The discussion revolves around finding eigenvalues of a matrix without using the built-in eig() function in MATLAB. The user is attempting to implement a power iteration method to compute the smallest eigenvalue but initially finds that their approach seems to yield the largest eigenvalue instead. They express confusion regarding the computation of the smallest eigenvalue and how to modify their code accordingly. The conversation highlights the use of the min function to find the smallest eigenvalue from the vector of eigenvalues returned by eig(), but notes that this can be misleading when dealing with complex numbers. The user also seeks clarification on how to properly implement inverted power iteration to achieve their goal of finding the smallest eigenvalue.