In March 2021 a masterclass event on networks and their applications was organized by the NETWORKS program at the Technical University of Eindhoven and in Leiden University. This event was intended for secondary education students and teachers who want to broaden their scientific horizons by having a glimpse into state of the art mathematical research. All the material has been gathered in a self-contained booklet, which can be used by teachers in the classroom, or by students who want to have a glimpse into networks science!
Below we give a short description of the topics discussed during this masterclass.
Youri Raaijmakers - Queueing theory - Preventing queues growing large
In this talk Youri discussed how a mathematical model of a queue can be constructed and analysed. Some typical everyday examples of queues can be found in supermarkets, industrial production systems and hospitals. In a supermarket customers arrive to the counters, they may have to wait in the queue until their turn comes, they are served and then leave the supermarket. But an important question is, can we change the policy serving the customers to serve them faster?
Rens Kamphuis - Graph theory - Finding the optimal route in a road traffic network
In this talk Rens showed how graphs can be used to represent networks, and how algorithms can be constructed to solve questions about networks. For instance, what is the shortest route from one location in a network to another? This is a question that we ask our favourite route planner on a daily basis.
Janusz Meylahn - Complex networks - Learning how synchronisation works
In this talk Janusz gave a glimpse in how synchronisation works. Synchronisation is the coordination of events to operate a system in unison. Simply put, multiple parts work together to produce one whole. Think of phenomena like fireflies flashing in synchrony, neurons ringing in the brain, the gravitational synchronisation of meteorsor an audience clapping after a concert.
The aim of the events is to introduce secondary school students with an interest in mathematics to mathematics education at a university and to provide them further deepening in their mathematical knowledge. The previous masterclasses "NETWORKS goes to school" were a big success. All the material will be gathered in a self-contained booklet which can be used after the masterclass by teachers in the classroom or by students who want to have a glimpse into networks science! The booklet will be distributed to the students at the masterclass. The material from the previous masterclasses can be found below:
The NETWORKS research program organized a two-day masterclass on the mathematics behind networks and algorithms. The topics: 1. Mathematics and netwoks: detecting communities. 2. Mathematics and algorithms: finding the best route on a network.
In November 2024 we organized a masterclass on game theory. Almost 70 school students participated and shared their enthusiasm about science, technology and mathematics with us! All material can be found here.
In November 2024 a masterclass on networks and algorithms will be organised by the mathematics research program NETWORKS. Teachers and school students at the level of VWO 5-6 are welcome to join this two-day masterclass, no specific prior knowledge is needed, only enthousiasm about mathematics!
The NETWORKS research program organized a two-day masterclass on the mathematics behind networks and algorithms. The topics:
1. How complex can a problem be? Measuring algorithmic complexity.
2. Mathematics and sport: Computing for honest competitions.
