What motivated Lord Kelvin and Peter Guthrie Tait's study of knots?

Answer

Vortex theory of atoms hypothesized in the aether

The mathematical endeavor led by Lord Kelvin (William Thomson) and Peter Guthrie Tait in the mid-to-late 1800s was deeply rooted in the scientific theories prevalent at that time concerning the structure of matter. Specifically, they were driven by the vortex theory of atoms. This hypothesis posited that atoms were stable structures represented by knotted whirls existing within the luminiferous aether, which was the supposed medium filling all space. Consequently, if this theory were correct, every distinct chemical element should correspond precisely to a unique type of knot or link configuration. Their subsequent Herculean effort to catalog every possible knot configuration was a direct attempt to empirically test and validate this physical model of the universe, inadvertently establishing the foundations of modern knot theory.

What motivated Lord Kelvin and Peter Guthrie Tait's study of knots?

Related Questions

What motivated Lord Kelvin and Peter Guthrie Tait's study of knots?Knot theory emerged as a branch of which abstract mathematical field?What mathematical descriptors are sought to distinguish non-equivalent knots?What allowed two knot diagrams to represent the same mathematical knot?What significant leap in knot theory followed the initial attempts by Thomson and Tait?Which physicist connected quantum field theories to topological invariants like the Jones polynomial?What distinguishes the analytical "knot system" from prehistory knot tying?What specific area of study was Johann Benedict Listing noted for in early topology?What was the immediate purpose of cataloging knot configurations by Kelvin and Tait?Besides quantum gravity, what current area applies knot mathematics to physical structures?
inventionHistoryknowledgesystemknot