UQ Turing Test Public Lecture: Some Very Queer Mathematics

This public lecture by Professor Benjamin Burton, was part of "LGBTQIA+ STEM Celebrations at The University of Queensland: On the 75th Anniversary of the Turing Test", and took place at the UQ St Lucia campus on 16 October 2025. About the lecture: Alan Turing was a mathematician with a remarkable legacy, spanning computing, codebreaking, artificial intelligence, and mathematical logic - much of which was done before the first programmable computer. This talk explores Turing’s life and some of his most important and surprising results that still influence mathematics and computing today. It's for a mathematically-curious audience with no need for any specialist background. About the speaker: Benjamin Burton (he/him) is a Professor in the UQ School of Mathematics and Physics, where he teaches supercomputers how to untangle knots. His academic career spans geometry, cryptography, computer science and finance, and he has just finished serving as President of the International Olympiad in Informatics. Professor Burton is a prominent advocate for LGBTQIA+ inclusion in STEM, and an award-winning and engaging speaker who makes deep mathematics accessible and enjoyable to a wide range of audiences.