Computing complex and real tropical curves using monodromy

Tropical varieties capture combinatorial information about how coordinates of points in a classical variety approach zero or infinity. We present algorithms for computing the rays of a complex and real tropical curve defined by polynomials with constant coefficients. These algorithms rely on homotopy continuation, monodromy loops, and Cauchy integrals. Several examples are presented which are computed using an implementation that builds on the numerical algebraic geometry software Bertini.     

The Bogomolov conjecture for totally degenerate abelian varieties

We prove the Bogomolov conjecture for a totally degenerate abelian variety A over a function field. We adapt Zhang’s proof of the number field case replacing the complex analytic tools by tropical analytic geometry. A key step is the tropical equidistribution theorem for A at the totally degenerate place v. As a corollary, we obtain finiteness of torsion points with coordinates in the maximal unramified algebraic extension over v.     

Is Every Toric Variety an M-Variety?

A complex algebraic variety X defined over the real numbers is called an M-variety if the sum of its Betti numbers (for homology with closed supports and coefficients in ) coincides with the corresponding sum for the real part of X. It has been known for a long time that any nonsingular complete toric variety is an M-variety. In this paper we consider whether this remains true for toric varieties that are singular or not complete, and we give a positive answer when the dimension of X is less than or equal to 3 or when X is complete with isolated singularities.An erratum to this article can be found at     

Supertropical algebra

We develop the algebraic polynomial theory for “supertropical algebra,” as initiated earlier over the real numbers by the first author. The main innovation there was the introduction of “ghost elements,” which also play the key role in our structure theory. Here, we work somewhat more generally over an ordered monoid, and develop a theory which contains the analogs of several basic theorems of classical commutative algebra. This structure enables one to develop a Zariski-type algebraic geometric approach to tropical geometry, viewing tropical varieties as sets of roots of (supertropical) polynomials, leading to an analog of the Hilbert Nullstellensatz.Particular attention is paid to factorization of polynomials. In one indeterminate, any polynomial can be factored into linear and quadratic factors, and although unique factorization may fail, there is a “preferred” factorization that is explained both geometrically and algebraically. The failure of unique factorization in several indeterminates is explained by geometric phenomena described in the paper.     

Broccoli curves and the tropical invariance of Welschinger numbers

In this paper we introduce broccoli curves, certain plane tropical curves of genus zero related to real algebraic curves. The numbers of these broccoli curves through given points are independent of the chosen points — for arbitrary choices of the directions of the ends of the curves, possibly with higher weights, and also if some of the ends are fixed. In the toric Del Pezzo case we show that these broccoli invariants are equal to the Welschinger invariants (with real and complex conjugate point conditions), thus providing a proof of the independence of Welschinger invariants of the point conditions within tropical geometry. The general case gives rise to a tropical Caporaso–Harris formula for broccoli curves which suffices to compute all Welschinger invariants of the plane.     

The Euclidean Distance Degree of an Algebraic Variety

The nearest point map of a real algebraic variety with respect to Euclidean distance is an algebraic function. For instance, for varieties of low-rank matrices, the Eckart–Young Theorem states that this map is given by the singular value decomposition. This article develops a theory of such nearest point maps from the perspective of computational algebraic geometry. The Euclidean distance degree of a variety is the number of critical points of the squared distance to a general point outside the variety. Focusing on varieties seen in applications, we present numerous tools for exact computations.     

Vector bundles over real algebraic varieties

The object of this paper is to study continuous vector bundles, over real algebraic varieties, admitting an algebraic structure. For large classes of real varieties, we obtain explicit information concerning the Grothendieck group of algebraic vector bundles. We show that in many cases this group is small compared to the corresponding group of continuous vector bundles. These results are used elsewhere to study the geometry of real algebraic varieties.Dedicated to Professor Alexander Grothendieck on the occasion of his 60th birthdaySupported by the NSF Grant DMS-8602672.     

Endomorphisms of symbolic algebraic varieties

The theorem of Ax says that any regular selfmapping of a complex algebraic variety is either surjective or non-injective; this property is called surjunctivity and investigated in the present paper in the category of proregular mappings of proalgebraic spaces. We show that such maps are surjunctive if they commute with sufficiently large automorphism groups. Of particular interest is the case of proalgebraic varieties over infinite graphs. The paper intends to bring out relations between model theory, algebraic geometry, and symbolic dynamics. Received August 3, 1998 / final version received January 22, 1999     

Computational Complexity in Algebraic Systems

Computability and computational complexity were first considered over the fields of real and complex numbers and generalized to arbitrary algebraic systems. This article approaches the theory of computational complexity over an arbitrary algebraic system by taking computability over the list extension for a computational model of it. We study the resultant polynomial complexity classes and mention some NP-complete problems.     

