* Dates within the next 7 days are marked by a star.
Prof. Eveliina Peltola (Aalto University & Universität Bonn)
Interplay of Schramm-Loewner evolution curves with conformal field theory. (This is an informal seminar.)
* Tuesday 18 November 2025, 10:15, M3 (M234)
As is known from the 1980s, CFT should describe scaling limits of critical lattice models in statistical mechanics (i.e., fixed points of the renormalization group flow). One might argue that two-dimensional (2D) CFTs -- at least minimal models and Liouville theory -- are completely understood since the pioneering works in the 1980s. However, a closer inspection reveals that CFTs rele- vant to models containing lattice interfaces, or random curves in the continuum, cannot be described by minimal models, seem to exhibit logarithmic phenomena, and even their spectrum (operator content) seems not to be completely clear.
In the random geometry community, about 25 years ago a breaktrough idea came along: Schramm suggested that probabilistically, such interface models could be rigorously described by combining classical complex analysis (namely, Loewner theory) with stochastic analysis (namely, Brownian motion and martingale theory).
This provided a wonderful description of scaling limits of lattice interfaces, and turned out to have deeper roots than perhaps originally anticipated. Indeed, Schramm's random SLE curves also share an intrinsic connection with the geometric and algebraic content in CFT. On the one hand, such curves emanating at boundary or bulk points relate to specific Virasoro modules in the theory -- in particular, in the case of boundary phenomena they correspond to degenerate field insertions, which can be studied completely rigorously in terms of probability and PDE theory. On the other hand, the action functional for SLE loops is closely related to the universal Liouville action and Kähler geometry on Teichmüller space, although the associated correlation functions therein remain more mysterious.
Anna-Mariya Otsetova
Malliavin calculus and a central limit theorem for the stochastic heat equation
* Wednesday 19 November 2025, 10:15, M3 (M234)
Seminar on analysis and geometry
Kakeya sets in R^3 (Finnish Mathematical Society Colloquium)
* Wednesday 19 November 2025, 16:00, U7
A Kakeya set is a compact subset of R^n that contains a unit line segment pointing in every direction. Kakeya set conjecture asserts that every Kakeya set has Minkowski and Hausdorff dimension n. We prove this conjecture in R^3 as a consequence of a more general statement about union of tubes. We will also discuss the connection to projection theorems in geometric measure theory.
This is joint work with Josh Zahl.
Hong Wang is a permanent professor at the Institut des Hautes Études Scientifiques (IHES) and a professor at NYUs Courant Institute. She specializes in harmonic analysis and related areas and is widely known for her influential work on the restriction conjecture, local smoothing, and decoupling, among other topics. In recent work with Joshua Zahl, she resolved the celebrated Kakeya conjecture in three dimensions.
Finnish Mathematical Society Colloquium
Matematiikan kandiseminaari (Bachelor thesis seminar in Math.)
* Thursday 20 November 2025, 09:00, M2 (M233)
Further information
Ohjelma: https://mycourses.aalto.fi/course/view.php?id=34597#module-908887
Prof. Eveliina Peltola (Aalto University & Universität Bonn)
Interplay of Schramm-Loewner evolution curves with conformal field theory. (This is an informal seminar.)
Tuesday 25 November 2025, 10:15, M3 (M234)
As is known from the 1980s, CFT should describe scaling limits of critical lattice models in statistical mechanics (i.e., fixed points of the renormalization group flow). One might argue that two-dimensional (2D) CFTs -- at least minimal models and Liouville theory -- are completely understood since the pioneering works in the 1980s. However, a closer inspection reveals that CFTs rele- vant to models containing lattice interfaces, or random curves in the continuum, cannot be described by minimal models, seem to exhibit logarithmic phenomena, and even their spectrum (operator content) seems not to be completely clear.
In the random geometry community, about 25 years ago a breaktrough idea came along: Schramm suggested that probabilistically, such interface models could be rigorously described by combining classical complex analysis (namely, Loewner theory) with stochastic analysis (namely, Brownian motion and martingale theory).
This provided a wonderful description of scaling limits of lattice interfaces, and turned out to have deeper roots than perhaps originally anticipated. Indeed, Schramm's random SLE curves also share an intrinsic connection with the geometric and algebraic content in CFT. On the one hand, such curves emanating at boundary or bulk points relate to specific Virasoro modules in the theory -- in particular, in the case of boundary phenomena they correspond to degenerate field insertions, which can be studied completely rigorously in terms of probability and PDE theory. On the other hand, the action functional for SLE loops is closely related to the universal Liouville action and Kähler geometry on Teichmüller space, although the associated correlation functions therein remain more mysterious.
Leah Schätzler
TBA
Wednesday 26 November 2025, 10:15, M3 (M234)
Seminar on analysis and geometry
Dr. Olli Järviniemi
Siitä, mitä kutsutaan tilastotieteeksi
Friday 28 November 2025, 15:00, M2 (M233)
Käsittelen tilastotieteen aiheita, jotka ovat nousseet huomiooni tehdessäni kokeellista tutkimusta tekoälyn parissa. Luennon teemana on, että monet alkuperäiset odotukseni tilastotieteeltä ovat sellaisia, joihin tilastotieteen menetelmien ei ole mahdollista vastata, mikä luo tarpeen erilaiselle orientaatiolle datan analysointiin ja tieteen tekemiseen. Luennossa käsitellään muun muassa seuraavia aiheita: otantajakauman merkitys päätelmien tekemisessä, uskomusten muutos erimielisyyden tiloissa ja yleisluontoisten päätelmien keskeisyys.
Stochastics and Statistics Seminar
Tuomas Kelomäki (Aalto University)
Fast and smooth? Khovanov homology and computational complexity
Tuesday 09 December 2025, 10:15, M3 (M234)
At the turn of the century, Khovanov upgraded the Jones polynomial into a homology theory of knots, which is sensitive to smooth structures in 4D. The Jones polynomial can be recovered from Khovanov homology, so Khovanov homology is at least as hard to compute as the Jones polynomial, and it is an open question how much harder it is. In this talk, we will try to explain why mathematicians should care about fast computations of Khovanov homology. We will also explore polynomial and non-polynomial time algorithms for both Jones polynomial and Khovanov homology of braids. Joint work with Dirk Schütz.
Prof. Tuomas Hytönen (Aalto University)
TBA
Tuesday 09 December 2025, 15:15, M1 (M232)
TBA
Prof. Steven Gabriel (University of Maryland and Aalto University)
TBA
Tuesday 13 January 2026, 15:15, M1 (M232)
Prof. Andrea Pinamonti (Università di Trento)
TBA
Wednesday 04 February 2026, 10:15, M3 (M234)
Seminar on analysis and geometry
Prof. Anders Hansen (University of Cambridge)
TBA
Tuesday 10 February 2026, 15:15, M1 (M232)
Dr. John Urschel (MIT)
TBA
Tuesday 10 March 2026, 15:15, U5 (U147)
Show the events of the past year
Page content by: webmaster-math [at] list [dot] aalto [dot] fi