Questions tagged [ra.rings-and-algebras]
Non-commutative rings and algebras, non-associative algebras, universal algebra and lattice theory, linear algebra, semigroups. For questions specific to commutative algebra (that is, rings that are assumed both associative and commutative), rather use the tag ac.commutative-algebra.
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How do you decide whether a question in abstract algebra is worth studying?
Dear MO-community, I am not sure how mature my view on this is and I might say some things that are controversial. I welcome contradicting views. In any case, I find it important to clarify this in my ...
113
votes
2
answers
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How would you solve this tantalizing Halmos problem?
$1-ab$ invertible $\implies$ $1-ba$ invertible has a slick power series "proof" as below, where Halmos asks for an explanation of why this tantalizing derivation succeeds. Do you know one?
Geometric ...
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95
votes
16
answers
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Why is it a good idea to study a ring by studying its modules?
This is related to another question of mine. Suppose you met someone who was well-acquainted with the basic properties of rings, but who had never heard of a module. You tell him that modules ...
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95
votes
11
answers
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Can a non-surjective polynomial map from an infinite field to itself miss only finitely many points?
Is there an infinite field $k$ together with a polynomial $f \in k[x]$ such that the associated map $f \colon k \to k$ is not surjective but misses only finitely many elements in $k$ (i.e. only ...
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2
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$A$ is isomorphic to $A \oplus \mathbb{Z}^2$, but not to $A \oplus \mathbb{Z}$
Are there abelian groups $A$ with $A \cong A \oplus \mathbb{Z}^2$ and $A \not\cong A \oplus \mathbb{Z}$?
- 61.5k
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5
answers
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When is $A$ isomorphic to $A^3$?
This is totally elementary, but I have no idea how to solve it: let $A$ be an abelian group such that $A$ is isomorphic to $A^3$. is then $A$ isomorphic to $A^2$? probably no, but how construct a ...
- 61.5k
77
votes
9
answers
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Can we unify addition and multiplication into one binary operation? To what extent can we find universal binary operations?
The question is the extent to which we can unify addition
and multiplication, realizing them as terms in a single
underlying binary operation. I have a number of questions.
Is there a binary ...
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74
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1
answer
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$R$ is isomorphic to $R[X,Y]$, but not to $R[X]$
Is there a commutative ring $R$ with $R \cong R[X,Y]$ and $R \not\cong R[X]$?
This is a ring-theoretic analog of my previous question about abelian groups: In fact, in any algebraic category we may ...
- 61.5k
69
votes
28
answers
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Results from abstract algebra which look wrong (but are true)
There are many statements in abstract algebra, often asked by beginners, which are just too good to be true. For example, if $N$ is a normal subgroup of a group $G$, is $G/N$ isomorphic to a subgroup ...
62
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25
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Linear Algebra Texts?
Can anyone suggest a relatively gentle linear algebra text that integrates vector spaces and matrix algebra right from the start? I've found in the past that students react in very negative ways to ...
62
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5
answers
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Does "finitely presented" mean "always finitely presented"? (Answered: Yes!)
Precisely, if an R-module M has a finite presentation, and Rk → M is some unrelated surjection (k finite), is the kernel necessarily also finitely generated?
Basically I want to believe I can ...
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62
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3
answers
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What is the current status of the Kaplansky zero-divisor conjecture for group rings?
Let $K$ be a field and $G$ a group. The so called zero-divisor conjecture for group rings asserts that the group ring $K[G]$ is a domain if and only if $G$ is a torsion-free group.
A couple of good ...
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votes
3
answers
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Why is there no Cayley's Theorem for rings?
Cayley's theorem makes groups nice: a closed set of bijections is a group and a group is a closed set of bijections- beautiful, natural and understandable canonically as symmetry. It is not so much a ...
- 3,190
56
votes
2
answers
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A condition that implies commutativity
Let $R$ be a ring. A notable theorem of N. Jacobson states that if the identity $x^{n}=x$ holds for every $x \in R$ and a fixed $n \geq 2$ then $R$ is a commutative ring.
The proof of the result for ...
- 8,722
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votes
0
answers
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What did Gelfand mean by suggesting to study "Heredity Principle" structures instead of categories?
Israel Gelfand wrote in his remarkable talk "Mathematics as an adequate language (a few remarks)", given at "The Unity of Mathematics" Conference in honor of his 90th birthday, the ...
