Characteristic for reflexive relations

Poincaré characteristic for reflexive relations (oriented graphs) is defined in terms of homology and is not invariant under transitive closure. Formulas for the Poincaré characteristic of products, joins, and bounded products are given. Euler's definition of characteristic extends to certain filtrations of reflexive relations which exist iff there are no oriented loops. Euler characteristic is independent of filtration, agrees with Poincaré characteristic, and is unique. One-sided Möbius characteristic is defined as the sum of all values of a one-sided inverse of the zeta function. Such one-sided inverses exist iff there are no local oriented loops (although there may be global oriented loops). One-sided Möbius characteristic need not be Poincaré characteristic, but it is when a one-sided local transitivity condition is satisfied. A two-sided local transitivity condition insures the existence of the Möbius function but Möbius inversion fails for non-posets.     

Crossed modules as homotopy normal maps

In this note we consider crossed modules of groups (N→G, G→Aut(N)), as a homotopy version of the inclusion N⊂G of a normal subgroup. Our main observation is a characterization of the underlying map N→G of a crossed module in terms of a simplicial group structure on the associated bar construction. This approach allows for “natural” generalizations to other monoidal categories, in particular we consider briefly what we call “normal maps” between simplicial groups.     

Three models for the homotopy theory of homotopy theories

Given any model category, or more generally any category with weak equivalences, its simplicial localization is a simplicial category which can rightfully be called the “homotopy theory” of the model category. There is a model category structure on the category of simplicial categories, so taking its simplicial localization yields a “homotopy theory of homotopy theories”. In this paper we show that there are two different categories of diagrams of simplicial sets, each equipped with an appropriate definition of weak equivalence, such that the resulting homotopy theories are each equivalent to the homotopy theory arising from the model category structure on simplicial categories. Thus, any of these three categories with the respective weak equivalences could be considered a model for the homotopy theory of homotopy theories. One of them in particular, Rezk’s complete Segal space model category structure on the category of simplicial spaces, is much more convenient from the perspective of making calculations and therefore obtaining information about a given homotopy theory.     

A constructive proof of Ky Fan's generalization of Tucker's lemma

We present a proof of Ky Fan's combinatorial lemma on labellings of triangulated spheres that differs from earlier proofs in that it is constructive. We slightly generalize the hypotheses of Fan's lemma to allow for triangulations of Sⁿ that contain a flag of hemispheres. As a consequence, we can obtain a constructive proof of Tucker's lemma that holds for a more general class of triangulations than the usual version.     

Ghosts in modular representation theory

A ghost over a finite p-group G is a map between modular representations of G which is invisible in Tate cohomology. Motivated by the failure of the generating hypothesis—the statement that ghosts between finite-dimensional G-representations factor through a projective—we define the ghost number of kG to be the smallest integer l such that the composite of any l ghosts between finite-dimensional G-representations factors through a projective. In this paper we study ghosts and the ghost numbers of p-groups. We begin by showing that a weaker version of the generating hypothesis, where the target of the ghost is fixed to be the trivial representation k, holds for all p-groups. We then compute the ghost numbers of all cyclic p-groups and all abelian 2-groups with C₂ as a summand. We obtain bounds on the ghost numbers for abelian p-groups and for all 2-groups which have a cyclic subgroup of index 2. Using these bounds we determine the finite abelian groups which have ghost number at most 2. Our methods involve techniques from group theory, representation theory, triangulated category theory, and constructions motivated from homotopy theory.     

Ordered topological structures

The paper discusses interactions between order and topology on a given set which do not presuppose any separation conditions for either of the two structures, but which lead to the existing notions established by Nachbin in more special situations. We pursue this discussion at the much more general level of lax algebras, so that our categories do not concern just ordered topological spaces, but also sets with two interacting orders, approach spaces with an additional metric, etc.     

Multiple harmonic series related to multiple Euler numbers

In this paper, we define the multiple Euler numbers and consider some multiple harmonic series of Mordell-Tornheim's type, which is a partial sum of the Mordell-Tornheim zeta series defined by Matsumoto. Indeed, we prove a certain reducibility of these series as well as the multiple zeta values.     

Homotopy Conley index for discrete multivalued dynamical systems

We define an index of Conley type for a certain class of upper semicontinuous multivalued dynamical systems. We use the Szymczak functor and apply techniques introduced by Reineck, Mrozek and Srzednicki for the index over the base. Moreover we introduce the notion of the homotopy partial functor for the usc maps. We show that the index possesses Wa?ewski and homotopy properties. We also give four examples that exhibit the benefits of our index over the cohomological index defined by Mrozek and Kaczyński.     

Configuration spaces are not homotopy invariant

We present a counterexample to the conjecture on the homotopy invariance of configuration spaces. More precisely, we consider the lens spaces L_7,1 and L_7,2, and prove that their configuration spaces are not homotopy equivalent by showing that their universal coverings have different Massey products.     

