Big Heegaard distance implies finite mapping class group (Q2384404)

For a compact, connected and orientable surface \(S\), the curve complex \(\mathcal{C}(S)\) is defined to be the simplicial complex whose vertices are the homotopy classes, called curves, of all non-trivial, non-peripheral simple closed loops and where every collection of \(k+1\) disjoint and distinct simple curves spans a \(k\)-simplex, for each \(k\). This complex is then equipped with the path-metric on its \(1\)-skeleton assigning length \(1\) to each edge. The Heegaard distance for a Heegaard splitting \(M = H^+ \bigcup_S H^-\) is defined by Hempel to be the nearest point distance between the two subcomplexes of \(\mathcal{C}(S)\) corresponding to the set of meridians for each handlebody. In the paper under review, the author shows that for a closed 3-manifold \(M\) with a Heegaard splitting of sufficiently large Heegaard distance, the subgroup \(\Gamma(H^+, H^-)\) of the mapping class group \(\mathcal{MCG}(S)\) whose elements extend to both handlebodies is finite. As a direct corollary, he shows that under the same hypothesis, the mapping class group \(\mathcal{MCG}(M)\) is finite. Recall that it is conjectured, by Hempel, that if the Heegaard distance of a splitting is larger than \(2\) then the given manifold is hyperbolic. The above corollary is evidence supporting this conjecture, when one also considers the work of \textit{D. Gabai, G. R. Meyerhoff} and \textit{N. Thurston} [Ann. Math. (2) 157, 335--431 (2003; Zbl 1052.57019)] showing that the mapping class group of a hyperbolic 3-manifold is finite. The key claim for the main theorem states that if \(M = H^+ \cup_S H^-\) has sufficiently large Heegaard distance, then all elements of \(\Gamma(H^+, H^-)\) are periodic. To rule out the possibility that it includes pseudo-Anosov maps or aperiodic reducible maps, the author uses results of \textit{H. A. Masur} and \textit{Y. N. Minsky} [Invent. Math. 138, 103--149 (1999; Zbl 0941.32012), Geom. Funct. Anal. 10, 902--974 (2000; Zbl 0972.32011), Contemp. Math. 355, 309--320 (2004; Zbl 1076.57016)] on the coarse geometry of \(\mathcal{C}(S)\). The main result then follows from a theorem of Serre regarding the mapping class group.