This book gives a streamlined introduction to the theory of Seiberg-Witten invariants suitable for second-year graduate students. These invariants can be used to prove that there are many compact topological four-manifolds which have more than one smooth structure, and that others have no smooth structure at all. This topic provides an excellent example of how global analysis techniques, which have been developed to study nonlinear partial differential equations, can be applied to the solution of interesting geometrical problems. In the second edition, some material has been expanded for better comprehension.

Gauss diagram invariants are isotopy invariants of oriented knots in- manifolds which are the product of a (not necessarily orientable) surface with an oriented line. The invariants are defined in a combinatorial way using knot diagrams, and they take values in free abelian groups generated by the first homology group of the surface or by the set of free homotopy classes of loops in the surface. There are three main results: 1. The construction of invariants of finite type for arbitrary knots in non orientable 3-manifolds. These invariants can distinguish homotopic knots with homeomorphic complements. 2. Specific invariants of degree 3 for knots in the solid torus. These invariants cannot be generalized for knots in handlebodies of higher genus, in contrast to invariants coming from the theory of skein modules. 2 3. We introduce a special class of knots called global knots, in F x lR and we construct new isotopy invariants, called T-invariants, for global knots. Some T-invariants (but not all !) are of finite type but they cannot be extracted from the generalized Kontsevich integral, which is consequently not the universal invariant of finite type for the restricted class of global knots. We prove that T-invariants separate all global knots of a certain type. 3 As a corollary we prove that certain links in 5 are not invertible without making any use of the link group! Introduction and announcement This work is an introduction into the world of Gauss diagram invariants.

Compactness in topology and finite generation in algebra are nice properties to start with. However, the study of compact spaces leads naturally to non-compact spaces and infinitely generated chain complexes; a classical example is the theory of covering spaces. In handling non-compact spaces we must take into account the infinity behaviour of such spaces. This necessitates modifying the usual topological and algebraic cate gories to obtain "proper" categories in which objects are equipped with a "topologized infinity" and in which morphisms are compatible with the topology at infinity. The origins of proper (topological) category theory go back to 1923, when Kere kjart6 [VT] established the classification of non-compact surfaces by adding to orien tability and genus a new invariant, consisting of a set of "ideal points" at infinity. Later, Freudenthal [ETR] gave a rigorous treatment of the topology of "ideal points" by introducing the space of "ends" of a non-compact space. In spite of its early ap pearance, proper category theory was not recognized as a distinct area of topology until the late 1960's with the work of Siebenmann [OFB], [IS], [DES] on non-compact manifolds.

This book contains a collection of articles summarizing together the state of knowl- edge in a broad portion of modern homotopy theory. These articles were assembled during 1998 and 1999, on the occasion of an emphasis semester organized by the Centre de Recerca Matematica (CRM) and its highlight, the 1998 Barcelona Con- ference on Algebraic Topology (BCAT). First of all, we are indebted to all the authors for submitting their work, and to the referees for their help in the selec- tion and for their generous contribution to the content of the articles. Many talks given during the CRM semester or at the conference focused on aspects of the following topics: abstract stable homotopy, model categories, homotopical localizations and cellular approximations, p-compact groups, mod- ules over the Steenrod algebra, classifying spaces for proper actions of discrete groups, K-theory and other generalized cohomology theories, cohomology of fi- nite and profinite groups, Hochschild homology, configuration spaces, Lusternik- Schnirelmann category, stable and unstable splittings. Other talks treated multi- disciplinary subjects related to quantum field theory, differential geometry, homo- topical dynamics, tilings, and various aspects of group theory. In addition, an advanced course on Classifying Spaces and Cohomology of Groups was organized by the CRM in the days preceding the conference. Lecture notes from this course will be published by Birkhauser Verlag as the first volume of a newly created CRM Advanced Course series.

