Student Number Theory Seminar 2019-20
9/16/19: Joe Dickinson -- A Brief Introduction to L-Functions
Abstract: Like Andy's talk last week, this week will be another introductory talk; the topic is L-functions. We will start with a discussion of Dirichlet's use of L-series to show the infinitude of primes in arithmetic progressions, then proceed to how L-functions have become a major area of investigation. We will discuss only a sampling of topics, with the goal of motivating interest and setting the stage for future talks.