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:20260404T094650Z UID:RVAGeometry2025/1 DESCRIPTION:Title: Welcome Message\nby Welcome Message as part of Richmond Geometry Meeting 2025\n\nLecture held in VCU Temple 1169.\nAbstract: TBA\ n LOCATION:https://stable.researchseminars.org/talk/RVAGeometry2025/1/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT SUMMARY:Rhea Palak Bakshi (University of California\, Santa Barbara) DTSTART:20250919T180000Z DTEND:20250919T190000Z DTSTAMP:20260404T094650Z UID:RVAGeometry2025/2 DESCRIPTION:Title: Skein Modules and Their Structure\nby Rhea Palak Bakshi (University of California\, Santa Barbara) as part of Richmond Geometry M eeting 2025\n\nLecture held in VCU Temple 1169.\n\nAbstract\nSkein modules were introduced by Przytycki and independently by Turaev as generalizatio ns of the polynomial link invariants in the 3-sphere to arbitrary 3-manifo lds. Among these\, the Kauffman bracket skein module (KBSM) has been studi ed most extensively. Recently\, Gunningham\, Jordan\, and Safronov demonst rated that 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 challenging problem\, especially over this ring. In this talk\, we will s urvey these developments and explore several open questions concerning the structure of the KBSM over ℤ[A^±1].\n LOCATION:https://stable.researchseminars.org/talk/RVAGeometry2025/2/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT SUMMARY:Christine Ruey Shan Lee (Texas State University) DTSTART:20250919T200000Z DTEND:20250919T210000Z DTSTAMP:20260404T094650Z UID:RVAGeometry2025/3 DESCRIPTION:Title: A topological model for the HOMFLY-PT polynomial\nby Ch ristine Ruey Shan Lee (Texas State University) as part of Richmond Geometr y Meeting 2025\n\nLecture held in VCU Temple 1169.\n\nAbstract\nA topologi cal model for a knot invariant is a realization of the invariant as graded intersection pairings on coverings of configuration spaces. In this talk I will describe a topological model for the HOMFLY-PT polynomial. I plan t o discuss the motivation from previous work by Lawrence and Bigelow giving topological models for the Jones and SL_n polynomials\, and our construct ion\, joint with Cristina Anghel\, which uses a state sum formulation of t he HOMFLY-PT polynomial to construct an intersection pairing on the config uration space of a Heegaard surface of the link. To conclude\, I will plac e the work in the larger context of Aganagic’s proposed unification of l ink homology theories.\n LOCATION:https://stable.researchseminars.org/talk/RVAGeometry2025/3/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT SUMMARY:Mikhail Khovanov (Johns Hopkins University) DTSTART:20250919T213000Z DTEND:20250919T223000Z DTSTAMP:20260404T094650Z UID:RVAGeometry2025/4 DESCRIPTION:Title: The Delannoy category and its diagrammatics\nby Mikhail Khovanov (Johns Hopkins University) as part of Richmond Geometry Meeting 2025\n\nLecture held in VCU Temple 1169.\n\nAbstract\nN.Harman and A.Snowd en discovered a semisimple monoidal pivotal category\, which they called t he Delannoy category\, where composition of morphisms is given by computin g the compact Euler characteristic of subspaces of the Euclidean space des cribed by inequalities on the coordinates. In the talk we will explain a d iagrammatic description of their category\, following a joint work with N. Snyder. The number of simple objects in the Delannoy category grows expone ntially\, but a suitable monoidal subcategory has the Grothendieck ring is omorphic to the ring of integer-valued one-variable polynomials. That subc ategory can be viewed as a categorification of the latter ring.\n LOCATION:https://stable.researchseminars.org/talk/RVAGeometry2025/4/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT SUMMARY:Boyu Zhang (University of Maryland) DTSTART:20250920T130000Z DTEND:20250920T140000Z DTSTAMP:20260404T094650Z UID:RVAGeometry2025/5 DESCRIPTION:Title: Dax invariants\, light bulbs\, and isotopies of symplectic structures\nby Boyu Zhang (University of Maryland) as part of Richmond Geometry Meeting 2025\n\nLecture held in VCU Temple 1169.\n\nAbstract\nIn this talk\, I will present the following two main results. First\, we giv e a classification 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 s how that there exist infinitely many such embeddings that are mutually hom otopic but non-isotopic. This answers a question of Gabai. Second\, we sho w that the space of symplectic forms on an irrational ruled surface homolo gous to a fixed symplectic form has infinitely many connected components. This gives the first such example among closed 4-manifolds and answers a q uestion of McDuff-Salamon. The proofs are based on a generalization of the Dax invariant to embedded closed surfaces. The talk is based on joint wo rk with Jianfeng Lin\, Weiwei Wu\, and Yi Xie.\n LOCATION:https://stable.researchseminars.org/talk/RVAGeometry2025/5/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT SUMMARY:Matthew Stoffregen (Michigan State University) DTSTART:20250920T143000Z DTEND:20250920T153000Z DTSTAMP:20260404T094650Z UID:RVAGeometry2025/6 DESCRIPTION:Title: Lattice Floer Spectra\nby Matthew Stoffregen (Michigan State University) as part of Richmond Geometry Meeting 2025\n\nLecture hel d in VCU Temple 1169.