Umberto Mosco - Böcker

Fractal geometry is used to model complicated natural and technical phenomena in various disciplines like physics, biology, finance, and medicine. Since most convincing models contain an element of randomness, stochastics enters the area in a natural way. This book documents the establishment of fractal geometry as a substantial mathematical theory. As in the previous volumes, which appeared in 1998 and 2000, leading experts known for clear exposition were selected as authors. They survey their field of expertise, emphasizing recent developments and open problems. Main topics include multifractal measures, dynamical systems, stochastic processes and random fractals, harmonic analysis on fractals.

The theory of Dirichlet forms has witnessed recently somevery important developments both in theoretical foundationsand in applications (stochasticprocesses, quantum fieldtheory, composite materials,...). It was therefore felttimely to have on this subject a CIME school, in whichleading experts in the field would present both the basicfoundations of the theory and some of the recentapplications. The six courses covered the basic theory andapplications to:- Stochastic processes and potential theory (M. Fukushimaand M. Roeckner)- Regularity problems for solutions to elliptic equations ingeneral domains (E. Fabes and C. Kenig)- Hypercontractivity of semigroups, logarithmic Sobolevinequalities and relation to statistical mechanics (L. Grossand D. Stroock).The School had a constant and active participation of youngresearchers, both from Italy and abroad.