Big mapping class groups with uncountable integral homology (Q6200598)

Summary: We prove that, for any infinite-type surface \(S\), the integral homology of the closure of the compactly-supported mapping class group \(\overline{\mathrm{PMap}_{c}(S)}\) and of the Torelli group \(\mathcal{T}(S)\) is uncountable in every positive degree. By our results in [arXiv:2211.07470] and other known computations, such a statement cannot be true for the full mapping class group \(\mathrm{Map}(S)\) for all infinite-type surfaces \(S\). However, we are still able to prove that the integral homology of \(\mathrm{Map}(S)\) is uncountable in all positive degrees for a large class of infinite-type surfaces \(S\). The key property of this class of surfaces is, roughly, that the space of ends of the surface \(S\) contains a limit point of topologically distinguished points. Our result includes in particular all finite-genus surfaces having countable end spaces with a unique point of maximal Cantor-Bendixson rank \(\alpha\), where \(\alpha\) is a successor ordinal. We also observe an order-10 element in the first homology of the pure mapping class group of any surface of genus 2, answering a recent question of G. Domat.