Global Rigidity (15w2199)

The Banff International Research Station will host the "Global Rigidity" workshop in Banff from July 17 to July 19.

The rigidity and flexibility of a structure, either man-made in buildings, linkages, and lightweight deployable forms, or found in nature ranging from crystals to proteins, is critical to the form, function, and stability of the structure. A strong form of rigidity is ``Global Rigidity'' when the given lengths permit only one realization, up to congruence. The mathematical theory of ``Global Rigidity'' is developing methods for the analysis and design of man-made structures , such as sensor networks, as well as for natural structures such as proteins.

We live in 3-dimensions, and a fundamental problem is to develop results for global rigidity in 3-dimensions which are as good, and as efficient, as the recently developed theory for global rigidity of structures in 2-dimensions. The mathematical methods also give insights into fundamental mathematical systems of constraints and computations, with even wider application in areas of computer aided design and manufacturing, CAD/CAM.

The Banff International Research Station for Mathematical Innovation and Discovery (BIRS) is a collaborative Canada-US-Mexico venture that provides an environment for creative interaction as well as the exchange of ideas, knowledge, and methods within the Mathematical Sciences, with related disciplines and with industry. The research station is located at The Banff Centre in Alberta and is supported by Canada's Natural Science and Engineering Research Council (NSERC), the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF), Alberta's Advanced Education and Technology, and Mexico's Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (CONACYT).