiments on anyons lagged far behind the thriving theoretical and numerical work, but this spring, two independent innovative experiments convincingly observed anyon behavior in the simplest FQHL. The age of experimental anyonics is upon us.
Meeting 958 (talk), Zoom, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
26 October 2020: Prof. L. M. Piccirillo, “Geometric topology: the study of manifolds”.
Meeting 959 (talk), Zoom, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
2 November 2020: Prof. S. Sachdev, “A simple model of entangled qubits: how it describes superconductors and black holes”.
Abstract: Long-range, multi-particle quantum entanglement plays a fundamental role in our understanding of many modern quantum materials, including the copper-based high temperature superconductors. Hawking’s quantum information puzzle in the quantum theory of black holes also involves non-local entanglement. I will describe a simple model of randomly entangled qubits which has shed light on these distinct fields of physics.
Meeting 960 (talk), Zoom, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
9 November 2020: Prof. S. Brendle, “Minimal surfaces and the isoperimetric inequality”.
Meeting 961 (talk), Zoom, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
16 November 2020: Prof. K. Ono, “Why does Ramanujan, ‘The Man Who Knew Infinity’, Matter?”.
Meeting 962 (talk), Zoom, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
23 November 2020: Prof. M. X. Goemans, “The Maximum Cut Problem”.
Meeting 963 (talk), Zoom, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
1 February 2021: Dr J. N. Butterfield, “A Philosopher Looks at Multiverse Proposals”.
Meeting 964 (talk), Zoom, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
15 February 2021: Prof. P. Coleman, “Atoms, Particles and Fractionalization”.
Meeting 965 (talk), Zoom, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
22 February 2021: Prof. D. Conlon, “Erdős’ legacy”.
Meeting 966 (talk), Zoom, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
1 March 2021: Prof. E. Riehl, “Categorifying cardinal arithmetic”.
Meeting 967 (talk), Zoom, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
8 March 2021: Prof. A. Caraiani, “The Ramanujan conjecture and its generalisations”.
Meeting 968 (talk), Zoom, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
15 March 2021: Dr H. J. R. Wilton, “Geometry without Calculus”.
Meeting 969 (talk), Zoom, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
17 March 2021: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 970 (general meeting; election of officers), Zoom, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
22 March 2021: Prof. L. Susskind, (Quantum mechanics and gravity).
Meeting 971 (talk), Zoom, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
22 June 2021: Cricket Match (victorious).
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 971a (sporting event), Old Field.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.

2021–2022

11 October 2021: Prof. I. B. Leader, “Tournaments”.
Abstract: We’ll look at some interesting phenomena to do with tournaments: both knockout tournaments (like Wimbledon) and all-play-all tournaments (like the Premier League).
Meeting 972 (talk), Centre for Mathematical Sciences MR2, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
20 October 2021: A. Liu, “Algorithmic trading and quantitative finance”.
Abstract: The world of quantitative finance and high frequency trading is often a bit mysterious. In my talk I will try to shed some light on this world, and Jump’s role within it. I will discuss how I approach designing predictive models within the context of trading, and how financial markets may be a bit more complicated than they initially seem. Furthermore, I will speak about quant trading as a career, and how the skillset of maths and science students can be transferable to the world of trading.
Meeting 973 (talk), Brewhouse Marquee, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
25 October 2021: Dr A. Steiger, “The Riemann zeta function and families of L-functions”.
Meeting 974 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
1 November 2021: Dr V. R. Neale, “Waring’s Problem”.
Abstract: Waring’s problem is about writing numbers as sums of numbers of a certain type: cubes, fourth powers, … The second proof of Waring’s conjecture came soon after the first, in the first decades of the 20th century, when Hardy and Littlewood used their “circle method” to great effect. I’ll talk a little about Waring’s problem and how the Hardy-Littlewood circle method can be used to resolve it, and will hint (but no more!) at more modern developments.
