Optima Fitzwilliam College Newsletter | Issue 20 | Summer 2014 Cycling | Food | First World War Master’s message College News Optima has been published regularly for Professor Sir James Holt more than a decade, and I have always Family, close friends and Fellows of the College enjoyed reading it – paid their respects at the funeral of former an unusual and Fitzwilliam Master, Professor Sir James Holt, sometimes quirky at Cambridge Crematorium on Friday 25 April. portrayal of alumni and An eminent medieval historian, Professor Holt current student news. This is, of course, was Master from 1981 to 1988 and the driving the first time that I have been invited to open it with a ‘Master’s message’. force behind the building of New Court. His son, Edmund, reminded all present of his father’s So I have re-read the previous editions passion for cricket and the Yorkshire countryside, (all on the website) with great interest. and of his prodigious energy and kindness. Collectively they tell the story of an evolving College, but individually perhaps A memorial service will be held at 3.30pm on the stories don’t change so very much. Saturday 25 October at Great St Mary’s in Students and alumni continue to flourish in Cambridge and a full obituary will appear in wonderfully diverse ways. Optima (and its the Journal. photographs) feeds our collective memory. My memories of the last eight months? Perhaps the piles of pancakes that Christopher cooked and served to freshers New Upper Hall over a whole succession of Sunday mornings; or our happy weekend tandem unveiled rides with (largely) graduate students. Or the conversations we have had with some The Old Library has now been transformed fascinating alumni (see page 3). And of course my first outing in the new boat into the Upper Hall, a fantastic new space ‘Nicky Padfield’ on June 8th! for dinners, receptions and conferences. All thanks to donors Paul Forster, Alumni events in Hong Kong, Singapore Doug and Rachel Webb, and a bequest and New York stand out – but so do the alumni events I have much enjoyed in from Vivian Povah (Natural Sciences College: most recently the 1869 1951), and thanks to much hard work by Foundation Day, when those who have the Estates Committee, architects Cullinan generously remembered the College in Studio and contractors SEH French Limited. their will are invited to College to enjoy a convivial meal, to share the excitement From left: Paul Forster (Geography 1983), both of presentations by graduate Nicola Padfield (Master), Rachel Webb students embarking on their research (Natural Sciences 1979), Doug Webb (Geography careers and of musical entertainment. & Management Studies 1979), Professor Sir Leszek Borysiewicz (Vice-Chancellor) at the official opening. There have been many uplifting days in the last eight months – Fitzwilliam really is an extraordinary place, helping people set their course for a lifetime of memorable actions. Read on! Nicky Padfield Follow my blog (or contribute to it) at blog.fitz.cam.ac.uk Contact the Editor [email protected] Alison Carter | The Estates Committee outside the new kitchen extension. The kitchen extension and Upper Hall +44 1223 330784 project was the last completed under the auspices of Domestic Bursar Tim Heath (6th from left), who has moved on to a new job at St Catharine’s College after 12 years at Fitzwilliam. The College wishes Cover: The Master (no.7) joined finalists and members of the women’s crew for an outing on him well and welcomes his successor Andy Milne (2nd from left). Andy comes to Fitzwilliam from 8 June in the new women’s boat ‘Nicky Padfield’ – Comberton Academy Trust where he was Business and Operations Director. He was Director of a gift from the Billygoats. Conference and Catering at Murray Edwards College from 2003–2011. Photo: Dr John Cleaver 2 Optima, Fitzwilliam College Newsletter College News “In Conversation with the Master” CUSU teaching awards for two Fellows This Cambridge University Students’ Union initiative invited students to nominate individual supervisors, lecturers and support staff who have made a meaningful difference to their educational experience at Cambridge. Dr Philine Zu Ermgassen, who teaches Zoology, was From left, Julia Goldsworthy (History 1997), the Master, Sharon White (Economics 1985) a winner in the supervisor category and Revd Dr John Munns received a special mention in the 2014 has seen a new series of discussion events in which distinguished lecturer category for History of Art. Fitzwilliam alumni have returned to the College to share their experiences and discuss challenging topical issues. At the most recent event, in May, under the title Fitzwilliam to Whitehall Sharon White, Second Permanent Secretary to the Treasury, and Julia Goldsworthy, former MP for Falmouth and Camborne and Access special advisor to Danny Alexander, spoke about their careers in politics and Fitzwilliam continues to ensure that applicants from government. a wide range of backgrounds