Michi’s blog

Tour dates

• March 6th, 2008

Edited to add Galway

I’ll be doing a “US tour” in March / April. For the people who might be interested - here are my whereabouts, and my speaking engagements.

I’m booked at several different seminars to do the following:

Title: On the computation of A-infinity algebras and Ext-algebras
Abstract:

For a ring R, the Ext algebra carries rich information about the ring and its module category. The algebra is a finitely presented k-algebra for most nice enough rings. Computation of this ring is done by constructing a projective resolution P of k and either constructing the complex or equivalently constructing the complex . By diligent choice of computational route, the computation can be framed as essentially computing the homology of the differential graded algebra .

Being the homology of a dg-algebra, has an induced A-infinity structure. This structure, has been shown by Keller and by Lu-Palmieri-Wu-Zhang, can be used to reconstruct R from
.

AMS-MAA JMM 2008 Liveblogging, day 4 - final day

• January 10th, 2008

Today, the congress ended.

I bought one book - Adams’ Knot book, with free shipping, for $22.

And I drooled over one more - Kozlov’s Combinatorial Algebraic Topology. The hardcover was down from $99 to $70 at the congress stand, but still was WAY outside my own budget capabilities.

Now, this book does algebraic topology on simplicial complexes. It does everything I’ve wanted a reference for with simplicial complexes. And at some point, I’ll REALLY need to get it.

I listened to a bunch of talks on Mathematics and Arts - including one on knitting hyperbolic pant crotches for toddlers - and one on an analysis of a combinatorial game on graphs: “Flee from the Zombies” - very entertaining.

I also spent an hour talking about the historical background of -algebras and bialgebras with one of Ron Umble’s students.

AMS-MAA JMM 2008 Liveblogging, day 3

• January 9th, 2008

The day started bad. I overslept, went to the convention center, and realized that I had forgotten my badge. Back to the hotel, and then back to the convention center. By the time I got there, the first talk I wanted to hear - one on a generalization of Kuratowski’s theorem to simplicial complexes - was already over by the time I got there.

So instead, I learned beading. I did two prototype versions of small and neat little Borromean rings in golden seed beads and blue, shimmering bugle beads. The SF fan / knitter / crafter who taught me was busy doing earrings in the shape of torus knots. Gorgeous. She has a plan for doing triple torus knots (solid spirals with bugle - seed - bugle - seed - bugle - seed) interlinked like Borromean rings.

AMS-MAA JMM 2008 Liveblogging, day 2

• January 8th, 2008

This was a packed day.

And yet, I had trouble finding anything in the talks I wanted to hear.

i woke up, went down to the employment schedule, and fetched my interview schedule. Then I went to Frank’s pancake house and ate their World Famous Apple Pancake. The thing was 20cm high, covered a full plate and incredibly delicious. It also cost more than I expected to spend on breakfasts, but splurging once is alright.

Then I walked around, doing nothing much, and checked out the universities I was assigned to interview with on the web. Small. Teaching oriented. And in small towns. Both of them.

First interview went well enough, though I doubt I’ll want to go there and I doubt they’ll want me either. I’m not convinced that a university whose main claim to desirability is their pre-veterinary and equestrian programs will agree with my severe horse allergy.

JMM Blogger Meetup!

• January 7th, 2008

There’s a bunch of us math bloggers on site in San Diego. Hence, here, the call for a blogger meetup. We’ll convene by the entrance to Hall B (the one with the registration and the exhibitions) at 6pm on Tuesday 8th.

I’ll be there, and so will bit-player. Join in you too!

AMS-MAA JMM 2008 Liveblogging, day 1

• January 7th, 2008

I’m exhausted.

I’m completely exhausted.

And I just got through the first day.

However, I also managed to meet up with S from the university interested in me. We had a really nice chat, and I feel rather good about it.

Other things done today - listened to an interesting talk generalizing Koszul algebras based on the highest degree ring generator of the Ext algebra. Listened to bits and pieces of a talk on Koszul and Verdier duality. Saw Flatland - The Movie (with Martin Sheen playing the main character, Arthur Square).

I also chatted with Cliff Stoll - whose sales pitch for the Klein Bottles is immensely entertaining; NSA - who don’t want me; Maplesoft - who are interested in me; Mathematica - who pointed me to their website; various e-Learning companies; and many many other exhibitors.

Also, got tired, hungry and WET. It’s bloody raining here.

AMS-MAA JMM 2008 Liveblogging, day 0

• January 6th, 2008

The participation in the AMS-MAA Joint Mathematics Meeting sure got off to a smashing start. If nothing else, the storm that hit the Californian seaboard on January 4th ensured that.

I get out of bed at 3.30am, CET, not having been able to sleep particularly well at all. At 4am, I drag myself out to the taxi; which charges more to get me to the airport shuttle than the airport shuttle itself does to get me out to the airport. I don’t care that much - I need the coddling at that ungodly hour.

Checking in and going down to Frankfurt is uneventful. Every single passenger is transferring to either Eritrea or the US, and all but two have managed to check their luggage through as well. n
The remaining two - me and one more poor bastard - have our luggage rerouted to another conveyor belt. And no information about it. When, after an hour, the “Stockholm pending” turns into “Stockholm finished”, I go to lost baggage, where they scan my slip and direct me to the right conveyor belt. Where the bag happily reposes.

Calling all San Diego participants and Californians

• December 20th, 2007

I’ll be in San Diego for the AMS-MAA Joint Mathematics Meetings, January 5-11. I would be happy to meet up with cool people, blog readers, blog writers and what not - regardless of whether you actually will participate in the meeting or not. Drop me an email (contact data in the [about] page here) and we’ll coordinate something.

Also, I’ll be speaking twice. Come listen - if you dare.

• FRA-Lagen och falska positiver  9
  Fredrik Reinfilth, Dag, Michi, Dag, Gustaf, Michi [...]
• A vision for collaborative mathematics platforms  7
  Dan Drake, Nathaniel Dean, Michi, Ben Webster, Nathan Dunfield, Joachim Breitner [...]
• AMS and mathjobs.org are made of awesome  2
  Michi, Ben Webster
• Restarting high school topology  1
  John Armstrong
• Tour dates  5
  sigfpe, Charles, John Palmieri, Michi, Charles
• Introduction to Algebraic Geometry (2 in a series)  1
  lhrrwcc

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