June 2010 - Categories - categories.org.au

Research positions
by Maria Manuel Clementino 26 Feb '14

26 Feb '14

5-YEAR RESEARCH POSITIONS The Centre for Mathematics of the University of Coimbra (CMUC) invites applications for five 5-year research positions in all areas of Mathematics. Applicants should have a PhD in Mathematics and at least three years of post-doctoral experience, with an international-level publication record and demonstrated ability to perform independent research. Preference will be given to candidates working in one of the areas in which the members of CMUC are currently active. A very good command of English is required. The appointments will be made for three years, renewable for two more. Successful applicants are expected to develop research within the areas of interest of CMUC. They should also contribute to graduate studies, supervising students from the Department of Mathematics. The basic salary is equivalent to the index 195 of the Portuguese research career (in the order of 42 500 euros a year), in accordance with the Ciência 2008 guidelines http://alfa.fct.mctes.pt/apoios/contratacaodoutorados/edital2008 Benefits include private health insurance and social security. Applicants should send • cover sheet (available from www.mat.uc.pt/cmuc/coversheet.pdf) including names and contact information of three persons who can provide a letter of recommendation • curriculum vitae (publication list included) • a 5-year research proposal (2 pages max), emphasizing their own research goals as pdf files to cmuc(a)mat.uc.pt. The subject of the e-mail message must include the job reference C2008 FCTUC CMUC v15-v19. The deadline for applications is *September 10, 2008.* ------------------------------ More information can be found at www.mat.uc.pt

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separable locale
by Thomas Streicher 17 May '13

17 May '13

Recently rereading Fourman's "Continuous Truth" I came across the term "separable locale" but could nowhere find an explanation. Does it mean a cHa A for which there exists a countable subset B such that ever a in A is the supremum of those b in B with b leq a. This would be the point free account of "second countable", i.e. having a countable basis. Of course, second countable T_) spaces are separable, i.e. have a countable dense set. Is this reading the "usual" one? Thomas [For admin and other information see: http://www.mta.ca/~cat-dist/ ]

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Foundations?
by F W Lawvere 03 Sep '10

03 Sep '10

Down with "Foundations"! Up with algebra! Dear Friends, Presumably I am among those who are being "vilified" as "lovers of categories as foundation". By avoiding any precise definition, such a formulation might appeal to the widespread justified boredom induced by the past hundred years of "foundations as justification". Whenever I used the word "foundation" in my writings over the past forty years, I have explicitly rejected that reactionary use of the term and instead used the definition implicit in the work of my teachers Truesdell and Eilenberg. Namely, an important component of mathematical practice is the careful study of historical and contemporary analysis, geometry, etc. to extract the essential recurring concepts and constructions; making those concepts and constructions (such as homomorphism, functional, adjoint functor, etc.) explicit provides powerful guidance for further unified development of all mathematical subjects, old and new. What is the primary tool for such summing up of the essence of ongoing mathematics? Algebra! Nodal points in the progress of this kind of research occur when, as is the case with the finite number of axioms for the metacategory of categories, all that we know so far can be expressed in a single sort of algebra. I am proud to have participated with Eilenberg, Mac Lane, Freyd, and many others, in bringing about the contemporary awareness of Algebra as Category Theory Had it not been for the century of excessive attention given to the alleged possibility that mathematics is inconsistent, with the accompanying degradation of the F-word, we would still be using it in the sense known to the general public: the search for what is "basic". We, who supposedly know the explicit algebra of homomorphisms, functionals, etc. are long remiss in our duty to find ways to utilize those concepts also in guiding high school calculus. Best wishes, Bill Bibliography: - The Category of Categories as a Foundation for Mathematics, La Jolla conference 1965, Springer (1966) - Adjointness in Foundations, Dialectica, (1969), to be reprinted in TAC - Foundations and Applications: Axiomatization and Education, Bulletin of Symbolic Logic, (2003) vol 9, pp 213-224 - Sets for Mathematics, w/ Bob Rosebrugh, Cambridge Univ. Press, (2003) ************************************************************ F. William Lawvere Mathematics Department, State University of New York 244 Mathematics Building, Buffalo, N.Y. 14260-2900 USA Tel. 716-645-6284 HOMEPAGE: http://www.acsu.buffalo.edu/~wlawvere ************************************************************

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The humility topos
by Michael Barr 08 Jul '10