Meeting 975 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
14 November 2021: Prof. J. Gjorgjieva, “Understanding how networks in the brain grow and compute”.
Abstract: The brain is comprised of many hundreds of thousands of neurons interconnected in a non-random fashion by an even large number of synaptic connections. How this non-random connectivity comes about when the organisms are born so that they can perform diverse computations and behaviors in adulthood remains unclear. I will discuss insights we have gained into the process using mathematical models that allow us to study the processes at different spatial and temporal scales.
Meeting 976 (talk), Zoom, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
29 November 2021: Visit to the Wren Library.
Meeting 977 (visit).
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
31 January 2022: Prof. Sir W. T. Gowers, “Human-oriented automatic theorem proving”.
Abstract: Automatic theorem proving is the branch of computer science that aims to program computers to prove mathematical theorems. There are several approaches to this challenge. I shall say a little about them, before describing the one that interests me the most, which is to think very hard about how humans come up with proofs, and then to try to get computers to come up with proofs in as similar a way as possible. I shall talk a bit about what can be done fairly easily with this approach and what seems to be more difficult. I shall also discuss a project that will soon be launched to try to make significant progress over the next few years.
Meeting 978 (talk), Zoom, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
14 February 2022: Prof. T. W. Körner, “Mathematics and Smallpox”.
Abstract: To take your minds off Covid, this talk deals with Smallpox. It centres on an attempt by Daniel Bernoulli to assess the benefits of a dangerous medical procedure against a still more dangerous disease. There will be walk on parts for, among others, Catherine of Russia and George Washington. The mathematical level will not be high, but the issues involved are still relevant today.
Meeting 979 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
21 February 2022: Prof. G. I. Ogilvie, “Astrophysical discs – from Saturn’s rings to black holes”.
Abstract: Astrophysical discs are continuous flows (jostling iceballs, dusty gas or hot plasma) in orbital motion around a massive central body (planet, star or black hole). They can be thought of as celestial fluids whose motion is dominated by gravity. Discs are the birthplace of planets and they make black holes known to us. In this talk I will explore how the orbital motion understood by Kepler and Newton in the 17th Century is affected by a second massive body (as in the case of a binary star, or when a planet has formed in a disc around a young star) or by relativity (when the central object is a black hole). I will explain how the geometry of these orbits and the dynamics of celestial fluids shapes the discs observed by astronomers and recreated in numerical simulations.
Meeting 980 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
28 February 2022: Prof. J. A. Rasmussen, “Knots and Graphs: from Tait to Thistlethwaite”.
Abstract: At the end of the 19th century, Peter Guthrie Tait published some of the first conjectures on the mathematical theory of knots. I’ll discuss these conjectures and how they were finally vanquished more than 90 years later with help from graph theory and a new knot invariant introduced by Vaughn Jones.
Meeting 981 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
14 March 2022: Dr R. D. Camina, “Coverings of groups”.
Abstract: Suppose G is a group, a covering of G is a set of proper subgroups whose union is G. The study of coverings of groups has a long history. In 2017 I was asked a question about coverings of finite p-groups. We now have an answer. I will talk about how we reached this answer and how we were led to the infinite world of pro-p groups.
Meeting 982 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
16 March 2022: Annual Dinner.
Meeting 983 (dinner), attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
17 March 2022: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 984 (general meeting; election of officers), Blue Boar Common Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
23 June 2022: Cricket Match.
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 984a (sporting event), St John’s College.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.

2022–2023

10 October 2022: Prof. B. Bollobás, “Mathematics with Minimum Raw Material”.
Abstract: Prof. Bollobás will present some beautiful results and problems, which he hopes will be enjoyed by freshmen and Part III students alike.
Meeting 985 (talk), Centre for Mathematical Sciences MR2, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
17 October 2022: Prof. M. Dunajski, “Four Facets of Geometry”.
Abstract: The study of geometry is at least 2500 years old, and it is within this field that the concept of mathematical proof – deductive reasoning from a set of axioms – first arose. The lecture will present four areas of geometry – Euclidean, non-Euclidean, projective geometry in Renaissance art, and geometry of space-time inside a black hole.
