We prove the mean curvature flow of the graph of a symplectomorphism between Riemann surfaces converges smoothly as time approaches infinity.

Let T be the Teichm¨uller space of marked genus g, n punctured Riemann surfaces with its bordification T the augmented Teichm ¨uller space of marked Riemann surfaces with nodes, [Abi77,Ber74]. Provided with the WP metric, T is a complete CAT(0) metric space, [DW03,Wol03, Yam04]. An invariant of a marked hyperbolic structure is the length ℓ of the geodesic α in a free homotopy class. A basic feature of Teichm¨uller theory is the interplay of two-dimensional hyperbolic geometry, Weil-Petersson (WP) geometry and the behavior of geodesic-length functions. Our goal is to develop an understanding of the intrinsic local WP geometry through a study of the gradient and Hessian of geodesic-length functions. Considerations include expansions for the WP pairing of gradients, expansions for the Hessian and covariant derivative, comparability models for the WP metric, as well as the behavior of WP geodesics, including a description of the Alexandrov tangent cone at the augmentation. Approximations and applications for geodesics close to the augmentation are developed. An application for fixed points of group actions is described. Bounding configurations and functions on the hyperbolic plane is basic to our approach. Considerations include analyzing the orbit of a discrete group of isometries and bounding sums of the inverse square exponential-distance.

A Riemannian or Finsler metric on a compact manifoldM gives rise to a length function on the free loop space M, whose critical points are the closed geodesics in the given metric. If X is a homology class on M, the “minimax” critical level cr(X) is a critical value. Let M be a sphere of dimension > 2, and fix a metric g and a coefficient field G. We prove that the limit as deg(X) goes to infinity of cr(X)/ deg(X) exists. We call this limit = (M, g,G) the global mean frequency of M. As a consequence we derive resonance statements for closed geodesics on spheres; in particular either all homology on  of sufficiently high degreee lies hanging on closed geodesics of mean frequency (length/average index) , or there is a sequence of infinitely many closed geodesics whose mean frequencies converge to . The proof uses the ChasSullivan product and results of Goresky-Hingston [7].

We show that, for all nonnegative integers k, Г, m and n, theYamabe invariant of #k(RP3)#Г(RP2 】 S1)#m(S2 】 S1)#n(S2. 】S1) is equal to the Yamabe invariant of RP3, provided k + Г ∶ 1. We then complete the classification (started by Bray and the second author) of all closed 3-manifolds with Yamabe invariant greater than that of RP3. More precisely, we show that such manifolds are either S3 or finite connected sums #m(S2 】 S1)#n(S2. 】S1),where S2. 】S1 is the nonorientable S2-bundle over S1. A key ingredient is Aubin’s Lemma [3], which says that if the Yamabe constant is positive, then it is strictly less than the Yam- abe constant of any of its non-trivial finite conformal coverings. This lemma, combined with inverse mean curvature flow and with analysis of the Green’s function for the conformal Laplacians on specific finite and normal infinite Riemannian coverings, will allow us to construct a family of nice test functions on the finite coverings and thus prove the desired result.

The convexity theorem of Atiyah and Guillemin-Sternberg says that any connected compact manifold with Hamiltonian torus action has a moment map whose image is the convex hull of the image of the fixed point set. Sjamaar-Lerman proved that the Marsden-Weinstein reduction of a connected Hamitonian G -manifold is a stratified symplectic space. Suppose $1\ra A\ra G\ra T\ra 1$ is an exact sequence of compact Lie groups and T is a torus. Then the reduction of a Hamiltonian G -manifold with respect to A yields a Hamiltonian T -space. We show that if the A -moment map is proper, then the convexity theorem holds for such a Hamiltonian T -space, even when it is singular. We also prove that if, furthermore, the T -space has dimension 2dimT and T acts effectively, then the moment polytope is sufficient to essentially distinguish their homeomorphism type, though not their diffeomorphism types. This generalizes a theorem of Delzant in the smooth case.