08 Jul '10

Yesterday's NY Times magazine had an article about the British experimental novelist David Mitchell. Mitchell told a story to the author of the article about how, after an event in New Zealand a woman, a medievalist there asked him if knew about the humility topos. I imagine that Mitchell came across as very humble. At any rate she went on to say, and I quote because I am not certain how to parse it, "in the medieval era humility was seen as a great virtue. The humility topos was used for those abbots...who were actually monsters of arrogance, but were always banging on about how humble they were...". The woman said to him, "Watch out for the humility topos" and then disappeared. Aside from wanting to know what was meant here, should the first quote have put humility topos in quotes, for example, I would also like to know what is the subobject classifier of the humility topos. Michael [For admin and other information see: http://www.mta.ca/~cat-dist/ ]

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Lecture Series by John Power
by Neil Ghani 01 Jul '10

01 Jul '10

John Power will be giving a series of lectures hosted by the MSP group in Glasgow. Here is a brief description Title: Locally Finitely Presentable Categories and Lawvere Theories John Power will be giving a course of lectures on Locally Finitely Presentable Categories and Lawvere theories starting on July 26 2010; there will be 4 weekly sessions of lectures/ discussions, each session occupying one afternoon. The audience will include postgraduate students, research fellows and academic staﬀ from research groups around Scotland and even beyond. The exact content of the lectures will be tailored to the needs of those attending. Those interested in attending these lectures should contact Prof Neil Ghani (ng(a)cis.strath.ac.uk) for more details. All the best Neil [For admin and other information see: http://www.mta.ca/~cat-dist/ ]

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latex code for connections in double groupoids
by Ronnie Brown 01 Jul '10

01 Jul '10

I have to develop in a hand-to-mouth way some code for connections and thin elements in a (edge-symmetric, to be precise) double groupoid, and for direction arrows. In case anyone wants to use this code I have put it on a web page www.bangor.ac.uk/r.brown/latexconn-code.html with one example of its use. It is used throughout the book on `Nonabelian algebraic topology'. Even better, if anyone can improve on this code and let me know, I would be very grateful! The aim has been to have heavier symbols than those such as \lrcorner, ... Ronnie Brown [For admin and other information see: http://www.mta.ca/~cat-dist/ ]

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None
by Erik Palmgren 29 Jun '10

29 Jun '10

Stockholm University announces a position as Professor in Mathematical Logic within the Department of Mathematics Ref nr SU 611-1310-10. Deadline for application: September 15, 2010. Subject: Mathematical logic Subject description: The subject comprises both the logical study of the deductive structure of mathematics, and the mathematical study of formal logical systems. In addition, it deals with the use of logic in computer science. Main tasks: Research, teaching, supervision, together with administrative tasks at the department and the faculty. Required qualifications: To qualify for employment as professor the applicant should have demonstrated both scientific and teaching proficiency. Required qualifications are: * Documented scientific proficiency at a high international level * Documented teaching proficiency. The applicant must have the ability to collaborate as well as the competence and qualities needed to carry out the employment tasks successfully. Assessment criteria: In the appointment process most weight will be given to scientific proficiency. Second most weight will be given to teaching proficiency. Weight will also be given to administrative proficiency, proficiency in developing and leading an organisation, as well as proficiency in interacting with the rest of society. Additional information: The position holder is expected to work at developing the relations between the Mathematics Department and theoretical computer science at NADA and other institutions in the Stockholm area. Since most professors at the Faculty of Science are men, applications from women are particularly welcome. Further information about the position can be obtained from professor Mikael Passare, telephone +46 (0)8 16 45 46, e-mail: passare(a)math.su.se or professor Tom Britton, telephone +46 (0)8 16 45 34, e-mail: tom.britton(a)math.su.se. Administrative coordinator Carina Nymark, telephone +46 (0)8 16 17 67, e-mail: carina.nymark(a)science.su.se will provide further information about the application and appointment procedure if required. Trade union representatives: Bo Ekengren (SACO), Lisbeth HÃ¤ggberg (FackfÃ¶rbundet ST) telephone +46 (0)8 16 20 00 (switchboard) and Gunnar Stenberg (SEKO) telephone +46 (0)70-316 43 41. Guidelines for the application are given in the Template for application for employment and for promotion to the rank of professor or senior lecturer at Stockholm University. The template and other relevant documents including Rules of Employment for the hiring of Teachers can be downloaded from www.su.se/nyanstallning or be provided by the administrative coordinator. It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure that the application follows the template and that it is submitted before application deadline. In order to apply for this position you are requested to use the Stockholm University webbased application form. You will find the form in the appropriate announcement at www.su.se/ledigaanstallningar and www.su.se/english/about/vacancies Further information Stockholm University: www.su.se/english Templates and rules regarding employment: www.su.se/nyanstallning Department of Mathematics: www.math.su.se You are welcome to submit your application, quoting ref no SU 611-1310-10 no later than September 15, 2010. Disclaimer: In case of discrepancy between the Swedish original and the English translation of the job announcement, the Swedish version takes precedence ------- The original announcement can be found here http://www.math.su.se/content/1/c6/08/19/02/logiken.pdf http://www.math.su.se/pub/jsp/polopoly.jsp?d=14714&a=81902 [For admin and other information see: http://www.mta.ca/~cat-dist/ ]

