East Midlands Branch

 

THE INSTITUTE OF MATHEMATICS

AND ITS APPLICATIONS

 

Size matters:

measurement and understanding

 

by

 

Professor David J Hand, FBA

 

Imperial College and Institute for Mathematical Sciences

 

Tuesday 9th March 2010

starting at 7:30 pm

 

Gateway House, GH3.13 , De Montfort University, Leicester

[Campus Map : http://www.dmu.ac.uk/aboutdmu/campuses/maps/leic_campus.jsp]  

 

This is a joint meeting with IMechE

 

Abstract

 

The ideas of measurement are so ubiquitous that we often fail to notice them: they are simply parts of the conceptual universe in which we function.  However, it has not always been thus and sometimes, even now, rips in this usually unnoticed background fabric appear, casting doubts on one’s view of the way the world works.  Occasionally these tears have serious, even fatal consequences.  This talk looks at the conceptual infrastructure of quantification, showing how humans have constructed it, how it can be interpreted, and how it is manipulated to make valid inferences about the real world.  The talk is illustrated with measurement tools from psychology, medicine, physics, economics and other areas.

 

No charge is made to attend meeting; non-IMA members are welcome

 

 

For further details of East Midlands IMA Branch activities consult the Web Site: http://www.ima.org.uk/EMidBranch/ima.html or by contacting the Branch General Secretary:

Dr Stephen Hibberd, School of Mathematical Sciences, University of Nottingham; email: Stephen.Hibberd@nottingham.ac.uk or Tel. (0115) 951 3841.