If \(C_{p}(X)\) is strongly dominated by a second countable space, then \(X\) is countable (Q2360011)

Given two topological spaces \(Y\) and \(Z\), we say that \(Z\) is \textbf{dominated} by \(Y\) if there is a family \(\mathscr D=\{D_K\mid K\subseteq Y\text{ is compact}\}\) such that each \(D_K\) is compact, \(Z=\bigcup\mathscr D\), and \(K\subseteq L\Rightarrow D_K\subseteq D_L\); and we say that \(Z\) is \textbf{strongly dominated} by \(Y\) if additionally we have that for each compact set \(F\subseteq Z\) there exists a compact \(K\subseteq Y\) such that \(F\subseteq D_K\). The notion of \(Z\) being dominated by \(Y\) constitutes a generalization of the existence of a continuous surjection from \(Y\) to \(Z\); the notion of \(Z\) being strongly dominated by \(Y\) generalizes the idea that there is such a continuous surjection which is, additionally, perfect. There are a number of results that relate topological properties of a space \(X\) with (strong) domination of some spaces constructed from \(X\) by some other specific spaces. For just a sample of these, \textit{M. Talagrand} [Ann. Math. (2) 110, 407--438 (1979; Zbl 0393.46019)] proved that if \(X\) is a compact space such that \(C_p(X)\) is dominated by the space of irrational numbers, then \(C_p(X)\) must be \(K\)-analytic (here, \(C_p(X)\) denotes the space of all continuous functions from \(X\) to \(\mathbb R\), equipped with the pointwise convergence topology inherited from \(\mathbb R^X\); whereas \(K\)-analytic means that \(C_p(X)\) is the image of an upper semi-continuous compact-valued map defined in the Baire space \(\omega^\omega\)); later \textit{V. V. Tkachuk} [Acta Math. Hung. 107, No. 4, 253--265 (2005; Zbl 1081.54012)] removed the compactness assumption from that result. \textit{B. Cascales} and \textit{J. Orihuela} [Math. Z. 195, 365--381 (1987; Zbl 0604.46011)] proved that every compact space \(X\) such that \(X\times X\setminus\Delta_X\) is strongly dominated by the irrational numbers must be metrizable (where \(\Delta_X=\{(x,x)\mid x\in X\}\) is the diagonal subspace of \(X\times X\)), and later \textit{A. Dow} and \textit{K. P. Hart} [Indag. Math., New Ser. 27, No. 3, 721--726 (2016; Zbl 1352.54013)] removed the word ``strongly'' from that result. These are some examples of theorems that utilize the notions of domination and strong domination. In [\textit{B. Cascales} et al., Topology Appl. 158, No. 2, 204--214 (2011; Zbl 1213.54033), Problems 4.9 and 4.10], it was asked whether the only spaces that are strongly dominated by either \(\mathbb Q\), or a separable metric space, are the countable ones. Other related questions appeared in print in [\textit{D. Guerrero Sánchez}, Topology Appl. 160, No. 13, 1652--1658 (2013; Zbl 1286.54005), Questions 5.1, 5.2 and 5.3], asking whether the condition that \(C_p(X)\) is strongly dominated by a second countable space implies that every compact subset of \(X\) is countable, or that \(X\) has countable spread (i.e. every discrete subspace must be countable), or that \(C_p(X)\) has a countable network modulo \(\mathcal K(C_p(X))\) (i.e. a countable family \(\mathscr F\) such that for every compact \(K\subseteq C_p(X)\) and every open \(U\supseteq K\) there is \(F\in\mathscr F\) such that \(K\subseteq F\subseteq U\)). The main result of this paper is Theorem 3.4, which resolves all of these questions at once, by establishing that every topological space \(X\) is countable if and only if \(C_p(X)\) is strongly dominated by a second countable space. The paper skillfully guides the reader through a well-organized sequence of lemmata that eventually lead to this main theorem; then the final section contains plenty of open problems.