Ricci curvature on polyhedral surfaces via optimal transportation (Q2345040)

Summary: The problem of correctly defining geometric objects, such as the curvature, is a hard one in discrete geometry. \textit{Y. Ollivier} [J. Funct. Anal. 256, No. 3, 810--864 (2009; Zbl 1181.53015)] defined a notion of curvature applicable to a wide category of measured metric spaces, in particular to graphs. He named it coarse Ricci curvature because it coincides, up to some given factor, with the classical Ricci curvature, when the space is a smooth manifold. \textit{Y. Lin} et al. [Tohoku Math. J. (2) 63, No. 4, Centen. Iss., 605--627 (2011; Zbl 1237.05204)] and \textit{J. Jost} and \textit{S. Liu} [Discrete Comput. Geom. 51, No. 2, 300--322 (2014; Zbl 1294.05061)] have used and extended this notion for graphs, giving estimates for the curvature and, hence, the diameter, in terms of the combinatorics. In this paper, we describe a method for computing the coarse Ricci curvature and give sharper results, in the specific, but crucial case of polyhedral surfaces.