Life Solved Live in Portsmouth: From black holes to boardrooms
People in Portsmouth are being invited to a special University event, that will unpack how researchers answers ‘impossible’ questions and celebrate impressive careers.
The University of Portsmouth is inviting people to a unique evening exploring ‘impossible’ questions – from challenging our understanding of gravity by exploring what happens when black holes merge, to helping businesses balance conflicting priorities and choose a way forward with confidence.
Part of the Life Solved Live series, an Inaugural Lecture is a celebration of a newly promoted professor’s career and the difference they make.
On March 12, members of the public will be able to attend two fascinating lectures in one evening.
In Surfing the Cosmos with Gravitational Waves, Professor of Cosmology Tessa Baker introduces us to a new field of astronomy research that could upend our understanding of the Universe.
Professor Baker said: “Gravitational waves are minute ripples in the fabric of spacetime produced by the most violent events in the Universe – merging black holes. I use gravitational waves as a tool to answer major outstanding questions in cosmology. My work investigates whether our current understanding of gravity may break down when applied to the Universe as a whole.
“In this lecture I’ll talk about how we can use gravitational wave events to measure the expansion rate of the Universe, a source of much debate in current cosmology. I’ll also describe my team’s work to probe outstanding questions in fundamental physics using the next generation of major astronomical experiments.”
In Multi-Objective Optimisation for Better Decisions, Professor of Operational Research Banu Lokman explores how organisations in sectors as diverse as healthcare, energy and logistics use cutting-edge techniques to solve their most complex problems.
Professor Lokman said: “In today’s business landscape, organisations are faced with complex optimisation problems that involve multiple, often conflicting objectives such as maximising profit, minimising risk, and enhancing sustainability. In many cases, no single solution satisfies all objectives simultaneously, making it necessary to identify nondominated solutions, where improving one objective involves trade-offs with others. The number of such solutions can grow so large that decision-making becomes more difficult to manage.
“This lecture explores multi-objective optimisation techniques and methods, which are proven to work well in producing a set of efficient decisions with nondominated outcomes. To illustrate the impact of these techniques, I’ll showcase how they’ve been applied to optimise prostate biopsy sampling plans.”
The event will take place in the University of Portsmouth’s Portland Building on March 12 between 5.30pm-8pm. Book your free Life Solved Live tickets here: www.port.ac.uk/news-events-and-blogs/events/life-solved-live-from-black-holes-to-boardrooms
For those interested in discovering more cutting-edge research, the University’s Life Solved podcast has shared over 100 fascinating stories. Listen at www.port.ac.uk/life-solved or wherever you get your podcasts.