David MacKay: Energy and Information

One-Day Meeting

• 27 March 2026, 09:00 – 17:45
• Cambridge University Engineering Department

Upcoming event In-person Lecture Online Lecture Lent Term

• Event cost: Free
• Disabled access?: Yes
• Booking required: No

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Overview

Professor Sir David MacKay (1967-2016) made fundamental contributions to both public and theoretical understandings of energy and of information. He served as Chief Scientific Adviser to the Department of Energy and Climate Change and was Professor of Natural Philosophy in the Cavendish Laboratory before being appointed as the inaugural Regius Professor of Engineering. He was a Fellow of Darwin College. 

This one-day meeting of the Cambridge Philosophical Society, dedicated to his memory, considers both the urgent challenges of sustainable energy resources and the global opportunities arising from information technologies. We will be addressing the two main themes of his work: machine learning, information theory and Bayesian inference, together with sustainable energy. The meeting marks the tenth anniversary of David’s death, with speakers who worked with David, build on his contributions in the field of energy and information, and share his values on the importance of clear and accessible communication.

The meeting in Cambridge University Engineering Department is open to all to attend, without charge. The lectures will be live-streamed; edited recordings will later be made available through the Cambridge Philosophical Society website. 

Registration for both in-person and virtual attendance is recommended and will open in December.

Program

09.00	Welcome, introduction. David in Cambridge.	Professor Deborah Prentice (Vice Chancellor), Dr Claire Barlow and others
Personal and family perspectives		Prof Robert MacKay
Science and policy		Dr Rob Doubleday
	Tea/coffee
Synthesising data-based approaches to climate change		Prof Emily Shuckburgh
David at DECC: Impact and legacy.		Moira Wallace, Ravi Gurumurthy
12.45-14.00	Lunch break
Bayesian science		Prof Steve Gull
Machine learning and ethics		Dr Hanna Wallach
	Tea/coffee
Probabilistic AI in 2026		Prof Zoubin Gharamani
Information, Energy and Intelligence		Prof Neil Lawrence
	Closing remarks	Prof Alan Blackwell
17.45	Meeting ends

Biography

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