Meeting 986 (talk), Centre for Mathematical Sciences MR2, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
24 October 2022: Quiz.
Meeting 987 (recreational), Burrell’s Field Common Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
31 October 2022: Prof. M. Dafermos, “Penrose’s Incompleteness Theorem”.
Abstract: Two years ago, Roger Penrose was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics. The accompanying press release cites his 1965 paper ‘Gravitational collapse and space-time singularities’. On the surface, this is a very unusual citation for a Physics Nobel: Despite appearing in Physical Review Letters, this is a quintessentially mathematical paper, sketching the proof of a theorem, indeed, a theorem of pure geometry! Yet it is hard to exaggerate how profoundly this theorem influenced the way all of us-mathematicians, physicists and even the wider public-today understand general relativity. In this talk, I will try to introduce Penrose’s incompleteness theorem and its legacy.
Meeting 988 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
7 November 2022: Prof. B. Löwe, “Arithmetic and its Strange Models”.
Abstract: Peano’s famous axioms for arithmetic characterise the natural numbers up to isomorphism by Dedekind’s categoricity theorem. But in modern mathematical terms, Peano’s axioms are not an axiomatisation. Their modern version allows for non-isomorphic models, so called “non-standard models of arithmetic” that have infinitely large numbers. Can we gain some understanding of these strange mathematical structures?
Meeting 989 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
20 November 2022: Prof. P.-L. Loh, “Statistical inference for infectious disease modeling”.
Abstract: In many scientific problems of contemporary interest, data are acquired in a very heterogeneous and non-i.i.d. fashion: Edges in a network may give rise to important correlations between node-level observations, which must be taken into account when performing data analysis. In large-scale applications, the structure of the graph may also determine the type of algorithms that may be performed. This talk will briefly overview some research problems involving mathematical analysis of network-structured data. A central question is how to formulate rigorous statistical theory for data collected over (or in the form of) a network. I will focus on the problems of source inference and graph hypothesis testing. In the first part of the talk, I will discuss algorithms for inferring the source of a disease spreading over a tree-structured network. The infection is assumed to spread via contagion (e.g., transmission over the edges of an underlying network). Given the infection status of individuals at a particular time instance, the goal is to identify a confidence set of nodes that contain the source of the infection with high probability. I will present a method for constructing confidence sets for the source of the infection, with the property that the cardinality of the confidence sets depends only on the error probability and the degree of the nodes in the tree, rather than the size of the infection set. The analysis depends on a careful probabilistic analysis of relative subtree sizes as the infection propagates over the tree, and utilizes the theory of Polya urns. Next, I will discuss a problem concerning hypothesis testing between graph structures. In this scenario, the goal is to infer the network structure of the underlying graph based on knowledge of which individuals have been infected at a certain time, but not their relative connectivity. However, since the infection information is restricted to a single observation, methods such as graphical model estimation become invalid for inferring the connections between individuals. I will present a hypothesis test based on permutation testing, and describe a sufficient condition for the validity of the hypothesis test based on automorphism groups of the two graphs involved in the hypothesis test. This is joint work with my former PhD student Justin Khim, now a researcher at Amazon.
Meeting 990 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
5 December 2022: Prof. U. L. Tillmann, “Topology and Data”.
Abstract: The field of topological data analysis is still quite young. We will give an introduction, look at some applications, and discuss theoretical challenges. Beyond some basic linear algebra, little previous knowledge will be assumed.
Meeting 991 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
2 February 2023: Quiz.
Meeting 992 (recreational), Burrell’s Field Common Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
6 February 2023: (no dongle for projector available).
Meeting 993 (talk), Centre for Mathematical Sciences MR3, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
20 February 2023: Prof. R. J. Samworth, “Stein’s paradox”.
Abstract: Stein’s paradox is one of the most striking results in Statistics. Although it appears to be a basic problem in mathematical statistics, it turns out to have profound implications for the analysis of modern, high-dimensional data. I will describe both the result and some of its consequences.
Meeting 994 (talk), Centre for Mathematical Sciences MR2, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
27 February 2023: Prof. I. Kontoyiannis, “Entropy”.
Abstract: After a brief historical overview of the origins of the notion of entropy in physics, we describe its explosive entry into mathematics in the 1940s and 50s, and outline some of the mathematical areas in which entropy plays a crucial role. Some examples of important recent problems where the entropy was instrumental in their solution will also be described.
