Ebook: Topology through inquiry

Topology Through Inquiry is a comprehensive introduction to point-set, algebraic, and geometric topology, designed to support inquiry-based learning (IBL) courses for upper-division undergraduate or beginning graduate students. The book presents an enormous amount of topology, allowing an instructor to choose which topics to treat. The point-set material contains many interesting topics well beyond the basic core, including continua and metrizability. Geometric and algebraic topology topics include the classification of 2-manifolds, the fundamental group, covering spaces, and homology (simplicial and singular). A unique feature of the introduction to homology is to convey a clear geometric motivation by starting with mod 2 coefficients. The authors are acknowledged masters of IBL-style teaching. This book gives students joy-filled, manageable challenges that incrementally develop their knowledge and skills. The exposition includes insightful framing of fruitful points of view as well as advice on effective thinking and learning. The text presumes only a modest level of mathematical maturity to begin, but students who work their way through this text will grow from mathematics students into mathematicians. Michael Starbird is a University of Texas Distinguished Teaching Professor of Mathematics. Among his works are two other co-authored books in the Mathematical Association of America's (MAA) Textbook series. Francis Su is the Benediktsson-Karwa Professor of Mathematics at Harvey Mudd College and a past president of the MAA. Both authors are award-winning teachers, including each having received the MAA's Haimo Award for distinguished teaching. Starbird and Su are, jointly and individually, on lifelong missions to make learning--of mathematics and beyond--joyful, effective, and available to everyone. This book invites topology students and teachers to join in the adventure;Cardinality: to infinity and beyond -- Topological spaces: fundamentals -- Bases, subspaces, products: creating new spaces -- Separation properties: separating this from that -- Countable features of spaces: size restrictions -- Compactness: the next best thing to being finite -- Continuity: when nearby points stay together -- Connectedness: when things don't fall into pieces -- Metric spaces: getting some distance -- Transition from point-set topology to algebraic and geometric topology: similar strategies, different domains -- Classification of 2-manifolds: organizing surfaces -- Fundamental group: capturing holes -- Covering spaces: layering it on -- Manifolds, simplices, complexes, and triangulability: building blocks -- Simplicial Z2-homology: physical algebra -- Applications of Z2-homology: a topological superhero -- Simplicial Z-homology: getting oriented -- Singular homology: abstracting objects to maps -- The end: a beginning-reflections on topology and learning