Practical Modelling and AI

This course introduces students to robust practices for the quality-assured application of mathematical models in engineering problem solving. Using simple ODE, machine-learning, and generative AI models drawn from Civil Engineering subdisciplines, students will apply a structured approach to model design, testing and utilisation, including key steps of conceptualisation, verification & validation, calibration, prediction, and uncertainty analysis. By the end of this course, students will appreciate the importance of modelling for solving engineering problems, its limitations, and how model insights must be weighed against financial, sociocultural and legal considerations. They will further have an in-depth appreciation of how such practices can be integrated in engineering workplaces, and what risks and opportunities this introduces.