Meeting 995 (talk), Centre for Mathematical Sciences MR2, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
20 March 2023: Visit to the Wren Library.
Meeting 996 (visit).
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
11 May 2023: Prof. Q. Zhao, “Causal inference: From Mathematical Theory to Scientific Practice”.
Abstract: I will give an introduction to causal inference, a young and active research area at the interface of mathematics, statistics, philosophy, computer science, and several biological and social disciplines. In the first half of the talk, I will give a number of motivating problems from these fields, including the problem of induction, the nature of scientific theory, agricultural experiments, identifying disease-causing rare genetic variants, the debate about smoking and lung cancer, experiments about telepathy, synthesizing evidence about the effectiveness of conservation actions, abstract constructs in psychology, and whether race could be regarded as a cause. In the second half of the talk, I will outline some successful approaches that have become widely adopted in scientific practice and try to demonstrate the breadth and richness of the mathematics involved.
Meeting 997 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
24 May 2023: Annual General Meeting.
Meeting 998 (general meeting; election of officers), Blue Boar Common Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
29 May 2023: Annual Dinner.
Meeting 999 (dinner), Old Kitchens, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
15 June 2023: Cricket Match.
Joint with: Adams Society.
Meeting 999a (sporting event), Old Field.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.

2023–2024

9 October 2023: Prof. I. B. Leader, “Thinking in Higher Dimensions”.
Meeting 1000 (talk), Centre for Mathematical Sciences MR2, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
16 October 2023: Quiz.
Meeting 1001 (recreational), Burrell’s Field Common Room, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
27 October 2023: Mr F. Yip, “History and Construction of Brownian Motion”.
Abstract: Originating as a physical discovery in botany, Brownian motion has been a key piece of evidence for molecular theory. In modern times, it now plays a central role in the analysis of stochastic and partial differential equations, alongside financial modelling. We shall explore its rigorous mathematical underpinnings which empowers its rich applications in analysis and beyond.
Meeting 1002 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
1 November 2023: Mr A. Liu, “Quantitative Research at Jump Trading”.
Abstract: Learn about quantitative research at Jump Trading – a leading quantitative trading firm built upon cutting-edge research and machine learning, high-performance technology, and an entrepreneurial culture – from Jump QR Akuan Liu (Cambridge ’18).
Meeting 1003 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
6 November 2023: Prof. A. J. Liu, “Persistent homology for understanding protein allostery”.
Abstract: We know from statistical physics that we need ensembles in order to extract microscopic understanding of collective phenomena. We have designed networks to have properties inspired by protein allostery and by “flow allostery” exhibited by the brain vasculature. By analyzing an ensemble of networks designed to have the similar response, we find that the response is of a topological nature and can be characterized using persistent homology. Our analysis is generalizable to real proteins and produces similar results, suggesting that the characterization of protein allostery can be reduced to the measure of the topological significance of two properties.
Meeting 1004 (talk), Centre for Mathematical Sciences MR2, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
13 November 2023: Prof. S. A. Hartnoll, “Entropy: From Steam Engines to Black Holes and Quantum Computers”.
Abstract: The notion of entropy was invented in the aftermath of the Industrial Revolution to describe the fact that heat engines could never be perfectly efficient. The irreversible generation of entropy was later understood to occur because everyday macroscopic objects are made up of very many small molecules whose microscopic motion is so complicated that we cannot hope to harness their energy in a useful way. This idea of “inaccessible energy” underpinned Hawking and Bekenstein’s calculation of the entropy of a black hole in the 1970’s: stuff inside a black hole is unknowable to an external observer. As things fall into a black hole it grows, and this is the growth of our ignorance and of entropy. I will describe how, over the past half century, black holes have come to be understood as highly quantum mechanical steam engines. As part of this process, the mathematics of black holes has fed into exciting developments in the seemingly unrelated field of quantum entanglement and quantum computation.
