Let G be a compact connected Lie group, and let $\operatorname {Hom}({\mathbb {Z}}^m,G)$ be the space of pairwise commuting m-tuples in G. We study the problem of which primes $p \operatorname {Hom}({\mathbb {Z}}^m,G)_1$, the connected component of $\operatorname {Hom}({\mathbb {Z}}^m,G)$ containing the element $(1,\ldots ,1)$, has p-torsion in homology. We will prove that $\operatorname {Hom}({\mathbb {Z}}^m,G)_1$ for $m\ge 2$ has p-torsion in homology if and only if p divides the order of the Weyl group of G for $G=SU(n)$ and some exceptional groups. We will also compute the top homology of $\operatorname {Hom}({\mathbb {Z}}^m,G)_1$ and show that $\operatorname {Hom}({\mathbb {Z}}^m,G)_1$ always has 2-torsion in homology whenever G is simply-connected and simple. Our computation is based on a new homotopy decomposition of $\operatorname {Hom}({\mathbb {Z}}^m,G)_1$, which is of independent interest and enables us to connect torsion in homology to the combinatorics of the Weyl group.

We construct a calculus of functors in the spirit of orthogonal calculus, which is designed to study ‘functors with reality’ such as the Real classifying space functor, . The calculus produces a Taylor tower, the n-th layer of which is classified by a spectrum with an action of . We further give model categorical considerations, producing a zigzag of Quillen equivalences between spectra with an action of and a model structure on the category of input functors which captures the homotopy theory of the n-th layer of the Taylor tower.

Let M be a smooth compact manifold with boundary. Under some geometric conditions on M, a homotopical model for the pair (M, ∂M) can be recovered from the configuration category of M \ ∂M. The grouplike monoid of derived homotopy automorphisms of the configuration category of M \ ∂M then acts on the homotopical model of (M, ∂M). That action is compatible with a better known homotopical action of the homeomorphism group of M \ ∂M on (M, ∂M).

In this short paper we try to describe the fundamental contribution of Quillen in the development of abstract homotopy theory and we explain how he uses this theory to lay the foundations of rational homotopy theory.

We investigate the functors from modules to modules that occur as the summands of tensor powers and the functors from modules to Hopf algebras that occur as natural coalgebra summands of tensor algebras. The main results provide some explicit natural coalgebra summands of tensor algebras. As a consequence, we obtain some decompositions of Lie powers over the general linear groups.

We prove, correct and extend several results of an earlier paper of ours (using and recalling several of our later papers) about the derived functors of projective limit in abelian categories. In particular we prove that if C is an abelian category satisfying the Grothendieck axioms AB3 and AB4* and having a set of generators then the first derived functor of projective limit vanishes on so-called Mittag-Leffler sequences in C. The recent examples given by Deligne and Neeman show that the condition that the category has a set of generators is necessary. The condition AB4* is also necessary, and indeed we give for each integer $m \geq 1$ an example of a Grothendieck category Cm and a Mittag-Leffler sequence in Cm for which the derived functors of its projective limit vanish in all positive degrees except m. This leads to a systematic study of derived functors of infinite products in Grothendieck categories. Several explicit examples of the applications of these functors are also studied.