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From rrosebru@mta.ca Wed Aug 3 10:37:54 2005 -0300 Return-path: Envelope-to: categories-list@mta.ca Delivery-date: Wed, 03 Aug 2005 10:37:54 -0300 Received: from Majordom by mailserv.mta.ca with local (Exim 4.44) id 1E0JJ6-0000qP-Ii for categories-list@mta.ca; Wed, 03 Aug 2005 10:29:16 -0300 Date: Mon, 1 Aug 2005 17:27:13 -0400 (EDT) From: Peter Freyd Message-Id: <200508012127.j71LRDYj019524@saul.cis.upenn.edu> To: categories@mta.ca Subject: categories: The Mac Lane obit by Kutateladze Sender: cat-dist@mta.ca Precedence: bulk Status: O X-Status: X-Keywords: X-UID: 1 xxx.sf.nchc.gov.tw/pdf/math.HO/0507203. SAUNDERS MAC LANE, THE KNIGHT OF MATHEMATICS S. S. KUTATELADZE Abstract. This is a short obituary of Saunders Mac Lane (1909-2005). San Francisco and April 14, 2005 form the terminal place and date of the marvellous almost centennial life of the prominent American mathematician Saunders Mac Lane who shared with Samuel Eilenberg (1913-1998) the honor of creation of category theory which ranks among the most brilliant, controversial, ambitious, and heroic mathematical achievements of the 20th century. Category theory, alongside set theory, serves as a universal language of modern mathematics. Categories, functors, and natural transformations are widely used in all areas of mathematics, allowing us to look uniformly and consistently on various constructions and formulate the general properties of diverse structures. The impact of category theory is irreducible to the narrow frameworks of its great expressive conveniences. This theory has drastically changed our general outlook on the foundations of mathematics and widened the room of free thinking in mathematics. Set theory, a great and ingenious creation of Georg Cantor, occupies in the common opinion of the 20th century the place of the sole solid base of modern mathematics. Mathematics becomes sinking into a section of the Cantorian set theory. Most active mathematicians, teachers, and philosophers consider as obvious and undisputable the thesis that mathematics cannot be grounded on anything but set theory. The set-theoretic stance transforms paradoxically into an ironclad dogma, a clear-cut forbiddance of thinking (as L. Feuerbach once put it wittily). Such an indoctrinated view of the foundations of mathematics is false and conspicuously contradicts the leitmotif, nature, and pathos of the essence of all creative contribution of Cantor who wrote as far back as in 1883 that "denn das Wesen der Mathematik liegt grerade in ihrerFreiheit." It is category theory that one of the most ambitious projects of the 20th century mathematics was realized within in the 1960s, the project of socializing set theory. This led to topos theory providing a profusion of categories of which classical set theory is an ordinary member. Mathematics has acquired infinitely many new degrees of freedom. All these rest on category theory originated with the article by Mac Lane and Eilenberg "General Theory of Natural Equivalences," which was presented to the American Mathematical Society on September 8, 1942 and published in 1945 in the Transactions of the AMS. Mac Lane authored or coauthored more than 100 research papers and 6 books: A Survey of Modern Algebra (1941, 1997; with Garrett Birkhoff); Homology (1963); Algebra (1967; with Garrett Birkhoff); Categories for the Working Mathematician (1971, 1998); Mathematics, Form and Function (1985); Sheaves in Geometry and Logic: A First Introduction to Topos Theory (1992; with Ieke Moerdijk). Mac Lane was the advisor of 39 Ph.D. theses. Alfred Putman, John Thompson, Irving Kaplansky, Robert Solovay, and many other distinguished scientists are listed as his students. He was elected to the National Academy of Sciences of the USA in 1949 and received the National Medal of Science, the highest scientific award of the USA in 1989. Mac Lane served as vice-president of the National Academy of Sciences and the American Philosophical Society. He was elected as president of the American Mathematical Society and Mathematical Association of America. He contributed greatly to modernization of the teaching programs in mathematics. Mac Lane received many signs of honor from the leading universities of the world and possessed an impressive collection of mathematical awards and prizes. Mac Lane became a living legend of the science of the USA. Mac Lane was born on August 4, 1909 in Norwich near Taftville, Connecticut in the family of a Congregationalist minister and was christened as Leslie Saunders MacLane. The name Leslie was suggested by his nurse, but his mother disliked the name. A month later, his father put a hand on the head of the son, looked up to the God, and said: "Leslie forget." His father and uncles changed the spelling of their surname and began to write MacLane instead of MacLean in order to avoid sounding Irish. The space in Mac Lane was added by Saunders himself at request of his first wife Dorothy. That is how Mac Lane narrated about his name in A Mathematical Biography which was published soon after his death. Saunders's father passed away when the boy was 15 and it was Uncle John who supported the boy and paid for his education in Yale. Saunders was firstly fond of chemistry but everything changed after acquaintance with differential and integral calculus by the textbook of Longley and Wilson (which reminds of the later book by Granville, Smith, and Longley). The university years revealed Mac Lane's attraction to philosophy and foundations of mathematics. He was greatly impressed by the brand-new three volumes by Whitehead and Russell, the celebrated Principia Mathematica. The mathematical tastes of Mac Lane were strongly influenced by the lectures of a young assistant professor Oystein Ore, a Norwegian mathematician from the Emmy Noether's school. After graduation from Yale, Mac Lane continued education in the University of Chicago. At that time he was very much influenced by the personalities and research of Eliakim Moore, Leonard Dickson, Gilbert Bliss, Edmund Landau, Marston Morse, and many others. Mac Lane was inclined to wrote a Ph.D. thesis in logic but this was impossible in Chicago and so Saunders decided to continue education in Gottingen. The stay in Germany in 1931-1933 was decisive for the maturity of Mac Lane's gift and personality. Although David Hilbert had retired, he still delivered weekly lectures on philosophy and relevant general issues. The successor of Hilbert was Hermann Weyl who had recently arrived from Zurich and was in the prime of his years and talents. Weyl advised Saunders to attend the lectures on linear associative algebras by Emmy Noether whom Weyl called "the equal of each of us." In the Mathematical Institute Mac Lane met and boiled with Edmund Landau, Richard Courant, Gustav Herglotz, Otto Neugebauer, Oswald Teichmuller, and many others. Paul Bernays became the advisor of Mac Lane's Ph.D thesis "Abbreviated Proofs in Logic Calculus." The Nazis gained power in Germany in February 1933. The feast of antisemitism started immediately and one of the first and fiercest strokes fell upon the Mathematical Institute. The young persons are welcome to read as an antidote Mac Lane's masterpiece "Mathematics at Gottingen under the Nazis" in the Notices of the AMS, 42:10, 1134-1138 (1995). In the fall of 1933 Mac Lane returned to the States with Dorothy Jones Mac Lane whom he had married recently in Germany. The further academic career of Mac Lane was mainly tied with Harvard and since 1947 with Chicago. To evaluate the contribution of Mac Lane to mathematics is an easy and pleasant task. It suffices to cite the words A. G. Kurosh, a renowned Russian professor of Lomonosov State University. In the translator's preface to the Russian edition of the classical Homology book, Kurosh wrote: The author of this book, a professor of Chicago University, is one of the most prominent American algebraists and topologists. His role in homological algebra as well as category theory is the role of one of the founders of this area. Homological algebra implements a marvelous project of algebraization of topological spaces by assigning to such a space X the sequence