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Simplicial Complex Recognition Problem
The simplicial complex recognition problem is a computational problem in algebraic topology. Given a simplicial complex, the problem is to decide whether it is homeomorphic to another fixed simplicial complex. The problem is undecidable for complexes of dimension 5 or more. Background An abstract simplicial complex (ASC) is family of sets that is closed under taking subsets (the subset of a set in the family is also a set in the family). Every abstract simplicial complex has a unique geometric realization in a Euclidean space as a geometric simplicial complex (GSC), where each set with ''k'' elements in the ASC is mapped to a (''k''-1)-dimensional simplex in the GSC. Thus, an ASC provides a finite representation of a geometric object. Given an ASC, one can ask several questions regarding the topology of the GSC it represents. Homeomorphism problem The homeomorphism problem is: given two finite simplicial complexes representing smooth manifolds, decide if they are homeomorphic. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Computational Problem
In theoretical computer science, a computational problem is a problem that may be solved by an algorithm. For example, the problem of factoring :"Given a positive integer ''n'', find a nontrivial prime factor of ''n''." is a computational problem. A computational problem can be viewed as a set of ''instances'' or ''cases'' together with a, possibly empty, set of ''solutions'' for every instance/case. For example, in the factoring problem, the instances are the integers ''n'', and solutions are prime numbers ''p'' that are the nontrivial prime factors of ''n''. Computational problems are one of the main objects of study in theoretical computer science. The field of computational complexity theory attempts to determine the amount of resources ( computational complexity) solving a given problem will require and explain why some problems are intractable or undecidable. Computational problems belong to complexity classes that define broadly the resources (e.g. time, space/memory, e ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Algebraic Topology
Algebraic topology is a branch of mathematics that uses tools from abstract algebra to study topological spaces. The basic goal is to find algebraic invariant (mathematics), invariants that classification theorem, classify topological spaces up to homeomorphism, though usually most classify up to Homotopy#Homotopy equivalence and null-homotopy, homotopy equivalence. Although algebraic topology primarily uses algebra to study topological problems, using topology to solve algebraic problems is sometimes also possible. Algebraic topology, for example, allows for a convenient proof that any subgroup of a free group is again a free group. Main branches of algebraic topology Below are some of the main areas studied in algebraic topology: Homotopy groups In mathematics, homotopy groups are used in algebraic topology to classify topological spaces. The first and simplest homotopy group is the fundamental group, which records information about loops in a space. Intuitively, homotopy gro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Simplicial Complex
In mathematics, a simplicial complex is a set composed of points, line segments, triangles, and their ''n''-dimensional counterparts (see illustration). Simplicial complexes should not be confused with the more abstract notion of a simplicial set appearing in modern simplicial homotopy theory. The purely combinatorial counterpart to a simplicial complex is an abstract simplicial complex. To distinguish a simplicial from an abstract simplicial complex, the former is often called a geometric simplicial complex.'', Section 4.3'' Definitions A simplicial complex \mathcal is a set of simplices that satisfies the following conditions: :1. Every face of a simplex from \mathcal is also in \mathcal. :2. The non-empty intersection of any two simplices \sigma_1, \sigma_2 \in \mathcal is a face of both \sigma_1 and \sigma_2. See also the definition of an abstract simplicial complex, which loosely speaking is a simplicial complex without an associated geometry. A simplicial ''k''-complex \ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Homeomorphic
In the mathematical field of topology, a homeomorphism, topological isomorphism, or bicontinuous function is a bijective and continuous function between topological spaces that has a continuous inverse function. Homeomorphisms are the isomorphisms in the category of topological spaces—that is, they are the mappings that preserve all the topological properties of a given space. Two spaces with a homeomorphism between them are called homeomorphic, and from a topological viewpoint they are the same. The word ''homeomorphism'' comes from the Greek words '' ὅμοιος'' (''homoios'') = similar or same and '' μορφή'' (''morphē'') = shape or form, introduced to mathematics by Henri Poincaré in 1895. Very roughly speaking, a topological space is a geometric object, and the homeomorphism is a continuous stretching and bending of the object into a new shape. Thus, a square and a circle are homeomorphic to each other, but a sphere and a torus are not. However, this descr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Abstract Simplicial Complex
In combinatorics, an abstract simplicial complex (ASC), often called an abstract complex or just a complex, is a family of sets that is closed under taking subsets, i.e., every subset of a set in the family is also in the family. It is a purely combinatorial description of the geometric notion of a simplicial complex. Lee, John M., Introduction to Topological Manifolds, Springer 2011, , p153 For example, in a 2-dimensional simplicial complex, the sets in the family are the triangles (sets of size 3), their edges (sets of size 2), and their vertices (sets of size 1). In the context of matroids and greedoids, abstract simplicial complexes are also called independence systems. An abstract simplex can be studied algebraically by forming its Stanley–Reisner ring; this sets up a powerful relation between combinatorics and commutative algebra. Definitions A collection of non-empty finite subsets of a set ''S'' is called a set-family. A set-family is called an abstract simplicial c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Geometric Simplicial Complex