hear about the opportunities at Cambridge, are encouraged to visit In March, Cressida Dick QPM (Criminology 2000) the College and consider applying. During the year, (left) and Dame Shirley Pearce (right) asked What the Schools’ Liaison Officer visited 37 schools in Does a Police Officer Need to Know? Cressida Dick is Cumbria and Cheshire, and welcomed over 100 Assistant Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police pupils from schools in Hammersmith and Fulham – and its most senior female officer. Shirley Pearce is a these areas are Fitzwilliam’s in the University’s professor of psychology and is Chair of the College of Policing. college-wide Area Links Scheme. The SLO hosted over 600 further students and 80 teachers, and Also in March, Carlene Firmin MBE (Philosophy 2002), head of the Open Days attracted over 200 visitors. MsUnderstood Partnership and founder of the Girls Against Gangs Project, discussed Sexual Bullying: what can be done about it? Thank you to the 27 alumni who completed the Carlene has researched the impact of criminal gangs on women questionnaire sent with eNEWS in April. and girls for charities Race on the Agenda and Barnardo’s. The winner of the book Fitzwilliam: the First 150 Years of a Cambridge College is Dr Karkuly Zada The events have been very well received. See also Master’s blog on the website. Sirwan (see p 6). Reunion Lecture Foundation Lecture Saturday 26 September 2014 Thursday 20 November ‘Sustainable Materials: with both eyes open’ 2014 Our society is addicted to materials: global demand for steel, ‘Decoding human genomes on a concrete, plastics, paper and aluminium is predicted to double population scale’ by 2050. Achieving a 50% cut in emissions by that year will The Human Genome Project took require a 75% reduction for every tonne of material produced. many years and thousands of Fellow Dr Jonathan Cullen will explore whether this target can instruments to decode the first be met – and how. human genome – at a cost of several hundred million dollars. Today, a human genome can be decoded in one day on a single instrument. Professor Telephone Campaign Shankar Balasubramanian (Natural Sciences BA & Chemistry PhD 1985), Herchel Smith Professor of This year's campaign has been our most successful ever - callers did a fantastic Medicinal Chemistry and co-inventor of Illumina DNA job and raised over £165,000. Donations are already being used to support sequencing, will discuss the history of sequencing, students through the Student Opportunities Fund, which offers maintenance, methods for rapidly decoding genomes, and the travel and research awards, and also to boost our Teaching Fund. impact of rapid sequencing on the life sciences, Thank you to all our alumni donors! medicine and society. Optima, Fitzwilliam College Newsletter 3 College news Fitz on architecture map Fellow’s gift of Bechstein Sunday 2 February saw a special concert to welcome a Bechstein piano – donated for the Chapel by Life Fellow Barry Landy. The piano, built in Berlin in 1896, had lived in Barry’s parents’ house for fifty years and had been restored by the Photos: Marcus Ginns. Fitzwilliam College leading London firm, Marksons. At the inaugural concert, the piano Dining Hall (Sir Denys Lasdun, 1963) Available was heard in solos, duets and accompaniments by Beethoven, as postcards from the Porters’ Lodge. Chopin, Brahms, Ravel and others, played by (from left) Archan Last year’s exhibition put the College on the UK architecture map, Bhaumik and Charles Gurnham (both Natural Sciences 2012), if visitor numbers are anything to go by. Nearly 1000 came Amalie Fisher (Assistant Organist, Trinity College), Anna Sozanska through the College during the 3 months of the exhibition, (Medicine & Veterinary Sciences 2013) together with Hannah including 30 students from Dundee University, and another 30 Roper (Music 2013) on violin. architects from Nantes; and there have been over 100 downloads of Dr Barnabas Calder’s lecture from the website. Artist Simon Hombersley came to do a rubbing of the Lasdun concrete for the Judging the Dagger exhibition Brutal Texture being held at the Fitzwilliam Fellow Dr Kasia Boddy was one of the 20th Century Society and photographer judges for the Crime Writers’ Association Joanne Underhill has made a special International Dagger 2014. Her fellow judges were feature of Fitzwilliam in Beautiful Brutalism Ruth Morse – who used to teach English at on her website: www.structuraleye.co.uk Fitzwilliam – and journalist John Crace. Image: A4 black and white limited edition high- The International Dagger is awarded to the quality photographic print by Connor Steven, a year’s best crime or suspense novel not originally written in English. student of architecture at the University of Strathclyde. The Fitzwilliam print is part of a series depicting the beautiful robustness of modernism through strong and The judges received sixty-four books, translated from fourteen contrasting silhouette masses.