BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:researchseminars.org CALSCALE:GREGORIAN X-WR-CALNAME:researchseminars.org BEGIN:VEVENT SUMMARY:Welcome Message DTSTART:20250919T174500Z DTEND:20250919T180000Z DTSTAMP:20260315T023152Z UID:RVAGeometry2025/1 DESCRIPTION:Title: Welcome Message\nby Welcome Message as part of Richmond Geomet ry Meeting 2025\n\nLecture held in VCU Temple 1169.\nAbstract: TBA\n LOCATION:https://researchseminars.org/talk/RVAGeometry2025/1/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT SUMMARY:Rhea Palak Bakshi (University of California\, Santa Barbara) DTSTART:20250919T180000Z DTEND:20250919T190000Z DTSTAMP:20260315T023152Z UID:RVAGeometry2025/2 DESCRIPTION:Title: Skein Modules and Their Structure\nby Rhea Palak Bakshi (Unive rsity of California\, Santa Barbara) as part of Richmond Geometry Meeting 2025\n\nLecture held in VCU Temple 1169.\n\nAbstract\nSkein modules were i ntroduced by Przytycki and independently by Turaev as generalizations of t he polynomial link invariants in the 3-sphere to arbitrary 3-manifolds. Am ong these\, the Kauffman bracket skein module (KBSM) has been studied most extensively. Recently\, Gunningham\, Jordan\, and Safronov demonstrated t hat for any closed 3-manifold\, the KBSM is finite-dimensional over ℚ(A) \; however\, this finiteness does not extend to the KBSM over ℤ[A^±1]. Moreover\, computing the KBSM of a 3-manifold remains a notoriously challe nging problem\, especially over this ring. In this talk\, we will survey t hese developments and explore several open questions concerning the struct ure of the KBSM over ℤ[A^±1].\n LOCATION:https://researchseminars.org/talk/RVAGeometry2025/2/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT SUMMARY:Christine Ruey Shan Lee (Texas State University) DTSTART:20250919T200000Z DTEND:20250919T210000Z DTSTAMP:20260315T023152Z UID:RVAGeometry2025/3 DESCRIPTION:Title: A topological model for the HOMFLY-PT polynomial\nby Christine Ruey Shan Lee (Texas State University) as part of Richmond Geometry Meeti ng 2025\n\nLecture held in VCU Temple 1169.\n\nAbstract\nA topological mod el for a knot invariant is a realization of the invariant as graded inters ection pairings on coverings of configuration spaces. In this talk I will describe a topological model for the HOMFLY-PT polynomial. I plan to discu ss the motivation from previous work by Lawrence and Bigelow giving topolo gical models for the Jones and SL_n polynomials\, and our construction\, j oint with Cristina Anghel\, which uses a state sum formulation of the HOMF LY-PT polynomial to construct an intersection pairing on the configuration space of a Heegaard surface of the link. To conclude\, I will place the w ork in the larger context of Aganagic’s proposed unification of link hom ology theories.\n LOCATION:https://researchseminars.org/talk/RVAGeometry2025/3/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT SUMMARY:Mikhail Khovanov (Johns Hopkins University) DTSTART:20250919T213000Z DTEND:20250919T223000Z DTSTAMP:20260315T023152Z UID:RVAGeometry2025/4 DESCRIPTION:Title: The Delannoy category and its diagrammatics\nby Mikhail Khovan ov (Johns Hopkins University) as part of Richmond Geometry Meeting 2025\n\ nLecture held in VCU Temple 1169.\n\nAbstract\nN.Harman and A.Snowden disc overed a semisimple monoidal pivotal category\, which they called the Dela nnoy category\, where composition of morphisms is given by computing the c ompact Euler characteristic of subspaces of the Euclidean space described by inequalities on the coordinates. In the talk we will explain a diagramm atic description of their category\, following a joint work with N.Snyder. The number of simple objects in the Delannoy category grows exponentially \, but a suitable monoidal subcategory has the Grothendieck ring isomorphi c to the ring of integer-valued one-variable polynomials. That subcategory can be viewed as a categorification of the latter ring.