The uniformization theorem says that any Riemannian metric on the 2-sphere admits a conformal parametrization by the standard 2-sphere. Motivation from geometric group theory, geometric topology, and rigidity theory led to the formulation of analogous "uniformization" (or geometrization) problems for metric spaces. I will discuss the background and some of the recent developments in the area.
Geometry-Topology Seminar
Thursday, February 24, 2005 - 4:30pm
Bruce Kleiner
U. of Michigan and N.Y.U.