When we work with a piece of mathematics that has been around for decades, or centuries, or even millenia, we tend to feel as if it must have descended on a silver platter into the hands of a waiting genius. The actual origins, while less dramatic, are often far more interesting. In this course we will start with a brief, swift overview, so that we have an outline to which to attach our further work. The rest of the course will be devoted to a series of presentations by small groups and/or individuals, each designed to introduce the rest of the class to the development of some concept or the work of some mathematician, highlighted by relevant problems for the class to work on. The presentations will involve both small-scale and large-scale projects.
For more information send e-mail to < warfield@math.washington.edu>.