of (abelian) homology groups H_n(X). Moreover, each continuous map f:X -> Y from X to Y induces a family of homomorphisms of the homology groups f_n: H_n(X) -> H_n(Y). The aim of homological algebra consists in calculation of homologies. In his research into homological algebra and category theory Mac Lane cooperated with Eilenberg whom he met in 1940. Eilenberg had arrived from Poland two years earlier. He saw the affinity of the algebraic calculations of Mac Lane with those he encountered in algebraic topology. Eilenberg offered cooperation to Mac Lane. The union of Eilenberg and Mac Lane lasted for 14 years and resulted in 15 joint papers which noticeably changed the mathematical appearance of the 20th century. The pearl of this cooperation was category theory. Mac Lane always considered category theory "a natural and perhaps inevitable aspect of the 20th century mathematical emphasis on axiomatic and abstract methods -- especially as those methods when involved in abstract algebra and functional analysis." He stressed that even if Eilenberg and he did not propose this theory it will necessarily appear in the works of other mathematicians. Among these potential inventors of the new conceptions Mac Lane listed Claude Chevalley, Heinz Hopf, Norman Steenrod, Henri Cartan, Charles Ehresmann, and John von Neumann. In Mac Lane's opinion, the conceptions of category theory were close to the methodological principles of the project of Nicholas Bourbaki. Mac Lane was sympathetic with the project and was very close to joining in but this never happened (the main obstacles were in linguistic facilities). However, even the later membership of Eilenberg in the Bourbaki group could not overcome a shade of slight disinclination and repulsion. It turned out impossible to "categorize Bourbaki" with a theory of non-French origin as Mac Lane had once phrased the matter shrewdly and elegantly. It is worth noting in this respect that the term "category theory" had roots in the mutual interest of its authors in philosophy and, in particular, in the works of Immanuel Kant. Set theory rules in the present-day mathematics. The buffoon's role of "abstract nonsense" is assigned in mathematics to category theory. History and literature demonstrate to us that the relations between the ruler and the jester may be totally intricate and unpredictable. Something very similar transpires in the interrelations of set theory and category theory and the dependency of one of them on the other. >From a logic standpoint, set theory and category theory are instances of a first order theory. The former deals with sets and the membership relation between them. The latter speaks of objects and morphisms (or arrows). Of course, there is no principle difference between the atomic formulas a E= b and a E. b. However, the precipice in meaning is abysmal between the two concepts that are formalized by the two atomic formulas. The stationary universe of Zermelo-Fraenkel, cluttered up with uncountably many copies of equipollent sets confronts the free world of categories, ensembles of arbitrary nature that are determined by the dynamics of their transformations. The individual dualities of set theory, dependent on the choice of particular realizations of the pairs of objects under study, give up their places to the universal natural transformations of category theory. One of the most brilliant achievements of category theory was the development of axiomatic homology theory. Instead of the homological diversity for topological spaces (the simplicial homology for a polyhedron, singular and Cech homology, Vietoris homology, etc.) Eilenberg and Steenrod suggested as far back as in 1952 the new understanding of each homology or cohomology theory as a functor from the category of spaces under consideration to the category of groups. The axiomatic approach to defining such a functor radically changed the manner of further progress in homological algebra and algebraic topology. The study of the homology of Eilenberg-Mac Lane spaces and the method of acyclic models demonstrated the strength of the ideas of category theory and led to universal use of simplicial sets in K-theory and sheaves. In 1948 Mac Lane proposed the concept of abelian category abstracting the categories of abelian groups and vector spaces which played key roles in the first papers on axiomatic homology theory. The abelian categories were rediscovered in 1953 and became a major tool in research into homological algebra by Cartan, Eilenberg, and their followers. Outstanding advances in category theory are connected with the names of Alexander Grothendieck and F. William Lawvere. Topos theory, their aesthetic creation, appeared in the course of "point elimination" called upon by the challenge of invariance of the objects we study in mathematics. It is on this road that we met the conception of variable sets which led to the notion of topos and the understanding of the social medium of set-theoretic models. A category is called an elementary topos provided that it is cartesian closed and has a subject classifier. The sources of toposes lie in the theory of sheaves and Grothendieck topology. Further progress of the concept of topos is due to search for some category-theoretic axiomatization of set theory as well as study into forcing and the nonstandard set-theoretic models of Dana Scott, Robert Solovay, and Petr Vopenka. The new frameworks provide a natural place for the Boolean valued models that are viewed now the toposes with Aristotle logic which pave king's ways to the solution of the problem of the continuum by Kurt Godel and Paul Cohen. These toposes are now the main arena of Boolean valued analysis. Bidding farewell to Mac Lane, reading his sincere and openhearted autobiography, enjoying his vehement polemics with Freeman J. Dyson, and perusing his deep last articles on general mathematics, anyone cannot help but share his juvenile devotion and love of mathematics and its creators. His brilliant essays "Despite Physicists, Proof Is Essential in Mathematics" and "Proof, Truth, and Confusion" form an anthem of mathematics which is only possible by proof. Let me summarize where we have come. As with any branch of learning, the real substance of mathematics resides in the ideas. The ideas of mathematics are those which can be formalized and which have been developed to fit issues arising in science or in human activity. Truth in mathematics is approached by way of proof in formalized systems. However, because of the paradoxical kinds of self-reference exhibited by the barn door and Kurt Godel, there can be no single formal system which subsumes all mathematical proof. To boot, the older dogmas that "everything is logic" or "everything is a set" now have competition "everything is a function." However, such questions of foundation are but a very small part of mathematical activity, which continues to try to combine the right ideas to attack substantive problems. Of these I have touched on only a few examples: Finding all simple groups, putting groups together by extension, and characterizing spheres by their connectivity. In such cases, subtle ideas, fitted by hand to the problem, can lead to triumph. Numerical and mathematical methods can be used for practical problems. However, because of political pressures, the desire for compromise, or the simple desire for more publication, formal ideas may be applied in practical cases where the ideas simply do not fit. Then confusion arises whether from misleading formulation of questions in opinion surveys, from nebulous calculations of airy benefits, by regression, by extrapolation, or otherwise. As the case of fuzzy sets indicates, such confusion is not fundamentally a trouble caused by the organizations issuing reports, but is occasioned by academicians making careless use of good ideas where they do not fit. As Francis Bacon once said, "Truth ariseth more readily from error than from confusion." There remains to us, then, the pursuit of truth, by way of proof, the concatenation of those ideas which fit, and the beauty which results when they do fit. So wrote Saunders Mac Lane, a great genius, creator, master, and servant of mathematics. His