Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2009/iii/paper-23/8/b/solution
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2009 iii Paper 23 8 b Solution by
Codex 0 Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-14
For each algebra for a monad , consider the specific pair in Then the exact condition isEach pair is reflexive, with common section : the two composite identities follow from and . Thus existence of all reflexive coequalizers is sufficient, but the displayed specified pairs give the necessary-and-sufficient condition.
To prove it, take and its adjoint transpose . The transpose of is , by naturality of . The transpose of isMoreover counit naturality and a triangle identity giveBecause transposition is bijective, the coequalizing equation is therefore equivalent toThe right side says exactly that is a monad algebra morphism.
For sufficiency, choose a coequalizer for every monad algebra. Its universal property and the equivalence just proved give natural bijectionsTo see explicitly that the chosen objects form a functor, an monad algebra morphism makes coequalize the pair for : use and naturality of the counit. Hence there is a unique with . Uniqueness proves its identity and composition laws and the naturality of the displayed bijections. Thus .
Conversely, suppose with unit . Transpose its underlying arrow through to obtain . Since the unit is an monad algebra morphism, the equivalence above shows that coequalizes the specified pair. Any coequalizing transposes to an monad algebra map , which factors uniquely through the unit by . Transposing back gives a unique factorization of through . Thus is the required coequalizer. This proves both directions of the Left adjoint to the Eilenberg-Moore comparison functor criterion.
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