Algorithmic aspects of branched coverings

This is the announcement, and the long summary, of a series of articles on the algorithmic study of Thurston maps. We describe branched coverings of the sphere in terms of group-theoretical objects called bisets, and develop a theory of decompositions of bisets. We introduce a canonical "Levy" decomposition of an arbitrary Thurston map into homeomorphisms, metrically-expanding maps and maps doubly covered by torus endomorphisms. The homeomorphisms decompose themselves into finite-order and pseudo-Anosov maps, and the expanding maps decompose themselves into rational maps. As an outcome, we prove that it is decidable when two Thurston maps are equivalent. We also show that the decompositions above are computable, both in theory and in practice.Comment: 60-page announcement of 5-part text, to apper in Ann. Fac. Sci. Toulouse. Minor typos corrected, and major rewrite of section 7.8, which was studying a different map than claime

On the Equivalence of Geometric and Analytic K-Homology

We give a proof that the geometric K-homology theory for finite CW-complexes defined by Baum and Douglas is isomorphic to Kasparov's K-homology. The proof is a simplification of more elaborate arguments which deal with the geometric formulation of equivariant K-homology theory.Comment: 29 pages, v4: corrected definition of E in proof of Prop 3.

Regulators and cycle maps in higher-dimensional differential algebraic K-theory

We develop differential algebraic K-theory of regular arithmetic schemes. Our approach is based on a new construction of a functorial, spectrum level Beilinson regulator using differential forms. We construct a cycle map which represents differential algebraic K-theory classes by geometric vector bundles. As an application we derive Lott's relation between short exact sequences of geometric bundles with a higher analytic torsion form.Comment: 106 pages (corrects a mistake in the sheaf condition), published versio

The Development of Intersection Homology Theory

This historical introduction is in two parts. The first is reprinted with permission from ``A century of mathematics in America, Part II,'' Hist. Math., 2, Amer. Math. Soc., 1989, pp.543-585. Virtually no change has been made to the original text. In particular, Section 8 is followed by the original list of references. However, the text has been supplemented by a series of endnotes, collected in the new Section 9 and followed by a second list of references. If a citation is made to the first list, then its reference number is simply enclosed in brackets -- for example, [36]. However, if a citation is made to the second list, then its number is followed by an `S' -- for example, [36S]. Further, if a subject in the reprint is elaborated on in an endnote, then the subject is flagged in the margin by the number of the corresponding endnote, and the endnote includes in its heading, between parentheses, the page number or numbers on which the subject appears in the reprint below. Finally, all cross-references appear as hypertext links in the dvi and pdf copies.Comment: 58 pages, hypertext links added; appeared in Part 3 of the special issue of Pure and Applied Mathematics Quarterly in honor of Robert MacPherson. However, the flags in the margin were unfortunately (and inexplicably) omitted from the published versio