The University

"What is the University? It is what you may call a castle manned by learning and scholarship. Or a vicious and permanent dog-fight between Benthic College and Summerset College."

"Fallen London's two colleges, Benthic and Summerset, enjoy a healthy rivalry. They play team sports with each other. They play pranks on each other. On certain days of the year, they play trumpets and French horns at each other." (Like the Oxford-Cambridge boat race. But with trumpets.)

The University is Fallen London's primary institution of period-appropiate pseudoscience of knowledge and innovation, formerly known as King's and University College. The University is divided into two colleges, Benthic and Summerset, which have a notoriously fierce rivalry.

Summerset

"What's Summerset College like? A place of indolent privilege. Minor nobles rub shoulders with the black-gowned children of clergy, parliamentarians and lawyers in its peaceful quadrangles."

Summerset is the more well-bred side of the University, typically comprised of the children of higher society, clergy, lawyers, and officials. It does not allow the soulless in.

The Provost of Summerset is, ironically, a devil, who takes great care to file down his horns and teeth.

Following the exodus to the stars, Summerset established a base camp within Traitor's Wood in the Reach. Unfortunately, their expedition seems to be for nought. 

Benthic

"What's it like at Benthic College? Eager young radicals throng the halls. Students flaunt their tolerance and diversity; friendships with devils are highly prized. Revolutionaries infest the eaves. The soul trade thrives."

Benthic, the lower-bred college, is more inclusive; it allows the soulless, devils, revolutionaries, and children of poor families to enter. Its more tolerant researchers may also exchange items of value with those who've been formally banned from the university, and Benthic actively rewards students for being prosecuted by the Ministry of Public Decency.

Known Departments

Class is in session. Art from FL.

• The Department of Additive Surgery (probably involves organ grafting)
• The Department of Antiquarian Esquivalience (the study of avoiding age-old responsibilities)
• The Department of Chiropterochronometry (the study of using bats' flight patterns to measure time and encode messages)
• The Department of Contemporary Cryptotheology (may be related to the rites of the Crooked-Cross)
• The Department of Criminal Rehabilitation & Eradication
• The Department of Cryptopalaeontology (the study of cryptic fossils)
• The Department of Cryptophilology (the study of cryptic languages)
• The Department of Cryptospelunking and Transportable Antiquities (the study of the cryptic excavation of relics)
• The Department of Esoteric Cryptozoology (the study of specialized cryptic animals)
• The Department of Infernal Rarefactions (the study of Hell)
• The Department of Neocartography (the study of new maps, because maps are weird down here)
• The Department of Palaeomycology (the study of extinct fungal lifeforms, very important down here)
• The Department of Paradoxic Optics (the study of the Neathbow)
• The Department of Phrenology & Applied Cranial Exploration (the study of brain segments, a notorious pseudoscience; usually involves very blunt objects)
• The Department of Semi-Semiotics (the study of half-symbols?)
• The Department of Subterranean Divinity
• The Department of Tonsorial Alchemy (alchemy with barbers, we suppose)
• The Department of Venomous Rarefaction (how pertinent)
• The Department of _______ (the Correspondence)