Introduction:
A simplicial complex is a special type of graph wherein the notion of a vertex is replaced with a new higher dimensional analog, called a simplex. A simplex is, in simplest terms, an n-dimensional collection of vertices enclosed by planes or equivalent.
A graph G = (V, E) consists of V, a nonempty set of vertices (or nodes) and E, a set of edges. Each edge has either one or two vertices associated with it, called its endpoints. An edge is said to connect its endpoints.1
A graph is a thing made of point, some of which are linked by line segments. Generalize the idea to points that can also be grouped into triangles, or tetrahedra, etc.
For graphs we know Euler's formula E+2=V+F. Give this a geometric meaning.
Discuss (maybe in the 2-dimensional case) what might replace this formula compare a "triangulated" sphere to a "triangulated" doughnut.
1 Discrete Mathematics and Its Applications, Kenneth H. Rosen. Back to MA375 Spring 2014