unswerving devotion to the ideals of truth and free thinking of our ancient science made him the eternal and tragicomical mathematical Knight of the Sorrowful Figure... Sobolev Institute of Mathematics 4 Koptyug Avenue Novosibirsk, 630090 RUSSIA E-mail address: sskut@member.ams.org From rrosebru@mta.ca Wed Aug 3 10:37:54 2005 -0300 Return-path: Envelope-to: categories-list@mta.ca Delivery-date: Wed, 03 Aug 2005 10:37:54 -0300 Received: from Majordom by mailserv.mta.ca with local (Exim 4.44) id 1E0JIf-0000oi-W3 for categories-list@mta.ca; Wed, 03 Aug 2005 10:28:50 -0300 Date: Mon, 1 Aug 2005 12:19:16 -0400 (EDT) From: Jeffery Zucker Message-Id: <200508011619.j71GJGNk029692@birkhoff.cas.mcmaster.ca> To: categories@mta.ca Subject: categories: Formal Methods 2006 Sender: cat-dist@mta.ca Precedence: bulk Status: O X-Status: X-Keywords: X-UID: 2 FM'06: 14TH INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON FORMAL METHODS 21 - 27 August 2006 McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada http://fm06.mcmaster.ca/ ANNOUNCEMENT AND CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS FM'06 is the fourteenth in a series of symposia organized by Formal Methods Europe, http://www.fmeurope.org, an independent association whose aim is to stimulate the use of, and research on, formal methods for software development. The symposia have been notably successful in bringing together innovators and practitioners in precise mathematical methods for software development, industrial users as well as researchers. Submissions are welcomed in the form of original papers on research and industrial experience, proposals for workshops and tutorials, entries for the exhibition of software tools and projects, and reports on ongoing doctoral work. FM'06 welcomes all aspects of formal methods research, both theoretical and practical. We are particularly interested in the experience of applying formal methods in practice. The broad topics of interest of this conference are: * Tools for formal methods: tool support and software engineering, environments for formal methods. * Theoretical foundations: specification and modelling, refining, static analysis, model-checking, verification, calculation, reusable domain theories. * Formal methods in practice: experience with introducing formal methods in industry, case studies. * Role of formal methods: formal methods in hardware and system design, method integration, development process. TECHNICAL PAPERS Full papers should be submitted via the web site. Papers will be evaluated by the Program Committee according to their originality, significance, soundness, quality of presentation and relevance with respect to the main issues of the symposium. Accepted papers will be published in the Symposium Proceedings, to appear in Springer's Lecture Notes in Computer Science series, http://www.springeronline.com/lncs . Submitted papers should have not been submitted elsewhere for publication, should be in Springer's format, (see Springer's web site), and should not exceed 16 pages including appendices. A prize for the best technical paper will be awarded at the symposium. INDUSTRIAL USAGE REPORTS One day will be dedicated to sharing the experience -- both positive and negative -- with using formal methods in industrial environments. The Industry Day is organized by ForTIA, the Formal Techniques Industry Association, http://www.fortia.org . This year's Industry Day investigates the use of formal methods in security and trust. Invited papers on organizational and technical issues will be presented. Inquiries should be directed to the Industry Day Chairs; see the web site for details. WORKSHOPS We welcome proposals for one-day or one-and-a-half-day workshops related to FM'06. In particular, but not exclusively, we encourage proposals for workshops on various application domains. Proposals should be directed to the Workshop Chair. TUTORIALS We are soliciting proposals for full-day or half-day tutorials. The tutorial contents can be selected from a wide range of topics that reflect the conference themes and provide clear utility to practitioners. Each proposal will be evaluated on importance, relevance, timeliness, audience appeal and past experience and qualification of the instructors. Proposals should be directed to the Tutorial Chair. POSTER AND TOOL EXHIBITION An exhibition of both research projects and commercial tools will accompany the technical symposium, with the opportunity of holding scheduled presentations of commercial tools. Proposals should be directed to the Poster and Tools Exhibition Chair. DOCTORAL SYMPOSIUM For the first time, FM'06 will feature a doctoral symposium. Students are invited to submit work in progress and to defend it in front of "friendly examiners". Participation for students who are accepted will be subsidized. Submissions should be directed to the Doctoral Symposium Chair. SUBMISSION DATES Technical Papers, Workshops, Tutorials: Friday, February 24, 2006 Posters and Tools, Doctoral Symposium: Friday, May 26, 2006 NOTIFICATION DATES Technical Papers: Friday, April 28, 2006 Workshops, Tutorials: Friday, March 10, 2006 Posters and Tools, Doctoral Symposium: Friday, June 9, 2006 ORGANIZATION General Chair: Emil Sekerinski (McMaster) Program Chairs: Jayadev Misra (U. Texas, Austin), Tobias Nipkow (TU Munich) Workshop Chair: Tom Maibaum (McMaster) Tutorial Chair: Jin Song Dong (NUS) Tools and Poster Exhibition Chair: Marsha Chechik (U. Toronto) Industry Day Chairs: Volkmar Lotz (SAP France), Asuman Suenbuel (SAP US) Doctoral Symposium Chair: Augusto Sampaio (U. Pernambuco) Sponsorship Chair: Juergen Dingel (Queens U.) PROGRAM COMMITTEE Jean-Raymond Abrial (ETH Zurich) Alex Aiken (Stanford U.) Keijiro Araki (Kyushu U.) Ralph Back (Abo Akademi) Gilles Barthe (INRIA) David Basin (ETH Zurich) Ed Brinksma (U. Twente) Michael Butler (U. Southampton) Rance Cleaveland (U. Stony Brook) Jorge Cuellar (Siemens) Werner Damm (U. Oldenburg) Frank de Boer (U. Utrecht) Javier Esparza (U. Stuttgart) Jose Fiadeiro (U. Leicester) Susanne Graf (VERIMAG) Ian Hayes (U. Queensland) Gerard Holzmann (JPL) Cliff Jones (U. Newcastle) Gary T. Leavens (Iowa State U.) Rustan Leino (Microsoft) Xavier Leroy (INRIA) Dominique Mery (LORIA) Carroll Morgan (UNSW) David Naumann (Stevens) E.-R. Olderog (U. Oldenburg) Paritosh Pandya (TIFR) Sriram Rajamani (Microsoft) John Rushby (SRI) Steve Schneider (U. Surrey) Vitaly Shmatikov (U. Texas, Austin) Bernhard Steffen (U. Dortmund) P.S. Thiagarajan (NUS) Axel van Lamsweerde (U. Louvain) Martin Wirsing (LMU Munich) Pierre Wolper (U. Liege) LOCAL ORGANIZATION Publicity: Wolfram Kahl, Alan Wassyng, Jeff Zucker Tools, Posters, Book Exhibition: Spencer Smith Social Events: Ridha Khedri Local Arrangements:: William Farmer, Mark Lawford Events Co-ordinator: Ryszard Janicki From rrosebru@mta.ca Wed Aug 3 10:37:54 2005 -0300 Return-path: Envelope-to: categories-list@mta.ca Delivery-date: Wed, 03 Aug 2005 10:37:54 -0300 Received: from Majordom by mailserv.mta.ca with local (Exim 4.44) id 1E0JHz-0000mI-Qx for categories-list@mta.ca; Wed, 03 Aug 2005 10:28:07 -0300 X-Sender: grandis@pop4.dima.unige.it Message-Id: Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Date: Mon, 1 Aug 2005 16:33:21 +0200 To: categories@mta.ca From: Marco Grandis Subject: categories: Preprint: Absolute lax 2-categories Sender: cat-dist@mta.ca Precedence: bulk Status: O X-Status: X-Keywords: X-UID: 3 The preprint described below is available, in pdf. I would like to have information on other works considering *absolute* comparison cells/constraints, in weak or lax structures. Best wishes to all colleagues and friends Marco Grandis _______________ M. Grandis, Absolute lax 2-categories Dip. Mat. Univ. Genova, Preprint 533 (2005), 22 p. http://www.dima.unige.it/~grandis/LCat2.pdf Abstract. We have introduced, in a previous paper, the fundamental lax 2-category of a 'directed space' X. Here we show that, when X has a T1-topology, this structure can be embedded into a larger one, with the same objects (the points of X), the same arrows (the directed paths) and the same cells (based on directed homotopies of paths), but a larger system of comparison cells. The new comparison cells are *absolute*, in the sense that they only depend on the arrows themselves rather than on their syntactic expression, as in the usual settings of lax or weak structures. It follows that, in the original structure, all the diagrams of comparison cells commute, even if not constructed in a natural way and even if the composed cells need not stay within the old system. ____ The previous preprint mentioned above ('Lax 2-categories and directed homotopy') is also available, at: http://www.dima.unige.it/~grandis/LCat.pdf ____ Dipartimento di Matematica Universita` di Genova via Dodecaneso 35 16146 GENOVA, Italy e-mail: grandis@dima.unige.it tel: +39.010.353 6805 fax: +39.010.353 6752 http://www.dima.unige.it/~grandis/ From rrosebru@mta.ca Tue Aug 9 09:55:53 2005 -0300 Return-path: Envelope-to: categories-list@mta.ca Delivery-date: Tue, 09 Aug 2005 09:55:53 -0300 Received: from Majordom by mailserv.mta.ca with local (Exim 4.52) id 1E2TT9-0002cZ-Q0 for categories-list@mta.ca; Tue, 09 Aug 2005 09:44:35 -0300 Date: Mon, 8 Aug 2005 17:52:41 -0600 (MDT) From: mjhealy@ece.unm.edu To: categories@mta.ca Subject: categories: Application Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII Sender: cat-dist@mta.ca Precedence: bulk Status: O X-Status: X-Keywords: X-UID: 4 I hope people on the categories list find this interesting: At the International Joint Conference on Neural Networks (IJCNN05) in Montreal last week, I presented our joint work with Sandia National Laboratories in research on category theory applied to neural networks. We demonstrated improved performance with a modification to a standard artificial neural architecture in generating a multispectral image from satellite data. To create the modified architecture, we added a neural representation of limit cones to the standard architecture and used these to exert fine control over the network operation. An information-theoretic measure we used, to compare the image we generated with the category-theoretic modification to the image generated by the unmodified standard architecture, increased by a factor of two with the category-theoretic modification. An ``eyeball comparison'' of images also shows a clear improvement. We believe this is the first application of category theory directly in an engineering application (while at Boeing, another colleague and I had demonstrated its application to the synthesis of engineering software). The accompanying paper is in the Proceedings of IJCNN05. It doesn't have the information-theoretic result (obtained after the paper was submitted); I put that in the presentation. Also, we only show a simple modification just to illustrate the use of limits (the limits here are just products); the actual architecture is just a bit more complex and includes coproducts. A paper we will be submitting to some journal will have the missing material. Of course, if you want more information I will be glad to hear from you. Mike Healy mjhealy@ece.unm.edu From rrosebru@mta.ca Tue Aug 9 09:55:53 2005 -0300 Return-path: Envelope-to: categories-list@mta.ca Delivery-date: Tue, 09 Aug 2005 09:55:53 -0300 Received: from Majordom by mailserv.mta.ca with local (Exim 4.52) id 1E2TUq-0002iJ-Dq for categories-list@mta.ca; Tue, 09 Aug 2005 09:46:20 -0300 Date: Tue, 9 Aug 2005 12:33:43 +0200 From: vigano@inf.ethz.ch To: categories@mta.ca Subject: categories: CFP: TCS special issue on Automated Reasoning for Security Protocol Analysis Message-ID: <20050809103343.GA9278@inf.ethz.ch> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Disposition: inline User-Agent: Mutt/1.4.1i Sender: cat-dist@mta.ca Precedence: bulk Status: O X-Status: X-Keywords: X-UID: 5 Special Issue of Theoretical Computer Science on Automated Reasoning for Security Protocol Analysis http://www.avispa-project.org/arspa *********************** *** CALL FOR PAPERS *** *********************** BACKGROUND AND SCOPE ==================== In connection with The Second Workshop on Automated Reasoning for Security Protocol Analysis (ARSPA'05) which took place as a satellite event of ICALP'05, we are guest-editing a Special Issue of Theoretical Computer Science devoted to original papers on formal security protocol specification, analysis and verification. Contributions are welcomed on the following topics and related ones: - Automated analysis and verification of security protocols. - Languages, logics, and calculi for the design and specification of security protocols. - Verification methods: accuracy, efficiency. - Decidability and complexity of cryptographic verification problems. - Synthesis and composition of security protocols. - Integration of formal security specification, refinement and validation techniques in development methods and tools. SUBMISSION ========== Authors should submit their papers electronically, in portable document format (pdf) or postscript (ps), by sending an email with subject "TCS submission" to the address arspa -at- avispa-project.org with the file of the paper as an attachment, by November 13, 2005. The following information should be included in the body of the email, in plain text: - paper title - author names - coordinates of the corresponding author - abstract of the paper The cover page of the submission should also include this information. Authors are strongly encouraged to use Elsevier Science's document class 'elsart', or alternatively the standard document class 'article'. The Elsevier LaTeX package (including detailed instructions for LaTeX preparation) can be obtained from Elsevier's web site: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/latex (see also http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/505625/description). Submitted papers must be original and not submitted for publication elsewhere. The submitted papers will be subject to the standard journal refereeing process. We kindly ask the authors to send us an abstract of their submission by November 6, 2005. DEADLINES ========= Submission of abstract: November 6, 2005 Submission of paper: November 13, 2005 EDITORS ======= Pierpaolo Degano (Universita` di Pisa, Italy) Luca Vigano` (ETH Zurich, Switzerland) WEB-SITE ======== http://www.avispa-project.org/arspa From rrosebru@mta.ca Wed Aug 10 10:05:31 2005 -0300 Return-path: Envelope-to: categories-list@mta.ca Delivery-date: Wed, 10 Aug 2005 10:05:31 -0300 Received: from Majordom by mailserv.mta.ca with local (Exim 4.52) id 1E2q9Z-0005Jw-0D for categories-list@mta.ca; Wed, 10 Aug 2005 09:57:53 -0300 MIME-Version: 1.0 X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft Exchange V6.0.6603.0 Subject: categories: A representation theorem for Geometric Morphism Date: Tue, 9 Aug 2005 14:29:47 +0100 Message-ID: From: "Townsend, Christopher" To: Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Sender: cat-dist@mta.ca Precedence: bulk Status: O X-Status: X-Keywords: X-UID: 6 If f:F->E is a geometric morphism between elementary toposes then there is a, well known, adjunction Sigma_f -! f* between the category of locales internal to E and the category of locales internal to F. A property of this adjunction is that f* commutes with the upper (and lower) power locale functors. I think that this actually characterizes geometric morphisms: given an adjunction L-!R between locales internal in E and locales internal in F such that the right adjoint (R) commutes with the upper and lower power locales then there exists a geometric morphism, f:F->E such that L=3DSigma_f and R=3Df*. Has anyone looked at this type of result before?