\n LOCATION:https://researchseminars.org/talk/RVAGeometry2025/4/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT SUMMARY:Boyu Zhang (University of Maryland) DTSTART:20250920T130000Z DTEND:20250920T140000Z DTSTAMP:20260315T023152Z UID:RVAGeometry2025/5 DESCRIPTION:Title: Dax invariants\, light bulbs\, and isotopies of symplectic structu res\nby Boyu Zhang (University of Maryland) as part of Richmond Geomet ry Meeting 2025\n\nLecture held in VCU Temple 1169.\n\nAbstract\nIn this t alk\, I will present the following two main results. First\, we give a cla ssification of the isotopy classes of embeddings of $\\Sigma$ in $\\Sigma\ \times S^2$ that are geometrically dual to $\\{pt\\}\\times S^2$\, where $ \\Sigma$ is a closed oriented surface with a positive genus\, and show tha t there exist infinitely many such embeddings that are mutually homotopic but non-isotopic. This answers a question of Gabai. Second\, we show that the space of symplectic forms on an irrational ruled surface homologous to a fixed symplectic form has infinitely many connected components. This gi ves the first such example among closed 4-manifolds and answers a question of McDuff-Salamon. The proofs are based on a generalization of the Dax in variant to embedded closed surfaces. The talk is based on joint work with Jianfeng Lin\, Weiwei Wu\, and Yi Xie.\n LOCATION:https://researchseminars.org/talk/RVAGeometry2025/5/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT SUMMARY:Matthew Stoffregen (Michigan State University) DTSTART:20250920T143000Z DTEND:20250920T153000Z DTSTAMP:20260315T023152Z UID:RVAGeometry2025/6 DESCRIPTION:Title: Lattice Floer Spectra\nby Matthew Stoffregen (Michigan State U niversity) as part of Richmond Geometry Meeting 2025\n\nLecture held in VC U Temple 1169.\n\nAbstract\nRecently\, Zemke proved that Heegaard Floer ho mology and lattice homology agree\, for general plumbing trees\, generaliz ing a theorem of Ozsváth-Szabó showing this equivalence for almost-ratio nal plumbings. In this talk\, we'll give background on monopole Floer spe ctra\, and give a calculation of the monopole Floer spectra of almost rati onal plumbings\, based closely on Ozsváth-Szabó's proof\, in terms of la ttice homology. We also include some obstructions to the existence of spi n 4-manifolds with certain boundary that follow from these calculations. This is joint work with Irving Dai and Hirofumi Sasahira.\n LOCATION:https://researchseminars.org/talk/RVAGeometry2025/6/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT SUMMARY:Career Panel DTSTART:20250920T190000Z DTEND:20250920T203000Z DTSTAMP:20260315T023152Z UID:RVAGeometry2025/7 DESCRIPTION:Title: Career Panel\nby Career Panel as part of Richmond Geometry Mee ting 2025\n\nLecture held in VCU Temple 1169.\nAbstract: TBA\n LOCATION:https://researchseminars.org/talk/RVAGeometry2025/7/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT SUMMARY:Denis Auroux (Harvard University) DTSTART:20250920T173000Z DTEND:20250920T183000Z DTSTAMP:20260315T023152Z UID:RVAGeometry2025/8 DESCRIPTION:Title: Lagrangian Floer theory\, from local to global\nby Denis Aurou x (Harvard University) as part of Richmond Geometry Meeting 2025\n\nLectur e held in VCU Temple 1169.\n\nAbstract\nThis talk will give a survey of va rious developments around\nLagrangian Floer theory in symplectic geometry\ , starting with the\nbasics\, and then getting to the idea of a "geometry of Floer theory"\,\nmotivated by mirror symmetry\, centered around family Floer homology and\nlocal-to-global principles for Fukaya categories.