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Abstract:
Mirror image symmetry plays an important role in predicting the
behavior of molecules. Recently, knots and links and other non-planar
molecules have been synthesized which are large enough that they no
longer have the rigidity that is characteristic of small molecules.
In order to understand the symmetries of such molecules we need to
understand their deformations. Topology is the area of mathematics
that analyzes how geometric objects can be deformed and which
properties of such an object will be preserved by deformations. In
this talk we will discuss how topology can be used to help us analyze
the symmetries of flexible molecules.
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