In graphic detail

Representational Image

What if we told you that your morning cup of chai could get a scientific twist this Sunday? Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) is back with a new workshop, Fun with Network, which is a part of the Chai and Why? sessions. These sessions include informal discussions on interesting scientific issues outside of a traditional academic setting in a science café format. It aims to engage the public who are interested in science but generally don't have an opportunity to interact with and discuss their views.

This weekend's topic is centred on a question: What do roads, friendships, and codes have in common? The answer is that all three can be modelled using a graph, which is a network of vertices connected by edges.

Ashutosh Shankar and Pranshu Gaba

The speakers for this session will be Pranshu Gaba, Hari Krishnan PA and Ashutosh Shankar. "In this session, we explore some intriguing puzzles on networks and look at problems related to building and destroying bridges, counting friends and strangers at parties, resolving disputes between siblings, and more. Graphs are widely used across the world and are very useful for several subjects. We will help the participants get acquainted with it and discuss what conclusions people can draw based on these abstracts," explains Gaba, a research scholar.

Chai and Why? has been hosting sessions for past 12 years, and has conducted more than 300 workshops panning a range of subjects. The workshops, which are usually held at Prithvi Café, Ruparel College or Alexandra School, thrice a month, were conducted online during the pandemic.

"The objective is to bring different topics such as biology, chemistry, mathematics, and physics under one roof. Throughout the pandemic, we were stuck with online workshops, but now that everyone can go around the city again, we are back on track. However, we still have YouTube and Zoom Live for people who wish to participate from their own space, " shares Ulhas Vaidya, outreach events coordinator at TIFR.

On May 29, 2022; 11 am to 12.15 pm
At Ruparel College, Senapati Bapat Marg, Matunga (Western Railway).
Log on to https://main.tifr.res.in/outreach
Call 22782770
Free