The Mathematics Department is delighted to welcome Professor Anand Pillay (University of Notre Dame)as a Visiting Nelder Fellow in the Pure Mathematics  Section from 23 May until 30 June 2022. 

Prof Anand Pillay is currently William J. Hank Family Professor in the Dept. of Mathematics, University of Notre Dame, USA. He was at Notre Dame from 1983 to 1996, then at the University of Illinois 1996-2006 (where he remains Swanlund Chair Emeritus), then at University of Leeds 2005-2013 partly supported by a Marie Curie Excellence Chair, after which he returned to Notre Dame.

Prof. Pillay got his Ph.D. in 1977-78 from Bedford College, University of London, working under the supervision of Wilfrid Hodges, then had postdoctoral positions in Paris, Manchester, and  McGill, before going to the USA.

During his visit Prof Anand Pillay will held lecture series on: 

"Topological dynamics, model theory, approximate subgroups"

Lectures will be held each day from Monday , 13 June to Thursday, 16 June, 1.30 - 3.30pm, room 340

Abstract:  The classification of finite approximate subgroups A of arbitrary groups G is fairly well-known (Breuillard, Green, Tao, Hrushovski).  I will discuss cases where A is not necessarily finite as well as the special case where A is commensurable with G, often also called syndetic or generic. A general theme in this last case is that there should be something like a homomorphism  from G to a compact group C, such that A is close to the preimage of an  open subset U of C.

Joint work with Hrushovski and Krupinski will be included, as well as topological dynamical approaches to recent work of Hrushovski on the Lascar group. 

Host: Dr Charlotte Kestner