Scientific

The Langlands program predicts that for every n-dimensional Abelian variety over Q there is an automorphic representation of GSpin(2n+1) over Q whose L-function coincides with the L-function coming from the Galois representation on the Tate module of the Abelian variety. Recently, Gross has refined this prediction by identifying specific properties that one should find in a vector in the automorphic representation. In joint work with Lassina Dembele, we have found some examples of automorphic representations of GSpin(2n+1) over Q whose L-functions match those coming from certain n-dimensional Abelian varieties over Q, all built from certain Hilbert modular forms. We are in the process of checking if these examples contain vectors with the properties predicted by Gross. In this talk I will explain the lifting procedure we are using to manufacture GSpin automorphic representations and describe the examples we are focusing on as we hunt for the predicted vectors in the representation space.

Factor analysis is a core technique in applied statistics with implications for biology, education, finance, psychology and engineering. It represents a large matrix of data through a small number k of latent variables or factors. Despite more than 100 years of use, it remains challenging to choose k from the data. Ad hoc and subjective methods are popular, but subject to confirmation bias and they do not scale to automatic uses. There are many recent tools in random matrix theory (RMT) that apply to the factor analysis setting, so long as the noise has constant variance. Real data usually involves heteroscedasticity foiling those techniques. There are also tools in the econometrics literature, but those apply mostly to the strong factor setting unlike RMT which handles weaker factors. The best published method is parallel analysis, but that is only justified by simulations. We propose a bi-cross-validation approach holding out some rows and some columns of the data matrix, predicting the held out data via a factor analysis on the held in data. We also use simulations to justify the method, though our simulations are designed using recent findings from RMT. The new approach outperforms previous methods that we found, as measured by recovery of a true underlying factor matrix.

This is joint work with Jingshu Wang of Stanford University.

Biosketch: Art Owen is a professor of statistics at Stanford University. He is best known for developing empirical likelihood and randomized quasi-Monte Carlo. Empirical likelihood is an inferential method that uses a data driven likelihood without requiring the user to specify a parametric family of distributions. It yields very powerful tests and is used in econometrics. Randomized quasi-Monte Carlo sampling, is a quadrature method that can attain nearly O(n**-3) mean squared errors on smooth enough functions. It is useful in valuation of options and in computer graphics. His present research interests focus on large scale data matrices. Professor Owen's teaching is focused on doctoral applied courses including linear modeling, categorical data, and stochastic simulation (Monte Carlo).

Let $A$ be a Dedekind domain, $K$ the fraction field of $A$, and $f\in A[x]$ a monic irreducible separable polynomial. Denote by $\theta\in K^{\mathrm{sep}}$ a root of $f$ and let $F=K(\theta)$ be the finite separable extension of $K$ generated by $\theta$. We consider $\mathcal{O}$ the integral closure of $A$ in $L$. For a given non-zero prime ideal $\mathfrak{p}$ of $A$ the Montes algorithm determines a parametrization (OM representation) for every prime ideal $\mathfrak{P}$ of $\mathcal{O}$ lying over $\mathfrak{p}$. For a field $k$ and $f\in k[t,x]$ this yields a new representation of places of the function field $F/k$ determined by $f$. In this talk we summarize some applications which improve the arithmetic in the divisor class group of $F$ using this new representation.

Igusa class polynomials are the genus 2 analogue of Hilbert class polynomials; their roots are invariants of genus 2 curves that have complex multiplication by a fixed order. The coefficients of Igusa class polynomials are rational, but, unlike in genus 1, are not integral. An exact formula, or tight upper bound, for these denominators is needed to compute Igusa class polynomials and has applications to cryptography. In this talk, we explain how to obtain a formula for the arithmetic intersection number G1.CM(K) and how this results in a bound for denominators of Igusa class polynomials. We also explain how the formula for G1.CM(K) leads us to a generalization of Gross and Zagier's formula for differences of CM j-invariants. This is joint work with Kristin Lauter.