\n LOCATION:https://researchseminars.org/talk/RVAGeometry2025/8/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT SUMMARY:Poster Session DTSTART:20250920T210000Z DTEND:20250920T220000Z DTSTAMP:20260315T023152Z UID:RVAGeometry2025/10 DESCRIPTION:Title: Poster Session\nby Poster Session as part of Richmond Geometr y Meeting 2025\n\nLecture held in VCU Temple 1169.\nAbstract: TBA\n LOCATION:https://researchseminars.org/talk/RVAGeometry2025/10/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT SUMMARY:Richard A. Wentworth (University of Maryland) DTSTART:20250921T133000Z DTEND:20250921T143000Z DTSTAMP:20260315T023152Z UID:RVAGeometry2025/11 DESCRIPTION:Title: Higgs bundles\, isomonodromy\, and minimal surfaces\nby Richa rd A. Wentworth (University of Maryland) as part of Richmond Geometry Meet ing 2025\n\nLecture held in VCU Temple 1169.\n\nAbstract\nI will discuss a gauge theoretic approach to the construction of the moduli space of Higgs bundles in 2-dimensions where the complex structure of the underlying sur face also varies. This "joint" moduli space fibers over Teichmueller space with fiber the usual moduli space of Higgs bundles. I will explain why i ndefinite Hermitian structures arise naturally on the joint moduli space\, and I will indicate the existence of pseudo-Kaehler metrics in a number o f cases of Higgs bundles with special holonomy. I will also discuss the re lationship between complex tangencies of isomonodromic leaves and the stri ct plurisubharmonicity of the energy function. This recovers and extends s everal recent constructions of various authors. This work is part of a col laboration with Brian Collier and Jeremy Toulisse.\n LOCATION:https://researchseminars.org/talk/RVAGeometry2025/11/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT SUMMARY:Yuya Murakami (Kyushu University) DTSTART:20250921T150000Z DTEND:20250921T160000Z DTSTAMP:20260315T023152Z UID:RVAGeometry2025/12 DESCRIPTION:Title: Witten’s aymptotic expansion conjecture and quantum modularity for Gukov–Pei–Putrov–Vafa invariants\nby Yuya Murakami (Kyushu U niversity) as part of Richmond Geometry Meeting 2025\n\nLecture held in VC U Temple 1169.\n\nAbstract\nI address two linked problems at the interface of quantum topology and number theory: deriving asymptotic expansions of the Witten–Reshetikhin–Turaev invariants for 3-manifolds and establish ing quantum modularity of false theta functions\, in particular Gukov–Pe i–Putrov–Vafa invariants. Previous progress covers Seifert homology 3- spheres for the former and rank-one cases for the latter\, both relying on single-variable integral representations. I extend these results to negat ive definite plumbed 3-manifolds and to general false theta functions resp ectively. I address this limitation by developing two techniques: a Poisso n summation formula with signature and a framework of modular series\, bot h of which enable a precise and explicit analysis of multivariable integra l representations.\n LOCATION:https://researchseminars.org/talk/RVAGeometry2025/12/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT SUMMARY:Mrunmay Jagadale (Caltech) DTSTART:20250921T173000Z DTEND:20250921T183000Z DTSTAMP:20260315T023152Z UID:RVAGeometry2025/13 DESCRIPTION:Title: TQFT for $\\hat{Z}$ invariants\nby Mrunmay Jagadale (Caltech) as part of Richmond Geometry Meeting 2025\n\nLecture held in VCU Temple 1 169.\n\nAbstract\nThe $\\hat{Z}$-invariants of three-manifolds introduced by Gukov\, Pei\, Putrov\, and Vafa have influenced many areas of mathemati cs and physics. However\, their TQFT structure remains poorly understood. In this talk\, I will present a framework for decorated Spin-TQFTs and con struct one based on Atiyah–Segal-like axioms that computes the $\\hat{Z} $-invariants. This TQFT framework provides a new perspective on the struct ural properties and gluing formulas for $\\hat{Z}$-invariants.\n LOCATION:https://researchseminars.org/talk/RVAGeometry2025/13/ END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR