Allison Henrich

Abstract: Are you tired of tying boring old shoelace knots? Frustrated with messy knots in your spaghetti that are impossible to undo? Wish you could make friends and influence people with your amazing knot-tying ability? Then come join us! You’ll learn to harness the power of mathematics and the fourth dimension to unlock the secrets of knots. Discover how to make tangled up messes magically disappear and make knots apparate out of thin air. But wait! There’s more! Impress your friends and family with fancy phrases, like “persistent tangle” and “Reidemeister moves.” Make your rivals wish they had come to the Math Department Colloquium! Come join us, and all your wildest dreams will come true.

Bio: Allison Henrich is a Professor of Mathematics at Seattle University. She enjoys collaborating with students on research, especially on problems related to knots and games. She coauthored the books An Interactive Introduction to Knot Theory and A Mathematician’s Practical Guide to Mentoring Undergraduate Research, and she coedited Living Proof: Stories of Resilience Along the Mathematical Journey as well as the Encyclopedia of Knot Theory. She is currently working with collaborators on writing two more books. The first is a guidebook for undergraduate math majors (stay tuned!), and the second is a book with esteemed knot theorist Louis Kauffman on the mathematics of rope magic and other knotty puzzles. Allison is also the editor of the news magazine of the Mathematical Association of America, MAA FOCUS. In her “spare time,” Allison enjoys spending time with her husband and their two hilarious little kids.