Current Year Events

The Adams Society hosts numerous events each year. These include mathematical talks by leading academics in the field, and social events making good use of the historical setting. You can find more about our annual social events at John’s Socials, or check out our Past Events and Photo Gallery.

For in-person events, there is the opportunity to join the speaker and some members of the committee in St John’s Hall after the talks. A form where you can easily sign up to dine in hall if you are not from St John’s should be included in the email for each talk, even if it is not yet linked below. Feel free contact a member of the committee if you would like to book a ticket.

Remember to sign up to our mailing list to be notified of new events!

Future Events – Lent 2025

Annual General Meeting

Details to be announced.

Past Events – Lent 2025

Annual Dinner

The Annual Dinner is the highlight of the Adams Society calendar. It is a rare chance to meet and chat with Fellows of the Society in a relaxed setting and enjoy the proper St John’s formal dinner at the Senior Combination Room. You may book the event on Upay.

This year, our guest of honour will be Professor Po-Ling Loh. Professor Loh works in the Statistical Laboratory of DPMMS, and is a Fellow of our College. Her work spans high-dimensional statistics, optimisation, network inference, robust statistics, and differential privacy. Many of you may know her from her lectures on IB Statistics or supervisions on IA Probability.

  • Date: Wednesday 11 March
  • Time: Pre-dinner reception at 18:45, and dinner at 19:30
  • Location: Senior Combination Room

Sources of Randomness in Mathematics and Physics

Prof. James Norris is the Professor of Stochastic Analysis at the Statistical Laboratory at DPMMS. His research interests include stochastic analysis, Markov chains, dynamics of interacting particles, Malliavin calculus, coagulation and aggregation, and scaling limits. He is going to give a talk on the source of randomness, illustrating how randomness can be generated both in mathematical constructions and physical theories.

  • Title: Sources of Randomness in Mathematics and Physics
  • Time: 17:30–18:30, Tuesday 3 March
  • Location: Teaching Room 1, Old Divinity School

Free Knoops!

Come and pick up free Knoops! If you drop by the Knoops on Green’s Street from 15:30–16:30 on Tuesday 17 February, the Society will treat you with a free drink.

To help us keep track of numbers, please fill in this quick form: https://forms.gle/Ax8nBYrg1yjhRJWa8

Introduction to Tropical Geometry

Prof. Mark Gross is a leading figure in algebraic geometry, best known for his pioneering work on mirror symmetry. He is a Fellow of King’s College, and a Fellow of the Royal Society. He will give a talk on tropical geometry.

  • Title: Introduction to Tropical Geometry
  • Speaker: Prof. Mark Gross
  • Time: 17:30, Tuesday 3 February
  • Location: Teaching Room 1, Old Divinity School

Abstract:

Algebraic geometry concerns itself with geometric properties of solution sets of polynomial equations in many variables. In general, solving polynomial equations is difficult, and it may be challenging to even understand, if a solution set is finite, how many points lie in this set. Tropical geometry, on the other hand, concerns objects of a more combinatorial nature, e.g., geometry objects glued together via polygons. Surprisingly, tropical geometry has turned out be a powerful tool for answering questions about certain algebro-geometric situations. I will give an introduction to these ideas.

Past Events – Michaelmas 2025

What is Maths Anyway?

Dr Joshua Jackson will give a talk on mathematics itself. As many of you know, he is a Fellow of St John’s College and the Director of Studies in Mathematics for undergraduates in second and third years.

  • Talk: What is Maths Anyway?
  • Speaker: Dr Joshua Jackson
  • Time: 18:00, Tuesday 2 December
  • Place: Castlereagh Room, Fisher Building

Abstract:

What are we doing when we do mathematics? Is mathematics just a game, like chess, or is there something more to it? What is a theorem, really? How is applied mathematics possible? I will attempt to convince you these questions matter, and are worth thinking hard about, whether or not you consider yourself a mathematician. Most of all, I hope to persuade you that you probably don’t know what mathematics is, and neither do I.

Following the talk, Dr Jackson will join us for an informal dinner at Dishoom. A very limited number of places will be available for members of the society; if the event is oversubscribed, places will be allocated on a first-come-first-served basis. Dinner will be ordered individually, and members will pay for their own meal in the evening.

Stein’s Paradox

Prof. Richard Samworth will give a talk on Stein’s paradox, a bizarre phenomenon in statistics. He is the Director of the Statistical Laboratory at DPMMS, and a Fellow of St John’s College. He is also a former President of the Adams Society.

  • Title: Stein’s Paradox
  • Speaker: Prof. Richard Samworth
  • Time: 17:30, Tuesday 18 November
  • Location: Teaching Room 1, Old Divinity School

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.

How to Haunt a Submarine

Prof. Tom Körner is Emeritus Professor of Fourier Analysis at the University of Cambridge and an Emeritus Fellow of Trinity Hall. He will give a historical talk on ‘How to Haunt a Submarine’.

  • Title: How to Haunt a Submarine
  • Speaker: Prof. Tom Körner
  • Time: 17:30, Tuesday 14 October
  • Location: Castlereagh Room, Fisher Building
  • Sign-up link: https://forms.gle/Eurk6Zzk4WgY2SVn7

Abstract:

1939-1945.

The Atlantic, Mediterranean and the Pacific – the main theatres of WWII naval warfare.

There was never any doubt that, in that famous war nearly 70 years ago, outcomes for battles in the ocean were as dominating factors as campaigns on the land. Submarines played a critical part in the former, so much so that Nazi Germany built 1,156 U-boats at huge costs to hunt down Allied fleets in the Atlantic and Mediterranean, while US submarines were accountable for 28% of Japanese vessels destroyed in the whole of the Pacific warfare. In response, anti-submarine tactics and technology saw rapid development, which directly contributed the overall Allied victory.

Freshers’ Squash

Come to freshers’ squash to enjoy free pizzas and drinks! You are welcome regardless of whether you are a fresher or not.