Simons Center for Geometry and Physics

Simons Center for Geometry and Physics
Name	Simons Center for Geometry and Physics
Established	2009
Focus	Geometry, Physics, Mathematical Physics
Parent institution	State University of New York at Stony Brook
Location	Stony Brook, New York
Director	Antonella Grassi

Contents

Simons Center for Geometry and Physics is a research center at Stony Brook University dedicated to the interaction between differential geometry, algebraic geometry, and theoretical physics, particularly string theory and quantum field theory. Founded with major support from the Simons Foundation, the center hosts collaborative programs that link mathematicians and physicists from institutions such as Princeton University, Institute for Advanced Study, Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and California Institute of Technology. Its activities contribute to broader conversations involving researchers associated with Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics, Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics, Max Planck Institute for Mathematics, and Institut des Hautes Études Scientifiques.

History

The center was established following a gift from James Simons and the Simons Foundation to expand research at Stony Brook University and to honor legacies of cross-disciplinary work exemplified by collaborations at Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton University, Harvard University, University of California, Berkeley, and Columbia University. Early initiatives connected scholars from Edward Witten, Michael Atiyah, Simon Donaldson, Maxwell Rosenlicht and others who had led programs at Institute for Advanced Study and Mathematical Sciences Research Institute. The facility's construction involved coordination with State University of New York system administrators, architects experienced in research buildings used by Massachusetts Institute of Technology and University of Chicago, and funders including the National Science Foundation and private donors active in supporting Mathematics and Physics.

Regular academic offerings include long-term programs, thematic workshops, summer schools, and seminar series that attract participants from Institute for Advanced Study, CERN, SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Fermilab, Caltech, MIT, and Princeton University. The center hosts lectures named after figures such as Edward Witten, Michael Atiyah, Simon Donaldson, and organizes conferences in collaboration with International Congress of Mathematicians participants and organizers from European Mathematical Society and American Mathematical Society. Educational outreach has linked the center with departments at Stony Brook University, graduate programs at Columbia University, postdoctoral networks at Institute for Advanced Study, and visiting-scholar programs patterned on those at MSRI.

Situated on the campus of Stony Brook University near Stony Brook village, the center occupies purpose-built spaces adjacent to departments such as Department of Mathematics and Department of Physics and Astronomy. The building includes seminar rooms, offices for visiting scholars, computing facilities compatible with collaborations at CERN, visualization labs similar to those at Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics, and library resources integrated with Stony Brook University Library and interlibrary networks associated with SUNY. Proximity to Brookhaven National Laboratory facilitates ties with experimental groups at Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider and shared initiatives with researchers from Brookhaven National Laboratory and Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory.

Administratively the center operates under the auspices of Stony Brook University and the State University of New York system, with governance involving a scientific advisory board drawing members from Princeton University, Institute for Advanced Study, Harvard University, Yale University, University of Chicago, Oxford University, and Cambridge University. Directors and chairs have included prominent researchers affiliated with Mathematical Sciences Research Institute, Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics, Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics, and Institute for Advanced Study. The center partners with funding organizations such as the Simons Foundation, National Science Foundation, and private endowments associated with donors active in mathematics and physics philanthropy.