In the latest episode of Living Proof, Dan Aspel speaks to Aleks Mijatovic (Warwick, Alan Turing Institute) and Codina Cotar (UCL) about the Stochastic systems for anomalous diffusion programme. They’ll be speaking about the theme and challenges of their highly interdisciplinary six-month research project, but the conversation starts with comments on some truly remarkable headwear…

Stochastic systems for anomalous diffusion programme: https://www.newton.ac.uk/event/ssd/

Submit a proposal for an INI programme: https://www.newton.ac.uk/events/submit-a-proposal/

00:00 - Introduction

00:41 - Welcome, an insight into “flamboyant” hat designs

03:53 - Explaining the concept of anomalous diffusion

07:05 - Connections to physics, biology, statistical mechanics and more

10:00 - The logistical support at INI in Cambridge: “I’ve never been so relaxed in my life!”

13:20 - “The freedom this place affords us is great, and fertile ground for such things to happen”

17:52 - Solutions vs questions

20:44 - Personal highlights of the programme

In the latest episode of Living Proof, Dan Aspel speaks to Professors Lionel Mason (Oxford) and Maciej Dunajski (Cambridge) of the Twistor Theory programme (https://www.newton.ac.uk/event/twt). Over the 30 minutes, they share their experiences of the scale and challenges of this far-reaching topic that - amongst other things - aims to unify general relativity and quantum mechanics.

00:00 - Introduction

00:42 - Welcome

01:48 - “I have been excited about this programme for 40 years”, introducing the topic

05:18 - Successes of the programme, the attendance of Roger Penrose

06:30 - Connecting Twistor Theory with the Kennedy assassination, a short history of the field

10:28 - The many languages of mathematics

13:45 - Periods of acceleration within the field, “… the 70s must have been truly exciting”, the collaboration between Penrose and Michael Atiyah

17:50 - “Roger makes no secret of the fact that he disapproved of String Theory”

19:48 - What applications can one expect from Twistor Theory?

27:14 - Personal highlights of the month-long programme, celebrating 30 years of collaboration

In the latest episode of Living Proof, Dan Aspel speaks to Professors Mark Blyth and Sasha Korobkin, organisers of the INI Satellite Programme “The mathematics of multiphase flows with applications” (https://www.newton.ac.uk/event/mfa/). In the conversation, Mark and Sasha explain the programme’s research themes and share their insights into the challenges and rewards of organising an INI programme at your home institution - in their case the University of East Anglia in Norwich.

00:00 - Introduction

00:49 - Welcome, overview of the programme, UEA and Norwich as a venue

07:22 - Social aspect of INI programmes

09:20 - Structure of the programme, starting with a summer school

13:02 - Central workshop of the programme: “New directions in multiphase flows” (https://www.newton.ac.uk/event/mfaw02/), connections with industry

16:30 - The challenges of running a satellite programme, without the infrastructure provided in Cambridge

20:50 - Discussing the two-year lead time from proposal to preparation to hosting the month-long programme, the importance of planning far in advance

22:45 - Success of the science during a month-long programme

26:38 - Personal highlights: “I was amazed we made it through the month without any catastrophes”, lecture on beer tapping

29:25 - Final thoughts, looking to the future