=20 =20 Thanks, Christopher (Townsend) =20 =20 From rrosebru@mta.ca Thu Aug 11 11:13:35 2005 -0300 Return-path: Envelope-to: categories-list@mta.ca Delivery-date: Thu, 11 Aug 2005 11:13:35 -0300 Received: from Majordom by mailserv.mta.ca with local (Exim 4.52) id 1E3DdD-00023j-DM for categories-list@mta.ca; Thu, 11 Aug 2005 11:02:03 -0300 Date: Wed, 10 Aug 2005 13:03:11 -0400 (EDT) From: Peter Freyd Message-Id: <200508101703.j7AH3BNT018557@saul.cis.upenn.edu> To: categories@mta.ca Subject: categories: John Isbell has died Sender: cat-dist@mta.ca Precedence: bulk Status: O X-Status: X-Keywords: X-UID: 7 Details to follow. From rrosebru@mta.ca Sat Aug 13 10:29:42 2005 -0300 Return-path: Envelope-to: categories-list@mta.ca Delivery-date: Sat, 13 Aug 2005 10:29:42 -0300 Received: from Majordom by mailserv.mta.ca with local (Exim 4.52) id 1E3vwL-0007HB-Ur for categories-list@mta.ca; Sat, 13 Aug 2005 10:20:45 -0300 Date: Fri, 12 Aug 2005 16:13:48 -0700 Message-Id: <200508122313.j7CNDm2e023758@fury.csl.sri.com> From: "WRLA Acct (Denker)" To: wrla06@csl.sri.com Subject: categories: CFP WRLA06 Sender: cat-dist@mta.ca Precedence: bulk Status: O X-Status: X-Keywords: X-UID: 8 + + + + + WRLA'06 + + + + + CALL FOR PAPERS + + + + + WRLA'06 + + + + + +----------------------------------------------------------+ | | | 6th International Workshop on | | Rewriting Logic and its Applications | | | | W R L A 2006 | | | | Vienna, Austria, April 1-2, 2006 | | | | http://www-formal.stanford.edu/clt/WRLA06/ | +----------------------------------------------------------+ The workshop will be held in conjunction with ETAPS 2006 9th European Joint Conferences on Theory and Practice of Software March 26 - April 2, 2006 http://www.complang.tuwien.ac.at/etaps06/ IMPORTANT DATES November 21, 2005 Deadline for submissions January 16, 2006 Notification of acceptance February 16, 2006 Final version in electronic form April 1-2, 2006 Workshop in Vienna AIMS AND SCOPE Rewriting logic (RL) is a natural model of computation and an expressive semantic framework for concurrency, parallelism, communication and interaction. It can be used for specifying a wide range of systems and languages in various application fields. It also has good properties as a metalogical framework for representing logics. In recent years, several languages based on RL (ASF+SDF, CafeOBJ, ELAN, Maude) have been designed and implemented. The aim of the workshop is to bring together researchers with a common interest in RL and its applications, and to give them the opportunity to present their recent works, discuss future research directions, and exchange ideas. The topics of the workshop comprise, but are not limited to, * foundations and models of RL; * languages based on RL, including implementation issues; * RL as a logical framework; * RL as a semantic framework, including applications of RL to - object-oriented systems, - concurrent and/or parallel systems, - interactive, distributed, open ended and mobile systems, - specification of languages and systems; * formalisms related to RL, including - real-time and probabilistic extensions of RL, - tile logic, - rewriting approaches to behavioral specifications; * verification techniques for RL specifications, including - equational and coherence methods, and - verification of properties expressed in first-order, higher-order, modal and temporal logics; * comparisons of RL with existing formalisms having analogous aims; * application of RL to specification and analysis of - distributed systems, - physical systems. PAST EVENTS Previous WRLA workshops have been organized in - Asilomar, California, September 3-6, 1996 - Pont-a-Mousson, France, September 1-4, 1998 - Kanazawa, Japan, September 18-20, 2000 - Pisa, Italy, September 19-21, 2002 - Barcelona, Spain, March 27-28, 2004 The proceedings of the WRLA workshops have been published as volumes 4, 15, 36, 71, and 117 in the Elsevier ENTCS series, available at http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/15710661 Selected papers from WRLA'96 have been published in a special issue of Theoretical Computer Science, Volume 285(2), 2002, and selected papers from WRLA 2004 will appear in a special issue of Higher-Order and Symbolic Computation. LOCATION WRLA 2006 will be held in Vienna, Austria in March 25-26, 2006. It is a satellite workshop of ETAPS 2006, the European Joint Conferences on Theory and Practice of Software. For venue, registration and suggested accommodation see the ETAPS 2006 web page http://www.complang.tuwien.ac.at/etaps06 SUBMISSIONS Submissions will be evaluated by the Program Committee for inclusion in the proceedings, which will be available at the time of the workshop and are expected to be published in the Elsevier ENTCS series. Papers must contain original contributions, be clearly written, and include appropriate reference to and comparison with related work. They must be unpublished and not submitted simultaneously for publication elsewhere. Papers (of at most 15 pages, at least 10 point font) should be submitted electronically, preferably as PDF files, to the workshop email address wrla06@csl.sri.com providing also a text-only abstract, and detailed contact information of the corresponding author. The final program of the workshop will also include system demonstrations and invited presentations to be determined. Based on the quality and interest of the accepted papers, the program committee will consider the possibility of preparing a special issue of a scientific journal in the field. ORGANIZING COMMITTEE Carolyn Talcott and Grit Denker SRI International Menlo Park, CA 94025 PROGRAM COMMITTEE Roberto Bruni Universita` di Pisa Manuel Clavel Universidad Complutense de Madrid Grit Denker SRI International, Menlo Park (co-Chair) Francisco Duran Universidad de Malaga Steven Eker SRI International, Menlo Park Kokichi Futatsugi JAIST, Nomi Claude Kirchner INRIA & LORIA, Nancy Salvador Lucas Universidad Politecnica de Valencia Narciso Marti-Oliet Universidad Complutense de Madrid Jose Meseguer University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Ugo Montanari Universita` di Pisa Pierre-Etienne Moreau INRIA & LORIA, Nancy Peter Olveczky University of Oslo Grigore Rosu University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Mark-Oliver Stehr University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Carolyn Talcott SRI International, Menlo Park (Chair) Martin Wirsing Ludwig-Maximillian University, Munich CONTACT INFORMATION For more information, please contact the organizers wrla06@csl.sri.com or visit the workshop web page http://www-formal.stanford.edu/WRLA06/ + + + + + WRLA'06 + + + + + CALL FOR PAPERS + + + + + WRLA'06 + + + + + From rrosebru@mta.ca Sat Aug 13 10:29:42 2005 -0300 Return-path: Envelope-to: categories-list@mta.ca Delivery-date: Sat, 13 Aug 2005 10:29:42 -0300 Received: from Majordom by mailserv.mta.ca with local (Exim 4.52) id 1E3vvh-0007GU-6j for categories-list@mta.ca; Sat, 13 Aug 2005 10:20:05 -0300 To: categories@mta.ca Subject: categories: Information and Computation - Open-Access Experiment Message-Id: <20050812170130.87A784A9A0@cs.rice.edu> Date: Fri, 12 Aug 2005 12:01:30 -0500 (CDT) From: mvardi@cs.rice.edu (Moshe Vardi) Sender: cat-dist@mta.ca Precedence: bulk Status: O X-Status: X-Keywords: X-UID: 9 Please do not reply to this email. August 12, 2005 The Publisher and Editorial Board of Information and Computation are pleased to announce that for one year, effective immediately, online access to all journal issues back to 1995 will be available without charge. This includes unrestricted downloading of articles in pdf format. Journal articles may be obtained through the journal's web site http://theory.csail.mit.edu/~iandc or Elsevier's Sciencedirect at http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/08905401 At the end of the year, the retrieval traffic during the open access period will be evaluated as future subscription policies are considered. Albert R. Meyer, Editor-in-Chief, MIT Computer Science & AI Lab Chris Leonard, Publishing Editor, Elsevier Moshe Y. vardi, Associate Editor, Rice University From rrosebru@mta.ca Tue Aug 16 11:16:01 2005 -0300 Return-path: Envelope-to: categories-list@mta.ca Delivery-date: Tue, 16 Aug 2005 11:16:01 -0300 Received: from Majordom by mailserv.mta.ca with local (Exim 4.52) id 1E5239-0004Kn-NM for categories-list@mta.ca; Tue, 16 Aug 2005 11:04:19 -0300 X-Authentication-Warning: gamma.aml.yorku.ca: nobody set sender to tholen@mathstat.yorku.ca using -f To: categories@mta.ca Subject: categories: position available Message-ID: <1124120419.4300b76346ce0@inbox.math.yorku.ca> Date: Mon, 15 Aug 2005 11:40:19 -0400 (EDT) From: tholen@mathstat.yorku.ca MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit User-Agent: IMP/PHP IMAP webmail program 2.2.6 Sender: cat-dist@mta.ca Precedence: bulk Status: O X-Status: X-Keywords: X-UID: 10 YORK UNIVERSITY Faculty of