The Mathematical, Physical and Life Sciences Division and the Medical Sciences Division of the University of Oxford welcome you to the Dasturzada Dr Jal Pavry Memorial Lectures. We present these lectures and the panel presentation to engage our academic communities and the general public in scientific and medical topics of interest and importance. Through the lectures, we hope that you learn more about the innovative research currently being conducted by leading scientists. The panel discussion offers you the opportunity to ask the questions that matter to you. You are welcome to join in the discussion on how to pursue and maintain a career in science and medicine, and hear how our panellists were able to successfully do it. Lastly, during the afternoon tea/coffee and evening reception, we hope that you take the opportunity to meet new people and network with colleagues.

All are welcome – the event is open to the public. You’re welcome to attend any or all of the event sessions.

1.30-2.30pm (Room: L5)
Lecture – The biology of appetite: what makes us hungry?
Professor Sadaf Farooqi, University of Cambridge
Every day we make choices about the type of food we eat, when we eat and how much we eat. There is increasing evidence that an intricate biological system underpins our eating behaviour. I will discuss key research into the biology of appetite emerging from genetics and neuroscience and the relevance of these findings to understanding eating disorders and obesity.

2.30-3.30pm (Room: L5)
Panel discussion – Race Equality in STEMM
Moderated by: Professor Rebecca Surender, University Advocate and Pro-Vice Chancellor for Equality and Diversity, University of Oxford
Panellists: Professor Chas Bountra, University of Oxford; Professor Sadaf Farooqi, University of Cambridge; Professor Francis Su, Harvey Mudd College; Professor Niranjan Thatte, University of Oxford
Hear about panellists’ experiences in academia and their advice for others pursuing a career in STEMM, and join in a discussion about race equality initiatives and activities in higher education.

3.30-4.00pm (located outside room L5)
Networking tea and coffee

4.00-5.00pm (Room: L1)
Lecture – Fair decisions: applying topology and combinatorics to social science problems
Professor Francis Su, Harvey Mudd College
Sperner’s lemma is an elementary combinatorial result with a topological flavor, and it has many interesting applications, including the classical cake-cutting problem: how to divide an object fairly among n people. I will trace the history of some generalizations of Sperner’s lemma, including some recent applications to divide rent fairly among roommates. I promise the talk will be fun and accessible to non-mathematicians while remaining interesting to mathematicians.

5.00-6.00pm (Common Room on first floor)
Evening reception