Decoding of Subspace Codes, a Problem of Schubert Calculus over Finite Fields

Schubert calculus provides algebraic tools to solve enumerative problems. There have been several applied problems in systems theory, linear algebra and physics which were studied by means of Schubert calculus. The method is most powerful when the base field is algebraically closed. In this article we first review some of the successes Schubert calculus had in the past. Then we show how the problem of decoding of subspace codes used in random network coding can be formulated as a problem in Schubert calculus. Since for this application the base field has to be assumed to be a finite field new techniques will have to be developed in the future.