Creation of the College Science: 2017

Monday, 2 October 2017

Year Engineering Course began

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Recommended by the Dainton report (Dainton picture left), increasing the length of the Engineering course was designed to expand students possibilities in obtaining managerial posts in industry by adding a year of study in industrial, social and economic studies. This was 'to produce engineers of a very high quality with an understanding of engineering in its managerial, social and economic context and able to advance to responsible positions in manufacturing industry'. Universities made bids for University Grants Committee funds for this and Imperial was one of those accepted.

David Huddie had come to similar conclusions as to the need for expansion studies from his in-depth investigation of Imperial and its courses.

Humanities Department opened

The Humanities Department was formed from the Associated Studies and History of Science with the first Head of Department being Professor David Raphael, a Philosopher.

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"The merger of our institutions was inspired by a vision of the great advances in science and medicine we could make together. The past experience of Imperial College is that students are enthused by biomedical topics and show great interest in undertaking research in this area both as undergraduates and postgraduates. St Mary's is similarly spurred by the creative opportunity of ideas within one institution.

We are confident of the rich potential for development in Clinical Ophthalmology and Visual Science. Also of the central role of the Centre for Biological and medical Systems as the spur and focus to harness the complementary skills and interests of the enlarged Imperial College of Science, technology and Medicine. The key to our success in the biomedical field lies in bringing together multidisciplinary teams with established records of achievements. We undertake to build a team who will keep Imperial College of Science, Technology and medicine at the international forefront of biomedical research and teaching."

Joint course with Royal College of Art in Engineering Design established

The Department of Mechanical Engineering launched collaboration with the Royal College of Art Industrial Engineering School.

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City & Guilds Centenary celebrations

In 1985, the City & Guilds College celebrated its Centenary.

The festivities included a visit by Margaret Thatcher to the College, and a major exhibition entitled Tech 2000.

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Honda Wind Tunnel opened

The Aeronautics Department has developed expertise in testing vehicle aerodynamics, including the Bluebird of Donald Campbell and the Formula 1 racing car companies.

In 1982, the Honda R&D Division agreed a five year contract for the construction of a £700,000 wind tunnel specifically for studying vehicle aerodynamics with the capability of simulating cross winds and ground effects.

"The merger of our institutions was inspired by a vision of the great advances in science and medicine we could make together. The past experience of Imperial College is that students are

enthused by biomedical topics and show great interest in undertaking research in this area both as undergraduates and postgraduates. St Mary's is similarly spurred by the creative opportunity of ideas within one institution.

Imperial merges with St Mary's Hospital Medical School

In 1988, Imperial College of Science, Technology & Medicine was formed through the merger of the College with St Mary's Hospital Medical School. A joint message from Imperial's then Rector Sir Eric Ash and the then Dean of St Mary's Professor Peter Richards states:

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Merger with the National Heart & Lung Institute at Royal Brompton

The National Heart and Lung Institute's merger with Imperial in 1995 makes it one of the founding divisions of what later became the School of Medicine. It now carries out pioneering research on all aspects of heart, lung cardiovascular disease, with increasing emphasis on interdisciplinary work in the areas of biomedicine, biophysics and bioengineering.

The merger of the National Heart and Lung Institute in 1995 with Imperial College marked another step in the development of the Institute from its beginnings in the nineteenth century and subsequent mergers with: The Hospital for Consumption and Diseases of the Chest 1841, later the Brompton Hospital and its sister hospital in the East End, the London Chest Hospital; The National heart Hospital; The Institute of Cardiology; The Brompton Hospital Medical School and the Institute of Diseases of the Chest.

Imperial wins University Challenge

During the Jeremy Paxman era of the popular and intellectual UK quiz show University Challenge, Imperial teams have fared well, becoming series champions twice and runners up once. Along with Magdalen College Oxford, Imperial is one of only two institutions to have won more than one series, and is one of only five non-Oxbridge Colleges in the UK to have won at all.

