April 18, 2026 at Brown University

GATSBY is a conference organized by the geometry/topology groups at Brown and Yale. (GATSBY homepage)

All are welcome! Please register. 

Schedule 

10:45-11:15 Reception 

11:15-12:15  Background talk 

12:15-2 Lunch 

2-3 Lightning talks 

3-3:30 Break

3:30-4:30 Research talk 

4:30 Informal discussion followed by dinner for those interested

Abstracts 

• Franco Vargas Pallete

Background Talk: Minimal surfaces in hyperbolic geometry 

Abstract: In this talk we will introduce minimal surfaces, which are the critical points of the area functional, with particular focus on some of their basic properties and existence results when the ambient space is a hyperbolic manifold.

Research Talk: Minimal surface entropy for cusped hyperbolic 3-manifolds

Abstract:  In this talk we will describe minimal surface entropy for asymptotically cusped metrics, which is a geometric invariant established by Calegari–Marques–Neves and it is defined by the asymptotic counting of compact minimal surfaces as area grows. We will show rigidity results for finite volume hyperbolic 3-manifolds. Namely, if M is a cusped hyperbolic 3-manifold of finite volume, then the hyperbolic metric can be characterized as the metric extremizing minimal surface entropy among metrics with principal curvatures bounded above by -1 or scalar curvature bounded below by -6, along metrics that are asymptotically hyperbolic in the cusps. This is based in joint work with Ruojing Jiang. 

• Lightning talks 

You can sign up to give a lightning talk using the registration link above. 

Local information

The talks will be in the math department (Kassar House) on 151 Thayer Street, at the corner of George and Thayer Streets. The entrance to the department is on Thayer Street. 

Parking: There is visitor parking at 111 Power Street (~$20/day). The nearest free, unrestricted street parking on Cooke Street (e.g. in front of the Rhode Island historical society), or in that general area, further east of campus. There should be plenty of available parking in that area, but individual blocks have different parking restrictions so please read the parking signs carefully. 

Organizers:  Tam Cheetham-West, Ethan Dlugie, Bena Tshishiku

Previous iterations: Fall 2025, Spring 2025, Fall 2024, Spring 2024, Fall 2023, Spring 2023, Fall 2022, Spring 2019, Fall 2015, Spring  2015, Fall 2014, Spring 2014, Fall 2013,  Spring 2013, Spring 2012