Abstract: The question of how the curvature of a space can control its topology has been very well studied in the last two centuries, starting from the pioneering work of Gauss. I will review some classical developments and open questions in this area and some more recent ones, focusing on the interplay between Ricci curvature and fundamental groups. The talk will be partly based on joint work in collaboration with Elia Bruè and Aaron Naber.

For further information please contact elisur.magrini@unibocconi.it