"Categorical Perspectives" consists of introductory surveys as well as articles containing original research and complete proofs devoted mainly to the theoretical and foundational developments of category theory and its applications to other fields. A number of articles in the areas of topology, algebra and computer science reflect the varied interests of George Strecker to whom this work is dedicated. Notable also are an exposition of the contributions and importance of George Strecker's research and a survey chapter on general category theory. This work is an excellent reference text for researchers and graduate students in category theory and related areas.

Contributors: H.L. Bentley * G. Castellini * R. El Bashir * H. Herrlich * M. Husek * L. Janos * J. Koslowski * V.A. Lemin * A. Melton * G. Preua * Y.T. Rhineghost * B.S.W. Schroeder * L. Schr"der * G.E. Strecker * A. Zmrzlina"

Topology is a relatively young and very important branch of mathematics. It studies properties of objects that are preserved by deformations, twistings, and stretchings, but not tearing. This book deals with the topology of curves and surfaces as well as with the fundamental concepts of homotopy and homology, and does this in a lively and well-motivated way. There is hardly an area of mathematics that does not make use of topological results and concepts. The importance of topological methods for different areas of physics is also beyond doubt. They are used in field theory and general relativity, in the physics of low temperatures, and in modern quantum theory. The book is well suited not only as preparation for students who plan to take a course in algebraic topology but also for advanced undergraduates or beginning graduates interested in finding out what topology is all about. The book has more than 200 problems, many examples, and over 200 illustrations.

This is a long awaited book on rational homotopy theory which contains all the main theorems with complete proofs, and more elementary proofs for many results that were proved ten or fifteen years ago. The authors added a frist section on classical algebraic topology to make the book accessible to students with only little background in algebraic topology.

The configuration space of a manifold provides the appropriate setting for problems not only in topology but also in other areas such as nonlinear analysis and algebra. With applications in mind, the aim of this monograph is to provide a coherent and thorough treatment of the configuration spaces of Euclidean spaces and spheres which makes the subject accessible to researchers and graduate students with a minimal background in classical homotopy theory and algebraic topology. The treatment regards the homotopy relations of Yang-Baxter type as being fundamental. It also includes a novel and geometric presentation of the classical pure braid group; the cellular structure of these configuration spaces which leads to a cellular model for the associated based and free loop spaces; the homology and cohomology of based and free loop spaces; and an illustration of how to apply the latter to the study of Hamiltonian systems of k-body type.

Using harmonic maps, non-linear PDE and techniques from algebraic geometry this book enables the reader to study the relation between fundamental groups and algebraic geometry invariants of algebraic varieties. The reader should have a basic knowledge of algebraic geometry and non-linear analysis. This book can form the basis for graduate level seminars in the area of topology of algebraic varieties. It also contains present new techniques for researchers working in this area.

This volume contains a re-edition of Max Koecher's famous Minnesota Notes. The main objects are homogeneous, but not necessarily convex, cones. They are described in terms of Jordan algebras. The central point is a correspondence between semisimple real Jordan algebras and so-called omega-domains. This leads to a construction of half-spaces which give an essential part of all bounded symmetric domains. The theory is presented in a concise manner, with only elementary prerequisites. The editors have added notes on each chapter containing an account of the relevant developments of the theory since these notes were first written.

This monograph deals with two aspects of the theory of elliptic genus: its topological aspect involving elliptic functions, and its representation theoretic aspect involving vertex operator super-algebras. For the second aspect, elliptic genera are shown to have the structure of modules over certain vertex operator super-algebras. The vertex operators corresponding to parallel tensor fields on closed Riemannian Spin K hler manifolds such as Riemannian tensors and K hler forms are shown to give rise to Virasoro algebras and affine Lie algebras. This monograph is chiefly intended for topologists and it includes accounts on topics outside of topology such as vertex operator algebras.

This book, addressing both researchers and graduate students, reviews equivariant localization techniques for the evaluation of Feynman path integrals. The author gives the relevant mathematical background in some detail, showing at the same time how localization ideas are related to classical integrability. The text explores the symmetries inherent in localizable models for assessing the applicability of localization formulae. Various applications from physics and mathematics are presented.

