 Simplicial cone chain contraction

In an augmented chain complex of a simplex with vertices $v_0,\dots ,v_n$, put $s(1)=[v_0]$ and $s[v_{i_0},\dots ,v_{i_q}]=[v_0,v_{i_0},\dots ,v_{i_q}]$ when $v_0$ is absent, and zero when it is present. Direct expansion of the boundary operator gives $ds+sd=1$. This proves that every positive-degree chain cycle is a chain boundary, without invoking cellular homology.