Lickorish-Wallace theorem

proper noun

The theorem that any closed, orientable, connected 3-manifold may be obtained by performing Dehn surgery on a framed link in the 3-sphere with ±1 surgery coefficients, and that each component of the link can be assumed to be unknotted.

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Meanings

proper noun
  1. mathematicsThe theorem that any closed, orientable, connected 3-manifold may be obtained by performing Dehn surgery on a framed link in the 3-sphere with ±1 surgery coefficients, and that each component of the link can be assumed to be unknotted.

Origin

The theorem was proved independently in the early 1960s by W. B. R. Lickorish and Andrew H. Wallace.

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Cite this entry
APA

Lickorish-Wallace theorem. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Lickorish-Wallace%20theorem

MLA

“Lickorish-Wallace theorem.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Lickorish-Wallace%20theorem. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Lickorish-Wallace theorem,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Lickorish-Wallace%20theorem.

Source: Lickorish-Wallace theorem on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.