Abstract: Issai Schur's 1901 Ph.D. dissertation on the representations of the general linear group of invertible n by n matrices was the thesis that launched a thousand papers. It has influenced work on symmetric functions, diagram algebras, knot and link invariants, combinatorics, and much more. This talk will survey results (old and new) which have their origins in Schur's amazing thesis.
This talk will be accessible to graduate students.