Polynomials and the mod 2 Steenrod Algebra: Volume 2, Representations of GL (n,F2) [Paperback]

The second of two volumes covering the Steenrod algebra and its various applications. Ideal for researchers in pure mathematics.This detailed two-volume reference on the Steenrod algebra and its various applications presents more than thirty years of research. This second volume broadens the discussion to include modular representations of matrix groups.This detailed two-volume reference on the Steenrod algebra and its various applications presents more than thirty years of research. This second volume broadens the discussion to include modular representations of matrix groups.This is the first book to link the mod 2 Steenrod algebra, a classical object of study in algebraic topology, with modular representations of matrix groups over the field F of two elements. The link is provided through a detailed study of Peterson's `hit problem' concerning the action of the Steenrod algebra on polynomials, which remains unsolved except in special cases. The topics range from decompositions of integers as sums of 'powers of 2 minus 1', to Hopf algebras and the Steinberg representation of GL(n, F). Volume 1 develops the structure of the Steenrod algebra from an algebraic viewpoint and can be used as a graduate-level textbook. Volume 2 broadens the discussion to include modular representations of matrix groups.Preface; 16. The action of GL(n) on flags; 17. Irreducible F2GL(n)-modules; 18. Idempotents and characters; 19. Splitting P(n) as an A2-module; 20. The algebraic group (n); 21. Endomorphisms of P(n) over A2; 22. The Steinberg summands of P(n); 23. The d-spike module J(n); 24. Partial flags and J(n); 25. The symmetric hit problem; 26. The dual of the symmetric hit problem; 27. The cyclic splitting of P(n); 28. The cyclic splitting of DP(n); 29. The 4-variable hit problem, I; 30. The 4-variable hit problem, II; Bibliography; Index of Notation for Volume 2; Index for Volume 2; Index of Notation for Volume 1; Index for Volume 1.'In these volumes, the authors draw upon the worlã6