Abstract:
Sophia Kovalevskaya wrote, "It is not possible to be a mathematician without being a poet at heart. A poet should see what others can’t see, see deeper than others. And that’s the job of a mathematician as well.” The work of Robert Langlands sets a great example for this maxim, as it is marked by originality, imagination, and penetrating insights. At the core of the Langlands Program is the idea of unification: uncovering deep connections between areas of mathematics that at first glance seem far apart, such as number theory, analysis, geometry, and even quantum physics. These links enable us to find order in apparent chaos, and they also point to something rich and mysterious lurking beneath the surface, giving us glimpses of hidden structures underlying modern mathematics.

Edward Vladimirovich Frenkel is a Russian-American mathematician working in representation theory, algebraic geometry, and mathematical physics. He is a professor of mathematics at University of California, Berkeley, member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and author of the bestselling book Love and Math.

This lecture was held at The University of Oslo, May 23, 2018 and was part of the Abel Prize Lectures in connection with the Abel Prize Week celebrations.

Program for the Abel Lectures 2018
1. "On the Geometric Theory" by Abel Laureate Robert P. Langlands, Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton University
2. "The Langlands Program: Arithmetic, Geometry and Analysis" by Professor James Arthur, University of Toronto
3. "Langlands Program and Unification" by Professor Edward Frenkel, UC Berkley