Speaker: Gabe Kerr

Abstract: We are introduced to real polynomials early in mathematics with equation for lines, circles and other conic sections. Grasping the space of solutions to a polynomial equation over the complex numbers may initially seem challenging. However, with a bit of combinatorics and polyhedral geometry, I will explain how relatively recent results give us ways to decompose and reassemble such a space using the pair of pants as a building block.