Consider the action of $\operatorname{GL}(n,\mathbb{Q}_{p})$ on the $p$-adic unit sphere ${\mathcal{S}}_{n}$ arising from the linear action on $\mathbb{Q}_{p}^{n}\setminus \{0\}$. We show that for the action of a semigroup $\mathfrak{S}$ of $\operatorname{GL}(n,\mathbb{Q}_{p})$ on ${\mathcal{S}}_{n}$, the following are equivalent: (1) $\mathfrak{S}$ acts distally on ${\mathcal{S}}_{n}$; (2) the closure of the image of $\mathfrak{S}$ in $\operatorname{PGL}(n,\mathbb{Q}_{p})$ is a compact group. On ${\mathcal{S}}_{n}$, we consider the ‘affine’ maps $\overline{T}_{a}$ corresponding to $T$ in $\operatorname{GL}(n,\mathbb{Q}_{p})$ and a nonzero $a$ in $\mathbb{Q}_{p}^{n}$ satisfying $\Vert T^{-1}(a)\Vert _{p}<1$. We show that there exists a compact open subgroup $V$, which depends on $T$, such that $\overline{T}_{a}$ is distal for every nonzero $a\in V$ if and only if $T$ acts distally on ${\mathcal{S}}_{n}$. The dynamics of ‘affine’ maps on $p$-adic unit spheres is quite different from that on the real unit spheres.

A well-known conjecture is that all finitely presented groups have semistable fundamental groups at infinity. A class of groups whose members have not been shown to be semistable at infinity is the class ${\mathcal{A}}$ of finitely presented groups that are ascending HNN-extensions with finitely generated base. The class ${\mathcal{A}}$ naturally partitions into two non-empty subclasses, those that have “bounded” and “unbounded” depth. Using new methods introduced in a companion paper we show those of bounded depth have semistable fundamental group at infinity. Ascending HNN extensions produced by Ol’shanskii–Sapir and Grigorchuk (for other reasons), and once considered potential non-semistable examples are shown to have bounded depth. Finally, we devise a technique for producing explicit examples with unbounded depth. These examples are perhaps the best candidates to date in the search for a group with non-semistable fundamental group at infinity.

Given a positive integer $m$, a finite $p$-group $G$ is called a $BC(p^{m})$-group if $|H_{G}|\leq p^{m}$ for every nonnormal subgroup $H$ of $G$, where $H_{G}$ is the normal core of $H$ in $G$. We show that $m+2$ is an upper bound for the nilpotent class of a finite $BC(p^{m})$-group and obtain a necessary and sufficient condition for a $p$-group to be of maximal class. We also classify the $BC(p)$-groups.

Let $g$ be an element of a finite group $G$ and let $R_{n}(g)$ be the subgroup generated by all the right Engel values $[g,_{n}x]$ over $x\in G$. In the case when $G$ is soluble we prove that if, for some $n$, the Fitting height of $R_{n}(g)$ is equal to $k$, then $g$ belongs to the $(k+1)$th Fitting subgroup $F_{k+1}(G)$. For nonsoluble $G$, it is proved that if, for some $n$, the generalized Fitting height of $R_{n}(g)$ is equal to $k$, then $g$ belongs to the generalized Fitting subgroup $F_{f(k,m)}^{\ast }(G)$ with $f(k,m)$ depending only on $k$ and $m$, where $|g|$ is the product of $m$ primes counting multiplicities. It is also proved that if, for some $n$, the nonsoluble length of $R_{n}(g)$ is equal to $k$, then $g$ belongs to a normal subgroup whose nonsoluble length is bounded in terms of $k$ and $m$. Earlier, similar generalizations of Baer’s theorem (which states that an Engel element of a finite group belongs to the Fitting subgroup) were obtained by the first two authors in terms of left Engel-type subgroups.

This note contains a (short) proof of the following generalisation of the Friedman–Mineyev theorem (earlier known as the Hanna Neumann conjecture): if $A$ and $B$ are nontrivial free subgroups of a virtually free group containing a free subgroup of index $n$, then $\text{rank}(A\cap B)-1\leq n\cdot (\text{rank}(A)-1)\cdot (\text{rank}(B)-1)$. In addition, we obtain a virtually-free-product analogue of this result.

For any prime number $p$ and field $k$, we characterize the $p$-retract rationality of an algebraic $k$-torus in terms of its character lattice. We show that a $k$-torus is retract rational if and only if it is $p$-retract rational for every prime $p$, and that the Noether problem for retract rationality for a group of multiplicative type $G$ has an affirmative answer for $G$ if and only if the Noether problem for $p$-retract rationality for $G$ has a positive answer for all $p$. For every finite set of primes $S$ we give examples of tori that are $p$-retract rational if and only if $p\notin S$.