\n\nAbstract\nRecently\, Zemke proved that Heegaard F loer homology and lattice homology agree\, for general plumbing trees\, ge neralizing a theorem of Ozsváth-Szabó showing this equivalence for almos t-rational plumbings. In this talk\, we'll give background on monopole Fl oer spectra\, and give a calculation of the monopole Floer spectra of almo st rational plumbings\, based closely on Ozsváth-Szabó's proof\, in term s of lattice homology. We also include some obstructions to the existence of spin 4-manifolds with certain boundary that follow from these calculat ions. This is joint work with Irving Dai and Hirofumi Sasahira.\n LOCATION:https://stable.researchseminars.org/talk/RVAGeometry2025/6/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT SUMMARY:Career Panel DTSTART:20250920T190000Z DTEND:20250920T203000Z DTSTAMP:20260404T094650Z UID:RVAGeometry2025/7 DESCRIPTION:Title: Career Panel\nby Career Panel as part of Richmond Geome try Meeting 2025\n\nLecture held in VCU Temple 1169.\nAbstract: TBA\n LOCATION:https://stable.researchseminars.org/talk/RVAGeometry2025/7/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT SUMMARY:Denis Auroux (Harvard University) DTSTART:20250920T173000Z DTEND:20250920T183000Z DTSTAMP:20260404T094650Z UID:RVAGeometry2025/8 DESCRIPTION:Title: Lagrangian Floer theory\, from local to global\nby Deni s Auroux (Harvard University) as part of Richmond Geometry Meeting 2025\n\ nLecture held in VCU Temple 1169.\n\nAbstract\nThis talk will give a surve y of various developments around\nLagrangian Floer theory in symplectic ge ometry\, starting with the\nbasics\, and then getting to the idea of a "ge ometry of Floer theory"\,\nmotivated by mirror symmetry\, centered around family Floer homology and\nlocal-to-global principles for Fukaya categorie s.\n LOCATION:https://stable.researchseminars.org/talk/RVAGeometry2025/8/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT SUMMARY:Poster Session DTSTART:20250920T210000Z DTEND:20250920T220000Z DTSTAMP:20260404T094650Z UID:RVAGeometry2025/10 DESCRIPTION:Title: Poster Session\nby Poster Session as part of Richmond Geometry Meeting 2025\n\nLecture held in VCU Temple 1169.\nAbstract: TBA\n LOCATION:https://stable.researchseminars.org/talk/RVAGeometry2025/10/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT SUMMARY:Richard A. Wentworth (University of Maryland) DTSTART:20250921T133000Z DTEND:20250921T143000Z DTSTAMP:20260404T094650Z UID:RVAGeometry2025/11 DESCRIPTION:Title: Higgs bundles\, isomonodromy\, and minimal surfaces\nb y Richard A. Wentworth (University of Maryland) as part of Richmond Geomet ry Meeting 2025\n\nLecture held in VCU Temple 1169.\n\nAbstract\nI will di scuss a gauge theoretic approach to the construction of the moduli space o f Higgs bundles in 2-dimensions where the complex structure of the underly ing surface also varies. This "joint" moduli space fibers over Teichmuelle r space with fiber the usual moduli space of Higgs bundles. I will explai n why indefinite Hermitian structures arise naturally on the joint moduli space\, and I will indicate the existence of pseudo-Kaehler metrics in a n umber of cases of Higgs bundles with special holonomy. I will also discuss the relationship between complex tangencies of isomonodromic leaves and t he strict plurisubharmonicity of the energy function. This recovers and ex tends several recent constructions of various authors. This work is part o f a collaboration with Brian Collier and Jeremy Toulisse.\n LOCATION:https://stable.researchseminars.org/talk/RVAGeometry2025/11/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT SUMMARY:Yuya Murakami (Kyushu University) DTSTART:20250921T150000Z DTEND:20250921T160000Z DTSTAMP:20260404T094650Z UID:RVAGeometry2025/12 DESCRIPTION:Title: Witten’s aymptotic expansion conjecture and quantum modu larity for Gukov–Pei–Putrov–Vafa invariants\nby Yuya Murakami (K yushu University) as part of Richmond Geometry Meeting 2025\n\nLecture hel d in VCU Temple 1169.\n\nAbstract\nI address two linked problems at the in terface of quantum topology and number theory: deriving asymptotic expansi ons of the Witten–Reshetikhin–Turaev invariants for 3-manifolds and es tablishing quantum modularity of false theta functions\, in particular Guk ov–Pei–Putrov–Vafa invariants. Previous progress covers Seifert homo logy 3-spheres for the former and rank-one cases for the latter\, both rel ying on single-variable integral representations. I extend these results t o negative definite plumbed 3-manifolds and to general false theta functio ns respectively. I address this limitation by developing two techniques: a Poisson summation formula with signature and a framework of modular serie s\, both of which enable a precise and explicit analysis of multivariable integral representations.\n LOCATION:https://stable.researchseminars.org/talk/RVAGeometry2025/12/ END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT SUMMARY:Mrunmay Jagadale (Caltech) DTSTART:20250921T173000Z DTEND:20250921T183000Z DTSTAMP:20260404T094650Z UID:RVAGeometry2025/13 DESCRIPTION:Title: TQFT for $\\hat{Z}$ invariants\nby Mrunmay Jagadale (C altech) as part of Richmond Geometry Meeting 2025\n\nLecture held in VCU T emple 1169.\n\nAbstract\nThe $\\hat{Z}$-invariants of three-manifolds intr oduced by Gukov\, Pei\, Putrov\, and Vafa have influenced many areas of ma thematics and physics. However\, their TQFT structure remains poorly under stood. In this talk\, I will present a framework for decorated Spin-TQFTs and construct one based on Atiyah–Segal-like axioms that computes the $\ \hat{Z}$-invariants. This TQFT framework provides a new perspective on the structural properties and gluing formulas for $\\hat{Z}$-invariants.\n LOCATION:https://stable.researchseminars.org/talk/RVAGeometry2025/13/ END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR