The incompatibility of crossing number and bridge number for knot diagrams

Abstract We study methods for computing the bridge number of a knot from a knot diagram. We prove equivalence between a geometric and a combinatorial definition of the bridge number of a knot diagram. For each notion of diagrammatic bridge number considered, we find crossing number minimizing knot diagrams which fail to minimize bridge number. Furthermore, we construct a family of minimal crossing diagrams for which the difference between diagrammatic bridge number and the actual bridge number of the knot grows to infinity.