On homotopy groups of the suspended classifying spaces (Q969655)

While homology behaves well under suspension, it is an unfortunate fact that this property is not shared by homotopy groups. In this paper, the authors take on the explicit task of computing \(\pi_4\) and \(\pi_5\) of suspended Eilenberg-Mac Lane spaces \(\Sigma K(A,1)\) for \(A\) an abelian group. They bring an array of tools to the problem starting with Whitehead's classical quadratic functor. By using algebraic \(K\)-theory and Carlsson's simplicial construction, the authors are able to extend their work to certain nonabelian groups such as \(\Sigma_3\), \(SL(\mathbb Z)\) and \(A_4\). There are a few misprints which an experienced reader should spot, but graduate students beware.