Large annihilators in Cayley-Dickson algebras II
We establish many previously unknown properties of zero-divisors in Cayley-Dickson algebras. The basic approach is to use a certain splitting that simplifies computations surprisingly.
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arXiv subjects
Daniel C. Isaksen
Publications and source records attributed to Daniel C. Isaksen.
T-model structures
For every stable model category $\mathcal{M}$ with a certain extra structure, we produce an associated model structure on the pro-category pro-$\mathcal{M}$ and a spectral sequence, analogous to the Atiyah-Hirzebruch spectral sequence, with reasonably good convergence properties for computing in the homotopy category of pro-$\mathcal{M}$. Our motivating example is the category of pro-spectra. The extra structure referred to above is a t-model structure. This is a rigidification of the usual notion of a t-structure on a triangulated category. A t-model structure is a proper simplicial stable model category $\mathcal{M}$ with a t-structure on its homotopy category together with an additional factorization axiom.
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Etale homotopy and sums-of-squares formulas
This paper uses a relative of BP-cohomology to prove a theorem in characteristic p algebra. Specifically, we obtain some new necessary conditions for the existence of sums-of-squares formulas over fields of characteristic p > 2. These conditions were previously known in characteristic zero by results of Davis. Our proof uses a generalized etale cohomology theory called etale BP2.
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Large annihilators in Cayley-Dickson algebras
Cayley-Dickson algebras are an infinite sequence of non-associative algebras starting with the reals, complexes, quaternions, and octonions. We study the zero-divisors in the higher Cayley-Dickson algebras. In particular, we show that the annihilator of any element in the 2^n-dimensional Cayley-Dickson algebra has dimension at most 2^n-4n+4. Moroever, every multiple of four between 0 and this upper bound actually occurs as the dimension of some annihilator (a theorem of Moreno says that only multiples of four can occur). We completely describe all the zero-divisors whose annihilator has dimension 2^n-4n+4.
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Model structures on pro-categories
We introduce a notion of a filtered model structure and use this notion to produce various model structures on pro-categories. This framework generalizes several known examples. We give several examples, including a homotopy theory for $G$-spaces, where $G$ is a pro-finite group. The class of weak equivalences is an approximation to the class of underlying weak equivalences.
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Motivic cell structures
An object in motivic homotopy theory is called cellular if it can be built out of motivic spheres using homotopy colimit constructions. We explore some examples and consequences of cellularity. We explain why the algebraic K-theory and algebraic cobordism spectra are both cellular, and prove some Kunneth theorems for cellular objects.
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Duality and Pro-Spectra
Cofiltered diagrams of spectra, also called pro-spectra, have arisen in diverse areas, and to date have been treated in an ad hoc manner. The purpose of this paper is to systematically develop a homotopy theory of pro-spectra and to study its relation to the usual homotopy theory of spectra, as a foundation for future applications. The surprising result we find is that our homotopy theory of pro-spectra is Quillen equivalent to the opposite of the homotopy theory of spectra. This provides a convenient duality theory for all spectra, extending the classical notion of Spanier-Whitehead duality which works well only for finite spectra. Roughly speaking, the new duality functor takes a spectrum to the cofiltered diagram of the Spanier-Whitehead duals of its finite subcomplexes. In the other direction, the duality functor takes a cofiltered diagram of spectra to the filtered colimit of the Spanier-Whitehead duals of the spectra in the diagram. We prove the equivalence of homotopy theories by showing that both are equivalent to the category of ind-spectra (filtered diagrams of spectra). To construct our new homotopy theories, we prove a general existence theorem for colocalization model structures generalizing known results for cofibrantly generated model categories.
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Generalized cohomology of pro-spectra
We present a closed model structure for the category of pro-spectra in which the weak equivalences are detected by stable homotopy pro-groups. With some bounded-below assumptions, weak equivalences are also detected by cohomology as in the classical Whitehead theorem for spectra. We establish an Atiyah-Hirzebruch spectral sequence in this context, which makes possible the computation of topological K-theory (and other generalized cohomology theories) of pro-spectra.
