Topological difference of the iterated remainders (Q2411467)

Assuming ZFC, to solve problems on iterated remainders of the spaces \(\mathbb{Q}\) of rational numbers, \(\mathbb{P}\) of irrational numbers and of the Sorgenfrey line \(\mathbb{S}\), the author pays special attention to the class \(\mathcal{L}\) of all simultaneously regular Hausdorff Lindelöf and nowhere locally compact spaces \(Z\) that have the property that each compact subset of \(Z\) is contained in some compact subset of \(Z\) with countable character. Let \(\mathcal{L}(0)\) stand for the class of all simultaneously first countable and hereditarily separable spaces from \(\mathcal{L}\). It is important that \(\mathbb{Q}, \mathbb{P}\) and \(\mathbb{S}\) belong to \(\mathcal{L}(0)\). As usual, \(\beta X\) is the Čech-Stone compactification of a completely regular Hausdorff space \(X\). The author considers an arbitrary space \(X=X^{(0)}\in\mathcal{L}(0)\) and, for \(n\in\omega\), he inductively defines \(X_n=\beta X^{(n)}\) and \(X^{(n+1)}=X_n\setminus X^{(n)}\). A significant result is that if \(i,j\in\omega\) and \(i < j\), then there does not exist an irreducible perfect map from \(X^{(i)}\) onto \(X^{(j)}\); in particular, there do not exist irreducible perfect maps \(\mathbb{Q}^{(i)}\to\mathbb{Q}^{(j)}, \mathbb{P}^{(i)}\to\mathbb{P}^{(j)}, \mathbb{S}^{(i)}\to\mathbb{S}^{(j)}\). This is a deep solution of a problem posed in [\textit{E. K. van Douwen}, Diss. Math. 188, 45 p. (1981; Zbl 0525.54018)]. Being motivated by the facts that the unit interval is a compactification of \(\mathbb{Q}\cup\mathbb{P}\), while the double arrow space is compact and it is a disjoint union of two copies of \(\mathbb{S}\), the author considers an arbitrary compact Hausdorff space \(K\) such that \(K=X\cup Y\) where \(X,Y\in\mathcal{L}(0)\) and \(X\cap Y=\emptyset\). In this case, he proves that if \(i,j\in\omega\) and \(i < j\), then there does not exist an irreducible perfect map from \(Y^{(i)}\) onto \(X^{(j)}\). It is also proved that if \(i,j\in\omega\) and \(i < j\), then the spaces \(X_i\) and \(Y_j\) are not homeomorphic. In consequence, any two distinct spaces from the collection \(\{\beta\mathbb{Q}^{(i)}: i\in\omega\}\cup\{\beta\mathbb{P}^{(j)}: j\in\omega\}\cup\{\beta\mathbb{S}^{(k)}; k\in\omega\}\) are not homeomorphic. It is shown that if \(n\) is a positive integer, then there do not exist irreducible continuous maps from any of \(\beta\mathbb{Q}, \beta\mathbb{P}, \beta\mathbb{S}\) to any of \(\beta\mathbb{Q}^{(n)}, \beta\mathbb{P}^{(n)}, \beta\mathbb{S}^{(n)}\). Other facts included in the article, among them results concerning \(C^{\ast}\)-embeddability, are also interesting.