Number Theorists and mathematicians were attracted to the Atlas Laboratory because it had the fastest machine in the world. Jack Good and Oliver Atkin, eminent mathematicians in the field were two of the early Atlas Fellows. Bob Churchhouse and Fred Lunnon were two members of the staff. The work done in this areas was particularly interesting for new results were discovered which would not have been found if a powerful computer had not been available.
The laboratory helped to sponsor and organise two highly successful conferences in 1967 and 1969 in Oxford devoted to the current research in the areas:
Although number theory was the major branch of mathematics that used the Atlas computer, numerical analysis, algebra and other branches also started to use the computer to solve problems in their domains.
