Using Stalling's characterization [11] of finitely generated (f. g.) groups with infinitely many ends, and subgroup theorems for generalized free products and HNN groups (see [9], [5], and [7]), we give (in Theorem 1) a n.a.s.c. for a f.g. group to be a finite extension of a free group. Specifically (using the terminology extension of and notation of [5]), a f.g. group G is a finite extension of a free group if and only if G is an HNN group where K is a tree product of a finite number of finite groups (the vertices of K), and each (associated) subgroup Li, Mi is a subgroup of a vertex of K.

In an earlier paper [11] we discussed the problem of when an (m, n)-complete lattice L is isomorphic to an (m, n)-ring of sets. The condition obtained was simply that there should exist sufficiently many prime ideals of a certain kind, and illustrations were given from topology and elsewhere. However, in these illustrations the prime ideals in question were all principal, and it is desirable to find and study examples where this simplification does not occur. Such an example is the lattice Z(X) of all zero-sets of a topological space X; we refer to Gillman and Jerison [5] for the simple proof that Z(X) is a (2, σ)-ring of subsets of X, where we denote aleph-zero by σ.

The objective of this paper is to prove the following generalization of the main result in [2]: THeorem. Let G be a finite simple group which possesses an involution t such that the centralizer of t in G is isomorphic to the centralizer of an involution in H. Then G is isomorphic to L5(2), M24, or H.

We prove here that if F is a finitely generated free associative algebra over the field and R is an ideal of F, then F/R2 is finitely presented if and only if F/R has finite dimension. Amitsur, [1, p. 136] asked whether a finitely generated algebra which is embeddable in matrices over a commutative f algebra is necessarily finitely presented. Let R = F′, the commutator ideal of F, then [4, theorem 6], F/F′2 is embeddable and thus provides a negative answer to his question. Another such example can be found in Small [6]. We also show that there are uncountably many two generator I algebras which satisfy a polynomial identity yet are not embeddable in any algebra of n xn matrices over a commutative algebra.

The classification of groups according to the varieties they generate requires the study of a class of indecomposable elements. Such a class is the class of basic groups which have been studied in [4], [5] and [6]. A group is called basic if it is indecomposable qua group; that is, it is critical and indecomposable qua variety; that is, its variety is join-irreducible. In this note we consider the higher commutator structure of basic p-groups. Our main theme is the relation between the formal weight of the higher commutator subgroups and the class of the group. We obtain information about the power-commutator structure of a basic p-group, the kinds of laws that can hold in such a group and the varietal structure of groups of the form: Center-extended-by-X.

In this paper we study the problem of the representation of d.g. near-rings, and in particular the problem of a faithful representation, which is equivalent to the adjoining of an identity. This problem has been considered by Malone [5] and Malone and Heatherly [6] and [7]. They have shown that a finite near-ring with two sided zero can be embedded in the d.g. near-ring generated by the inner automorphisms of a suitable group, and that an identity can always be adjoined to a near-ring with two sided zero. They have also given some special conditions under which a faithful representation of a d.g. near-ring exists.

Let be the free centre-by-metabelian group of rank n. In this paper, our main result is the following

Theorem. For n ≧ 4, Gn has a finite elementary abelian subgroup Hn of rank . More precisely, Hn is a minimal fully invariant subgroup contained in the centre of Gn and Gn/Hn is isomorphic to a group of 3 x 3 matrices over a finitely generated integral domain of characteristic zero.

Problem 11 of Hanna Neumann's book [3] asks whether the product variety Β4Β2 has a finite basis for its laws. (For any positive integer k, Βk denotes the variety of all groups of exponent diving k.) I think that Β4Β2 was being suggested as a plausible canditate for a variety without the finite basis property; of course, at a time when no such example was known. It is the primary object of this note to verify the fact that Β4Β2 is not finitely based. Β4Β2 provides, therefore, probably the simplest example known at present of a variety which is not finitely based.

A universal power automorphism (Cooper [1]) of a group is an automorphism mapping every element x to a power xn for some fixed integer n. It is long known that a group admitting such an automorphism with n= −1, 2 or 3 must be Abelian. Miller [5] showed that for every other non-zero integral value of n there exist non-Abelian groups admitting a non-trivial universal power automorphism x→xn.

For positive integers n, c the class of groups all of whose n-generator subgroups are nilpotent of class (at most) c is a variety, here denoted [n → c]. Hanna Neumann in her book ([15] pp. 93–98) reported on the first stage of the investigation of these varieties. The main result was that [n → c] is nilpotent if and only if c ≦ n ≧ 2 ([15] 34.33 and 34.54).

The purpose of this note is to prove the following result. Theorem A. Let G be a finite group with the following properties (i) V▵ G, &V& = 2n and V is elementary abelian, (ii) G/V ≃ GL(n, 2), (iii) CG(V) ⊆ V. If n ≧ 6 then G splits over V.

