Knot genus

Okay kiddo, have you ever played with a piece of string and tried to tie it into a knot? Knot genus is a way to measure how many twists and turns you have to make in order to tie that string into a knot.

Let's say you have a really simple piece of string that only needs one twist to create a knot. That knot would have a genus of 1. But if you have a more complicated piece of string that requires several twists and turns to make a knot, the genus could be higher.

Think of it like a puzzle. The string is like the pieces and you're trying to put them together to make a knot. The more pieces you have, the harder the puzzle is and the higher the genus of the knot.

Scientists use knot genus to study things like DNA molecules and the structure of proteins. They can also use it to classify different types of knots and understand how they behave.

So, in summary, knot genus is a way to measure how many twists and turns you have to make in order to tie a string into a knot. The more complicated the knot, the higher the genus. And scientists use it to study things like molecules and proteins.