Notes of a Travelling Mathematician

(Lieder eines fahrenden Gelehrten)

Years of wandering across six countries and three continents have unfolded my mathematical path into a long journey through shifting landscapes. The ideas I follow gently shape the direction, while curiosity sets the pace. The world of mathematics may be rigorous and precise, but it leaves plenty of room for a travelling mathematician who finds delight and comfort in the small surprises hidden inside it.

Along the way, I have been fortunate to meet wonderful colleagues – fellow wanderers in their own right – some arriving with the kind of unexpected transformations one encounters in a true wanderer's fantasy, reshaping the movement of the journey. Many of my collaborations began as conversations in unfamiliar places, and they remain the most rewarding parts of this journey.

I have also taught generations of students, each bringing their own questions and ways of seeing. If I have managed anything worthwhile, I hope it is that some of them discovered that mathematics is not something to fear, but something that becomes friendlier the more one dares to explore it.

What I work on

My research lies at the confluence of algebra, combinatorics, and discrete mathematics. I study the structural relationships among functions and operations – particularly clones, clonoids, minions, and related constructs – to understand how these frameworks capture complexity, symmetry, and definability within discrete systems. This work often combines algebraic and combinatorial methods, contributing to the broader theory of the foundations of discrete mathematics.

Executive summary: Finding hidden patterns where algebra and combinatorics quietly play together.

Where I work

Contact

Email: symmetric (you know which symbol to insert here) n-ary dot fi