In a recent paper [3] it was shown that the free product K * L of two fields (possibly skew) can be embedded in a field, and moreover, this latter can be chosen to be the ‘universal field of fractions’ of K*L (cf. [4, 5]). This opens up the prospect of doing for skew fields what the Neumanns and others have done for groups; indeed some sample applications were given in [3]. We pursue this topic here a little further: our main results state (i) every ccuntably generated field can be embedded in a 2-generator field, (ii) in a free product of rings over a field k, any element algebraic over k is conjugate to an element in one of the factors, (iii) any field can be embedded in a field with nth roots for each n. These results are all analogous to well known results in group theory (cf. [8]), and although the proofs are not just a translation of the group case, the latter is of scme help. Thus (ii), (iii) follow fairly easily, but they lead to other problems, still open, by replacing ‘free product of rings’ in (ii) by ‘field product of fields, and in (iii) replacing ‘nth roots’ by ‘roots of any equation’. On the other hand, (i) is less immediate, since ‘field products’ need to be used in the proof, and their manipulation requires some more technical lemmas.

Presentation in terms of generators and relations for the classical finite simple groups of Lie type have been given by Steinberg and Curtis [2,4]. These presentations are useful in proving characterzation theorems for these groups, as in the author's work on the projective symplectic groups [5]. However, in some cases, the application is not quite instantaneous, and an intermediate result is needed to provide a presentation more suitable for the situation in hand. In this paper we prove such a result, for the orthogonal simple groups over finite fields of odd characteristic. In a subsequent article we shall use this to give a characterization of these groups in terms of the structure of the centralizer of an involution.

Let L be a Lie algebra over the field F. A lattice automorphism of ℒ is an automorphism φ: ℒ(L) → ℒ(L) of the lattice ℒ(L) of all subalgebras of L. We seek to describe the lattice automorphisms in terms of maps σ: L→L of the underlying algebra. A semi-automorphism σ of L is an automorphism of the algebraic system consisting of the pair (F, L), that is, a pair of maps σ: F→ F, σ: L→ L preserving the operations. Thus σ: F → F is an automorphism of F and (x + y)σ = xσ + yσ, (xy)σ = xσyσ (λx)σ = λσxσ for all x, y ε L and λ ε F. Clearly, any semi-automorphism of L induces a lattice automorphism. To study a given lattice automorphism φ, we select a semi-automorphism a such that φσ-1 fixes certain subalgebras, and so we reduce the problem to the investigation of lattice automorphisms leaving these subalgebras fixed.

Let be a class and p a property of groups. We say that p is a bigenetic property of p-groups (or more simply, p is bigenetic in p-groups) if an p-group G has the property p whenever all two-generator subgroups of G have p.

Among all non-self-adjoint operators, the shift has a special place in questions relating to invariant subspaces. It is therefore natural to attempt to use this fact to study other operators related in some way to the shift. Examples of this procedure are available in the work of Freeman [3] and Lim [5] where perturbations of the shift are studied.

In this note “vector space” will mean “Banach space” unless otherwise specified. Accordingly “Lie algebra” will stand for “Banach Lie algebra”. Morphisms between Lie algebras will be assumed continuous. A Banach algebra B will be always assumed associative, and it will be also viewed as a Lie algebra with product [X, YXY− YX. In particular, the Lie algebra gl(V) of endomorphisms of a vector space V will be equipped with the uniform norm. A morphism of Lie algebras L → gl(V) will b called a representation of L in gl(V). Also, if B is a Banach algebra, a morphism of Lie algebras L → B will be called a representation of L in B. From such one evidently obtains a representation of L in gl(B). A representation will be called faithful if it is injective.

In his Canberra lectures on finite soluble groups, [3], Gaschütz observed that a Schunck class (sometimes called a saturated homomorph) is {Q, Eφ, D0}-closed but not necessarily R0closed(*). In Problem 7·8 of the notes he then asks whether every {Q, Eφ, D0}-closed class is a Schunck class. We show below with an example † that this is not the case, and then we construct a closure operation R0 satisfying Do < ro < Ro such that is a Schunck class if and only if = {QEφ, Ro}. In what follows the class of finite soluble groups is universal. Let B denote the class of primitive groups. We recall that a Schunck class is one which satisfies: (a) = Q, and (b) contains all groups G such that Q(G) ∩ B ⊆.

Hanna Neumann was one of the pioneers of the algebraic theory of nearrings. In the functional analysis, the near-rings appear as the sets of non-linear mappings of a space into itself. The relations between the algebraic properties of these near-rings and the analytic structures of the spaces and mappings involved have not been fully investigated. The purpose of this note is to consider one of such problems.

Let G be a finite group generated by n elements and defined by m relators, then G has a presentation where F free on generators x1, …, xn, and R is the normal closure in F of R1, …, Rm. The deficiency of this presentation is n – m and the deficiency of Gis the maximum over all presentations for G.