In mathematics, a simplicial complex is a set composed of points, line segments, triangles, and their ''n''-dimensional counterparts (see illustration). Simplicial complexes should not be confused with the more abstract notion of a simplicial set appearing in modern simplicial homotopy theory. The purely combinatorial counterpart to a simplicial complex is an abstract simplicial complex. To distinguish a simplicial from an abstract simplicial complex, the former is often called a geometric simplicial complex.'', Section 4.3'' Definitions A simplicial complex \mathcal is a set of simplices that satisfies the following conditions: :1. Every face of a simplex from \mathcal is also in \mathcal. :2. The non-empty intersection of any two simplices \sigma_1, \sigma_2 \in \mathcal is a face of both \sigma_1 and \sigma_2. See also the definition of an abstract simplicial complex, which loosely speaking is a simplicial complex without an associated geometry. A simplicial ''k''-complex \ma ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Smooth Manifolds
In mathematics, a differentiable manifold (also differential manifold) is a type of manifold that is locally similar enough to a vector space to allow one to apply calculus. Any manifold can be described by a collection of charts (atlas). One may then apply ideas from calculus while working within the individual charts, since each chart lies within a vector space to which the usual rules of calculus apply. If the charts are suitably compatible (namely, the transition from one chart to another is differentiable), then computations done in one chart are valid in any other differentiable chart. In formal terms, a differentiable manifold is a topological manifold with a globally defined differential structure. Any topological manifold can be given a differential structure locally by using the homeomorphisms in its atlas and the standard differential structure on a vector space. To induce a global differential structure on the local coordinate systems induced by the homeomorphisms, th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Homeomorphism (graph Theory)
In graph theory, two graphs G and G' are homeomorphic if there is a graph isomorphism from some subdivision of G to some subdivision of G'. If the edges of a graph are thought of as lines drawn from one vertex to another (as they are usually depicted in illustrations), then two graphs are homeomorphic to each other in the graph-theoretic sense precisely if they are homeomorphic in the topological sense. Subdivision and smoothing In general, a subdivision of a graph ''G'' (sometimes known as an expansion) is a graph resulting from the subdivision of edges in ''G''. The subdivision of some edge ''e'' with endpoints yields a graph containing one new vertex ''w'', and with an edge set replacing ''e'' by two new edges, and . For example, the edge ''e'', with endpoints : can be subdivided into two edges, ''e''1 and ''e''2, connecting to a new vertex ''w'': The reverse operation, smoothing out or smoothing a vertex ''w'' with regards to the pair of edges (''e''1, ''e''2) inciden ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Geometrization Conjecture
In mathematics, Thurston's geometrization conjecture states that each of certain three-dimensional topological spaces has a unique geometric structure that can be associated with it. It is an analogue of the uniformization theorem for two-dimensional surfaces, which states that every simply connected Riemann surface can be given one of three geometries ( Euclidean, spherical, or hyperbolic). In three dimensions, it is not always possible to assign a single geometry to a whole topological space. Instead, the geometrization conjecture states that every closed 3-manifold can be decomposed in a canonical way into pieces that each have one of eight types of geometric structure. The conjecture was proposed by , and implies several other conjectures, such as the Poincaré conjecture and Thurston's elliptization conjecture. Thurston's hyperbolization theorem implies that Haken manifolds satisfy the geometrization conjecture. Thurston announced a proof in the 1980s and since then sever ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Piecewise Linear Homeomorphism
In mathematics, a piecewise linear (PL) manifold is a topological manifold together with a piecewise linear structure on it. Such a structure can be defined by means of an atlas, such that one can pass from chart to chart in it by piecewise linear functions. This is slightly stronger than the topological notion of a triangulation. An isomorphism of PL manifolds is called a PL homeomorphism. Relation to other categories of manifolds PL, or more precisely PDIFF, sits between DIFF (the category of smooth manifolds) and TOP (the category of topological manifolds): it is categorically "better behaved" than DIFF — for example, the Generalized Poincaré conjecture is true in PL (with the possible exception of dimension 4, where it is equivalent to DIFF), but is false generally in DIFF — but is "worse behaved" than TOP, as elaborated in surgery theory. Smooth manifolds Smooth manifolds have canonical PL structures — they are uniquely ''triangulizable,'' by Whitehead's theorem ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Word Problem For Groups
In mathematics, especially in the area of abstract algebra known as combinatorial group theory, the word problem for a finitely generated group ''G'' is the algorithmic problem of deciding whether two words in the generators represent the same element. More precisely, if ''A'' is a finite set of generators for ''G'' then the word problem is the membership problem for the formal language of all words in ''A'' and a formal set of inverses that map to the identity under the natural map from the free monoid with involution on ''A'' to the group ''G''. If ''B'' is another finite generating set for ''G'', then the word problem over the generating set ''B'' is equivalent to the word problem over the generating set ''A''. Thus one can speak unambiguously of the decidability of the word problem for the finitely generated group ''G''. The related but different uniform word problem for a class ''K'' of recursively presented groups is the algorithmic problem of deciding, given as input a pres ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Manifold
In mathematics, a manifold is a topological space that locally resembles Euclidean space near each point. More precisely, an n-dimensional manifold, or ''n-manifold'' for short, is a topological space with the property that each point has a neighborhood that is homeomorphic to an open subset of n-dimensional Euclidean space. One-dimensional manifolds include lines and circles, but not lemniscates. Two-dimensional manifolds are also called surfaces. Examples include the plane, the sphere, and the torus, and also the Klein bottle and real projective plane. The concept of a manifold is central to many parts of geometry and modern mathematical physics because it allows complicated structures to be described in terms of well-understood topological properties of simpler spaces. Manifolds naturally arise as solution sets of systems of equations and as graphs of functions. The concept has applications in computer-graphics given the need to associate pictures with coordinates (e.g ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
