Knotty Math Comes Undone

Knots hold a special place in the hearts of sailors and mathematicians. That's almost self-explanatory for sailors, who have been tying knots as an essential part of their craft for centuries. They even used them to tell how fast they're going over open water. Mathematicians' fascination with knots is harder to explain, but comes down to their love of counting. The more complicated the knot, the…