We give a complete computation of the Bieri–Neumann–Strebel–Renz invariants Σm(Hn) of the Houghton groups Hn. Partial results were previously obtained by the author, with a conjecture about the full picture, which we now confirm. The proof involves covering relevant subcomplexes of an associated CAT (0) cube complex by their intersections with certain locally convex subcomplexes, and then applying a strong form of the Nerve Lemma. A consequence of the full computation is that for each 1 ≤ m ≤ n − 1, Hn admits a map onto ℤ whose kernel is of type Fm−1 but not Fm; moreover, no such kernel is ever of type Fn−1.

Given a finite group $\text{G}$ and a field $K$, the faithful dimension of $\text{G}$ over $K$ is defined to be the smallest integer $n$ such that $\text{G}$ embeds into $\operatorname{GL}_{n}(K)$. We address the problem of determining the faithful dimension of a $p$-group of the form $\mathscr{G}_{q}:=\exp (\mathfrak{g}\otimes _{\mathbb{Z}}\mathbb{F}_{q})$ associated to $\mathfrak{g}_{q}:=\mathfrak{g}\otimes _{\mathbb{Z}}\mathbb{F}_{q}$ in the Lazard correspondence, where $\mathfrak{g}$ is a nilpotent $\mathbb{Z}$-Lie algebra which is finitely generated as an abelian group. We show that in general the faithful dimension of $\mathscr{G}_{p}$ is a piecewise polynomial function of $p$ on a partition of primes into Frobenius sets. Furthermore, we prove that for $p$ sufficiently large, there exists a partition of $\mathbb{N}$ by sets from the Boolean algebra generated by arithmetic progressions, such that on each part the faithful dimension of $\mathscr{G}_{q}$ for $q:=p^{f}$ is equal to $fg(p^{f})$ for a polynomial $g(T)$. We show that for many naturally arising $p$-groups, including a vast class of groups defined by partial orders, the faithful dimension is given by a single formula of the latter form. The arguments rely on various tools from number theory, model theory, combinatorics and Lie theory.

Let $\mathfrak{F}$ be a class of finite groups and $G$ a finite group. Let ${\mathcal{L}}_{\mathfrak{F}}(G)$ be the set of all subgroups $A$ of $G$ with $A^{G}/A_{G}\in \mathfrak{F}$. A chief factor $H/K$ of $G$ is $\mathfrak{F}$-central in $G$ if $(H/K)\rtimes (G/C_{G}(H/K))\in \mathfrak{F}$. We study the structure of $G$ under the hypothesis that every chief factor of $G$ between $A_{G}$ and $A^{G}$ is $\mathfrak{F}$-central in $G$ for every subgroup $A\in {\mathcal{L}}_{\mathfrak{F}}(G)$. As an application, we prove that a finite soluble group $G$ is a PST-group if and only if $A^{G}/A_{G}\leq Z_{\infty }(G/A_{G})$ for every subgroup $A\in {\mathcal{L}}_{\mathfrak{N}}(G)$, where $\mathfrak{N}$ is the class of all nilpotent groups.

The conjecture of Brown, Erdős and Sós from 1973 states that, for any k ≥ 3, if a 3-uniform hypergraph H with n vertices does not contain a set of k +3 vertices spanning at least k edges then it has o(n2) edges. The case k = 3 of this conjecture is the celebrated (6, 3)-theorem of Ruzsa and Szemerédi which implies Roth’s theorem on 3-term arithmetic progressions in dense sets of integers. Solymosi observed that, in order to prove the conjecture, one can assume that H consists of triples (a, b, ab) of some finite quasigroup Γ. Since this problem remains open for all k ≥ 4, he further proposed to study triple systems coming from finite groups. In this case he proved that the conjecture holds also for k = 4. Here we completely resolve the Brown–Erdős–Sós conjecture for all finite groups and values of k. Moreover, we prove that the hypergraphs coming from groups contain sets of size $\Theta (\sqrt k )$ which span k edges. This is best possible and goes far beyond the conjecture.

Dolfi, Guralnick, Praeger and Spiga asked whether there exist infinitely many primitive groups of twisted wreath type with non-trivial coprime subdegrees. Here, we settle this question in the affirmative. We construct infinite families of primitive twisted wreath permutation groups with non-trivial coprime subdegrees. In particular, we define a primitive twisted wreath group G(m, q) constructed from the non-abelian simple group PSL(2, q) and a primitive permutation group of diagonal type with socle PSL(2, q)m, and determine many subdegrees for this group. A consequence is that we determine all values of m and q for which G(m, q) has non-trivial coprime subdegrees. In the case where m = 2 and $q\notin \{7,11,29\}$, we obtain a full classification of all pairs of non-trivial coprime subdegrees.

Let k be a divisor of a finite group G and Lk(G) = {x ∈ G | xk =1}. Frobenius proved that the number |Lk(G)| is always divisible by k. The following inverse problem is considered: for a given integer n, find all groups G such that max{k-1|Lk(G)| | k ∈ Div(G)} = n, where Div(G) denotes the set of all divisors of |G|. A procedure beginning with (in a sense) minimal members and deducing the remaining ones is outlined and executed for n=8.

