Parity of mod \(p\) Betti numbers (Q1577416)

Let \(p\) be a prime, \(m\) a positive integer, and \(M\) a compact \(2m+1\)-dimensional \(p\)-manifold with (possibly empty) boundary. This means that locally \(M\) is a quotient of a manifold (or a manifold with boundary) by a group which acts with finite stabilizers with orders prime to \(p\). Define the interior cohomology of \(M\) to be the image of \(H^k(M, \partial M)\) in \(H^k(M)\), and denote it by \(H_!^k(M)\). In this paper the author proves the existence of a natural filtration on the \(m\)-dimensional \(\operatorname {mod}p\) interior cohomology of \(M\) with trivial coefficients such that the successive quotients (except for the first) support a naturally defined nondegenerate bilinear form. This form is symmetric if \(m\) is odd and alternating if \(m\) is even. Hence in the latter case these quotients are even dimensional if \(p\) is odd. This is done under the hypothesis that there is no \(p\)-torsion in the \((m-1)\)st integral cohomology of the boundary of \(M\). The construction uses the Bockstein spectral sequence and Lefschetz duality. As a corollary he explains the experimental results of \textit{A. Ash} and \textit{M. McConnell} [Exp. Math. 1, 209-223 (1992; Zbl 0780.11029)] that if \(N\) is an odd prime, \(N\leq 223\), and \(5\leq p\leq 23\) then the \(p\) quasi-cuspidal cohomology in degree 3 of \(\Gamma_0(N)\) of \(\text{GL}(3,\mathbb{Z})\) is even dimensional if \(n\not\equiv 1\pmod p\), and odd dimensional otherwise.