de Rham cohomology of a finite quotient Created 2026-10-05 Updated 2026-10-06
For a free smooth action of a finite group on a smooth manifold , the quotient projection inducesInvariant differential forms descend uniquely through local inverse branches of the covering map. Averaging by commutes with the exterior derivative, produces invariant representatives of invariant classes, and produces an invariant primitive for every invariant exact form. Hence taking invariant forms and taking invariant cohomology give the same result over the real numbers.
Diagonal-degree obstruction to a symmetric sphere retraction Created 2026-10-06 Updated 2026-10-14
For and , no factor-permutation-invariant map restricts to the identity on the diagonal. The Künneth theorem makes the degree- cohomology a direct sum of copies of . Symmetry forces for one integer . Pulling back to the diagonal multiplies this coefficient by , so the identity restriction would give . The contradiction uses integral coefficients and applies in both even and odd sphere dimensions.
Differential graded algebra 2026-10-06
A graded algebra equipped with a degree-one differential satisfying and . Its cohomology inherits a graded algebra structure. In rational homotopy, a Sullivan minimal model is a free graded-commutative differential graded algebra with decomposable generator differentials.
Equivariant cohomology 2026-10-06
The Borel version of equivariant cohomology is the ordinary cohomology of the Borel construction. It retains information about both the space and its group action. For a point it is the cohomology of the classifying space; for a free action with the usual bundle hypotheses it is the cohomology of the orbit space.
Excess of an admissible Steenrod sequence 2026-10-06
The excess measures the minimum degree on which an admissible Steenrod monomial can be nonzero. Strict excess below picks out polynomial generators in the mod-two cohomology of ; equality can correspond to a square, rather than a new generator.
Ext functor 2026-09-24
The Ext functors are the right derived functors of the Hom functor. They can be computed by applying to a projective resolution of and taking cohomology.
First Chern class of a tensor product of complex line bundles Created 2026-10-05 Updated 2026-10-07
The First Chern class turns the tensor product of vector bundles of complex line bundles into addition in integral cohomology. This follows by computing the universal complex line bundle on the product of two Complex projective spaces and restricting to each factor. The proof retains torsion elements, which differential forms alone cannot detect.
Formal space 2026-10-14
A space is formal over if its rational cochain commutative differential graded algebra is joined to by quasi-isomorphisms. Equivalently in the usual simply connected Sullivan-model setting, its minimal model has a quasi-isomorphism to its cohomology algebra with zero differential. This says its rational homotopy type can be recovered from the cohomology algebra; zero cup products alone do not imply formality of a topological space without an additional argument.
Generalized cohomology theory 2026-10-14
A generalized cohomology theory assigns graded groups contravariantly to suitable topological pairs, with homotopy invariance, excision and a natural long exact sequence for each pair. It omits the dimension axiom of ordinary cohomology, so its coefficient groups at a point can occur in degrees other than zero. A multiplicative theory also has compatible external and relative cup products.
Graded Leibniz rule 2026-10-05
On a graded algebra, a left derivation of degree satisfies the displayed rule for homogeneous . A right derivation of degree satisfies . For odd , these reduce to the familiar parity sign rules. The left Gerstenhaber bracket makes a left derivation of degree on Hochschild cohomology; this rule holds for the induced cohomology operations, not necessarily for their cochain representatives.
Grauert base change theorem 2026-10-14
For a proper holomorphic map and a coherent sheaf flat over the base, local constancy of the fibre-cohomology dimension makes its higher direct image locally free and gives the displayed base-change identification. Applied to relative holomorphic forms in a smooth proper Kähler family, this constructs the holomorphic cohomology bundles entering its variation of Hodge structure.
For -modules ,because the Hom functor into a finite direct sum splits degree by degree and taking cohomology preserves that splitting.
Let be an oriented real vector bundle of positive even rank , with zero Euler class, and suppose the integral cohomology of is torsion-free. The Gysin sequence gives . Choose an odd-degree class with . The projection formula for sphere bundle integration identifies the cohomology additively with . It is torsion-free, so graded commutativity of the cup product gives from . These facts establish the displayed ring isomorphism, not just a decomposition of groups.
Homological algebra Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-10-13
Homological algebra studies chain complexes, homology, cohomology, and the derived constructions that measure failure of exactness.
Homotopy invariance of cohomology 2026-09-24
Homotopic continuous maps induce the same map on cohomology. In particular, a homotopy equivalence induces an isomorphism of cohomology rings.
Hopf invariant 2026-10-06
For , , its mapping cone has integral cohomology generators in degree and in degree . The integer defined by , with fixed cell orientations, is the Hopf invariant. It measures how an attaching map changes multiplication without changing the additive groups. The complex Hopf fibration has invariant one because its mapping cone is ; a constant attaching map has invariant zero.
Hopf trace identity 2026-10-14
For an endomorphism of a finite-dimensional bounded chain complex over a field, the alternating chain trace equals the alternating trace on homology. Split each chain space into boundaries, representatives for homology, and a complement mapping isomorphically to the preceding boundaries. The chain-map relation makes the traces on the first and third summands cancel in successive degrees, leaving the homology traces. Over a field the induced cohomology maps are dual and have the same traces. This identity turns the absence of diagonal simplex contributions into a vanishing Lefschetz number.
Hypercohomology 2026-10-14
Hypercohomology applies the derived global-section functor to a complex of sheaves. One may resolve the complex by an injective double complex, take global sections, and take the cohomology of its total complex. For a complex concentrated in degree zero it is ordinary sheaf cohomology. The relative de Rham complex uses this construction to compute fibre cohomology and its Hodge filtration.