Prof. Tara Brendle (University of Glasgow)

The Torelli group: a quick tour

In this talk we will give a gentle introduction to the Torelli group of a surface.  The talk will survey some of its algebraic properties as well as its connection with low-dimensional topology.    Along the way we will highlight some seminal work of Joan Birman and Dennis Johnson, among others.

Note: due to technical issues, the first 10 minutes of the talk were not recorded. We apologise for the inconvenience.