A finitely presented 1-ended group $G$ has semistable fundamental group at infinity if $G$ acts geometrically on a simply connected and locally compact ANR $Y$ having the property that any two proper rays in $Y$ are properly homotopic. This property of $Y$ captures a notion of connectivity at infinity stronger than “1-ended”, and is in fact a feature of $G$, being independent of choices. It is a fundamental property in the homotopical study of finitely presented groups. While many important classes of groups have been shown to have semistable fundamental group at infinity, the question of whether every $G$ has this property has been a recognized open question for nearly forty years. In this paper we attack the problem by considering a proper but non-cocompact action of a group $J$ on such an $Y$. This $J$ would typically be a subgroup of infinite index in the geometrically acting over-group $G$; for example $J$ might be infinite cyclic or some other subgroup whose semistability properties are known. We divide the semistability property of $G$ into a $J$-part and a “perpendicular to $J$” part, and we analyze how these two parts fit together. Among other things, this analysis leads to a proof (in a companion paper) that a class of groups previously considered to be likely counter examples do in fact have the semistability property.

A skew brace, as introduced by L. Guarnieri and L. Vendramin, is a set with two group structures interacting in a particular way. When one of the group structures is abelian, one gets back the notion of brace as introduced by W. Rump. Skew braces can be used to construct solutions of the quantum Yang–Baxter equation. In this article, we introduce a notion of action of a skew brace, and show how it leads to solutions of the closely associated reflection equation.

We consider random walks on the mapping class group that have finite first moment with respect to the word metric, whose support generates a non-elementary subgroup and contains a pseudo-Anosov map whose invariant Teichmüller geodesic is in the principal stratum of quadratic differentials. We show that a Teichmüller geodesic typical with respect to the harmonic measure for such random walks, is recurrent to the thick part of the principal stratum. As a consequence, the vertical foliation of such a random Teichmüller geodesic has no saddle connections.

The symmetric group on a set acts transitively on the set of its subsets of a fixed size. We define homomorphisms between the corresponding permutation modules, defined over a field of characteristic two, which generalize the boundary maps from simplicial homology. The main results determine when these chain complexes are exact and when they are split exact. As a corollary we obtain a new explicit construction of the basic spin modules for the symmetric group.

There does not exist an algorithm that can determine whether or not a group presented by commutators is a right-angled Artin group.

We study the realization of acyclic cluster algebras as coordinate rings of Coxeter double Bruhat cells in Kac–Moody groups. We prove that all cluster monomials with $\mathbf{g}$-vector lying in the doubled Cambrian fan are restrictions of principal generalized minors. As a corollary, cluster algebras of finite and affine type admit a complete and non-recursive description via (ind-)algebraic group representations, in a way similar in spirit to the Caldero–Chapoton description via quiver representations. In type $A_{1}^{(1)}$, we further show that elements of several canonical bases (generic, triangular, and theta) which complete the partial basis of cluster monomials are composed entirely of restrictions of minors. The discrepancy among these bases is accounted for by continuous parameters appearing in the classification of irreducible level-zero representations of affine Lie groups. We discuss how our results illuminate certain parallels between the classification of representations of finite-dimensional algebras and of integrable weight representations of Kac–Moody algebras.

We prove two results about the width of words in $\operatorname{SL}_{n}(\mathbb{Z})$. The first is that, for every $n\geqslant 3$, there is a constant $C(n)$ such that the width of any word in $\operatorname{SL}_{n}(\mathbb{Z})$ is less than $C(n)$. The second result is that, for any word $w$, if $n$ is big enough, the width of $w$ in $\operatorname{SL}_{n}(\mathbb{Z})$ is at most 87.

Based on a simple object, an i.i.d. sequence of positive integer-valued random variables {an}n∊ℤ, we introduce and study two random structures and their connections. First, a population dynamics, in which each individual is born at time n and dies at time n + an. This dynamics is that of a D/GI/∞ queue, with arrivals at integer times and service times given by {an}n∊ℤ. Second, the directed random graph Tf on ℤ generated by the random map f(n) = n + an. Assuming only that E [a0] < ∞ and P [a0 = 1] > 0, we show that, in steady state, the population dynamics is regenerative, with one individual alive at each regeneration epoch. We identify a unimodular structure in this dynamics. More precisely, Tf is a unimodular directed tree, in which f(n) is the parent of n. This tree has a unique bi-infinite path. Moreover, Tf splits the integers into two categories: ephemeral integers, with a finite number of descendants of all degrees, and successful integers, with an infinite number. Each regeneration epoch is a successful individual such that all integers less than it are its descendants of some order. Ephemeral, successful, and regeneration integers form stationary and mixing point processes on ℤ.