A physicist at Oxford and Cambridge

A short time agoI finished a year spent as a Fulbright Professor, in a way very few Englishmen are privileged to spend their time, at both Oxford and Cambridge. This dual existence has been not only a privilege but a severe test of diplomatic skill, especially in conversation with the average alumnus of either university, who will hardly admit that the other exists. As my year was about equally divided I did have a unique, as well as leisurely, opportunity to observe both, and was led to the somewhat surprising conclusion that definite differences do exist. Along with their common features, I shall mention some of these differences—a dangerous procedure, I realize, that may well cost me some budding friendships.

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