A theorem of Jon F. Carlson on filtrations of modules

We give an alternative proof to a theorem of Carlson [J.F. Carlson, Cohomology and induction from elementary abelian subgroups, Quart. J. Math. 51 (2000) 169-181] which states that if G is a finite group and k is a field of characteristic p, then any kG-module is a direct summand of a module which has a filtration whose sections are induced from elementary abelian p-subgroups of G. We also prove two new theorems which are closely related to Carlson’s theorem.     

Lifting homotopy T-algebra maps to strict maps

The settings for homotopical algebra—categories such as simplicial groups, simplicial rings, _A∞$A_{\infty }$ spaces, _E∞$E_{\infty }$ ring spectra, etc.—are often equivalent to categories of algebras over some monad or triple T. In such cases, T is acting on a nice simplicial model category in such a way that T descends to a monad on the homotopy category and defines a category of homotopy T-algebras. In this setting there is a forgetful functor from the homotopy category of T-algebras to the category of homotopy T-algebras.     

Simple homotopy types and finite spaces

We present a new approach to simple homotopy theory of polyhedra using finite topological spaces. We define the concept of collapse of a finite space and prove that this new notion corresponds exactly to the concept of a simplicial collapse. More precisely, we show that a collapse X↘Y of finite spaces induces a simplicial collapse K(X)↘K(Y) of their associated simplicial complexes. Moreover, a simplicial collapse K↘L induces a collapse X(K)↘X(L) of the associated finite spaces. This establishes a one-to-one correspondence between simple homotopy types of finite simplicial complexes and simple equivalence classes of finite spaces. We also prove a similar result for maps: We give a complete characterization of the class of maps between finite spaces which induce simple homotopy equivalences between the associated polyhedra. This class describes all maps coming from simple homotopy equivalences at the level of complexes. The advantage of this theory is that the elementary move of finite spaces is much simpler than the elementary move of simplicial complexes: It consists of removing (or adding) just a single point of the space.     

Comparability graphs of lattices

A theorem of N. Terai and T. Hibi for finite distributive lattices and a theorem of Hibi for finite modular lattices (suggested by R.P. Stanley) are equivalent to the following: if a finite distributive or modular lattice of rank d contains a complemented rank 3 interval, then the lattice is (d+1)-connected.In this paper, the following generalization is proved: Let L be a (finite or infinite) semimodular lattice of rank d that is not a chain (d∈N₀). Then the comparability graph of L is (d+1)-connected if and only if L has no simplicial elements, where z∈L is simplicial if the elements comparable to z form a chain.     

Locally definable homotopy

In [E. Baro, M. Otero, On o-minimal homotopy, Quart. J. Math. (2009) 15pp, in press (doi:10.1093/qmath/hap011)] o-minimal homotopy was developed for the definable category, proving o-minimal versions of the Hurewicz theorems and the Whitehead theorem. Here, we extend these results to the category of locally definable spaces, for which we introduce homology and homotopy functors. We also study the concept of connectedness in ?-definable groups — which are examples of locally definable spaces. We show that the various concepts of connectedness associated to these groups, which have appeared in the literature, are non-equivalent.     

Cambrian lattices

For an arbitrary finite Coxeter group W, we define the family of Cambrian lattices for W as quotients of the weak order on W with respect to certain lattice congruences. We associate to each Cambrian lattice a complete fan, which we conjecture is the normal fan of a polytope combinatorially isomorphic to the generalized associahedron for W. In types A and B we obtain, by means of a fiber-polytope construction, combinatorial realizations of the Cambrian lattices in terms of triangulations and in terms of permutations. Using this combinatorial information, we prove in types A and B that the Cambrian fans are combinatorially isomorphic to the normal fans of the generalized associahedra and that one of the Cambrian fans is linearly isomorphic to Fomin and Zelevinsky's construction of the normal fan as a “cluster fan.” Our construction does not require a crystallographic Coxeter group and therefore suggests a definition, at least on the level of cellular spheres, of a generalized associahedron for any finite Coxeter group. The Tamari lattice is one of the Cambrian lattices of type A, and two “Tamari” lattices in type B are identified and characterized in terms of signed pattern avoidance. We also show that open intervals in Cambrian lattices are either contractible or homotopy equivalent to spheres.     

Homomorphisms of homotopy coalgebras

In this paper we consider the theory of higher order homotopy coalgebras as a collection of spaces between co-H-spaces and suspensions, which dualizes Stasheff's theory of Ak-spaces when these are defined through Ak-structures. Moreover we extend two Berstein-Hilton theorems which deal with the primitive homotopy type of a suspension and the class of a suspension map, respectively.     

Commutator theory, action groupoids, and an intrinsic Schreier-Mac Lane extension theorem

Beyond groups of automorphisms in the category Gp of groups and Lie-algebras of derivations in the category K-Lie of Lie algebras, there are structures of internal groupoids (called action groupoids) in both categories. They allow a synthesis of the notion of obstruction to extensions. This leads, in any pointed protomodular category C with split extension classifiers, to a general treatment of non-abelian extensions which can be understood as morphisms in a certain groupoid TorsC.