Twisted second homology groups of the automorphism group of a free group

In this paper, we compute the second homology groups of the automorphism group of a free group with coefficients in the abelianization of the free group and its dual group except for the 2-torsion part, using combinatorial group theory.     

A presentation for the mapping class group of the closed non-orientable surface of genus 4

In [B. Szepietowski, A presentation for the mapping class group of a non-orientable surface from the action on the complex of curves, Osaka J. Math. 45 (2008) 283-326] we proposed a method of finding a finite presentation for the mapping class group of a non-orientable surface by using its action on the so called ordered complex of curves. In this paper we use this method to obtain an explicit finite presentation for the mapping class group of the closed non-orientable surface of genus 4. The set of generators in this presentation consists of 5 Dehn twists, 3 crosscap transpositions and one involution, and it can be immediately reduced to the generating set found by Chillingworth [D.R.J. Chillingworth, A finite set of generators for the homeotopy group of a non-orientable surface, Proc. Camb. Phil. Soc. 65 (1969) 409-430].     

Probability that the commutator of two group elements is equal to a given element

In this paper we study the probability that the commutator of two randomly chosen elements in a finite group is equal to a given element of that group. Explicit computations are obtained for groups G which |G^′| is prime and G^′≤Z(G) as well as for groups G which |G^′| is prime and G^′∩Z(G)=1. This paper extends results of Rusin [see D.J. Rusin, What is the probability that two elements of a finite group commute? Pacific J. Math. 82 (1) (1979) 237-247].     

Spin invariant theory for the symmetric group

We formulate a theory of invariants for the spin symmetric group in some suitable modules which involve the polynomial and exterior algebras. We solve the corresponding graded multiplicity problem in terms of specializations of the Schur Q-functions and a shifted q-hook formula. In addition, we provide a bijective proof for a formula of the principal specialization of the Schur Q-functions.     

The group of endotrivial modules in the normal case

The group of endotrivial modules has recently been determined for a finite group having a normal Sylow p-subgroup. In this paper, we give and compare three different presentations of a torsion-free subgroup of maximal rank of the group of endotrivial modules. Finally, we illustrate the constructions in an example.     

Grothendieck group and generalized mutation rule for 2-Calabi-Yau triangulated categories

We compute the Grothendieck group of certain 2-Calabi-Yau triangulated categories appearing naturally in the study of the link between quiver representations and Fomin-Zelevinsky cluster algebras. In this setup, we also prove a generalization of the Fomin-Zelevinsky mutation rule.     

Countably compact topological group topologies on free Abelian groups from selective ultrafilters

Tkachenko showed in 1990 the existence of a countably compact group topology on the free Abelian group of size c using CH. Koszmider, Tomita and Watson showed in 2000 the existence of a countably compact group topology on the free Abelian group of size c² using a forcing model in which CH holds.Wallace's question from 1955, asks whether every both-sided cancellative countably compact semigroup is a topological group. A counterexample to Wallace's question has been called a Wallace semigroup. In 1996, Robbie and Svetlichny constructed a Wallace semigroup under CH. In the same year, Tomita constructed a Wallace semigroup from MAcountable.In this note, we show that the examples of Tkachenko, Robbie and Svetlichny, and Koszmider, Tomita and Watson can be obtained using a family of selective ultrafilters. As a corollary, the constructions presented here are compatible with the total failure of Martin's Axiom.     

Complex group algebras of finite groups: Brauer's Problem 1

Brauer's Problem 1 asks the following: What are the possible complex group algebras of finite groups? It seems that with the present knowledge of representation theory it is not possible to settle this question. The goal of this paper is to present a partial solution to this problem. We conjecture that if the complex group algebra of a finite group does not have more than a fixed number m of isomorphic summands, then its dimension is bounded in terms of m. We prove that this is true for every finite group if it is true for the symmetric groups. The problem for symmetric groups reduces to an explicitly stated question in number theory or combinatorics.     

The vertices and sources of the basic spin module for the symmetric group in characteristic 2

In this article we determine the vertices and sources of the basic spin module for the symmetric group S_n of degree n over a field of characteristic 2.     

Dressing preserving the fundamental group

In this note we consider the relationship between the dressing action and the holonomy representation in the context of constant mean curvature surfaces. We characterize dressing elements that preserve the topology of a surface and discuss dressing by simple factors as a means of adding bubbles to a class of non-finite type cylinders.     

