The problems in Banach space and metric geometry to be considered fall into several subcategories: commutators of operators on Banach spaces, approximation properties of Banach spaces, the structure of finite and infinite dimensional spaces of p-integrable functions, the non linear classification of Banach spaces, discrete metric geometry, quantitative linear algebra, and cluster value problems in an infinite dimensional setting. These topics are at the heart of the geometries of Banach spaces and of metric spaces and make contact with many other areas within mathematics, including operator theory, group theory, geometric analysis, and linear algebra. Metric spaces, especially Banach spaces, form the conceptual framework in which mathematicians, scientists, and engineers work when investigating problems that involve estimation or approximation. Discrete metric geometry, including dimensional reduction results which have been established by the PI, is important in the design of algorithms and in compressed sensing. Work on the classification of operators which are commuters was originally motivated by the uncertainty principle in quantum mechanics (which, from a mathematical point of view, arises because certain operators do not commute). Non linear phenomena often occurs in nature but is difficult to deal with. This makes it important to understand when non linearity actually conceals underlying linear structure, and this is central to the non linear study of Banach spaces. Parts of this research project are coordinated with the Workshop in Analysis and Probability Theory at Texas A&M University, which is directed by the PI. The Workshop encourages interactions among researchers and apprentices in different mathematical fields by bringing together graduate students and junior and senior postdoctoral participants in several areas of analysis. Activities of the Workshop include seminars, Concentration Weeks, introductory lectures, and an annual conference. The efforts of the principal investigators and other participants in the Workshop are helping to break down barriers between different areas of mathematics and also promote the outreach of pure mathematics to other sciences, especially to computer science.