Hodge Theory and Geometry

Hodge theory for a smooth algebraic curve includes both theHodge structure (period matrix) on cohomology and the use ofthat Hodge structure to study the geometry of the curve, viathe Jacobian variety. Hodge extended the theory of the periodmatrix to smooth algebraic varieties of any dimension, definingin general a Hodge structure on the cohomology of the variety.He gave a few applications to the geometry of the variety, butthese did not attain the richness of the Jacobian variety. Inrecent years, Hodge theory has been successfully extended toarbitrary varieties, and to families of varieties. In this expositorypaper, some of these developments are reviewed, with specialemphasis on instances where these extensions can be used tostudy the geometry – especially the algebraic cycles –on the variety. 2000 Mathematics Subject Classification 14CDFJ.     

Algebraicity of analytic maps to a hyperbolic variety

Let X be a complex algebraic variety. We say that X is Borel hyperbolic if, for every finite type reduced scheme S over the complex numbers, every holomorphic map from S to X is algebraic. We use a transcendental specialization technique to prove that X is Borel hyperbolic if and only if, for every smooth affine complex algebraic curve C, every holomorphic map from C to X is algebraic. We use the latter result to prove that Borel hyperbolicity shares many common features with other notions of hyperbolicity such as Kobayashi hyperbolicity.     

The correspondence between multivariate spline ideals and piecewise algebraic varieties

As a piecewise polynomial with a certain smoothness, the spline plays an important role in computational geometry. The algebraic variety is the most important subject in classical algebraic geometry. As the zero set of multivariate splines, the piecewise algebraic variety is a generalization of the algebraic variety. In this paper, the correspondence between piecewise algebraic varieties and spline ideals is discussed. Furthermore, Hilbert’s Nullstellensatz for the piecewise algebraic variety is also studied.     

The successive minima in the geometry of numbers and the distinction between algebraic and transcendental numbers

This paper discusses an application of Minkowski's theory of the successive minima in the geometry of numbers to the problem of the approximation of an algebraic or transcendental number a by algebraic numbers. I consider for simplicity only real numbers a. However, it is obvious that an analogous theory can be established for complex numbers, and also for p-adic numbers, as well as for the field of formal ascending or descending Laurent series with coefficients in an arbitrary field.     

On the axioms of planes in quaternionic geometry

Summary The axioms of planes in Riemannian geometry and Kaehlerian geometry have been largely studied. In this paper we study axioms for three kinds of planes in Quaternionic geometry: the axiom of quaternionic 4-planes, the axiom of half-quaternionic planes and the axiom of totally real planes. We also give a characterization of quaternionspaceforms in terms of the constancy of the totally real sectional curvatures.     

Algorithms for Computations in Local Symmetric Spaces

In the last two decades much of the algebraic/combinatorial structure of Lie groups, Lie algebras, and their representations has been implemented in several excellent computer algebra packages, including LiE, GAP4, Chevie, Magma, and Maple. The structure of reductive symmetric spaces or more generally symmetric k-varieties is very similar to that of the underlying Lie group, with a few additional complications. A computer algebra package enabling one to do computations related to these symmetric spaces would be an important tool for researchers in many areas of mathematics, including representation theory, Harish Chandra modules, singularity theory, differential and algebraic geometry, mathematical physics, character sheaves, Lie theory, etc.

In this article we lay the groundwork for computing the fine structure of symmetric spaces over the real numbers and other base fields, give a complete set of algorithms for computing the fine structure of symmetric varieties and use this to compute nice bases for the local symmetric varieties.     

Regulous vector bundles

Among recently introduced new notions in real algebraic geometry is that of regulous functions. Such functions form a foundation for the development of regulous geometry. Several interesting results on regulous varieties and regulous sheaves are already available. In this paper, we define and investigate regulous vector bundles. We establish algebraic and geometric properties of such vector bundles, and identify them with stratified‐algebraic vector bundles. Furthermore, using new results on curve‐rational functions, we characterize regulous vector bundles among families of vector spaces parametrized by an affine regulous variety. We also study relationships between regulous and topological vector bundles.     

The algebraic uniqueness of the addition of natural numbers

As is known, multiplication is aniteration of addition within the natural numbers. We show that addition is essentially theonly associative binary operation on natural numbers whose iteration is commutative or associative. This result, in which a set determines a structure, is in a sense a converse of the classical one due to Pontrjagin [3] and Kolmogorov [1], in which certain algebraic and topological structures determine the fields of real and complex numbers and of quaternions.     

The correspondence between multivariate spline ideals and piecewise algebraic varieties

As a piecewise polynomial with a certain smoothness, the spline plays an important role in computational geometry. The algebraic variety is the most important subject in classical algebraic geometry. As the zero set of multivariate splines, the piecewise algebraic variety is a generalization of the algebraic variety. In this paper, the correspondence between piecewise algebraic varieties and spline ideals is discussed. Furthermore, Hilbert’s Nullstellensatz for the piecewise algebraic variety is also studied.     

Hodge genera of algebraic varieties I

The aim of this paper is to study the behavior of Hodge‐theoretic (intersection homology) genera and their associated characteristic classes under proper morphisms of complex algebraic varieties. We obtain formulae that relate (parametrized families of) global invariants of a complex algebraic variety X to such invariants of singularities of proper algebraic maps defined on X. Such formulae severely constrain, both topologically and analytically, the singularities of complex maps, even between smooth varieties. Similar results were announced by the first and third author in [13, 32]. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.