Given an algebraic curve in implicit form $f(x,y)=0$, how do we compute
its topology, i.e. a graph homeomorphic to $f$? This problem, with
applications in the area of Computer Aided Design, brings together
techniques from Symbolic Algebra and Computational Geometry and is a
subject of recent research in both communities.
In the first part of the talk, we learn about algebraic tools
(Resultants, Descartes method) which lead to an exact solution for
topology computation. In the second part, we introduce two extensions of
the Descartes method (Bitstream Descartes, $m$-$k$-Descartes) and show
how they eliminate computational bottlenecks in the algorithm.