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One of my goals as an academic is to facilitate collaborations between my field ("pure algebra") and other sciences. We can't expect administrative staff (for instance, the Dean of Science) to help much with this. So it's our responsibility, as scientists, to find alternatives.

(Q1) Would it make sense to add a MathOverflow feature with this in mind? The intent would be to give references to papers, list a few "open problems" in the field; and then find collaborators. MathOverflow could add a "tag" saying "applied algebra project"; and those interested could reply to the question with their specific projects that they'd like to collaborate on.

(Q2) Are there any websites which would be useful for finding collaborators? Poly-Math isn't ideal either; it's intended for very specific projects.

I've listed some topics below.

(#1) Topological quantum computing (uses Jones polynomial and braid groups)

(#2) Geometric complexity theory (approach to P=NP that uses algebraic geometry)

(#3) Algebraic data science (approaches to data science that use algebra - for instance, category theory; or persistent homology)

(#4) Algebraic statistics (for instance, Sturmfels-Pachter "Algebraic statistics for computational biology")

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    $\begingroup$ Could you elaborate on specific properties of this "feature" that you have in mind? Right now it looks rather vague. $\endgroup$
    – S. Carnahan Mod
    Commented Apr 11, 2018 at 4:37
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    $\begingroup$ You might look for earlier posts in meta and on MathOverflow about finding collaborators. Unless you have a specific feature in mind, I suggest you place such requests on your MathOverflow user page, and make occasional references to this in your other forum postings. Gerhard "That's How I Did It" Paseman, 2018.04.10. $\endgroup$
    – Gerhard Paseman
    Commented Apr 11, 2018 at 4:50
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    $\begingroup$ Somewhat related older post: Where/how does one best post “Seeking a collaborator”. (Maybe you can find some other posts on this topic.) $\endgroup$
    – Martin Sleziak
    Commented Apr 11, 2018 at 5:03
  • $\begingroup$ Scott, thanks for the reply. Please see my amended post, #1. $\endgroup$
    – Puraṭci Vinnani
    Commented Apr 11, 2018 at 9:14

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To my way of thinking, MathOverflow is already great for facilitating collaborations. Personally, I've had half a dozen fruitful collaborations grow directly out of MathOverflow questions and answers, resulting in research publications and in many cases, continuing research efforts on related topics. And I think this is rather common; there must be many dozens of such collaborations arising on MathOverlow.

So if you are seeking to use MathOverflow for collaboration, I'd recommend simply that you post interesting questions and answers on the mathematical topics that interest you. Those who have the interest and knowledge will also be posting, and in this way you'll have found your collaboration partners.

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