Related papers: Remarques sur un article r'ecent de B. Poonen

This note studies the Burnside problem for homeomorphism groups of compact connected manifolds. For surfaces, we prove that the identity component of the homeomorphism group is torsion-free precisely when the surface is not the sphere,…

In this work we verify consistency of refined topological string theory from several perspectives. First, we advance the method of computing refined open amplitudes by means of geometric transitions. Based on such computations we show that…

This article concerns a question asked by M. V. Nori on homotopy of sections of Projective modules defined on the polynomial algebra over a smooth affine domain $R$. While this question has an affirmative answer, it is known that the…

We discuss tachyon-free examples of (Type IIB on) non-compact non-supersymmetric orbifolds. Tachyons are projected out by discrete torsion between orbifold twists, while supersymmetry is broken by a Scherk-Schwarz phase (+1/-1 when acting…

We prove a conjecture of Hutchings and Lee relating the Seiberg-Witten invariants of a closed 3-manifold X with b_1 > 0 to an invariant that `counts' gradient flow lines--including closed orbits--of a circle-valued Morse function on the…

We extend the construction of upsilon-type invariants to null-homologous knots in rational homology three-spheres. By considering $m$-fold cyclic branched covers with $m$ a prime power, this extension provides new knot concordance…

While the Chow groups of 0-dimensional cycles on the moduli spaces of Deligne-Mumford stable pointed curves can be very complicated, the span of the 0-dimensional tautological cycles is always of rank 1. The question of whether a given…

We derive rational (Sullivan) models for configuration spaces of points on manifolds purely from algebraic considerations via obstruction theory, essentially without the use of analytic or geometric techniques.

We define Pin(2)-equivariant Seiberg-Witten Floer homology for rational homology 3-spheres equipped with a spin structure. The analogue of Froyshov's correction term in this setting is an integer-valued invariant of homology cobordism whose…

We prove that the degree of a nonconstant morphism from a smooth projective 3-fold $X$ with N\'{e}ron-Severi group ${\bf Z}$ to a smooth 3-dimensional quadric is bounded in terms of numerical invariants of $X$. In the special case where $X$…

We derive a formula for the unramified Brauer group of a general class of rationally connected fourfolds birational to conic bundles over smooth threefolds. We produce new examples of conic bundles over P^3 where this formula applies and…

We outline the proof that non-triangulable manifolds exist in any dimension greater than four. The arguments involve homology cobordism invariants coming from the Pin(2) symmetry of the Seiberg-Witten equations. We also explore a related…

M. Amer and A. Brumer have shown that, for two homogeneous quadratic polynomials f and g in at least 3 variables over a field k of characteristic different from 2, the locus f=g=0 has non-trivial solution over k if and only if, for a…

Gorenstein projection plays a key role in birational geometry; the typical example is the linear projection of a del Pezzo surface of degree d to one of degree d-1, but variations on the same idea provide many of the classical and modern…

Sequences of discrete random variables are studied whose probability generating functions are zero-free in a sector of the complex plane around the positive real axis. Sharp bounds on the cumulants of all orders are stated, leading to…

In this paper, we develop the notion of representability of co-dimension three cycles on a fourfold in terms of zero cycles modulo rational equivalence on surfaces.

If a 3--manifold $Y$ contains a non-separating sphere, then some twisted Heegaard Floer homology of $Y$ is zero. This simple fact allows us to prove several results about Dehn surgery on knots in such manifolds. Similar results have been…

We define an invariant, which we call surface-complexity, of compact 3-manifolds by means of Dehn surfaces. The surface-complexity is a natural number measuring how much the manifold is complicated. We prove that it fulfils interesting…

We give the first examples of smooth projective varieties $X$ over a finite field $\mathbb{F}$ admitting a non-algebraic torsion $\ell$-adic cohomology class of degree $4$ which vanishes over $\overline{\mathbb{F}}$. We use them to show…

Let $V_r(\mathbb{A}^n)$ denote the Stiefel variety ${\rm GL}_n/{\rm GL}_{n-r}$ over a field. There is a natural projection $p: V_{r+\ell}(\mathbb{A}^n) \to V_r(\mathbb{A}^n)$. The question of whether this projection admits a section was…