Number Theory Seminar (Kedlaya)

When:
February 24, 2022 @ 3:00 pm – 3:45 pm
2022-02-24T15:00:00-10:00
2022-02-24T15:45:00-10:00
Where:
Keller 301
Contact:
Michelle Manes
The relative class number one problem for function fields

Abstract: Gauss conjectured that there are nine imaginary quadratic fields of class number 1; this was resolved in the 20th century by work of Baker, Heegner, and Stark. In between, Artin had introduced the analogy between number fields and function fields, the latter being finite extensions of the field of rational functions over a finite field. In this realm, the class number 1 problem admits multiple analogues; we recall some of these, one of which was “resolved” in 1975 and then falsified (and corrected) in 2014, and another one of which is a brand-new theorem in which computer calculations (in SageMath and Magma) play a pivotal role.