Math 8307 (Algebraic Topology II), Spring 2009


Here is a rough outline of what has been covered in class and when it was covered. Please let me know if I have forgotten something (or claim that I covered something that I haven't!), and I'll try to keep this page up-to-date.

Lecture material
DateTopics
Jan. 21The homotopy category, homotopy groups
Jan. 23Action of the fundamental group, relative homotopy groups
Jan. 26Long exact sequence of relative groups, examples
Jan. 28Covering spaces, unique disc lifting (HW1 due)
Jan. 30Fibrations, the homotopy lifting property
Feb. 2Converting maps to inclusions and fibrations
Feb. 4Cofibrations (HW2 due)
Feb. 6Function spaces, cofibrations and fibrations are dual
Feb. 9Loop spaces, iterated loop spaces
Feb. 11The Puppe sequence, CW approximation (HW3 due)
Feb. 13The Whitehead theorem
Feb. 16Connective covers and Postnikov stages
Feb. 18The Postnikov tower, Eilenberg-Maclane spaces (HW4 due)
Feb. 20No class
Feb. 23The Blakers-Massey excision theorem, Freudenthal suspension
Feb. 25Stability
Feb. 27The Hurewicz theorem
Mar. 2The singular complex, equivalences in homotopy theory
Mar. 4Spectral sequences (HW5 due)
Mar. 6Spectral sequences, extension problems
Mar. 9Cohomology of matrix groups and K(Z/n,1)s
Mar. 11K(Z,2), K(Z/2,2), pi_4 and pi_5 of S^3 (HW6 due)
Mar. 13Finiteness and finite generation of homology, cohomology, and homotopy
Mar. 16
Mar. 18
Mar. 20
Spring break (no classes)
Mar. 23How spectral sequences arise
Mar. 25Spectral sequences associated to double complexes (HW7 due)
Mar. 27Rational homotopy groups
Mar. 30Eilenberg-Maclane spaces represent cohomology
Apr. 1Extended powers, homotopy orbits, Steenrod squares (HW8 due)
Apr. 3Adem relations, admissible monomials, excess, Hopf invariant
Apr. 6Transgressions, cohomology of Eilenberg-Maclane spaces at 2
Apr. 8Deducing homotopy groups from cohomology (HW9 due)
Apr. 10Bordism theory
Apr. 13Bordism is a homology theory, basic calculations
Apr. 15Oriented bordism and other variants (HW10 due)
Apr. 17Normal bundles, stable normal bundles
Apr. 20Thom spaces and Pontriagin-Thom collapse
Apr. 22The map from bordism to homotopy of Thom spaces
Apr. 24The map from homotopy of Thom spaces to bordism
Apr. 27Homology of Thom spaces
Apr. 29The Thom isomorphism theorem
May 1The Gysin sequence and relations between Grassmannians
May 4 
May 6 
May 8