The Midwest Topology Seminar in Spring 2020 will be held in an online format.  We considered cancelling the seminar entirely, but we think that it is best for the long-term institutional continuity of the Seminar to hold a simple online event.

Three 45-minute talks will be separated by two 30-minute coffee breaks.  The breaks will be structured to provide an opportunity for small group conversation in breakout rooms.  Participants will be able to move themselves between rooms, and will be able to see who is in other rooms. (Note: Breakout room functionality works imperfectly with a smartphone or tablet.  It’s best to use a computer for this.)

Schedule

Thursday May 14 (all times eastern)

12:45-1:30: Dominic Culver, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

1:30-2:00: Coffee break

2:00-2:45: Peter May, University of Chicago

2:45-3:15: Coffee break

3:15-4:00: Eva Belmont, Northwestern University

Abstracts

Speaker: Dominic Culver, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Title: The complex motivic kq-based Adams spectral sequence

Abstract: In the 80s, Mahowald studied the Adams spectral sequence based on connective real K-theory. He was able to use this spectral sequence to study v_1-periodicity in the stable homotopy groups of spheres. In this talk, I will discuss joint work with J.D. Quigley on the motivic analogue of Mahowald’s work. In particular, I will sketch our analysis of the complex motivic Adams spectral sequence based on connective Hermitian K-theory.

 

Speaker: Peter May, University of Chicago
Title: Operad pairs and E-infinity ring G-spectra

Abstract: We stroll through some of mulitiplicative infinite loop space theory, giving new equivariant input to a concrete and elementary, but flawed, nonequivariant approach that dates from the 1970’s. One goal is to construct commutative ring G-spectra for equivariant algebraic K-theory. This is joint work just begun with Hana Jia Kong, following up recent joint work with Bertrand Guillou.

 

Speaker: Eva Belmont, Northwestern University
Title: R-motivic homotopy groups and the Mahowald invariant

Abstract: The Mahowald invariant is a highly nontrivial map (with indeterminacy) from the homotopy groups of spheres to itself with deep connections to chromatic homotopy theory. In this talk I will discuss a variant of the Mahowald invariant that can be computed using knowledge of the R-motivic stable homotopy groups of spheres, and discuss its comparison to the classical Mahowald invariant. This is joint work with Dan Isaksen.