Knot Groups

The description for this book, Knot Groups. Annals of Mathematics Studies. (AM-56), Volume 56, will be forthcoming.

Here is the first part of a work that provides a full account of Jorgensen's theory of punctured torus Kleinian groups and its generalization. It offers an elementary and self-contained description of Jorgensen's theory with a complete proof. Through various informative illustrations, readers are naturally led to an intuitive, synthetic grasp of the theory, which clarifies how a very simple fuchsian group evolves into complicated Kleinian groups.

Here is the first part of a work that provides a full account of Jorgensen's theory of punctured torus Kleinian groups and its generalization. It offers an elementary and self-contained description of Jorgensen's theory with a complete proof. Through various informative illustrations, readers are naturally led to an intuitive, synthetic grasp of the theory, which clarifies how a very simple fuchsian group evolves into complicated Kleinian groups.

Since discovery of the Jones polynomial, knot theory has enjoyed a virtual explosion of important results and now plays a significant role in modern mathematics. In a unique presentation with contents not found in any other monograph, Knot Theory describes, with full proofs, the main concepts and the latest investigations in the field. The book is divided into six thematic sections. The first part discusses "pre-Vassiliev" knot theory, from knot arithmetics through the Jones polynomial and the famous Kauffman-Murasugi theorem. The second part explores braid theory, including braids in different spaces and simple word recognition algorithms. A section devoted to the Vassiliev knot invariants follows, wherein the author proves that Vassiliev invariants are stronger than all polynomial invariants and introduces Bar-Natan's theory on Lie algebra respresentations and knots. The fourth part describes a new way, proposed by the author, to encode knots by d-diagrams. This method allows the encoding of topological objects by words in a finite alphabet. Part Five delves into virtual knot theory and virtualizations of knot and link invariants. This section includes the author's own important results regarding new invariants of virtual knots. The book concludes with an introduction to knots in 3-manifolds and Legendrian knots and links, including Chekanov's differential graded algebra (DGA) construction. Knot Theory is notable not only for its expert presentation of knot theory's state of the art but also for its accessibility. It is valuable as a professional reference and will serve equally well as a text for a course on knot theory.

Topics in Knot Theory is a state of the art volume which presents surveys of the field by the most famous knot theorists in the world. It also includes the most recent research work by graduate and postgraduate students. The new ideas presented cover racks, imitations, welded braids, wild braids, surgery, computer calculations and plottings, presentations of knot groups and representations of knot and link groups in permutation groups, the complex plane and/or groups of motions. For mathematicians, graduate students and scientists interested in knot theory.

The present volume is an updated version of the book edited by C N Yang and M L Ge on the topics of braid groups and knot theory, which are related to statistical mechanics. This book is based on the 1989 volume but has new material included and new contributors.

Knot Theory, a lively exposition of the mathematics of knotting, will appeal to a diverse audience from the undergraduate seeking experience outside the traditional range of studies to mathematicians wanting a leisurely introduction to the subject. Graduate students beginning a program of advanced study will find a worthwhile overview, and the reader will need no training beyond linear algebra to understand the mathematics presented. The interplay between topology and algebra, known as algebraic topology, arises early in the book when tools from linear algebra and from basic group theory are introduced to study the properties of knots. Livingston guides readers through a general survey of the topic showing how to use the techniques of linear algebra to address some sophisticated problems, including one of mathematics's most beautiful topics—symmetry. The book closes with a discussion of high-dimensional knot theory and a presentation of some of the recent advances in the subject—the Conway, Jones, and Kauffman polynomials. A supplementary section presents the fundamental group which is a centerpiece of algebraic topology.

The description for this book, Knot Groups. Annals of Mathematics Studies. (AM-56), Volume 56, will be forthcoming.