Programme SMS Lecture Series
Audience General
Description This lecture series will feature eminent local mathematicians or mathematics educators to share with the public some of their interests and ideas.
Speaker

A J (Jon) Berrick , National University of Singapore

After his first degree at Sydney University, Jon Berrick gained a DPhil from Oxford, where he became a fellow of St John’s College. He then served as a lecturer at Imperial College London, before moving to NUS in 1981, and has been a professor here since 1996. His research interests include: Algebraic topology, Algebraic K-theory and Cohomology of groups. For the research described here, as well as other work in algebraic topology, Jon Berrick and his colleague Assoc. Prof. Wu Jie received the A*Star National Science Award in September 2007.  Jon Berrick is a past vice-president of the Singapore Mathematical Society.
Title A New Twist for Braids
Abstract
Braids have been familiar objects in many cultures for many centuries, both for fastening and for decoration, but mathematicians began to look at them only about a century ago. The main question asked is: when can one braid be pulled and slid to become another? Mathematically, this questioncan be attacked by various means, some algebraic and some geometric.  In recent years, the techniques used have been applied to problems in cryptography, robotics and molecular biology.  A new technique invented at NUS will also be discussed.
Date/Time Feb 11 (Wednesday) 2009 / 4.30-5.30pm
Venue NUS, LT25 (please note change in venue)
Refreshment Buffet dinner will be served after the lecture
Registration School teachers may do group registration for their students and teachers by choosing the "group registration" option and indicate the number of people attending the lecture in the online registration form.
Registration Fees Free
Coordinator Dr Tan Victor
Closing Date: Feb 4, 2009