Topology and geometry in polymer science

the long version

This book contains contributions from a workshop on topology and geometry of polymers, held at the IMA in June 1996, which brought together topologists, combinatorialists, theoretical physicists and polymer scientists, with a common interest in polymer topology. The book is of interest to workers in polymer statistical mechanics but will also be useful as an introduction to topological methods for polymer scientists, and will introduce mathematicians to an area of science where topological approaches are making a substantial contribution.