Shape theory is an extension of homotopy theory from the realm of CW-complexes to arbitrary spaces. Besides applications in topology, it has interesting applications in various other areas of mathematics, especially in dynamical systems and C*-algebras. Strong shape is a refinement of ordinary shape with distinct advantages over the latter. Strong homology generalizes Steenrod homology and is an invariant of strong shape. The book gives a detailed account based on approximation of spaces by polyhedra (ANR's) using the technique of inverse systems. It is intended for researchers and graduate students. Special care is devoted to motivation and bibliographic notes.

This book provides a comprehensive exposition of the theory of braids, beginning with the basic mathematical definitions and structures. Among the many topics explained in detail are: the braid group for various surfaces; the solution of the word problem for the braid group; braids in the context of knots and links (Alexander's theorem); Markov's theorem and its use in obtaining braid invariants; the connection between the Platonic solids (regular polyhedra) and braids; the use of braids in the solution of algebraic equations. Dirac's problem and special types of braids termed Mexican plaits are also discussed. Audience: Since the book relies on concepts and techniques from algebra and topology, the authors also provide a couple of appendices that cover the necessary material from these two branches of mathematics. Hence, the book is accessible not only to mathematicians but also to anybody who might have an interest in the theory of braids. In particular, as more and more applications of braid theory are found outside the realm of mathematics, this book is ideal for any physicist, chemist or biologist who would like to understand the mathematics of braids. With its use of numerous figures to explain clearly the mathematics, and exercises to solidify the understanding, this book may also be used as a textbook for a course on knots and braids, or as a supplementary textbook for a course on topology or algebra.

This book describes the representations of Lie superalgebras that are yielded by a graded version of Hudson-Parthasarathy quantum stochastic calculus. Quantum stochastic calculus and grading theory are given concise introductions, extending readership to mathematicians and physicists with a basic knowledge of algebra and infinite-dimensional Hilbert spaces. The develpment of an explicit formula for the chaotic expansion of a polynomial of quantum stochastic integrals is particularly interesting. The book aims to provide a self-contained exposition of what is known about Z_2-graded quantum stochastic calculus and to provide a framework for future research into this new and fertile area.

Equivariant cohomology on smooth manifolds is the subject of this book which is part of a collection of volumes edited by J. Bruning and V.W. Guillemin. The point of departure are two relatively short but very remarkable papers be Henry Cartan, published in 1950 in the Proceedings of the "Colloque de Topologie." These papers are reproduced here, together with a modern introduction to the subject, written by two of the leading experts in the field. This "introduction" comes as a textbook of its own, though, presenting the first full treatment of equivariant cohomology in the de Rahm setting. The well known topological approach is linked with the differential form aspect through the equivariant de Rahm theorem. The systematic use of supersymmetry simplifies considerably the ensuing development of the basic technical tools which are then applied to a variety of subjects, leading up to the localization theorems and other very recent results."

From the reviews: "... The book under review consists of two monographs on geometric aspects of group theory ... Together, these two articles form a wide-ranging survey of combinatorial group theory, with emphasis very much on the geometric roots of the subject. This will be a useful reference work for the expert, as well as providing an overview of the subject for the outsider or novice. Many different topics are described and explored, with the main results presented but not proved. This allows the interested reader to get the flavour of these topics without becoming bogged down in detail. Both articles give comprehensive bibliographies, so that it is possible to use this book as the starting point for a more detailed study of a particular topic of interest. ..." Bulletin of the London Mathematical Society, 1996

A modern approach to number theory through a blending of complementary algebraic and analytic perspectives, emphasising harmonic analysis on topological groups. The main goal is to cover John Tates visionary thesis, giving virtually all of the necessary analytic details and topological preliminaries -- technical prerequisites that are often foreign to the typical, more algebraically inclined number theorist. While most of the existing treatments of Tates thesis are somewhat terse and less than complete, the intent here is to be more leisurely, more comprehensive, and more comprehensible. While the choice of objects and methods is naturally guided by specific mathematical goals, the approach is by no means narrow. In fact, the subject matter at hand is germane not only to budding number theorists, but also to students of harmonic analysis or the representation theory of Lie groups. The text addresses students who have taken a year of graduate-level course in algebra, analysis, and topology. Moreover, the work will act as a good reference for working mathematicians interested in any of these fields.