- 1,228
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votes
7
answers
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"Algebraic" topologies like the Zariski topology?
The fact that a commutative ring has a natural topological space associated with it is still a really interesting coincidence. The entire subject of Algebraic geometry is based on this simple fact.
...
52
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5
answers
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Does this formula have a rigorous meaning, or is it merely formal?
I hope this problem is not considered too "elementary" for MO. It concerns a formula that I have always found fascinating. For, at first glance, it appears completely "obvious", while on closer ...
- 15.2k
50
votes
7
answers
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Good lattice theory books?
A recent answer motivated me to post about this. I've always had a vague, unpleasant feeling that somehow lattice theory has been completely robbed of the important place it deserves in mathematics - ...
50
votes
1
answer
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Invertible matrices over noncommutative rings
Let $A\in M_m(R)$ be an invertible square matrix over a noncommutative ring $R$. Is the transpose matrix $A^t$ also invertible? If it isn't, are there any easy counterexamples?
The question popped up ...
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47
votes
9
answers
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What are the reasons for considering rings without identity?
I think a major reason is because Lie algebras don't have an identity, but I'm not really sure.
47
votes
2
answers
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Non isomorphic finite rings with isomorphic additive and multiplicative structure
About a year ago, a colleague asked me the following question:
Suppose $(R,+,\cdot)$ and $(S,\oplus,\odot)$ are two rings such that $(R,+)$ is isomorphic, as an abelian group, to $(S,\oplus)$, and $...
- 7,012
44
votes
8
answers
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What makes a theorem *a* "nullstellensatz."
I know what the (Hilbert) Nullstellensatz says. A MathSciNet search on "nullstellensatz" turns up nearly 200 papers, with only a minority offering either new proofs or new applications of the classic ...
43
votes
18
answers
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Results in linear algebra that depend on the choice of field
Linear algebra as we learn it as undergraduates usually holds for any field (even though we usually learn it for the complex, or real, numbers).
I am looking for a list of concepts, and results, in ...
43
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3
answers
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transcendental Galois theory
Suppose we define an arbitrary field extension $K/F$ to be Galois if, for all subextensions $L$ of $K/F$, we have $K^{\operatorname{Aut}(K/L)} = L$. In words: for any element $x$ of $K \setminus L$, ...
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42
votes
6
answers
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An algebra of "integrals"
When discussing divergent integrals with people, I got curious about the following:
Is there an $\mathbb{R}$-algebra $A$ together with a map (could be defined on just a subspace)
$$\int_0^{\infty}: ...
- 3,758
42
votes
2
answers
2k
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Fermat's Last Theorem for integer matrices
Some years ago I was asked by a friend if Fermat's Last Theorem was true for matrices. It is pretty easy to convince oneself that it is not the case, and in fact the following statement occurs ...
- 1,879
41
votes
7
answers
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Why don't ideals and quotients work well for categories?
Ideals are intimately related to quotients and congruence relations. They clearly play a very important role in ring theory and order theory. So do normal subgroups in group theory. (Enriched) ...
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9
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Simplest examples of rings that are not isomorphic to their opposites
What are the simplest examples of
rings that are not isomorphic to their
opposite rings? Is there a science to constructing them?
The only simple example known to me:
In Jacobson's Basic Algebra (...
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votes
5
answers
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When does a ring surjection imply a surjection of the group of units?
The following might be a very trivial question. If so, I don't mind it being closed, but would appreciate a reference where I could read about it.
Let $R$ and $S$ be commutative rings and let $R^\...
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5
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Is there an explicit construction of a free coalgebra?
I am interested in the differences between algebras and coalgebras. Naively, it does not seem as though there is much difference: after all, all you have done is to reverse the arrows in the ...
- 9,052
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4
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What is the intuition for the trace norm (nuclear norm)?
I will word this question in terms of linear operators acting on $\mathbb{C}^n$ for simplicity. Feel free to provide an answer in terms of more general Hilbert spaces if you think it makes more sense ...
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Is there a universal property for Witt vectors?
Do the Witt vectors satisfy a universal property?
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3
answers
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What is the current status of Agrawal's conjecture?
In their famous 'Primes is in P' paper Agrawal, Kayal and Saxena stated the following conjecture:
If for coprime integers $n$ and $r$ the equality $(X-1)^n = X^n - 1$ holds in $\mathbb{Z}_n[X]/(X^r-...