Arts MATHEMATICS AND STATISTICS Applications are invited for an NSERC University Faculty Award, at the Assistant Professor level in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics to commence July 1, 2006. Applications in the areas of Foundations of Computation (category theory, logic, or complexity), Mathematical Analysis, and Statistics will be considered. The successful candidate must have a PhD, a proven record of independent research excellence, and evidence of potential for superior teaching. Preference will be given to candidates who can strengthen existing areas of present and ongoing research activity. All positions at York are subject to budgetary approval. Applications must be received by September 19, 2005. Applicants should send resumes and arrange for three letters of recommendation (one of which should address teaching) to be sent directly to: UFA Search Committee Department of Mathematics and Statistics York University 4700 Keele Street Toronto, Ontario Canada M3J 1P3 Fax: 416-736-5757 Email: ufa.recruit@mathstat.yorku.ca www.math.yorku.ca/Hiring The UFA program is directed to women and aboriginal peoples (see www.nserc.ca for a full description). York University is an Affirmative Action Employer. The Affirmative Action Program can be found on York's website at www.yorku.ca/acadjobs or a copy can be obtained by calling the affirmative action office at 416-736-5713. All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadian citizens and Permanent Residents will be given priority. From rrosebru@mta.ca Tue Aug 16 11:16:01 2005 -0300 Return-path: Envelope-to: categories-list@mta.ca Delivery-date: Tue, 16 Aug 2005 11:16:01 -0300 Received: from Majordom by mailserv.mta.ca with local (Exim 4.52) id 1E523u-0004OB-FW for categories-list@mta.ca; Tue, 16 Aug 2005 11:05:06 -0300 Date: Mon, 15 Aug 2005 17:47:33 +0100 Message-Id: <200508151647.j7FGlXIQ021609@colinsburgh.inf.ed.ac.uk> To: categories@mta.ca From: Ian.Stark@ed.ac.uk Subject: categories: Research positions in Mobility and Security at Edinburgh Sender: cat-dist@mta.ca Precedence: bulk Status: O X-Status: X-Keywords: X-UID: 11 FOUR research positions available Laboratory for Foundations of Computer Science School of Informatics University of Edinburgh Mobility & Security group http://www.lfcs.ed.ac.uk/m+s Closing date: 30 September 2005 Following on from the successful "Mobile Resource Guarantees" project, the Mobility & Security group at Edinburgh has four research positions available, lasting from one to three years, in two new projects working with proof-carrying code in Java. - Mobius: a European collaboration developing technologies to support trust and security in the next generation of global computers. - ReQueST: an EPSRC-funded project to equip e-Science applications with formal proofs of their requirements for memory space and processor time. Both projects will involve working with Java, the Java Modeling Language JML, logics for Java bytecode, and automated theorem proving tools. Activities will range from theoretical research to prototype implementation, with considerable scope for international collaboration. We seek applicants with a strong background in computer science, in particular the following areas: program logics and proof systems; formal methods; type systems and static analysis; semantics of programming languages; compilation techniques; mobile code; embedded systems. Candidates should have either a PhD or equivalent research experience. Please note that these are fixed-term positions, associated with specific funded grants. Further details: http://www.lfcs.ed.ac.uk/m+s/posts Vacancy reference: 3004893 at http://www.jobs.ed.ac.uk Please apply online, using the links above; the closing date for applications is 30 September 2005. These positions are available immediately and we encourage applicants to apply early. For informal enquiries, contact Ian Stark at the address below. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Dr Ian Stark Office: JCMB 2506 School of Informatics Tel: 0131 650 5143 The University of Edinburgh Fax: 0131 667 7209 James Clerk Maxwell Building King's Buildings, Mayfield Road Email: Ian.Stark@ed.ac.uk Edinburgh EH9 3JZ Scotland http://www.ed.ac.uk/~stark -------------------------------------------------------------------- From rrosebru@mta.ca Wed Aug 17 23:23:41 2005 -0300 Return-path: Envelope-to: categories-list@mta.ca Delivery-date: Wed, 17 Aug 2005 23:23:41 -0300 Received: from Majordom by mailserv.mta.ca with local (Exim 4.52) id 1E5Zwb-0002QE-NZ for categories-list@mta.ca; Wed, 17 Aug 2005 23:15:49 -0300 Date: Wed, 17 Aug 2005 07:52:58 -0400 (EDT) From: Peter Freyd Message-Id: <200508171152.j7HBqw4K007744@saul.cis.upenn.edu> To: categories@mta.ca Subject: categories: Ronnie in the news Sender: cat-dist@mta.ca Precedence: bulk Status: O X-Status: X-Keywords: X-UID: 12 [I've appended the piece he's replying to.] Copyright 2005 Newspaper Publishing PLC The Independent (London) August 17, 2005, Wednesday SECTION: First Edition; COMMENT; Pg. 28 LENGTH: 192 words HEADLINE: LETTER: MATHEMATICIANS STRUGGLE FOR TRUTH BYLINE: RONNIE BROWN BODY: Sir: Seeing Boyd Tonkin's article on 'Magic numbers' (15 August) I thought, as a mathematician, I ought to step aside from my 'essentially tragic life', not 'look at my shoes', stop 'struggling with my demons' awhile, and suggest that perhaps a wrong impression is given of mathematics as a development of just a few strange and egocentric minds. Instead it is a world-wide collaborative effort involving tens of thousands, struggling to understand, to see what is true and why it is true, and in so doing to develop a language and notation for description, verification, deduction, and calculation. It describes structures and analogies. It makes difficult things easy. So it is a basis for the modern technical world. Mathematics can also take over for its study what Shakespeare claimed for the role of the poet: 'And as imagination bodies forth the forms of things unknown/ The Poet's pen turns them to shapes, and gives to airy nothing/ A local habitation and a name.' All this explains its fascination, and the joy of communicating at all levels in the subject. RONNIE BROWN EMERITUS PROFESSOR UNIVERSITY OF WALES, BANGOR Copyright 2005 Newspaper Publishing PLC The Independent (London) August 15, 2005, Monday SECTION: First Edition; FEATURES; Pg. 42,43 LENGTH: 1325 words HEADLINE: MAGIC NUMBERS; MATHS ISN'T JUST FOR TEXTBOOKS " NOWADAYS IT'S THE INSPIRATION FOR BYLINE: BY BOYD TONKIN HIGHLIGHT: Prime movers: (left to right) Dougray Scott and Kate Winslet in 'Enigma', based on Alan Turing's codebreaking; David Beckham in his No 23 shirt; Russell Crowe as John Nash in 'A Beautiful Mind' BODY: The progress of mathematics abounds in tall tales and unlikely stories. And they don't come much more improbable than this. Outside, the July sun of the Aegean is hammering down on a coastal hotel in Mykonos. Inside, America's most charismatic statistician addresses a gathering that can boast several of the world's top mathematicians as well as a motley assortment of science writers, novelists, historians and theatre people. And what is he doing? He's performing a card trick. Persi Diaconis, now of Stanford and Harvard Universities, once made his living this way. As a teenage prodigy, he toured the US as junior sidekick to one of the most famous magicians of the age. Then, via gamblers' after-hours talk of odds and probability, the sorcerer's apprentice caught the maths bug and took the first steps towards a career in another sort of spotlight. Diaconis was the expert who unmasked the delusions behind the so-called 'Bible Codes' (which supposedly revealed hidden meanings within the text), but today in the Aegean, he's merely baffling his peers. He chucks a deck of cards towards this highly qualified audience. It's caught by Timothy Gowers, a professor at Cambridge and recipient of a Fields Medal "the maths equivalent of a Nobel Prize. Gowers cuts the pack, takes the top card, then passes it to a neighbouring titan, who himself passes it on. After five cuts, Diaconis asks holders of red-suited cards to stand up. Two do. He then proceeds to tell all five punters exactly