Degree 2 branched map from the torus to the sphere Algebraic geometry predicts a degree 2 branched cover from an elliptic curve to the projective line. What does this map look like topologically?
 A: One example: lay your $g$-holed torus $T$ out flat and draw a line the long way through each hole. It hits the torus in $2g + 2$ points. Consider the 180 degree rotation $w$ through that line. Now consider the space $T/w$ formed by identifying two points $P$ and $Q$ if $P = wQ$ (since $w^2 = 1$ we also have $Q = wP$). I claim that it's not too hard to see that $T/w$ is isomorphic to the projective line, and the $2g+2$ points which hit the line are the ramification points.
edit: This is of course more general than you were asking, but the picture is completely general when you're talking about topology.
edit 2: A picture of this (albeit approached from the perspective of starting on the projective line and cutting slits) can be found in section 20e of Fulton's Algebraic Topology book.
A: An elliptic curve is an abelian group. The quotient with respect to the equivalence relation $x\sim -x$ is a genus 0 curve. The branched cover is the projection to the quotient and the singular points are the 4 points of order 2 on the curve.
A: If your elliptic curve is $\{(x,y)~|~y^2=x^3 + ax + b\}$
then take the projection $(x,y) \to x$. This has 4 branch points at the 3 roots of $x^3 + ax + b$ and $\infty$. From this perspective, it's easier to see the resulting $\mathbb{CP}^1$, and harder to see that the elliptic curve is a topological torus. 
A: The cover of the first edition of Francis' book: "A topological picturebook".

A: You can do a reverse construction: start with a sphere without 4 points; now add two points over each one in such a way that every time you go around one hole the two points get interchanged.
The same Riemann-Hurwitz calculation guarantees that you get a torus. If you have complex structure on you sphere without 4 points you get one on top as well; a beautiful fact is that you get all complex structures on a torus — in other words, all elliptic curves over $\mathbb C$ — that way.
