10 Dec 2009
09:00 -22:00
Times are shown in local time.
Open to: Specialists and business managers, including threat specialists, academics, policy-makers, practitioners and advisors
Cambridge Judge Business School
Trumpington St
Cambridge
CB2 1AG
United Kingdom
A conference presented by the Centre for Risk Studies, together with the Cambridge Complexity Consortium and the Centre for Science and Policy.
Catastrophic failure in complex systems is difficult to predict but is managed across a wide range of applications. Understanding the threats of high-impact, low-probability events is the area of catastrophe science. It is notoriously difficult because precedents are few and historical observational data contains few signals of the threat of extreme volatility. Shocks to the system are often, after the event, described as unpredictable.
This workshop examined the phenomenon of catastrophe and challenged the assumptions of unpredictability. Wide ranges of potential causes of extreme disruption for society and the economy, as well as the approaches to quantifying and comparing different threats were explored.
Registration for this event is closed. If you are interested to hear about upcoming events and other Centre-related news and resources, please join our mailing list.
Welcome and introductions
Introduction to the Cambridge Complexity Consortium
Introduction to the Centre for Risk Studies
Introduction to the Centre for Science and Policy
Catastrophic Failures in Networked Systems
Robust Networks
Catastrophe Insurance Risk
Failure Mechanisms in Modern Telecommunication Systems
Catastrophic Failures in Biological Systems
Risk Provisioning and Government Policy
Risk Analysis of Complex Systems: From Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster to Detection of Illicit Nuclear Materials Entering Ports
Visualisation and Presentation of Risk in Decision Making
Environmental Risks
What Are the High Emerging Risks?
Meeting Summary