The Adams Society is the Mathematics Society of St John's College at the University of Cambridge.

Membership of the Adams Society is automatic for anyone who is admitted to St. John's College to read mathematics as a graduate, undergraduate or fellow and membership is for life!

We organise talks of a Mathematical nature throughout the year for all members of the University and have social meetings and dinners. We also compete in an annual Cricket Match against the Trinity Mathematical Society (TMS).

The Adams Society on various speaker meetings, where an eminent speaker from the University (or sometimes elsewhere), will come to give a talk on any of a wide variety of subjects. While this subject will obviously have some mathematical content, many of these will still be enjoyable for a non-mathematician.

The Adams Society also has a social side. Our speakers are invited to dine in hall with us after a talk, where members have a chance to talk informally with others (including the speaker). We also hold a Freshers' Squash in Michaelmas term, the Annual Dinner in Lent, and a garden party in the summer.

There is of course also the annual cricket match against the Trinity Mathematical Society, which we won two years ago, but sadly did not last year.

See News & Events for more details.

Our society is named after John Couch Adams, a Johnian, and the image below shows a picture of him.

John Couch Adams predicted the existence and position of the planet Neptune, by considering the altered orbit of Uranus, from the laws of physics and gravitation. He held the Lowndean chair of Astronomy and Geometry in Cambridge for 33 years. There is also a bust of him in our Formal Hall and there is a University Mathematics Prize in his honour.

Other notable Mathematical Johnians: