Author Archives: Irving Dai

About Irving Dai

Irving is a fourth-year graduate student studying topology and geometry at Princeton University. His mathematical interests include gauge theory and related Floer homologies. In his spare time he plays the violin (occasionally, and usually badly). He is fond of cats.

Riddle of the Month (October)

Hi! This month, I thought I would take a brief break from writing about gauge theory to share a puzzle which I heard recently. As usual, if you have any riddles or puzzles that you think are interesting, send them … Continue reading

Posted in Math Games, puzzles | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Gauge Theory and Low-Dimensional Topology (Part II: Smooth Four-Manifolds)

In the last post, I attempted to give an overview of the state of affairs in four-manifold topology leading up to the introduction of gauge theory. In particular, we discussed the correspondence between (topological) four-manifolds and their intersection forms afforded by … Continue reading

Posted in Math, Topology | Tagged , | 2 Comments

Gauge Theory and Low-Dimensional Topology (Part I: Historical Context)

Hi! This month, I thought I would start a brief series of articles describing the uses of gauge theory in mathematics. Rather than discuss current research directions in gauge theory (of which there are many), I hope to give an … Continue reading

Posted in Math, Topology | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Riddle of the Month (November)

Welcome back to this month’s mathematical riddle (and can you believe it’s almost December)! Today we have a neat logic puzzle with an amusing twist on the traditional knight-or-knave problems that are popular in the literature.

Posted in Math Games, puzzles, Uncategorized | 2 Comments

Riddle of the Month (September)

Hi, and welcome back from the summer to a new series of mathematical riddles! I’ve decided to include only one riddle per post this semester, which will hopefully mean that I’ll be able to keep a more consistent posting schedule. … Continue reading

Posted in Math, Math Games, puzzles | Tagged , , , | 7 Comments