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In 1996, captain Mark Pallen (PhD Biochemistry 1997), along with team mates Jim Totty (MSc Physics 1992, PhD 1996), Nick Bradshaw (PhD Electrical Engineering 1996) and Chris Harrison (MSc Computing 1996) stormed to victory, beating LSE in the final 275 to 220.

Five years later, the 2001 team (pictured here) became the second Imperial team to become series champions, defeating St John's College, Oxford, by 250 to 195. The team, captain Gavin Estcourt (MSc Computing 2000), John Douglas (PhD Civil Engineering 2001), Siegfried Hodgson (Computing 2001), and Alexander Campbell (Science Communication 2000) received the trophy from Poet Laureate Andrew Motion.

The following year, the Imperial team again reached the series final, but was beaten in a close match by Somerville College, Oxford. Despite its defeat, the team was sent a bottle of champagne by host Jeremy Paxman, who described its final performance as both catastrophic and courageous.

Imperial College School of Medicine formed

In 1997 the Imperial College School of Medicine was formed, the product of a series of mergers with leading London medical schools. It is now one of Europe's largest medical institutions, with over 1,500 postgraduates in the Graduate School of Life Sciences and Medicine and more than 300 new medical undergraduates admitted each year.

Opening of the Sir Alexander Fleming Building by Her Majesty

The Queen Opened in October 1998 by Her Majesty The Queen, the Sir Alexander Fleming Building provides purpose-build headquarters for the College's medical and biomedical research.

Designed by Sir Norman Foster and Partners, it received a Royal Institute of British Architects award in 1999 and includes an installation by Danish artist Per Arnoldi in its atrium.

"The merger of our institutions was inspired by a vision of the great advances in science and medicine we could make together. The past experience of Imperial College is that students are enthused by biomedical topics and show great interest in undertaking research in this area both as undergraduates and postgraduates. St Mary's is similarly spurred by the creative opportunity of ideas within one institution.

Academic Opportunities Committee established

The Academic Opportunities Committee was established in 1998 as a Rector's Advisory Committee to ensure a 'level playing field' for women academics at Imperial College by removing barriers that may exist in appointment or career advancement, and to ensure that the numbers of such qualified women in the College are as high as possible.

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Merger with Wye College

Wye College merged with Imperial College London on 1 August 2000.

Founded in 1447 as the College of St Gregory and St Martin by Cardinal John Kempe, initially as a college for training priests, Wye College subsequently had uses as a private residence, grammar school and charity school.

In 1894, the South Eastern Agricultural College was established which became the School of Agriculture within the University of London four years later.

Throughout the 20th Century Wye, based near Ashford, Kent, had an international reputation for research-led teaching in biological sciences, the environment, agricultural economics and business management, agriculture and horticulture. It was also home to an award-winning Distance Learning Programme, offered in conjunction with the University of London.

Merger with Kennedy Institute

On 1 August 2000, the Kennedy Institute of Rheumatology merged with Imperial College, becoming the ninth division of the Imperial College School of Medicine.

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Its primary focus was on basic and clinical research into the aetiology of rheumatoid and osteoarthritis and to develop preventative and therapeutic interventions.

Research at the Kennedy Institute resulted in the development of anti-TNF therapy for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis by Professors RavinderMaini and Marc Feldmann, for which they were awarded the 2000 Crafoord Prize by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences and the 2003 Lasker Award, known as America's Nobel.

Entrepreneurship Centre launched

Tanaka Business School's Entrepreneurship Centre was launched in January 2001, and immediately gained a reputation as one of Europe's most accomplished centres for the teaching and practical application of entrepreneurial ideas.

At the outset the Centre focused on new venture creation in technology sectors. "The merger of our institutions was inspired by a vision of the great advances in science and medicine we could make together. The past experience of Imperial College is that students are enthused by biomedical topics and show great interest in undertaking research in this area both as undergraduates and postgraduates. St Mary's is similarly spurred by the creative opportunity of ideas within one institution.

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Monday, 2 October 2017