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Algebraic K-theory and sums-of-squares formulas
We prove a result about the non-existence of certain sums-of-squares formulas over a field. This generalizes an old theorem which used topological K-theory to obtain obstruction conditions when the field is the real numbers. Our result applies to arbitrary fields not of characteristic 2, making use of algebraic K-theory in place of topological K-theory.
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Completions of pro-spaces
For every ring R, we present a pair of model structures on the category of pro-spaces. In the first, the weak equivalences are detected by cohomology with coefficients in R. In the second, the weak equivalences are detected by cohomology with coefficients in all R-modules (or equivalently by pro-homology with coefficients in R). In the second model structure, fibrant replacement is essentially just the Bousfield-Kan R-tower. When R = Z/p, the first homotopy category is equivalent to a homotopy theory defined by Morel but has some convenient categorical advantages.
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Flasque model structures for simplicial presheaves
By now it is well known that there are two useful (objectwise or local) families of model structures on presheaves: the injective and projective. In fact, there is at least one more: the flasque. For some purposes, both the projective and the injective structure run into technical and annoying (but surmountable) difficulties for different reasons. The flasque model structure, which possesses a combination of the convenient properties of both structures, sometimes avoids these difficulties.
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The Hopf condition for bilinear forms over arbitrary fields
We settle an old question about the existence of certain "sums-of-squares" formulas over a field F (which are the simplest examples of composition formulas for quadratic forms). A classical theorem says that if such a formula exists over a field of characteristic 0, then certain binomial coefficients must be even. We use motivic cohomology to prove that the same result holds in characteristic p.
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Hypercovers and simplicial presheaves
We prove that Jardine's model category of simplicial presheaves can be obtained by localizing the `discrete' version at the collection of all hypercovers. One consequence is that the fibrant objects can be explicitly identified in terms of a hypercover descent condition. Another is a very simple approach to change-of-site functors. In an appendix, we discuss how this hypercover localization compares to the more naive process of localizing at the Cech complexes; the two are not the same in general, but agree in some cases of interest.
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Etale realization on the A^1-homotopy theory of schemes
We compare Friedlander's definition of the etale topological type for simplicial schemes to another definition involving realizations of pro-simplicial sets. This can be expressed as a notion of hypercover descent for etale homotopy. We use this result to construct a homotopy invariant functor from the category of simplicial presheaves on the etale site of schemes over S to the category of pro-spaces. After completing away from the characteristics of the residue fields of S, we get a functor from the Morel-Voevodsky A^1-homotopy category of schemes to the homotopy category of pro-spaces.
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Obstruction Theory in Model Categories
Many examples of obstruction theory can be formulated as the study of when a lift exists in a commutative square. Typically, one of the maps is a cofibration of some sort and the opposite map is a fibration, and there is a functorial obstruction class that determines whether a lift exists. Working in an arbitrary pointed proper model category, we classify the cofibrations that have such an obstruction theory with respect to all fibrations. Up to weak equivalence, retract, and cobase change, they are the cofibrations with weakly contractible target. Equivalently, they are the retracts of principal cofibrations. Without properness, the same classification holds for cofibrations with cofibrant source. Our results dualize to give a classification of fibrations that have an obstruction theory.
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Weak equivalences of simplicial presheaves
The usual way of defining weak equivalences for simplicial presheaves is to require an isomorphism on all sheaves of homotopy groups. We unravel some of the machinery here, and give a more concrete description in terms of local homotopy lifting properties. This characterization is used to prove some basic facts about the local homotopy theory of simplicial presheaves.
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Hypercovers in topology
We show that if U is a hypercover of a topological space X then the natural map from hocolim U to X is a weak equivalence. This fact is used to construct topological realization functors for the A^1-homotopy theory of schemes over real and complex fields.
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Strict model structures for pro-categories
We show that C if is a proper model category, then the pro-category pro-C has a strict model structure in which the weak equivalences are the levelwise weak equivalences. The strict model structure is the starting point for many homotopy theories of pro-objects.
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