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0
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Groups whose complex irreducible representations are finite dimensional
By a complex irreducible representation of a group $G$, I mean a simple $\mathbb CG$-module. So my representations need not be unitary and we are working in the purely algebraic setting.
It is easy ...
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Canonical examples of algebraic structures
Please list some examples of common examples of algebraic structures. I was thinking answers of the following form.
"When I read about a [insert structure here], I immediately think of [example]."
...
36
votes
3
answers
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Are large powers of polynomials linearly independent?
Let $P_1,\dots,P_k$ be polynomials over $\mathbf{C}$, no two of them being proportional.
Does there exist an integer $N$ such that $P_1^N,\dots,P_k^N$ are linearly independent?
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3
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When is a power of a nonnegative polynomial a sum of squares?
There are nonnegative polynomials that are not sums of squares. For example Motzkin gave the example $x^4y^2+x^2y^4+z^6-3x^2y^2z^2$ in 1967.
Is there a real polynomial $f\in{\mathbb{R}}[x_1,\dotsc,x_n]...
user2529
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8
answers
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Uncountable counterexamples in algebra
In functional analysis, there are many examples of things that "go wrong" in the nonseparable setting. For instance, my favorite version of the spectral theorem only works for operators on a ...
34
votes
1
answer
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Freyd-Mitchell's embedding theorem
Freyd–Mitchell's embedding theorem states that: if $A$ is a small abelian category, then there exists a ring R and a full, faithful and exact functor $F\colon A \to R\text{-}\mathrm{Mod}$.
I have been ...
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Whence “homomorphism” and “homomorphic”?
Today homomorphism (resp. isomorphism) means what Jordan (1870) had called isomorphism (resp. holoedric isomorphism). How did the switch happen?
“Homomorphic” (and “homomorphism” as “property of ...
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3
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What is interesting/useful about big Witt Vectors?
$p$-typical Witt vectors are (among other things) a canonical way of associating to a perfect ring $A$ of characteristic $p$ a complete DVR of characteristic $0$ with residue ring $A$ generalizing $\...
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votes
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Dimension of infinite product of vector spaces
This question is motivated by the question link text, which compares the infinite direct sum and the infinite direct product of a ring.
It is well-known that an infinite dimensional vector space is ...
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33
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2
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What do cluster algebras tell us about Grassmannians?
One of the first examples of a cluster algebra given in Fomin and Zelevinsky's original paper is the homogeneous coordinate ring $\mathbb{C}[G_{2,n}]$ of the Grassmannian of planes in $\mathbb{C}^n$. ...
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7
answers
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Consequences of not requiring ring homomorphisms to be unital?
As defined in many modern algebra books, a homomorphism of unital rings must preserve the unit elements: $f(1_R)=1_S$. But there has been a minority who do not require this, one prominent example ...
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32
votes
1
answer
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The gimbal lock shows up in my quaternions
I suspect this is a bit basic for mathoverflow, seeing I'm still just an undergraduate
I've been playing around with quaternions as means to eliminate the gimbal lock. From what I understand, one ...
32
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1
answer
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Have you ever seen this bizarre commutative algebra?
I have encountered very strange commutative nonassociative algebras without unit, over a characteristic zero field, and I cannot figure out where do they belong. Has anybody seen these animals in any ...
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31
votes
3
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Example for column rank $\neq$ row rank
The proof that column rank = row rank for matrices over a field relies on the fact that the elements of a field commute. I'm looking for an easy example of a matrix over a ring for which column rank $\...
- 4,006
31
votes
6
answers
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Bass' stable range of $\mathbf Z[X]$
Let $n$ be a positive integer and $A$ be a commutative ring. The ring $A$ is said to be of Bass stable range $\mathrm{sr}(A)\leq n$ if for $a, a_1, \dots, a_n \in A$ one has the following implication:
...
- 2,501
31
votes
1
answer
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Are Conway's omnific integers the Grothendieck group of the ordinals under commutative addition?
This is a question in two parts.
Say that $\mathbf{On}$ is the proper class of all ordinal numbers in ZFC. We can define a binary operator over $\mathbf{On}$ which corresponds to the commutative ...
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31
votes
1
answer
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Is this formal noncommutative power series identity known?
I recently discovered the following cute formal noncommutative power series identity: if $(x_i)_{i \in I}$ is some finite collection of noncommuting variables, then the formal power series
$$ 1 + \...
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