Topics in Geometry

Welcome to the LSGNT Topics in Geometry course for 2022/23.

Course structure

This is not a normal lecture course. Every week you'll have a different lecturer, covering some essential aspect of geometry. Lectures don't build on each other directly but later ones might end up using stuff from earlier ones.

The lecturers will set you problems and exercises, of wildly varying difficulty. These are for you to do because doing exercises is how you learn maths. Do as many of the exercises as you can.

A week after each lecture you'll have a `wrap-up session' where you discuss the exercises and the lecture as a group. There won't be a lecturer at the wrap-up session, instead one of you will act as the `owner' for that week's topic and lead the session. I'll also send along the 2nd year who owned the topic last year for extra guidance.

There some notes and videos of talks on the website for last year's course. You should also check out the pages for the 2020 course by Yankı Lekili and the 2019 course for words of wisdom from Richard Thomas.

Location

All lectures and wrap-ups are in the Imperial College CDT space, Teaching Room 3 (402). At least the first few lectures will also be streamed on Zoom (check your email for the link).

Schedule

Lectures are on Fridays 3pm-5pm, except the first one which starts at 2.40pm. Wrap-up sessions are on the following Friday, 11am-1pm.

Term 2

The lectures for term 2 are divided into two streams, differential/analytic geometry and algebraic geometry, which alternate weeks. Since you now have projects to work on you are not expected to attend all lectures and wrap-ups, instead you should pick one of the two streams and attend all of those. Of course you are very welcome to attend extra lectures if a particular topic appeals to you.