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Topological Zoo Home Page

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Warning: this collection currently is under construction

The Topological Zoo is designed a resource for mathematicians and educators. It is a visual dictionary of surfaces and other mathematical objects, consisting primarily of movies, still images and interactive pictures. Its contents can be used to complement classroom presentations, research papers and talks. For the casual browser, each object is accompanied by a short description that provides background information and interconnections among the objects in the zoo. Where appropriate, the equations that describe the objects are included. The Zoo is primarily a reference, however; it is not an introduction to topology or other branches of mathematics.

The Topological Zoo is an ongoing project at the Geometry Center and is primarily the work of graduate students from the the University of Minnesota and undergraduates who participate in the Summer Institute at the Geometry Center. A list of Zookeepers is available.

Main Gateways to the Collection:

Topological Type. This exhibit describes the closed compact surfaces by their topological type, and includes the sphere, the torus, the Klein bottle, and the projective plane as some of its main attractions.
Surface Features. This exhibit describes several important features of surfaces that are generally local in nature. You will find the Mobius band and the Whitney umbrella here.
Examples from:
- Multivariable Calculus
- Differential Geometery
- Dynamical Systems
Special Exhibits:
- Polyhedral Solids, Stellations
- Higher Dimensional Objects
- Knots and Links
- Fractals
- Hyperbolic Geometry

If you don't know where to find what you are looking for, you can Search the collection, or browse the Alphabetical List of surfaces.

The Topological Zoo Home Page
The Geometry Center Home Page