Hatcher-Algebraic-Topology · Problem 19

The Fundamental Group

Mathematics — Graph Theory · loops-1d-cw-complex

Problem

Show that if XX is a path-connected 1-dimensional CW complex with basepoint x0x_0 a 0-cell, then every loop in XX is homotopic to a loop consisting of a finite sequence of edges traversed monotonically. [See the proof of Lemma 1.15. This exercise gives an elementary proof that π1(S1)\pi_1(S^1) is cyclic generated by the standard loop winding once around the circle. The more difficult part of the calculation of π1(S1)\pi_1(S^1) is therefore the fact that no iterate of this loop is nullhomotopic.]

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