Inner products on the Hecke algebra of the braid group

We claim that the Homfly polynomial (that is to say, Ocneanu's trace functional) contains two polynomial-valued inner products on the Hecke algebra representation of Artin's braid group. These bear a close connection to the Morton-Franks-Williams inequality. With respect to these structures, the set of positive, respectively negative permutation braids becomes an orthonormal basis. In the second case, many inner products can be geometrically interpreted through Legendrian fronts and rulings.     

The nonexistence of expansive commutative group actions on Peano continua having free dendrites

A dendrite D in a metric space X is said to be free if there exists a connected open set U in X such that . In this paper, we prove that there is no expansive commutative group action on any Peano continuum having a free dendrite. In particular, no 1-dimensional compact ANR admits an expansive commutative group action.     

On the orthogonal basis of the symmetry classes of tensors associated with the dicyclic group

A necessary and sufficient condition for the existence of orthogonal basis of decomposable symmetrized tensors for the symmetry classes of tensors associated with the dicyclic group is given. In particular we apply these conditions to the generalized quaternion group, for which the dimensions of the symmetry classes of tensors are computed.     

On bipartite divisor graphs for group conjugacy class sizes

In this paper we study various properties of a bipartite graph related to the sizes of the conjugacy classes of a finite group. It is proved that some invariants of the graph are rather strongly connected to the group structure. In particular we prove that the diameter is at most 6, and classify those groups for which the graphs have diameter 6. Moreover, if the graph is acyclic then the diameter is shown to be at most 5, and groups for which the graph is a path of length 5 are characterised.     

Determining whether a finite group of outer automorphisms of a free group is geometric

In this article we give necessary and sufficient conditions for a given finite group of outer automorphisms to be induced by the action of a group of orientation-preserving homeomorphisms on the fundamental group of a punctured surface. When the group is abelian, necessary and sufficient conditions can also be given in the absence of orientability assumptions. These properties are formulated in terms of the finite automorphism groups which project into the given outer automorphism group: each non-trivial automorphism in any such group can fix at most a cyclic subgroup of the fundamental group.     

A new Lindelöf topological group

We show that the subsemigroup of the product of ω₁-many circles generated by the L-space constructed by J. Moore is again an L-space. This leads to a new example of a Lindelöf topological group. The question whether all finite powers of this group are Lindelöf remains open.     

Identifications in modular group algebras

Let G be a group, S a subgroup of G, and F a field of characteristic p. We denote the augmentation ideal of the group algebra FG by ω(G). The Zassenhaus-Jennings-Lazard series of G is defined by D_n(G)=G∩(1+ωⁿ(G)). We give a constructive proof of a theorem of Quillen stating that the graded algebra associated with FG is isomorphic as an algebra to the enveloping algebra of the restricted Lie algebra associated with the D_n(G). We then extend a theorem of Jennings that provides a basis for the quotient ωⁿ(G)/ωⁿ⁺¹(G) in terms of a basis of the restricted Lie algebra associated with the D_n(G). We shall use these theorems to prove the main results of this paper. For G a finite p-group and n a positive integer, we prove that G∩(1+ω(G)ωⁿ(S))=D_n+1(S) and G∩(1+ω²(G)ωⁿ(S))=D_n+2(S)D_n+1(S∩D₂(G)). The analogous results for integral group rings of free groups have been previously obtained by Gruenberg, Hurley, and Sehgal.     

A characterization of the finite simple group L<Subscript>16</Subscript>(2) by its prime graph

In this paper as the main result we prove that the projective special linear group L ₁₆(2) is uniquely determined by its prime graph. In fact we give a positive answer to an open problem arose in Zavarnitsin (Algebra Logic 43(4), 220–231, 2006) and we obtain a first example of a finite group with connected prime graph which is uniquely determined by its prime graph. This research was in part supported by a grant from IPM (No. 86200023).     

Index-subgroups of the Nottingham group

It is known that every countably based pro-p group embeds as a closed subgroup into the Nottingham group . At the same time the subgroup structure of remains rather mysterious. In this paper, we introduce the class of so-called index-subgroups of and study their fundamental properties.Two main applications are given. (i) We prove that a certain infinite subclass of index-subgroups provides new examples of hereditarily just-infinite pro-p groups of finite width. (ii) We determine which Hausdorff dimensions occur for index-subgroups and subsequently show that the Hausdorff spectrum of begins with a proper interval.     

Lévy group and density measures

We will deal with finitely additive measures on integers extending the asymptotic density. We will study their relation to the Lévy group G of permutations of N. Using a new characterization of the Lévy group G we will prove that a finitely additive measure extends density if and only if it is G-invariant.