The railways are an essential part of the Dutch public transportation infrastructure. Despite the effort in time and money invested into the railway systems, the system is perceived as not operating at the desired level of reliability. So, why is it so hard to come up with a reliable timetable for the railways?
The course Robust Timetabling for Railway Systems delves into the problem of designing periodic timetables for railways. Surprisingly enough an exotic algebra from mathematics helps tackle the problem. We will enter the realm of this exotic algebra, where, for instance, it is true that 3+7=7 and 3 x7=10, and we see how this can be turned into a natural language for the analysis trains. Though trains will be the main topic of our lectures we will also present surprising applications of the technique for development of rescue robots.
This course shows that in a world that is becoming increasingly quantitative, mathematics belongs to the core of our cultural heritage more than ever.
Note: The course is also open for 1st years students in Computer Science, Business Analytics, Mathematics, Econometrics & Operations Research. Basic knowledge of mathematics is required.
For more information and course details, go to 'Curriculum' at the top of the page.