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Reidemeister torsion and 3-manifold topology

Student-Run Geometry/Topology Seminar

Speaker: Rohit Thomas, UC Davis
Location: 1147 MSB
Start time: Mon, Oct 20 2008, 1:10PM

Even in low dimensions, there exist manifolds which are homotopy equivalent but not homeomorphic. Reidemeister torsion is an invariant from algebraic topology which can sometimes distinguish between them. In this talk, I will define Reidemeister torsion and explain how it can be used in the classification of 3-manifolds. Along the way, I will introduce lens spaces and cellular homology.