A friendly introduction to low-dimensional topology: knots, surfaces, three-dimensional manifolds, the fundamental group, and point-set topology. Cultivate the intuitive ideas of continuity, convergence, and connectedness and get familiar with knot theory, the topology of surfaces and three-dimensional manifolds, and elementary homotopy theory.
- References: Topology Now! by Robert Messer and Philip Straffin
- Prerequisites: Students enrolled in this project should have some exposure to the geometry of objects in higher-dimensional Euclidean spaces together with an appreciation of precise mathematical definitions and proofs. Courses in multivariable calculus and linear algebra plus a proof-oriented course would satisfy this prerequisite. A semester of abstract algebra is desirable.
- Meetings: Once per week from Sept 19, 2022 to Dec 15, 2022
- Type: Reading
- Size: 1-3 students
Instructor: Alexander Voronov, Mathematics, University of Minnesota