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Call for Participation: ESSLLI 2010
by Rasmus K. Rendsvig 22 Jun '10

22 Jun '10

CALL FOR PARTICIPATION ********************************** ESSLLI 2010 / UNIVERSITY OF COPENHAGEN / DENMARK / AUGUST 9-20, 2010 http://esslli2010cph.info/ The European Summer School in Logic, Language and Information (ESSLLI) is organized every year by the Association for Logic, Language and Information (FoLLI) in different sites around Europe. The main focus of ESSLLI is on the interface between linguistics, logic and computation. ESSLLI offers foundational, introductory and advanced courses, as well as workshops, covering a wide variety of topics within the three areas of interest: Language and Computation, Language and Logic, and Logic and Computation. Previous summer schools have been highly successful, attracting up to 500 students from Europe and elsewhere. The school has developed into an important meeting place and forum for discussion for students and researchers interested in the interdisciplinary study of Logic, Language and Information. During two weeks,46 foundational, introductory and advanced courses + 6 workshops headed by some of the most prominent scholars in the fields are offered to the attendants, each of 1.5 hours per day during a five days week, with up to seven parallel sessions. ESSLLI also includes a student session (papers and posters by students only, 1.5 hour per day during the two weeks) and four evening lectures by senior scientists in the covered areas. In 2010, the venue for ESSLLI will be The University of Copenhagen, Denmark. Chair of the Program Committee is Valentin Goranko (The Technical University of Denmark), and Chair of the Organizing Committee is Vincent F. Hendricks (The University of Copenhagen). The registration for ESSLLI 2010 is open, see http://esslli2010cph.info/?page_id=40 * Student: 350€. * Regular: 480€ Different accommodation packages are available, from 21€/night to 46€/night. All packages are currently available, but availability cannot be guaranteed. The rooms suggested are at Danhostel Copenhagen City, a mere 10 minute walk from the main venue. For more information and links to registration and accommodation pages, please visit the ESSLLI 2010 website: http://esslli2010cph.info/ Best regards, Rasmus K. Rendsvig, ESSLLI 2010 Organization Committee [For admin and other information see: http://www.mta.ca/~cat-dist/ ]

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Paper on \Delta-sets
by Jean-Pierre Marquis 22 Jun '10

22 Jun '10

Hi, has anyone an electronic copy of the following paper: Rourke, C. P.; Sanderson, B. J. $\triangle $-sets. I. Homotopy theory. Quart. J. Math. Oxford Ser. (2) 22 (1971), 321--33 It seems my library has no subscription to the older issues. I would greatly appreciate obtaining a copy of it. Thanks, Jean-Pierre Marquis [For admin and other information see: http://www.mta.ca/~cat-dist/ ]

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Category Theory Octoberfest 2010
by selinger＠mathstat.dal.ca 20 Jun '10

20 Jun '10

2010 Category Theory "Octoberfest" Workshop Dalhousie University, Halifax, Canada October 23-24, 2010 http://www.mathstat.dal.ca/~selinger/ofest2010/ FIRST ANNOUNCEMENT * * * The Category Theory "Octoberfest" is an annual workshop, traditionally held in October, bringing together researchers in category theory and its applications. This year's meeting will be hosted in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Canada. There will be an informal welcome reception in the evening of October 22. The scientific program starts on October 23, and consists of one and a half days of research talks. Research talks If you wish to give a talk please send a title and abstract to selinger(a)mathstat.dal.ca by October 1. Time slots are limited, so please register early if you would like to be considered for a talk. Student support We encourage graduate student participation at the workshop. Students will pay a reduced registration fee. We will also be able to provide limited financial support; if you are interested in this, please email selinger(a)mathstat.dal.ca. Accommodations To be announced. Registration If you would like to attend the meeting, please register by emailing selinger(a)mathstat.dal.ca. There will be a reasonable on-site registration fee to cover workshop costs. Previous meetings Recent Category Theory Octoberfest meetings were held at Carnegie Mellon (2009), Concordia (2008), Ottawa (2006 and 2005), McGill (2004). Sponsors: We gratefully acknowledge financial support from: * The Atlantic Association for Research in Mathematical Sciences (AARMS) * The Administration of Dalhousie University * The Faculty of Science of Dalhousie University Organizers: Dorette Pronk (Dalhousie), pronk(a)mathstat.dal.ca Peter Selinger (Dalhousie), selinger(a)mathstat.dal.ca * [For admin and other information see: http://www.mta.ca/~cat-dist/ ]

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