Online databases: from L-functions to combinatorics

January 21 to January 25, 2013

at the

International Centre for Mathematical Sciences, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK

organized by

Paul-Olivier Dehaye and Nicolas M. Thiery

This workshop, sponsored by AIM, ICMS, and the NSF, will be devoted to the development of new software tools for handling mathematical databases. These tools will assist mathematicians in the integration, display, distribution, maintenance and investigation of mathematical data, particularly in the context of the computer algebra system Sage.

Many issues arise from advanced use of mathematical data, and will be tackled in the workshop:

integration of heterogeneous data: many different representations, mix of precomputed and on the fly computed data, complex interrelations
retrieval of information, and the need for complex searches to support research
efficient distribution of the data so it can be reused by others
maintenance of the integrity of the data, and the necessity to perform checks and updates

In addition, there are issues tied to the visualization of this data: either to directly assist research or for more educational purposes, along with enough context for an external user to understand it.

The aim of this workshop is to approach these issues from the very general context of Sage, and develop generic and easy-to-use software tools that would be useful for other mathematical disciplines. We will, however, keep two use cases in mind:

the LMFDB project, which aims to gather data in number theory, as relevant to the study of L-functions
the Sage-combinat project and related projects, concerned with combinatorial problems

In addition to experts from both projects, advanced Sage developers and database experts will also be invited.

The workshop will differ from typical conferences in some regards. Participants will be invited to suggest open problems and questions before the workshop begins, and these will be posted on the workshop website. These include specific problems on which there is hope of making some progress during the workshop, as well as more ambitious problems which may influence the future activity of the field. Lectures at the workshop will be focused on familiarizing the participants with the background material leading up to specific problems, and the schedule will include discussion and parallel working sessions.

The deadline to apply for funding for this workshop has passed.

Before submitting an application, please read the description of the AIM style of workshop.

For more information email workshops@aimath.org

Plain text announcement or brief announcement.

Go to the American Institute of Mathematics.
Go to the list of upcoming workshops.