The
PhD
Journal Club Talk
“The Probabilistic Method”
by Geoff Martin - UQ
11am, Tuesday 18th November, 2008
Abstract:
The
probabilistic method, pioneered by Paul Erdos, uses
the language of probability to prove the existence of combinatorial structures
with certain desired properties. In order to do this, one constructs an
appropriate probability space and then shows that a randomly chosen element in
this space has the desired properties with non-zero probability.
I
will give a very brief introduction to this technique through a few examples.
The examples will be more exciting than the description of the method above.
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The
setting for these talks is quite informal as we are all non-experts. We aim to spark a good discussion on an
interesting topic, so all are invited to attend. If you would like to contribute or have any
queries please email Katrina: keh@maths.uq.edu.au.
Also,
the following temporary website has some information about the talks: http://www.maths.uq.edu.au/mathsed/phd/timetable.html
(links to the notes provided by the speakers are not yet active).