Dynamical Degrees, Arithmetic Degrees, and Canonical Heights: History, Conjectures, and Future Directions

Abstract

In this note we give an overview of various quantities that are used to measure the complexity of an algebraic dynamical system f:X-->X, including the dynamical degree d(f), which gives a coarse measure of the geometric complexity of the iterates of f, the arithmetic degree a(f,P), which gives a coarse measure of the arithmetic complexity of the orbit of a an algebraic point P in X, and various versions of the canonical height h_f(P) that provide more refined measures of arithmetic complexity. Emphasis is placed on open problems and directions for further exploration.