The Archimedeans

Who are we?

The Archimedeans is the Cambridge University Mathematical Society, founded in 1935. Our purpose is to promote enjoyment and understanding of mathematics among students of all disciplines, and provide opportunities for cooperation and social activities.

We also aim to hold lectures and events of interest to members as well as create journals of mathematical interest like Eureka and QARCH

What is our logo?

Our logo is a projection onto Euclidean 2-space of a sphere inscribed in a right circular cylinder of the same height as the sphere’s diameter. In Archimedes’ On the Sphere and the Cylinder, Archimedes showed that the surface area of the sphere is equal to the curved surface area of the corresponding cylinder.

Term Card

Membership

Lifetime membership costs £15, and an annual membership costs £7. Entrance to all our talks are free, but membership entitles you to

  • Free or discounted entrance to our social events.
  • Three free copies of Eureka, the society journal (for life members)
  • Ability to sign up for dinner with the speaker after some talks
  • The ability to join the committee and vote in the annual general meeting

To join us, simply come to any of our events and sign up with one of the committee members or even easier, fill out this membership form
If you do not want to join yet, but are interested in the society, you can sign up to our mailing list.

The Committee

On April 30th, 2025, the Archimedeans community gathered for our Annual General Meeting (AGM), marking a significant milestone as we elected a new committee to lead us into the next academic year. We are thrilled to congratulate Rohan Galappathie on his election as President, whose dedication and vision promise to guide Archimedeans towards greater heights. We extend our heartfelt thanks to all members who participated and showed interest in serving, as your commitment fuels our success. Looking ahead, the new committee is excited to implement innovative programs and engaging events to enrich our community. We invite everyone to join Archimedeans this year—become a member and contribute to our thriving community

Speaker Events

Every week, we organise talks here in the CMS, where distinguished academics from both abroad and the UK present on new or interesting topics within their areas of expertise. These events are a fantastic way to be entertained or inspired, featuring engaging titles such as “How to Find (and Keep) a Wife” and “Mathematics and the Simpsons.” Aimed at a general (slightly mathy) audience, they are suitable for all. Our past speakers include bestselling authors like Ian Stewart and Simon Singh, as well as Fields medalists such as Wendelin Werner, Alain Connes and Simon Donaldson. Additionally, we feature esteemed professionals like Tom Crawford who bring unique perspectives to their fields.

Bringing the Social

A major part of our society is to provide social events and gatherings for maths students. We run plenty of events for fellow mathmos to get together and mingle; like the Fresher’s Squash right at the start of October, which is likely to be the first mathmo event you go to. Further in, we have our Problems Drive and then in May Week, our annual Garden Party.

In between these, there will be punting trips, Board Games and Pizza Nights, Comedy Events and Movie Nights; and naturally, lots of drinks, cake, pizza and mingling.

Our Sponsors

The support of our sponsors helps keeps the society running and allows us to hold our many events through out the year.
We also host events with our sponsor throughout the term, they are a great way to get to know our sponsors and what they do. See our term card for more details.

We’d like to thank