Jim Coykendall and Scott Chapman are organizing a workshop titled “The Art of Factorization in Multiplicative Structures.” The workshop is funded through a PREP grant from the Mathematical Association of America. It will take place on the campus of Trinity University from May 21 – May 25, 2007. This five-day workshop will present the fundamental mathematical concepts of the theory of non-unique factorization at a basic level suitable for a beginning graduate student or University level faculty unfamiliar with this area. The main speakers will each deliver a series of 4 lectures:

David Anderson, The University of Tennessee at Knoxville
Alfred Geroldinger, Karl-Franzens-Universität in Graz, Austria
Ulrich Krause, Universität Bremen, Bremen, Germany.

The lectures will focus on the algebraic, number theoretic, combinatorial and geometric aspects of factorization theory. Aside from the main lectures mentioned above, the workshop will include keynote addresses by the organizers, seminars by graduate students who have worked in this field and have experienced research directed work in their studies, and a series of problem/discussion sessions which will address how this material can best be applied in both the classroom and the undergraduate research project setting. More information can be found at the conference website.

Information concerning travel, accommodations, meals and background reading will be updated periodically. Registration for the workshop is handled by the MAA and the registration fee covers participants' on-campus accommodations and meals. Either Scott Chapman or Jim Coykendall are happy to answer any of your questions.