New York Workshop on the Symmetric Group (NYSY)

Cuny York College, Jamaica NY

Investigators

Abstract

The proposed project is a ?New York workshop on the symmetric groups and related topics (NYSY)?, which will be held at the City University of New York (CUNY) in New York City from September 8-10, 2011. The first two days, held at the Graduate Center (GC) in Manhattan, will focus on current research and new developments in the study of symmetric groups: ordinary and modular representation theory of the symmetric group and related groups (including the verification of generalizations of the McKay conjecture in these cases), Hecke algebras, connections with geometry, combinatorics, number theory and partition theory. Special attention will be paid to the recurring role of core partitions. The third day, held at York College in Queens, a CUNY senior college, and will be designed as introduction for undergraduates to algebra and number theory through lectures on the symmetric groups and connections with partitions and combinatorics. Symmetric groups appear in almost any brunch of sciences. Their structures and representation theory can be described in terms combinatorial data and geometric properties. The research sessions of the workshop will contribute to the development of the interacting fields of representation theory of the symmetric groups, algebraic combinatorics, and partition theory in the coming years. This workshop will enhance regional and international collaborations among research groups working on similar projects. There is a strong educational component to these workshop. Undergraduate students from CUNY and area colleges will participate and even give talks in parallel sessions during the third day. This is an important opportunity for them to interact with a wide group of active researchers in their area to achieve a broader perspective of developments on the frontiers of higher mathematics. This will increase interest in graduate school and aid in diversifying the candidate pool as CUNY boasts a number of talented women and minority undergraduate students.