Article: Knot physics: newly discovered links between quantum physics and knot theory may tie together a wealth of mathematical ideas.

KNOT PHYSICS

As a graduate student in the late 1960s, James I. Lepowsky wanted to study both physics and mathematics. But he found little interaction between the two disciplines. Since their unfortunate divorce at the turn of the century, physics and mathematics have largely set off on separate paths, developing their own languages and specialties. Lepowsky, presently at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, N.J., chose the path of mathematics.

In the last few months, however, many mathematicians, including Lepowsky, have rediscovered physics. They are plunging into the intricacies of quantum field theory, seeking to understand the special mathematical ...

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