I had an enjoyable photo meander through town with Monty today and found myself in 'New Museums' Site which houses various university departments. It's a bit ramshackle to be honest with lots of loading bays and fire escapes mingling with the odd model of a dinosaur etc. I rarely go through there but the gateman is dog-friendly and encouraged us to go through and I eventually found the gate on to Free School Lane. I don't know if the gates are usually only half open but I have never noticed how atmospheric they are. On the left is the old Porter's Lodge from the Cavendish Laboratory. It's easy to forget that although the University is 800 years old the departments (and the science departments in particular) are much younger. Until the Great Exhibition of 1851 all of physics in Cambridge was theoretical and Newton, for example, did all of his studying in his college. However, the Natural Science Tripos (a 'general' science degree which is still used in Cambridge today - everybody has to study all sciences in their first year before they can start to specialise - it's tough!) was founded in 1851 so they needed experimental laboratories. The Chancellor of the University, William Cavendish, provided the money for the building. Cavendish professors started with the great James Clerk Maxwell (electricity and magnetism) and have included JJ Thomson (quantum mechanics), Rutherford (chemical isotopes) and Bragg (X-ray crystallography as used by Watson & Crick also in the Cavendish). 29 members of the department have won the Nobel prize although not always for physics. The Physics Department has now moved out of town to a much larger campus.
Lovely - Cambridge is so good for bikes. When we went on holiday our two daughters hired one each and had a lovely time while we did our own thing!
All the textures are lovely.
@fueast That was William Henry Bragg. His son William Lawrence Bragg was Professor of Physics in Manchester until he took up the Cambridge Chair. (According to the official Nobel Laureate website).
really cool framing of a Cambridge bicycle!! love the edit to this - timeless shot (except the bike is a bit new to be timeless, but you knwo what I mean!!)
I so love this shot and the story and history is so amazing, what it must feel like to walk where so many great people have walked and where history was made. I mean 800 years ago.............Fab.
Such a great difference in your university & the one I have been round today !! Salford is very modern & has nothing like the atmosphere of this one . They seem to specialise in all things medical, nursing, prosthetics, Podiatry etc . This is a world away & so beautiful, that stonework, cobbles & archways look so good in b/w showing all those textures & then of course you have your bike !! Did you find a stay & wheel it into place Judith ? LOL !
@sparkle Shame it wasn't a nice Pashley! @melaniesavage It's actually quite hard to get a Cambridge shot that doesn't have a bike in it - in fact if the students had been here there would have been a lot more!
All the textures are lovely.