A categorical approach to convergence: compactness (Q5963957)

The paper presents a new categorical approach to the topological concept of convergence, which is suitable for every category with a terminal object, and which is based in comma categories. More precisely, given a category \(\mathcal{K}\) with a terminal object as well as a functor \(F:\mathcal{S}\rightarrow\mathcal{K}\) with non-empty domain, the author defines an \textit{\(F\)-net} in a \(\mathcal{K}\)-object \(K\) as an arbitrary object of the comma category \(\langle F\downarrow K\rangle\) (Definition 1 on page 79). For example, if \(\mathcal{K}\) is the category of sets and maps, \(\mathcal{S}\) is the category of directed sets and cofinal maps, and \(F:\mathcal{S}\rightarrow\mathcal{K}\) is the forgetful functor, then \(F\)-nets in a \(\mathcal{K}\)-object \(X\) are the classical nets in the set \(X\) of, e.g., [\textit{J. L. Kelley}, General topology. 2nd ed. Graduate Texts in Mathematics. 27. New York - Heidelberg - Berlin: Springer-Verlag (1975; Zbl 0306.54002)]. The author employs then the terminal object \(T\) of \(\mathcal{K}\), to define the notion of \textit{point} of a \(\mathcal{K}\)-object \(K\) as a subobject of \(K\) of the form \(T\rightarrow K\). In such a way, one arrives at a convergence relation between \(F\)-nets in \(K\) and points of \(K\) (Definition 2 on page 79), which leads to the concept of \textit{convergence space} \((K,\pi)\), in which \(\pi\) is the convergence relation in question. In Section~3 of the paper (pages 81--84), the author restates in his new categorical language some of the classical results from general topology on separation and compactness properties of convergence spaces. In particular, he introduces an analogue of the one-point Alexandroff compactification (Definition 6 on page 82). The paper is well written, provides some of its required preliminaries, and will be of interest to the researchers, who apply categorical methods in topology.