A new combinatorial foundation of the two concepts, based on a consideration of deep and classical results of homotopy theory, and an axiomatic characterization of the assumptions under which results in this field hold. Includes numerous explicit examples and applications in various fields of topology and algebra.

Introduction to Large Truncated Toeplitz Matrices is a text on the application of functional analysis and operator theory to some concrete asymptotic problems of linear algebra. The book contains results on the stability of projection methods, deals with asymptotic inverses and Moore-Penrose inversion of large Toeplitz matrices, and embarks on the asymptotic behavoir of the norms of inverses, the pseudospectra, the singular values, and the eigenvalues of large Toeplitz matrices. The approach is heavily based on Banach algebra techniques and nicely demonstrates the usefulness of C*-algebras and local principles in numerical analysis. The book includes classical topics as well as results obtained and methods developed only in the last few years. Though employing modern tools, the exposition is elementary and aims at pointing out the mathematical background behind some interesting phenomena one encounters when working with large Toeplitz matrices. The text is accessible to readers with basic knowledge in functional analysis. It is addressed to graduate students, teachers, and researchers with some inclination to concrete operator theory and should be of interest to everyone who has to deal with infinite matrices (Toeplitz or not) and their large truncations.

From the reviews: "This volume... consists of two papers. The first, written by V.V. Shokurov, is devoted to the theory of Riemann surfaces and algebraic curves. It is an excellent overview of the theory of relations between Riemann surfaces and their models - complex algebraic curves in complex projective spaces. ... The second paper, written by V.I. Danilov, discusses algebraic varieties and schemes. ... I can recommend the book as a very good introduction to the basic algebraic geometry." "European Mathematical Society" "Newsletter, 1996"
..". To sum up, this book helps to learn algebraic geometry in a short time, its concrete style is enjoyable for students and reveals the beauty of mathematics." Acta Scientiarum Mathematicarum

High-dimensional knot theory is the study of the embeddings of n-dimensional manifolds in (n+2)-dimensional manifolds, generalizing the traditional study of knots in the case n=1. The main theme is the application of the author's algebraic theory of surgery to provide a unified treatment of the invariants of codimension 2 embeddings, generalizing the Alexander polynomials and Seifert forms of classical knot theory. Many results in the research literature are thus brought into a single framework, and new results are obtained. The treatment is particularly effective in dealing with open books, which are manifolds with codimension 2 submanifolds such that the complement fibres over a circle. The book concludes with an appendix by E. Winkelnkemper on the history of open books.

A clear exposition, with exercises, of the basic ideas of algebraic topology. Suitable for a two-semester course at the beginning graduate level, it assumes a knowledge of point set topology and basic algebra. Although categories and functors are introduced early in the text, excessive generality is avoided, and the author explains the geometric or analytic origins of abstract concepts as they are introduced.

Any topological theory of knots and links should be based on simple ideas of intersection and linking. In this book, a general theory of link bordism in manifolds and universal constructions of linking numbers in oriented 3-manifolds are developed. In this way, classical concepts of link theory in the 3-spheres are generalized to a certain class of oriented 3-manifolds (submanifolds of rational homology 3-spheres). The techniques needed are described in the book but basic knowledge in topology and algebra is assumed. The book should be of interst to those working in topology, in particular knot theory and low-dimensional topology.

Rather than choosing one point of view of modern topology, the author concentrates on concrete problems in spaces with a few dimensions, introducing only as much algebraic machinery as necessary. This makes it possible to see a wider variety of important features in the subject than is common in introductory texts; it is also in line with the historical development of the subject. Aimed at students not necessarily intending to specialise in algebraic topology, the first part of the book emphasises relations with calculus and uses these ideas to prove the Jordan curve theorem, before going on to study fundamental groups and covering spaces so as to emphasise group actions. A final section gives a taste of the generalisation to higher dimensions.