ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Rigid cohomology

Okay kiddo, you know how when you have a puzzle, all the pieces have to fit together perfectly, or else it doesn't work? Well, mathematicians have these really big and complicated puzzles called algebraic varieties, and they have to figure out how to fit all the pieces together to understand how they work.

One of the ways they do that is by using a special tool called cohomology. Think of it like a map that helps them navigate through the puzzle pieces. But sometimes, the puzzle pieces are really, really stubborn and won't fit together nicely.

This is where rigid cohomology comes in. It's like a special kind of glue that helps the puzzle pieces to stick together even when they don't want to. It makes it easier for mathematicians to understand how all the pieces fit together, and that's really important because it helps them learn new things and solve big problems.

So, rigid cohomology is like a special glue that helps mathematicians understand really complicated puzzles called algebraic varieties. It makes it easier for them to fit all the puzzle pieces together, so they can learn new things and solve big problems.