Homotopy classes of proper maps out of vector bundles (Q2285068)

In the paper under review the author classifies the homotopy classes of proper maps from a real vector bundle over a compact Hausdorff space to a Euclidean space \(\mathbb{R}^k\). Concretely, the following result is proved: Theorem. Let \(E\) be a normed real vector bundle over a compact Hausdorff space \(M\). Denote by \(S(E)\rightarrow M\) the associated sphere bundle of unit vectors. Then the set of homotopy classes of proper maps \([E,\mathbb{R}^k]_{\mathrm{prop}}\) is in bijective correspondence with the set of homotopy classes of maps \([S(E),S^{k-1}]\). As a consequence the author computes the homotopy classes of proper maps \(\mathbb{R}^n\rightarrow \mathbb{R}^k\). Moreover, using the one point compactification construction he is able to find a stability range of such maps. This fact allows him to give the definition of the set of stable proper homotopy classes \([E,\mathbb{R}^k]^S_{\mathrm{prop}}\) and to prove that this set is in bijective correspondence with the stable cohomotopy group \(\pi ^k_S(\mathrm{Th}(E))\). Here \(\mathrm{Th}(E)\) denotes the Thom space of the vector bundle \(E\rightarrow M\). Considering Atiyah duality he also obtains: Theorem. Let \(M\) be an \(m\)-dimensional compact manifold with boundary \(\partial M\). Let \(E\) be the normal bundle of \(M\) of some embedding of \(M\) into \(\mathbb{R}^{m+n}\). Then there is a bijection of the set of stable proper homotopy classes \([E,\mathbb{R}^k]^S_{\mathrm{prop}}\) with the stable homotopy group \(\pi ^S_{n+m-k}(M/\partial M)\). The author finishes with a discussion on a possible classification when \(E\) is an arbitrary open manifold.