Book excerpt: This volume attests to the vitality of differential geometry as it probes deeper into its internal structure and explores ever widening connections with other subjects in mathematics and physics. To most of us Professor S. S. Chern is modern differential geometry, and we, his students, are grateful to him for leading us to this fertile landscape. The aims of the symposium were to review recent developments in geometry and to expose and explore new areas of research. It was our way of honoring Professor Chern upon the occasion of his official retirement as Professor of Mathematics at the University of California. This book is a record of the scientific events of the symposium and reflects Professor Chern's wide interest and influence. The conference also reflected Professor Chern's personality. It was a serious occasion, active yet relaxed, mixed with gentleness and good humor. We wish him good health, a long life, happiness, and a continuation of his extraordinarily deep and original contributions to mathematics. I. M. Singer Contents Real and Complex Geometry in Four Dimensions M. F. ATIYAH. . . . . . . . . . . . . Equivariant Morse Theory and the Yang-Mills Equation on Riemann Surfaces RAOUL BaTT .. 11 Isometric Families of Kahler Structures EUGENIO CALABI. . 23 Two Applications of Algebraic Geometry to Entire Holomorphic Mappings MARK GREEN AND PHILLIP GRIFFITHS. • . . . • . . 41 The Canonical Map for Certain Hilbert Modular Surfaces F. HIRZEBRUCH . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . 75 Tight Embeddings and Maps. Submanifolds of Geometrical Class Three in EN NICOLAAS H. KUIPER .