The Poincaré conjeture: a problem solved after a century of new ideas and continued

• Autores: María Teresa Lozano Imízcoz
• Localización: Mètode Science Studies Journal: Annual Review, ISSN 2174-3487, ISSN-e 2174-9221, Nº. 8, 2018 (Ejemplar dedicado a: Making Science. A multitude of perspectives), págs. 58-67
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • The Poincaré conjecture is a topological problem established in 1904 by the French mathematician Henri Poincaré. It characterises three-dimensional spheres in a very simple way. It uses only the first invariant of algebraic topology – the fundamental group – which was also defined and studied by Poincaré. The conjecture implies that if a space does not have essential holes, then it is a sphere. This problem was directly solved between 2002 and 2003 by Grigori Perelman, and as a consequence of his demonstration of the Thurston geometrisation conjecture, which culminated in the path pro-posed by Richard Hamilton.