Skeletal 2-Groups and Category Theory
Skeletal 2-Groups and Category Theory
Nicholas Small ’25, Mathematics and Computer Science major
Haley Waiksnis ’25, Mathematics major
Alexander Stepanov ’26, Mathematics and Studio Art major
Faculty Mentor: Dr. Laura Murray, Mathematics and Computer Science
Poster Presentation: Wednesday, April 24, 11 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
Category theory, often humorously referred to as “abstract nonsense,” is a new field of mathematics that, in some respects, serves as an answer to the question “What is the fewest number of constraints we need to still be able to do math?” Building on set and group theory, categories put equal emphasis on both the elements of a set and the relationships between the elements. This mindset allows mathematicians to describe an incredibly diverse range of topics in a unified way. Within the wide realm of categories, our work focuses on Gr-categories, or 2-groups, which start to act more like groups while still placing heavy emphasis on the relationships that make categories so useful.
