Laura Taalman is Professor of Mathematics at James Madison University, USA. She received her undergraduate degree from the University of Chicago and master's and PhD degrees in mathematics from Duke University. Her research includes singular algebraic geometry, knot theory, and the mathematics of games and puzzles. She is a recipient of both the Alder Award and the Trevor Evans award from the Mathematical Society of America, and the author of five books on Sudoku and the mathematics of Sudoku.

Peter Kohn is Professor of Mathematics at James Madison University, USA. He received his undergraduate degree from Antioch College, a master's degree from San Francisco State University, and a PhD in mathematics from the University of Texas at Austin. His main areas of research are low-dimensional topology and knot theory.