Abstracts

Falk Hassler

The geometry of extended objects

Compared to point-like particles, the extended objects that underpin string and M-theory have remarkable new properties. Among these are dualities that identify the dynamics of seemingly unrelated theories in very different regimes. While at first glance mysterious, they become very natural when recast in a new geometric framework adapted to the unique properties of extended objects. I will introduce this new, generalized geometry and demonstrate its relation to dualties. Moreover, I will show how the revealed mathematical structures help to construct new solutions of (super)gravity and restrict quantum corrections.