Certain about Uncertainty

Last weekend was special in a sense; it was the last weekend of a month, year and a decade…But for us (me and deep), it was special in one more sense… a candlelit dinner with some of the brightest minds from the probabilistic world, the folks who are certain about uncertainty…

This opportunity was provided by LPS-V workshop, in ISI Bangalore. At the beginning itself, we were pretty excited, as some of the names in the list of participants, were eminent statisticians. But as the course progressed, we were simply dumbfounded, by the sharpness of the minds around us…Everyone here was simply a probabilist, other identities had vanished. It was just like a family gathering with people from almost three generations; veterans encouraging neophytes, by listening to their ideas. They were always there for the younger ones to help them convert their lumbering walk into an exciting hike, be it in the classroom or in the Makalidurga trek which was one of the social events in the workshop. And one more thing…Even this Makalidurga was not spared from the statistical lessons. The relaxation breaks were made lively by the interesting statistical puzzles regarding card magic, chessboards and exciting facts like how Diaconis (a magician turned mathematician) constructed a machine giving a desired outcome for a coin toss.

The nonstatistical joys included the special south Indian dinner served on the plantain leaves, which had almost 20 different delicacies. Apart from the two special dinners, there were other delectable treats like fruits and various kinds of cakes, which were made sweeter by the excellent hospitality of the canteen people and the individual attention by the organizers.

Last and the most important delight was the interaction with the students/alumni of many prestigious institutes all over the world including IITs, ISIs and Ivy League institutions. There we were among the gifted minds attaining zenith, but with their feet firmly rooted in the ground; some of them barely 7-8 years older than us. And thus we returned motivated, and at the same time wondering how people can achieve such great heights, in such a short span of life…