240 research outputs found
Triangulations
The earliest work in topology was often based on explicit combinatorial models – usually triangulations – for the spaces being studied. Although algebraic methods in topology gradually replaced combinatorial ones in the mid-1900s, the emergence of computers later revitalized the study of triangulations. By now there are several distinct mathematical communities actively doing work on different aspects of triangulations. The goal of this workshop was to bring the researchers from these various communities together to stimulate interaction and to benefit from the exchange of ideas and methods
Parametrized Complexity of Expansion Height
Deciding whether two simplicial complexes are homotopy equivalent is a fundamental problem in topology, which is famously undecidable. There exists a combinatorial refinement of this concept, called simple-homotopy equivalence: two simplicial complexes are of the same simple-homotopy type if they can be transformed into each other by a sequence of two basic homotopy equivalences, an elementary collapse and its inverse, an elementary expansion. In this article we consider the following related problem: given a 2-dimensional simplicial complex, is there a simple-homotopy equivalence to a 1-dimensional simplicial complex using at most p expansions? We show that the problem, which we call the erasability expansion height, is W[P]-complete in the natural parameter p
Random Discrete Morse Theory and a New Library of Triangulations
1) We introduce random discrete Morse theory as a computational scheme to
measure the complicatedness of a triangulation. The idea is to try to quantify
the frequence of discrete Morse matchings with a certain number of critical
cells. Our measure will depend on the topology of the space, but also on how
nicely the space is triangulated.
(2) The scheme we propose looks for optimal discrete Morse functions with an
elementary random heuristic. Despite its na\"ivet\'e, this approach turns out
to be very successful even in the case of huge inputs.
(3) In our view the existing libraries of examples in computational topology
are `too easy' for testing algorithms based on discrete Morse theory. We
propose a new library containing more complicated (and thus more meaningful)
test examples.Comment: 35 pages, 5 figures, 7 table
On the interplay of combinatorics, geometry, topology and computational complexity
Matematicko-fyzikálnà fakult
Recognizing shrinkable complexes is NP-complete
International audienceWe say that a simplicial complex is shrinkable if there exists a sequence of admissible edge contractions that reduces the complex to a single vertex. We prove that it is NP-complete to decide whether a (three-dimensional) simplicial complex is shrinkable. Along the way, we describe examples of contractible complexes which are not shrinkable
Computational Geometric and Algebraic Topology
Computational topology is a young, emerging field of mathematics that seeks out practical algorithmic methods for solving complex and fundamental problems in geometry and topology. It draws on a wide variety of techniques from across pure mathematics (including topology, differential geometry, combinatorics, algebra, and discrete geometry), as well as applied mathematics and theoretical computer science. In turn, solutions to these problems have a wide-ranging impact: already they have enabled significant progress in the core area of geometric topology, introduced new methods in applied mathematics, and yielded new insights into the role that topology has to play in fundamental problems surrounding computational complexity.
At least three significant branches have emerged in computational topology: algorithmic 3-manifold and knot theory, persistent homology and surfaces and graph embeddings. These branches have emerged largely independently. However, it is clear that they have much to offer each other. The goal of this workshop was to be the first significant step to bring these three areas together, to share ideas in depth, and to pool our expertise in approaching some of the major open problems in the field
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