Another user asked a well received but unanswered question: whether knot theory has lead to the development of better knots. His question is similar to mine in as much as both of our questions ask about a relation between mathematical knots and real knots. However, my question differs in that it asks whether one would acquire a better understanding of real knots by learning about mathematical knots. (This isn't my motive for studying them; I'm just curious.) I suspect that the various real knots exemplify some common properties, and that the mathematical knots do so as well. Considering how similar both types of knots appear, it seems plausible that the set of properties exemplified by the the two types of knots intersect each other.
Does knot theory provide any insight into the way real knots work?
