Seminar

An Abelian variety (of complex dimension g) is an algebraic geometer's version of a torus — it is a variety which is topologically equivalent to a (real) 2g-dimensional torus. Geometers consider the problem of counting the number of curves on an Abelian variety subject to some set of constraints. In dimensions g=1,2, and 3, these geometric numbers have a surprising connections to number theory and combinatorics. They occur as the coefficients of Fourier expansions of various modular forms and they can also be determined in terms of combinatorics of 2D and 3D partitions (a.k.a. box counting). We illustrate this using only elementary ideas from topology and combinatorics in the case of g=1. For g=2 and g=3, we describe recent theorems and conjectures which complete determine the enumerative geometry of Abelian surfaces and threefolds in terms of Jacobi forms and in the process we indicate how Jacobi forms arise from the combinatorics of box counting.