Entropy is a natural geometric quantity measuring the complexity of a surface embedded in $\mathbb{R}^3$. For dynamical reasons relating to mean curvature flow, Colding-Ilmanen-Minicozzi-White conjectured that the entropy of any closed surface is at least that of the self-shrinking two-sphere. We prove this conjecture for all closed embedded $2$-spheres. Assuming a conjectural Morse index bound (announced recently by Marques-Neves), we can improve the result to apply to all closed embedded surfaces that are not tori. Our results can be thought of as the parabolic analog to the Willmore conjecture and our argument is analogous in many ways to that of Marques-Neves on the Willmore problem. The main tool is the min-max theory applied to the Gaussian area functional in $\mathbb{R}^3$ which we also establish. To any closed surface in $\mathbb{R}^3$ we associate a four parameter canonical family of surfaces and run a min-max procedure. The key step is ruling out the min-max sequence approaching a self-shrinking plane, and we accomplish this with a degree argument. To establish the min-max theory for $\mathbb{R}^3$ with Gaussian weight, the crucial ingredient is a tightening map that decreases the mass of non-stationary varifolds (with respect to the Gaussian metric of $\mathbb{R}^3$) in a continuous manner.

We prove that many aspects of the differential geometry of embedded Riemannian manifolds can be formulated in terms of multi-linear algebraic structures on the space of smooth functions. In particular, we find algebraic expressions for Weingarten’s formula, the Ricci curvature, and the Codazzi-Mainardi equations. For matrix analogues of embedded surfaces, we define discrete curvatures and Euler characteristics, and a non-commutative GaussBonnet theorem is shown to follow. We derive simple expressions for the discrete Gauss curvature in terms of matrices representing the embedding coordinates, and explicit examples are provided. Furthermore, we illustrate the fact that techniques from differential geometry can carry over to matrix analogues by proving that a bound on the discrete Gauss curvature implies a bound on the eigenvalues of the discrete Laplace operator.

We apply the mean curvature flow to deform symplectomorphisms of CP^n. In particular, we prove that, for each dimension n, there exists a constant , explicitly computable, such that anypinched symplectomorphism of CP^n is symplectically isotopic to a biholomorphic isometry.

We state and prove a Chern–Osserman-type inequality in terms of the volume growth for minimal surfaces$S$which have finite total extrinsic curvature and are properly immersed in a Cartan–Hadamard manifold$N$with sectional curvatures bounded from above by a negative quantity$K$_{$N$}≤$b$<0 and such that they are not too curved (on average) with respect to the hyperbolic space with constant sectional curvature given by the upper bound$b$. We also prove the same Chern–Osserman-type inequality for minimal surfaces with finite total extrinsic curvature and properly immersed in an asymptotically hyperbolic Cartan–Hadamard manifold$N$with sectional curvatures bounded from above by a negative quantity$K$_{$N$}≤$b$<0.

Let $f : \sum_1 \to \sum_2$ be an area preserving diffeomorphism between compact Riemann surfaces of constant curvature. The graph of $f$ can be viewed as a Lagrangian submanifold in $ \sum_1 \times \sum_2$. This article discusses a canonical way to deform $f$ along area preserving diffeomorphisms. This deformation process is realized through the mean curvature flow of the graph of $f$ in $ \sum_1 \times \sum_2$. It is proved that the flow exists for all time and the map converges to a canonical map. In particular, this gives a new proof of the classical topological results that $O(3)$ is a deformation retract of the diffeomorphism group of $S^2$ and the mapping class group of a Riemman surface of positive genus is a deformation retract of the diffeomorphism group .