Alex Degtyarev

Associate Professor
Department of Mathematics

1 + 1 = 2 (sorry, in German) [NEW]

Sorry, I don't have time to update this page, so take it as it is...
My current favorite song (3.89 MB; listen while you are reading this should your bandwidth permit)

"It's so simple to be wise. Just think of something stupid to say and then don't say it."
Sam Levenson

An American businessman was at a pier in a small coastal Mexican village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked. Inside the small boat were several large yellow-fin tuna. The American complimented the Mexican on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took to catch them. The Mexican replied only a little while. The American then asked why didn't he stay out longer and catch more fish? The Mexican said he had enough to support his family's immediate needs. The American then asked the Mexican how he spent the rest of his time. The Mexican fisherman said, "I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take siesta with my wife, Maria, stroll into the village each evening where I sip wine and play guitar with my amigos. I have a full and busy life, senor." The American scoffed, "I am a Harvard MBA and could help you. You should spend more time fishing and, with the proceeds, buy a bigger boat. With the proceeds from the bigger boat, you could buy several boats, eventually you would have a fleet of fishing boats. Instead of selling your catch to a middleman you would sell directly to the processor, eventually opening your own cannery. You would control the product, processing and distribution. "You would need to leave this small coastal fishing village and move to Mexico City, then L.A. and eventually New York City, where you will run your expanding enterprise." The Mexican fisherman asked, "But senor, how long will this all take?" To which the American replied, "15-20 years." "But what then, senor?" asked the Mexican. The American laughed, and said, "That's the best part! When the time is right, you would announce an IPO* and sell your company stock to the public. You'll become very rich, you would make millions!" "Millions, senor?" replied the Mexican. "Then what?" The American said, "Then you would retire. Move to a small coastal fishing village where you would sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take siesta with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your amigos."

Biography

Born: Dec. 03, 1962, in St. Petersburg (Russia)
Graduated: from St. Petersburg University in 1984

Ph.D.: 1988, Steklov Mathematical Institute. "Topology of complex plane projective algebraic curves"

Fields of Interest: Topology, Algebraic Geometry

Recent publications

A. Degtyarev. Quadratic transformations Rp2 --> Rp2. In: Topology of Real Algebraic Varieties and Related Topics, Amer. Math. Soc. Transl. (2), 173 (1996), 61-73

A. Degtyarev. Alexander polynomial of a curve of degree 6. J. Knot Theory Ramif., 3 (1994), 439-454. Available here

A. Degtyarev, V. Kharlamov. Topological classification of real Enriques surfaces. Topology, 35:3 (1996), 711-729. Available here

A. Degtyarev, V. Kharlamov. Halves of a real enriques surface. Comm. Math. Helv., 71:4 (1996), 628-663. Extended version: Distribution of the components of a real Enriques surface. Preprint of the Max-Planck Institute, MPI/95-58 (1995); also available from AMS server as AMSPPS # 199507-14-005 or here

A. Degtyarev, V. Kharlamov. Around real Enriques surfaces. Proc. Int. Conference on Real Algebrtaic Geometry in Segovia, Revista Matematica de la Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 10 (1997), 93-109. Available here

A. Degtyarev, V. Kharlamov. On the moduli space of real Enriques surfaces, C.R. Acad. Sci. Paris Ser I, 1997, no. 3. Available here

A. Degtyarev, V. Kharlamov. Empty real Enriques surfaces and Enriques-Einstein-Hitchin 4-manifolds Appearing in Fields Institute Communications. Currently available from alg-geom@eprints.math.duke.edu via get 9704003, or from AmS server, or here

A. Degtyarev. On the Pontrjagin-Viro form. Advances Math. Sciences, Rokhlin's Memorial volume. Currently available from alg-geom@eprints.math.duke.edu via get 9705011 or here

A. Degtyarev, I. Itenberg, V. Kharlamov. Real Enriques surfaces. Lecture Notes in Math., 1746. Springer-Verlag, 2000. Table of Contents

A. Degtyarev, V. Zvonilov. Rigid isotopy classification of real algebraic curves of bidegree $(3,3)$ on quadrics. Matematicheskie zametki, December 1999. Engl. transl. in Mathematical notes

A. Degtyarev. Quintics in $Cp^2$ with nonabelian fundamental group. Algebra i Analiz. 11:5 (1999), 130--151. Engl. transl. in St. Petersburg Math. J., 11:5 (2000) or here

A. Degtyarev, V. Kharlamov. Topological properties of real algebraic varieties: du côté de chez Rokhlin. Uspekhi matematicheskikh nauk. No. 2, 2000. Engl. transl. in Russian mathematical surveys. Current version available here

A. Degtyarev. A divisibility theorem for the Alexander polynomial of a plane algebraic curve. (Russian) Zap. Nauchn. Sem. S.-Peterburg. Otdel. Mat. Inst. Steklov. (POMI) 280 (2001), Geom. i Topol. 7, 146--156, 300; translation in J. Math. Sci. (N. Y.) 119:2 (2004), 205--210. Current version

A. Degtyarev, V. Kharlamov. Real rational surfaces are quasi-simple. J. Reine Angew. Math. 551 (2002), 87--99. Current version

A. Degtyarev, I. Itenberg, V. Kharlamov. Finiteness and quasi-simplicity for symmetric $K3$-surfaces. Duke Math. J. 122:1 (2004), 1--49. Current version

A. Degtyarev, I. Itenberg, V. Kharlamov. On deformation types of real elliptic surfaces. Amer. J. Math. (to appear) Current version

A. Degtyarev, I. Itenberg, V. Kharlamov. On real hyper-Kähler manifolds. Moscow J. Math. 7:2 (2007) Current version

A. Degtyarev. On deformations of singular plane sextics. J. Algeb. Geom. 17 (2008), 101-135 Current version

A. Degtyarev. Oka's conjecture on irreducible plane sextics. Current version

A. Degtyarev. Oka's conjecture on irreducible plane sextics. II. Current version

A. Degtyarev, T. Ekedahl, I. Itenberg, B. Shapiro, M. Shapiro. On total reality of meromorphic functions. Ann. Inst. Fourier 57:5 (2007), 2015-2030 Current version