SMS scnews item created by Emma Carberry at Sun 16 May 2010 2101
Type: Seminar
Distribution: World
Expiry: 18 May 2010
Calendar1: 18 May 2010 1400-1500
CalLoc1: UNSW Red Centre 4082
Auth: carberry@60-241-127-220.static.tpgi.com.au (carberry) in SMS-WASM

# UNSW Pure Maths Seminar: Savage -- Categorification for the vacationing mathematician

           THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW SOUTH WALES

DEPARTMENT OF PURE MATHEMATICS

_________________DEPARTMENTAL SEMINAR __________________

Speaker: Prof Alistair Savage (University of Ottawa)

Title:         Categorification for the vacationing mathematician

Date:      Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Time:       2:00 pm
Venue:    RC-4082, The Red Centre, UNSW

Abstract:
This will be an expository talk concerning the idea of
categorification and its role in representation theory.  We will begin
with some very simple yet beautiful observations about how various
ideas from basic algebra (monoids, groups, rings, representations
etc.) can be reformulated in the language of category theory.  We will
then explain how this viewpoint leads to new ideas such as the
categorification’’ of the above-mentioned algebraic objects.  We
will conclude with a brief synopsis of some current active areas of
research involving the categorification of quantum groups.  One of the
goals is to produce higher-dimensional topological quantum
field theories.  Very little background knowledge will be assumed.


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