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James Belk is a Lecturer in Pure Mathematics at the University of Glasgow, where he works in the School of Mathematics & Statistics. His research interests encompass a wide range of topics in mathematics, including geometric group theory, dynamical systems, and fractal geometry. He is particularly interested in the behavior of discrete groups acting on topological spaces, with an emphasis on homeomorphisms and Thompson's groups. His work explores various aspects of self-similar groups, computability issues, and the finiteness properties related to embeddings in different contexts. In the area of dynamical systems, Dr. Belk focuses on complex dynamics, particularly the Thurston equivalence of branched covers and the connections to mapping class groups. His interests also extend to Teichmüller theory and quasiconformal geometry, alongside the dynamics of homeomorphisms and symbolic dynamics. He is actively involved in supervising studies and research related to braid groups and their structures as well as automata theory within group theory.