The absolute degree and Nielsen root number of a fibre-preserving map (Q1862071)

Given a fibration, it is a classical question to relate some properties of the total space to the corresponding ones of the fibre and base. The present paper studies the absolute degree, the Nielsen root number and the minimal number of roots of fibre preserving maps \(f:M\to N\) between two locally trivial bundles \(F\to M\to X\) and \(G\to N\to Y\). Let \(\overline f:X\to Y\) be the induced map on the base and \(f_x:F\to G\) the restriction of \(f\) to the fibre over a point \(x\in X\). The main goal of the paper is to study the Nielson root numbers, the absolute degree and the minimal root problem for fibre-preserving maps. For the Nielsen root number the authors show, Theorem 6.1, the formula \(k(f)NR(f)= NR(\overline f)\cdot NR(f_x)\), where the number \(k(f)=[\text{Ker} j_\#, \text{ Ker} j_\# \cap\text{im} f_x]\) for \(j:G\to N\) the inclusion, \(j\#\), \(f_x\#\) the induced homomorphisms on the fundamental group. For the absolute degree they show, Theorem 6.8, that \(A(f)=A(f_x)\cdot A(\overline f)\) if both maps \(f_x\), \(\overline f\) are orientable. For the fibre minimum number of roots (denoted by \(\text{FMR} [f])\) they show, Theorem 7.9, that a) \(\text{FMR} [f]= MR[f_x]\cdot MR[f_x]\cdot MR [\overline f]\), b) If \(\dim X\neq 2\) and \(\dim F\neq 2\), then \(\text{FMR} [f]=NF(f_x)\cdot NR(f)\). If, furthermore, \(\dim M\neq 2\), then \(\text{FMR} [f]=MR[f]\) if and only if \(NR(f)=NR (f_x)\cdot NR(\overline f)\). The results of this paper can be regarded as a natural continuation of a previous work of the authors, where they consider some questions about the product \(f_1 \times f_2\) of two maps. As we move to fibrations, the situation becomes more subtle, since the spaces and the fibration may not be orientable. The authors are very careful to take care of all the cases and construct a bundle over the total space, called the fibrewise orientation bundle, which keeps track of some information of the orientability of the spaces and the fibration. This is a helpful tool. Finally, applications to maps between solvmanifolds are given. The paper is very well written and almost self-contained.