Geometric and Asymptotic Group Theory with Applications 2020

Cornell University, Ithaca NY

Investigators

Abstract

This award funds US-participants attending the conference, Geometric and Asymptotic Group Theory with Applications (GAGTA 2020), to be held at the International Center for Mathematical Sciences (ICMS) in Edinburgh, Scotland 22--26 June 2020. Geometric and asymptotic group theory is intra-disciplinary by nature, with researchers attacking similar problems but using techniques from vastly different areas (such as topological, geometric, or combinatorial techniques). The conference series draws top speakers and researchers in the subject and fosters connections to theoretical computer science, logic, combinatorics, cryptography, and many more. The conference will be the 14th iteration of the annual GAGTA meetings. It is the longest-running annual international conference series on the applications of group theory. The grant will allow the supported US-participants to learn about new developments in the field, to communicate their research results, and to spark new research collaborations. Funds will cover travel and local housing expenses of 15 US-based attendees, including four speakers. Priority for funding will be given to junior researchers and graduate students with limited sources of other funding, and among those to underrepresented minorities, women, and veterans. Geometric group theory enjoys a growing diversity, which this conference aims to promote further through the selection of the speakers and participants. The conference will have approximately 25 talks from invited speakers and an afternoon of short talks from junior researchers. The organizers strive particularly to have diversity reflected among the organizers and the speakers. The topics discussed will include: combinatorial structures in geometric group theory and computer science (e.g. CAT(0) geometry, quasi-median spaces, partially commutative structures); complexity in computational group theory (practical and theoretical aspects such as generic complexity, low circuit complexity, NP-complete problems in group theory); and the first-order theory of groups and algebras, and arithmetic (e.g. in free groups, hyperbolic groups, solvable groups etc.). Participants will be given ample time to discuss with each other, thus forging long-term collaborations and working relationships. The conference will help disseminate fundamental ideas and newest research developments. There will be a public lecture on the applications of Coxeter groups and discrete geometry to the modeling of virus development and growth of cancer tumors. https://sites.google.com/view/gagta2020 This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.