Based on the Simons Symposia held in 2015, the proceedings in this volume focus on rational curves on higher-dimensional algebraic varieties and applications of the theory of curves to arithmetic problems. There has been significant progress in this field with major new results, which have given new impetus to the study of rational curves and spaces of rational curves on K3 surfaces and their higher-dimensional generalizations. One main recent insight the book covers is the idea that the geometry of rational curves is tightly coupled to properties of derived categories of sheaves on K3 surfaces. The implementation of this idea led to proofs of long-standing conjectures concerning birational properties of holomorphic symplectic varieties, which in turn should yield new theorems in arithmetic. This proceedings volume covers these new insights in detail.

​​​​This book features recent developments in a rapidly growing area at the interface of higher-dimensional birational geometry and arithmetic geometry. It focuses on the geometry of spaces of rational curves, with an emphasis on applications to arithmetic questions. Classically, arithmetic is the study of rational or integral solutions of diophantine equations and geometry is the study of lines and conics. From the modern standpoint, arithmetic is the study of rational and integral points on algebraic varieties over nonclosed fields. A major insight of the 20th century was that arithmetic properties of an algebraic variety are tightly linked to the geometry of rational curves on the variety and how they vary in families. This collection of solicited survey and research papers is intended to serve as an introduction for graduate students and researchers interested in entering the field, and as a source of reference for experts working on related problems. Topics that will be addressed include: birational properties such as rationality, unirationality, and rational connectedness, existence of rational curves in prescribed homology classes, cones of rational curves on rationally connected and Calabi-Yau varieties, as well as related questions within the framework of the Minimal Model Program.

Grothendieck’s beautiful theory of schemes permeates modern algebraic geometry and underlies its applications to number theory, physics, and applied mathematics. This simple account of that theory emphasizes and explains the universal geometric concepts behind the definitions. In the book, concepts are illustrated with fundamental examples, and explicit calculations show how the constructions of scheme theory are carried out in practice.

Number systems based on a finite collection of symbols, such as the 0s and 1s of computer circuitry, are ubiquitous in the modern age. Finite fields are the most important such number systems, playing a vital role in military and civilian communications through coding theory and cryptography. These disciplines have evolved over recent decades, and where once the focus was on algebraic curves over finite fields, recent developments have revealed the increasing importance of higher-dimensional algebraic varieties over finite fields. The papers included in this publication introduce the reader to recent developments in algebraic geometry over finite fields with particular attention to applications of geometric techniques to the study of rational points on varieties over finite fields of dimension of at least 2.

The subject of this book is the classification theory and geometry of higher dimensional varieties: existence and geometry of rational curves via characteristic p-methods, manifolds with negative Kodaira dimension, vanishing theorems, theory of extremal rays (Mori theory), and minimal models. The book gives a state-of-the-art introduction to a difficult and not readily accessible subject which has undergone enormous development in the last two decades. With no loss of precision, the volume focuses on the spread of ideas rather than on a deliberate inclusion of all proofs. The methods presented vary from complex analysis to complex algebraic geometry and algebraic geometry over fields of positive characteristics. The intended audience includes students in algebraic geometry and analysis as well as researchers in these fields and experts from other areas who wish to gain an overview of the theory.

This volume introduces some recent developments in Arithmetic Geometry over local fields. Its seven chapters are centered around two common themes: the study of Drinfeld modules and non-Archimedean analytic geometry. The notes grew out of lectures held during the research program "Arithmetic and geometry of local and global fields" which took place at the Vietnam Institute of Advanced Study in Mathematics (VIASM) from June to August 2018. The authors, leading experts in the field, have put great effort into making the text as self-contained as possible, introducing the basic tools of the subject. The numerous concrete examples and suggested research problems will enable graduate students and young researchers to quickly reach the frontiers of this fascinating branch of mathematics.