18.782 Arithmetic Geometry

Welcome to the course webpage for 18.782, Introduction to Arithmetic Geometry, taught in Fall 2017. This is a course intended for undergraduate mathematics majors who have had one year of undergraduate abstract algebra (18.701 and 18.702 at MIT). This page maintains a schedule for the class, for the problem sets, notes and references. 

Instructor: Dhruv Ranganathan (2-241). Meeting time: TuTh 930-11 (2-146). Office hours: By appointment and open door. I will be available after each class and on Wednesdays. 

Overview: Arithmetic geometry is an old and incredibly active area of mathematical research. The subject represents the intersection of two other amazingly active fields -- algebraic geometry and number theory. In this course, students will acquire familiarity with the basic questions and techniques in arithmetic geometry, including the p-adic numbers, local-to-global principles, The course description, pre-requisites, requirements, and policies may be found in PDF form

Textbook: There is no official textbook for the class, but notes and detailed references will be provided. Excellent references include p-adic Numbers by Fernando Gouvea, Algebraic curves by Bill Fulton, Elliptic curves by Milne, and Undergraduate algebraic geometry by Miles Reid.

Problem sets: Homework will be assigned roughly every Tuesday (with exceptions) and collected the following Tuesday. These will not be onerous, as your main task is to grapple with the material. 

Final project: Your final project will be a short expository paper (5 pages) on a topic close to the class, and a short presentation on the same. 

Micro-presentations: Ever now and then, the end of a class will consist of a student giving a short lecture on a topic assigned the previous week. Everyone should present at some point during the semester. The topic will be either an interesting aside, an illuminating example, or a difficult problem from a previous homework set. If during lecture you think of an interesting topic for a micro-presentation, talk to me soon after or send me an email.

Grading: Your grade will be based on the problem sets and micro-presentations (70%), the final paper (15%), the final presentation (10%), and participation (5%). There will be no exams.

Lecture schedule:

Problem sets: will be posted here with due date.