We devise a fairly general sufficient condition ensuring that the endomorphism monoid of a countably infinite ultrahomogeneous structure (i.e. a Fraïssé limit) embeds all countable semigroups. This approach not only provides us with a framework unifying the previous scattered results in this vein, but actually yields new applications for endomorphism monoids of the (rational) Urysohn space and the countable universal ultrahomogeneous semilattice.

Recent research of the author has studied edge-labelled directed trees under a natural multiplication operation. The class of all such trees (with a fixed labelling alphabet) has an algebraic interpretation, as a free object in the class of adequate semigroups. We consider here a natural subclass of these trees, defined by placing a restriction on edge orientations, and show that the resulting algebraic structure is a free object in the class of left adequate semigroups. Through this correspondence we establish some structural and algorithmic properties of free left adequate semigroups and monoids, and consequently of the category of all left adequate semigroups.

We investigate natural dualities for classes of simple graphs. For example, we give a natural duality for the class consisting of all n-colourable graphs and show that, for all n≥3, there is no natural duality for the class consisting of all freely n-colourable graphs. We also prove that there exist arbitrarily long finite chains of 3-colourable graphs that alternate between being dualizable and nondualizable.

For an algebraic structure A denote by d(A) the smallest size of a generating set for A, and let d(A)=(d(A),d(A2),d(A3),…), where An denotes a direct power of A. In this paper we investigate the asymptotic behaviour of the sequence d(A) when A is one of the classical structures—a group, ring, module, algebra or Lie algebra. We show that if A is finite then d(A) grows either linearly or logarithmically. In the infinite case constant growth becomes another possibility; in particular, if A is an infinite simple structure belonging to one of the above classes then d(A) is eventually constant. Where appropriate we frame our exposition within the general theory of congruence permutable varieties.

We show that if A is a stable basis algebra satisfying the distributivity condition, then B is a reduct of an independence algebra A having the same rank. If this rank is finite, then the endomorphism monoid of B is a left order in the endomorphism monoid of A.

A shift automorphism algebra is one satisfying the conditions of the shift automorphism theorem, and a shift automorphism variety is a variety generated by a shift automorphism algebra. In this paper, we show that every shift automorphism variety contains a countably infinite subdirectly irreducible algebra.

A variety is said to be a Rees–Sushkevich variety if it is contained in a periodic variety generated by 0-simple semigroups. Recently, all combinatorial Rees–Sushkevich varieties have been shown to be finitely based. The present paper continues the investigation of these varieties by describing those that are Cross, finitely generated, or small. It is shown that within the lattice of combinatorial Rees–Sushkevich varieties, the set ℱ of finitely generated varieties constitutes an incomplete sublattice and the set 𝒮 of small varieties constitutes a strict incomplete sublattice of ℱ. Consequently, a combinatorial Rees–Sushkevich variety is small if and only if it is Cross. An algorithm is also presented that decides if an arbitrarily given finite set Σ of identities defines, within the largest combinatorial Rees–Sushkevich variety, a subvariety that is finitely generated or small. This algorithm has complexity 𝒪(nk) where n is the number of identities in Σ and k is the length of the longest word in Σ.

This paper establishes a duality between the category of polytopes (finitely generated real convex sets considered as barycentric algebras) and a certain category of intersections of hypercubes, considered as barycentric algebras with additional constant operations.

A semigroup is totally commutative if each of its essentially binary polynomials is commutative, or equivalently, if in every polynomial (word) every two essential variables commute. In the present paper we describe all varieties (equational classes) of totally commutative semigroups, lattices of subvarieties for any variety, and their free spectra.

We establish a duality between distributive bisemilattices and certain compact left normal bands. The main technique in the proof utilizes the idea of Plonka sums.

In the general context of ideals in universal algebras, we study varietal properties connected with ideals that are equivalent both to Ma'cev conditions and congruence properties such as 0-regularity, 0-permutability, etc.

Let J be a cofinite set of positive integers which contains 1. In (1973) I proved that the following condition on a variety (equational class) is Mal'tsev-definable: if υ ∈and υ is finite, then |υ| ∈J. This article contains some subsidiary results, concerned mainly with a more detailed description of these Mal'tsev conditions. Many of our results arose upon considering a recent article of W. D. Neumann (1978).

In this paper we investigate near-rings of polynomials and polynomial functions. After some results which belong to universal algebra we turn our attention to the familiar case of polynomials and polynomial functions over a commutative ring with identity. We study the relation between ring- and near-ring homomorphisms, and the behaviour of polynomial near-rings when the ring splits into a direct sum. A discussion of the structure of these polynomial near-rings (radical, semisimplicity) finishes this paper. These investigations are motivated by Clay and Doi (1973).

We determine which varieties of commutative semigroups have the weak or strong amalgamation property. These are precisely the varieties of inflations of semilattices of abelian groups.

A completely regular semigroup is a semigroup which is a union of groups. The class CR of completely regular semigroups forms a variety. On the lattice L (CR) of completely regular semigroup varieties we define two closure operations which induce complete congruences. The consideration of a third complete congruence on L (CR) yields a subdirect decomposition of L (CR). Using these results we show that L (CR) is arguesian. This confirms the (tacit) conjecture that L (CR) is modular.

A strong, natural duality is established for the variety by a dihedral gruop of order 2m with m odd. This is the first natural duality for a non-abelian variety of groups.

In this note a characterization of semigroups with atomistic consruence lattices, given for weakly reductive semigroups, is generalized to arbitrary semigroups. Also, it is shown that there is a complete congruence on the congruence lattice of such a semigroup that decomposes it into a disjoint union of intervals of the partition lattice.

It is shown that a variety ν has distributive congruence lattices if and only if the intersection of two principal congruence relations is definable by equations involving terms with parameters. The nature of the terms involved then provides a useful classification of congruence distributive varieties. In particular, the classification puts into proper perspective two stronger properties. A variety is said to have the Principal Intersection Property if the intersection of any two principal congruence relations is principal, or the Compact Intersection Property if the intersection of two compact congruence relations is compact. For non-congruence-distributive varieties, it is shown that some useful constuctions are nevertheless possible.

We conjecture that five well-known identities universally satisfied by commutators in a group generate all such universal commutator identies. We use homological techniques to partially prove the conjecture.

Free algebras with an arbitrary number of free generators in varieties of BL-algebras generated by one BL-chain that is an ordinal sum of a finite MV-chain Ln, and a generalized BL-chain B are described in terms of weak Boolean products of BL-algebras that are ordinal sums of subalgebras of Ln, and free algebras in the variety of basic hoops generated by B. The Boolean products are taken over the Stone spaces of the Boolean subalgebras of idempotents of free algebras in the variety of MV-algebras generated by Ln.

2000 Mathematics subject classification: primary 03G25, 03B50, 03B52, 03D35, 03G25, 08B20.