Interdisciplinary approach to grand challenges
30 10 2023
Category: conference, workshops
On 26-29 October 2023, the European Centre for Geological Education (part of the University of Warsaw) in Chęciny, Poland, hosted a conceptual workshop entitled ‘Processes and transformations in complex systems’ organised by the Centre for Systemic Risk Analysis at the University of Warsaw (UW) and the Centre for Advanced Studies at the Warsaw University of Technology (WUT).
The workshop aimed to address key and timely issues and challenges of our time, such as the climate crisis, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the threats posed by the development of AI. It provided an opportunity for members of the Centre for Systemic Risk Analysis at the University of Warsaw, as well as distinguished mathematicians and physicists from the Centre for Advanced Studies at the Warsaw University of Technology and other units of the university, to engage in discussions from various scientific disciplines, including both sciences and humanities. The workshop also welcomed guests from the Institute of Physical Chemistry of the Polish Academy of Sciences and the Max-Planck-Institut für Geoanthropologie.
All presentations proved to be highly interesting, sparking extensive discussions that continued well into the evening. Workshop participants unanimously agreed that the meeting was incredibly inspiring and expressed the desire to hold similar gatherings periodically.
Talks topics
“Systemic risk – a literature review” – Marek Trippenbach – Centre for Systemic Risk Analysis at the University of Warsaw
“Topology of complex systems” – Stanisław Janeczko – Faculty of Mathematics and Information Sciences, Centre for Advanced Studies at the Warsaw University of Technology
“Why has mortality increased more in some regions of Poland and less in others?” – Piotr Bentkowski – Centre for Systemic Risk Analysis UW
“Why does history surprise us?” – Janusz Hołyst – Department of Physics WUT
“COVID-19 Advisory Panel to the President of the Polish Academy of Sciences, 30/06/2020 – 31/12/2022” – Anna Ochab-Marcinek – Institute of Physical Chemistry of the Polish Academy of Sciences
“Why do short messages have staying power?” – Krzysztof Suchecki – Department of Physics WUT
“Classification and explainability of artificial neural networks – two sides of the same coin” – Jacek Rogala – Centre for Systemic Risk Analysis UW
“Climate crisis 2023” – Szymon Malinowski – Centre for Systemic Risk Analysis UW
“The Large Language Model Gold Rush” – Wieslaw Bartkowski – Centre for Systemic Risk Analysis UW
“The Anthropocene before the Anthropocene: ‘great’ accelerations in the late Holocene” – Adam Izdebski – Max-Planck-Institut für Geoanthropologie
“Consequences of the development of AI and digital technologies for subjectivity and freedom” – Andrzej Nowak – Centre for Systemic Risk Analysis UW and Paweł Horodecki – Gdansk University of Technology
“We are not afraid of drought – Effectiveness of a newly identified Roman rainwater harvesting system in areas with a complete lack of surface and groundwater.” – Fabian Welc – Centre for Systemic Risk Analysis UW and Agata Han – Centre for Systemic Risk Analysis UW
