Homotopy Invariant Algebraic Structures On Topological Spaces

This volume presents the proceedings of the conference held in honor of J. Michael Boardman's 60th birthday. It brings into print his classic work on conditionally convergent spectral sequences. Over the past 30 years, it has become evident that some of the deepest questions in algebra are best understood against the background of homotopy theory. Boardman and Vogt's theory of homotopy-theoretic algebraic structures and the theory of spectra, for example, were two benchmark breakthroughs underlying the development of algebraic $K$-theory and the recent advances in the theory of motives. The volume begins with short notes by Mac Lane, May, Stasheff, and others on the early and recent history of the subject. But the bulk of the volume consists of research papers on topics that have been strongly influenced by Boardman's work. Articles give readers a vivid sense of the current state of the theory of "homotopy-invariant algebraic structures". Also included are two major foundational papers by Goerss and Strickland on applications of methods of algebra (i.e., Dieudonné modules and formal schemes) to problems of topology. Boardman is known for the depth and wit of his ideas. This volume is intended to reflect and to celebrate those fine characteristics.

This volume deals with the theory of finite topological spaces and its relationship with the homotopy and simple homotopy theory of polyhedra. The interaction between their intrinsic combinatorial and topological structures makes finite spaces a useful tool for studying problems in Topology, Algebra and Geometry from a new perspective. In particular, the methods developed in this manuscript are used to study Quillen's conjecture on the poset of p-subgroups of a finite group and the Andrews-Curtis conjecture on the 3-deformability of contractible two-dimensional complexes. This self-contained work constitutes the first detailed exposition on the algebraic topology of finite spaces. It is intended for topologists and combinatorialists, but it is also recommended for advanced undergraduate students and graduate students with a modest knowledge of Algebraic Topology.

Algebraic Topology is a system and strategy of partial translations, aiming to reduce difficult topological problems to algebraic facts that can be more easily solved. The main subject of this book is singular homology, the simplest of these translations. Studying this theory and its applications, we also investigate its underlying structural layout - the topics of Homological Algebra, Homotopy Theory and Category Theory which occur in its foundation.This book is an introduction to a complex domain, with references to its advanced parts and ramifications. It is written with a moderate amount of prerequisites — basic general topology and little else — and a moderate progression starting from a very elementary beginning. A consistent part of the exposition is organised in the form of exercises, with suitable hints and solutions.It can be used as a textbook for a semester course or self-study, and a guidebook for further study.

Homotopy theory and C* algebras are central topics in contemporary mathematics. This book introduces a modern homotopy theory for C*-algebras. One basic idea of the setup is to merge C*-algebras and spaces studied in algebraic topology into one category comprising C*-spaces. These objects are suitable fodder for standard homotopy theoretic moves, leading to unstable and stable model structures. With the foundations in place one is led to natural definitions of invariants for C*-spaces such as homology and cohomology theories, K-theory and zeta-functions. The text is largely self-contained. It serves a wide audience of graduate students and researchers interested in C*-algebras, homotopy theory and applications.

The main theme of this book is that the use of filtered spaces rather than just topological spaces allows the development of basic algebraic topology in terms of higher homotopy groupoids; these algebraic structures better reflect the geometry of subdivision and composition than those commonly in use. Exploration of these uses of higher dimensional versions of groupoids has been largely the work of the first two authors since the mid 1960s. The structure of the book is intended to make it useful to a wide class of students and researchers for learning and evaluating these methods, primarily in algebraic topology but also in higher category theory and its applications in analogous areas of mathematics, physics, and computer science. Part I explains the intuitions and theory in dimensions 1 and 2, with many figures and diagrams, and a detailed account of the theory of crossed modules. Part II develops the applications of crossed complexes. The engine driving these applications is the work of Part III on cubical $\omega$-groupoids, their relations to crossed complexes, and their homotopically defined examples for filtered spaces. Part III also includes a chapter suggesting further directions and problems, and three appendices give accounts of some relevant aspects of category theory. Endnotes for each chapter give further history and references.