The signature of a meander

We provide a recursive classification of meander graphs, showing that each meander is identified by a unique sequence of fundamental graph-theoretic moves. This sequence is called the meander's signature. The signature not only provides a fast algorithm for the computation of the index of a Lie algebra associated with the meander, but also allows for the speedy determination of the graph's plane homotopy type - a finer invariant than the index. The signature can be used to construct arbitrarily large sets of meanders, Frobenius and otherwise, of any given size and configuration. Making use of a more refined signature, we are able to prove an important conjecture of Gerstenhaber & Giaquinto: The spectrum of the adjoint of a principal element in a Frobenius seaweed Lie algebra consists of an unbroken chain of integers. Additionally, we show the dimensions of the associated eigenspaces to be unimodal. In certain special cases, the signature is used to produce an explicit formula for the index of a seaweed Lie subalgebra of sl(n) in terms of elementary functions.