which card they hold. Cue a burst of awestruck applause. How does he do it? Diaconis quips that 'magicians aren't allowed to explain their secrets and mathematicians can't explain their secrets'. But he tries. The root of card-recognition tricks lies in the De Bruijn Sequences, a branch of what's called 'combinatorics' a discipline with a long history that stretches from the counting patterns used in Indian classical music to the coded instructions for robots used today. The mathematicians grasp the theory easily enough, but the mind-boggling mental speed of the practice still confounds them, and me. This is a taste of the first Mykonos conference on Mathematics and Narrative. Arranged by a group known as Thales and Friends, after the ancient Greek geometer and philosopher who reputedly measured the Pyramids, this unprecedented project to bring scientists and storytellers together was the brainchild of the polymath Apostolos Doxiadis. Worried that the maths he loves has drifted too far out of the cultural mainstream, Doxiadis has already done more than his share of bridge-building. His novel Uncle Petros and Goldbach's Conjecture (Faber) helps to convey the life-enhancing, and life-consuming, attraction of pure mathematical research. Rebecca Goldstein, a philosopher and novelist who writes in her fiction about the 'essentially tragic' lives of mathematicians, called her pet subjects 'as bad as novelists in terms of ego'. John Allen Paulos, who writes funny and instructive books, such as Innumeracy, about the misuse of statistics in the media, jokes: 'How do you define an extravert mathematician? Someone who looks at your shoes when he's talking to you.' If you want evidence of the problem that confronts them, look no further than today's newspapers. Millions of people now enjoy Sudoku puzzles. Forget the pseudo-Japanese baloney: sudoku grids are a version of the Latin Square created by the great Swiss mathematician Leonhard Euler in the late 18th century. Yet these legions of amateur problem-solvers tackle puzzles accompanied by the absurd assertion that 'no maths is involved'. In parts of popular culture, mathematics has become not so much the love that dare not speak its name as the love that doesn't even know its name. So, as the sun blazed and the sea sparkled off stage, we heard stories about the extraordinary rhythms of breakthrough and breakdown that punctuate the history of modern maths, and stories about the thinking and imagining that mathematicians do on the cutting edge of creation. John Barrow, another Cambridge professor, related the story of how his play Infinities reached the stage. Marcus du Sautoy, Oxford mathematician and Channel 4 pundit, delivered his multimedia gig about the mysteries of prime numbers and the long quest to prove Riemann's Hypothesis. The show took in David Beckham's Real Madrid shirt (a prime 23), some raucous audience participation and Professor du Sautoy himself on a surprisingly sweet trumpet. Less noisily, Tim Gowers ended his plea for concreteness and compression in mathematical explanations with some favourite passages from Alan Hollinghurst, Don DeLillo and Jonathan Franzen -- to highlight the skills that good novelists have and most mathematicians lack. Of course, some writers and producers have turned to the lives and the works of mathematicians for inspiration. A gifted populariser such as Simon Singh can now sell in the hundreds of thousands " as he did with Fermat's Last Theorem. Sylvia Nasar's bestselling biography of the game-theory pioneer John Nash, and his decades-long mental illness, led to the big-screen adaptation of A Beautiful Mind. This familiar, Rain Man model of the pattern-seeking maths prodigy as a recluse, an idiot savant, or downright barking mad, recurs often -- for instance, in fictionalised portraits (such as Enigma) of the computer prophet and Bletchley Park cryptographer Alan Turing. And it even underlies Mark Haddon's The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, with its Asperger- afflicted teenage narrator, always ready to reel off a series of prime numbers. Not surprisingly, real mathematicians have mixed feelings about mass-market yarns that present their domain as the stamping-ground of eccentrics, or even lunatics. But, for the most part, they applaud the endeavour to dramatise the human struggle of mathematical reasoning. Only one (absent) literary figure really fell foul of the Mykonos mob: the American writer David Foster Wallace, who in Everything and More wrote not a novel but a purported history of the mathematics of infinity. The computer-science guru Martin Davis counted '86 really egregious errors' in Wallace's book. 'Are we so hard up for approval from the humanities that we have to accept this?' he thundered. And yet the history of modern maths features such a wealth of near-incredible narratives that certain kinds of faction or docu-drama will exert a huge appeal. After all, this is a field that, early in the last century, plunged into a 'foundational crisis' that left its finest minds believing that they stood not on solid rock but on shifting sand. Out of that collective breakdown grew ideas about general computing machines that began as the purest theory but ended up as the intellectual inspiration of almost everything we now do with technology. If mathematics counts as the art of reality, then you might argue that its artistic crisis gave birth to the modern world. This is the theme of the mathematical narrative that Doxiadis and some colleagues will tell next. Collaborating with the Berkeley-based computer scientist Christos Papadimitriou and the Athenian artists Alecos Papadatos and Annie di Donna, Doxiadis has been working on a ground-breaking graphic novel about the development of 20th-century maths and its makers, from Russell and Hilbert to Godel and Turing. Due in 2007, Logicomix will tell an epic human, and political, story. On the one hand, Papadatos, the project's chief graphic artist, depicts the social turmoil, global warfare and deadly ideologies of the last century. On the other, the core story of maths " as with every other brand of creativity " will often come down to the journey of a single mind alone with its dreams, and its demons. 'Like a mathematician,' Papadatos notes, 'a cartoonist works with paper, pens " and a waste-paper basket.' www.thalesandfriends.org From rrosebru@mta.ca Wed Aug 17 23:23:41 2005 -0300 Return-path: Envelope-to: categories-list@mta.ca Delivery-date: Wed, 17 Aug 2005 23:23:41 -0300 Received: from Majordom by mailserv.mta.ca with local (Exim 4.52) id 1E5ZxP-0002Rp-Ua for categories-list@mta.ca; Wed, 17 Aug 2005 23:16:39 -0300 Message-ID: <4303BAEA.5A3A80AD@mathstat.yorku.ca> Date: Wed, 17 Aug 2005 15:32:10 -0700 From: Walter Tholen X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.72 [en] (Win98; U) X-Accept-Language: en MIME-Version: 1.0 To: categories@mta.ca Subject: categories: Paper available Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Sender: cat-dist@mta.ca Precedence: bulk Status: O X-Status: X-Keywords: X-UID: 13 The paper "Torsion theories and radicals in normal categories" by M.M. Clementino, D. Dikranjan, and W. Tholen is available (pdf file) at http://www.math.yorku.ca/Who/Faculty/Tholen/research.html Comments welcome! Walter Tholen. From rrosebru@mta.ca Sun Aug 21 16:29:39 2005 -0300 Return-path: Envelope-to: categories-list@mta.ca Delivery-date: Sun, 21 Aug 2005 16:29:39 -0300 Received: from Majordom by mailserv.mta.ca with local (Exim 4.52) id 1E6vNK-0002b3-Ry for categories-list@mta.ca; Sun, 21 Aug 2005 16:20:58 -0300 Date: Fri, 19 Aug 2005 12:43:10 -0400 (EDT) From: Phil Scott To: categories@mta.ca Subject: categories: Second Announcement-Octoberfest '05 Sender: cat-dist@mta.ca Precedence: bulk Message-Id: Status: RO X-Status: X-Keywords: X-UID: 14 ===================================================================== Second Announcement-Octoberfest '05 ======================================== The "not-quite-annual" Octoberfest has been a great tradition among category theorists for several decades now. This weekend conference has always been held at McGill University, but this year is moving down the highway to the