1209
Groups of scholars congregate at the ancient
Roman trading post of Cambridge for the
purpose of study, the earliest record
of the University.
1284
The Bishop of Ely founds Peterhouse, the
first college at Cambridge.
1446
Henry VI, founder of Eton and of King's
College, Cambridge, lays the first stone
of King's College Chapel.
1584
The Cambridge University Press, the world's
oldest-established press, begins its unbroken
record of publishing every year until
the present.
1687
Isaac Newton publishes 'Principia Mathematica',
establishing the fundamental principles
of modern physics.
1805
Lord Byron enters Trinity and starts writing
his early satires and poems.
1831
Charles Darwin of Christ's is recommended
by Botany Professor John Stevens Henslow
to join HMS Beagle as the naturalist on
its scientific survey of South American
waters.
1897
J.J. Thomson, Cavendish Professor of Physics,
discovers the electron, laying the foundations
for the whole of modern physics, including
electronics and computer technology. In
following years, inventors use his work
to develop new devices such as the telephone,
radio and television.
1932
The atom is split for the first time.
The work, giving birth to the study of
nuclear physics, is carried out by John
Cockcroft and Ernest Walton, under the
direction of Ernest Rutherford at the
Cavendish Laboratory. Their Nobel Prize
for Physics is awarded in 1951.
1953
Francis Crick and James Watson discover
the structure of DNA, unlocking the secret
of how coded information is contained
in living cells and passed from one generation
to the next - the secret of life. Their
discovery opens the door to the study
of an entirely new science - genetics.
1988
Professor Stephen Hawking, Lucasian Professor
of Mathematics, publishes his book, 'A
Brief History of Time' one of the best
selling scientific books of all time.
He is already eminent for his work on
black holes and the Big Bang theory of
the origin of the universe.
2002
The William H Gates building opens, the
first on the University's major new science
and technology West Cambridge site.
2003
Roger Clifford and Steve Henry buy Regency
House
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