Recognizing topological manifolds

We will discuss the problem of recognizing topological manifolds among topological spaces, beginning with classical results, such as Bing’s sphere characterization theorem:

“If a compact, connected, locally connected metric space X is separated by every simple closed curve but by no pair of points, then X is homeomorphic to $S^2$.”

and proceeding to generalizations and open problems. Highlights include the Andrews-Curtis paper on N-space modulo an arc, Edwards-Canon's proof of the double suspension theorem, the Edwards-Quinn characterization of topological manifolds in dimensions at least 5, and current work on understanding counterexamples to Canons conjecture.