University of Ottawa. It will be hosted by the Logic and Foundations of Computing group (LFC). See our website at www.mathstat.uottawa.ca/lfc. The conference will be held on the weekend of October 22nd-23rd. The Octoberfest webpage is: http://aix1.uottawa.ca/~scpsg/Octoberfest05/Octoberfest.final1.htm We will be having a special lecture from Rick Jardine (Western). He will also be giving a special Distinguished CRM lecture to the Ottawa-Carleton Mathematics Institute, at 3:30 Friday afternoon, October 21, and early arriving Octoberfest participants are cordially invited to attend. The Math Department is at 585 King Edward Ave. (See the webpage for campus maps). We have booked 2 blocks rooms at nearby hotels. WE STRONGLY SUGGEST TO BOOK EARLY (Rates are only guaranteed until around mid-September). We have 15 rooms at: Quality Hotel Downtown Ottawa 290 Rideau Street Ottawa, ON K1N 5Y3 (P) 613-789-7511 These rooms are held for Friday and Saturday nights. The group number is 104704 and the group name is "Category Theory Conference". The rate is the University of Ottawa Friends and Family rate of $97.00 plus 15% tax. Guests may phone the hotel directly at 613-789-7511 to reserve and may quote either the group name or number to get the preferred rate. We have also booked some good apartment suites: Cartier Place Suite Hotel, (across the Laurier Bridge, over the Canal), (180 Cooper St, off Elgin Street. 613-236-5000. These are modern apartment suites, with cooking facilities. We have reserved at special govt./university rates for Friday and Saturday nights: 10 single apartments and 5 double-bedroom apartments under the name Category Theory Conference, U. Ottawa. Rates on available apartments are: 4 standard 1 bedroom @ $109/night, 6 superior 1 bedroom @ $112/night, 5 two bedroom @ $149/night, plus 15% tax. Here are some B&B's near U. Ottawa: Home Sweetland Home B&B: 62 Sweetland Avenue, Ottawa, ON K1N 7T6 Phone: (613) 234-1871 Reservations: 1-877-299-3499 (web: http://www.bbexpo.com/sweetland) Benners B&B 541 Besserer 613-789-8320 Olde Bytown Bed & Breakfast, 459 Laurier Ave E Ottawa, Ontario K1N6R4 Gasthaus Switzerland 89 Daly Avenue Ottawa ON K1N6E6 Canada Phone: 613-237-0335 Fax: 613-594-3327 Toll-free: 888-663-0000 (www.gasthausswitzerlandinn.com) Ottawa Centre Bed and Breakfast 62 Stewart Street Ottawa, Ontario K1N 6J1 Phone: 613-237-9494 Tool Free: 866-240-4659 We ask that all attendees send us an email, so that we may have an idea as to the number attending. (Anyone wishing to give a talk should also send us a title and abstract.) We intend to continue the tradition of keeping the registration fees extremely low, especially for students. Sincerely, Rick Blute Phil Scott -- From rrosebru@mta.ca Tue Aug 23 09:48:25 2005 -0300 Return-path: Envelope-to: categories-list@mta.ca Delivery-date: Tue, 23 Aug 2005 09:48:25 -0300 Received: from Majordom by mailserv.mta.ca with local (Exim 4.52) id 1E7Y3i-0001Nt-5y for categories-list@mta.ca; Tue, 23 Aug 2005 09:39:18 -0300 Date: Mon, 22 Aug 2005 21:30:53 +0200 (CEST) From: Uli Fahrenberg To: categories@mta.ca Subject: categories: Topology and Concurrency Workshop in Aalborg Message-ID: Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=iso-8859-15; format=flowed Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Sender: cat-dist@mta.ca Precedence: bulk Status: O X-Status: X-Keywords: X-UID: 15 In connection with the defence of two PhD theses ( by Ulrich Fahrenberg=20 and Rafael Wisniewski) in the area, we host a Workshop on Topology and Concurrency. September 27-30 at Department of Mathematical Sciences Aalborg University, Denmark. www.math.aau.dk The speakers are David E. Hurtubise, Penn State, USA, Marcel B=F6kstedt, Aarhus, Denmark,=20 Glynn Winskel, Cambridge, UK, Kathryn Hess, EPFL Lausanne, Switzerland, Eric Goubault, CEA Paris, France, Martin Raussen and Lisbeth= =20 Fajstrup Aalborg, Denmark For further information, see http://www.math.aau.dk/aktivitet/TopoWork.htm From rrosebru@mta.ca Tue Aug 23 09:48:25 2005 -0300 Return-path: Envelope-to: categories-list@mta.ca Delivery-date: Tue, 23 Aug 2005 09:48:25 -0300 Received: from Majordom by mailserv.mta.ca with local (Exim 4.52) id 1E7Y2X-0001Fg-0p for categories-list@mta.ca; Tue, 23 Aug 2005 09:38:05 -0300 Subject: categories: New Book about Category Theory and Geometry From: "G. Sica" To: categories@mta.ca Date: Mon, 22 Aug 2005 15:44:21 +0200 Sender: cat-dist@mta.ca Precedence: bulk Message-Id: Status: RO X-Status: X-Keywords: X-UID: 16 Please allow me to bring to the attention of list members the recent publication of Marie La Palme Reyes, Gonzalo E. Reyes, Houman Zolfaghari: GENERIC FIGURES AND THEIR GLUEINGS - A CONSTRUCTIVE APPROACH TO FUNCTOR CATEGORIES http://www.polimetrica.com/categories/01cat.html Price: 30 Euro (Italy); 37 Euro (UE); 40 Euro (Extra-UE). Forwarding and delivery charges are included in the price. Publisher: Polimetrica Internatinal Scientific Publisher. The best way to purchase this book is to buy it directly from the publisher's web-site: http://www.polimetrica.com . I hope you can be interested in this information. If not, please accept my sincere apologies for the trouble: this is not a spam message. Many thanks. All the best, Giandomenico Sica From rrosebru@mta.ca Mon Aug 29 16:43:03 2005 -0300 Return-path: Envelope-to: categories-list@mta.ca Delivery-date: Mon, 29 Aug 2005 16:43:03 -0300 Received: from Majordom by mailserv.mta.ca with local (Exim 4.52) id 1E9pPy-0004qa-Bs for categories-list@mta.ca; Mon, 29 Aug 2005 16:35:42 -0300 From: ak155@mcs.le.ac.uk To: categories@mta.ca Subject: categories: Job: Postdoc (two years) Date: 29 Aug 2005 12:56:15 +0100 X-Mailer: Prayer v1.0.12 X-Originating-IP: [192.16.201.158] Message-ID: References: <42AF4D88.50505@mcs.le.ac.uk> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed; charset=ISO-8859-1 Sender: cat-dist@mta.ca Precedence: bulk Status: O X-Status: X-Keywords: X-UID: 17 Apologies for multiple postings ------------------------------- Please distribute to potential candidates ----------------------------------------- I am looking for a Research Associate (Postdoc) working with me on the EPSRC-funded project "Coalgebras, Modal Logic, Stone Duality". (Two years, starting date as soon as possible) >From the point of view of computer science, the project is about logics for transition systems (coalgbras). From the mathematical point of view, the project will explore the dualities arising from extending basic, Stone-type dualities via an algebra-coalgebra duality. This draws on results and concepts from modal logic, domain theory, universal algebra and category theory. A background in one (or more) of the above areas is desirable. The official announcement and application form is available at (Ref R2246) http://www.le.ac.uk/personnel/jobs/a&r.html The applications should be submitted no later than 20 September 2005. If you have any questions please contact me via email. Best wishes, Alexander From rrosebru@mta.ca Wed Aug 31 19:25:06 2005 -0300 Return-path: Envelope-to: categories-list@mta.ca Delivery-date: Wed, 31 Aug 2005 19:25:06 -0300 Received: from Majordom by mailserv.mta.ca with local (Exim 4.52) id 1EAarj-0004Ho-S1 for categories-list@mta.ca; Wed, 31 Aug 2005 19:15:31 -0300 Subject: categories: Preprint: A simple description of Thompson's group F From: Tom Leinster To: categories@mta.ca Content-Type: text/plain Date: Wed, 31 Aug 2005 14:37:39 +0100 Message-Id: <1125495459.32083.3.camel@tl-linux.maths.gla.ac.uk> Mime-Version: 1.0 X-Mailer: Evolution 2.2.1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Sender: cat-dist@mta.ca Precedence: bulk Status: O X-Status: X-Keywords: X-UID: 18 The following paper is available: "A simple description of Thompson's group F" Marcelo Fiore, Tom Leinster We show that Thompson's group F is the symmetry group of the "generic idempotent". That is, take the monoidal category freely generated by an object A and an isomorphism A \otimes A --> A; then F is the group of automorphisms of A. http://arxiv.org/abs/math.GR/0508617 Incidentally, this is a result about groups, but the proof uses some higher-dimensional category theory (multicategories, operads, and, less essentially, bicategories). Tom