Meeting 1005 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
20 November 2023: Dr Z. E. Wyatt, “Traveling Waves”.
Abstract: A central idea in the study of both linear and nonlinear evolutionary PDEs is wave propagation. In this talk I will explain some interesting things we can learn from travelling wave solutions to some progressively more complex PDEs. Since we’re near the end of term, the analysis will be friendly, our functions will be well behaved, and I will also read you the best poem ever written about dynamics.
Meeting 1006 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
27 November 2023: Dr M. J. Kang, “Operator algebra in AdS/CFT”.
Abstract: From the AdS/CFT correspondence, we have a holographic isometric map arising between the local operator algebras of the bulk theory and the boundary conformal field theory. I will explain how operator algebras can naturally be used for understanding spacetime theories in this physical context to unveil some structures of quantum gravity. In particular, I will focus on building the formalism on the bulk reconstruction from the boundary operators to the bulk operators and explain how quantum extremal surfaces aid in studying the relative entropy of the bulk and the boundary. I will further describe how we can understand the formulation in low-dimensions to describe the topology changes of the bulk.
Meeting 1007 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
22 January 2024: Prof. D. E. Khmelnitskii, (on one of his ‘fairy tales’).
Meeting 1008 (talk), Centre for Mathematical Sciences MR2, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
5 February 2024: Prof. W. Werner, “Drawing at random”.
Abstract: How one can try to draw/choose shapes at random in a natural way (or more mathematically, what are natural measures on spaces of self-avoiding curves or loops)? I will describe a main open question in this area, some results and explain how complex analysis enters the game when dealing with planar curves.
Meeting 1009 (talk), Centre for Mathematical Sciences MR2, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
12 February 2024: Dr O. Janzer, “Ramsey numbers and generalized Ramsey numbers”.
Abstract: An old result in Combinatorics states that in every sufficiently large group of people, there are either 100 people who all know each other, or 100 people who all don’t know each other. But how large does the group need to be to have this property? This innocent-looking question has puzzled mathematicians for decades. In this talk I will discuss this problem and some variants of it.
Meeting 1010 (talk), Centre for Mathematical Sciences MR2, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
19 February 2024: Prof. J. R. Lister, “Stretching, bending, twisting and coiling: the fluid-mechanical sewing machine”.
Abstract: Idlers at breakfast watching a stream of honey falling from a knife, may notice it buckle and coil as it reaches the toast. What happens if you move the toast (or the knife) steadily sideways? This talk will outline the mathematical description of the dynamics of a falling viscous thread, with possible diversions via chocolate fountains and Viennetta ice-cream.
Meeting 1011 (talk), Centre for Mathematical Sciences MR2, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
26 February 2024: Prof. T. A. Fisher, “Elliptic curves in geometry and arithmetic”.
Abstract: Elliptic curves may be regarded as the first non-trivial curves, and admit a rich theory starting with the fact that they are both algebraic curves and groups. In this talk I will start by describing some classical problems in geometry and number theory, before explaining what they have to do with elliptic curves. I will also discuss what is known, and what is expected to be true, about ranks of elliptic curves over the rational numbers.
Meeting 1012 (talk), Centre for Mathematical Sciences MR2, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
6 March 2024: Dr D. J. Yeo, “Scenery reconstruction”.
Abstract: Suppose that the vertices of an n-gon have each been coloured red or blue. You don’t know the exact colouring and would like to find out. A nearby probability theorist agrees to help you, by performing a random walk on the n-gon, and reading out the list of colours they observe. Is this information enough for you to recover the true colouring, or at least the structure of the true colouring? We’ll discuss aspects of this so-called “scenery reconstruction problem”, including the case of infinite graphs.
Meeting 1013 (talk), Winstanley Lecture Theatre, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.
12 March 2024: Prof. Sir W. T. Gowers, “The hidden structure of sumsets”.
Abstract: If A and B are sets of integers, the sumset A+B is defined to be the set of all integers x+y such that x is an element of A and y is an element of B. This deceptively simple definition opens the door to a large number of deep theorems and interesting open problems. I’ll talk about a few of them.
Meeting 1014 (talk), Centre for Mathematical Sciences MR2, attendance ?.
Minutes: volume 12 page ?.