MTH6200: Abstract Algebra 2 Name: Prince - KEY

Exam 1

(1) (5 points) Do the nonzero integers form a group under the operation ♦
defined by
a♦b = |a| · b?
Justify your answer.

No.
There is no identity element. To see this, suppose that e were the identity
element of the group. Then

e♦ − 1 = −1♦e = −1,

but e♦ − 1 = −|e| and −1♦e = e, so if both of these are equal to −1 then

e = −1. On the other hand, if e = −1, then 1♦e 6= 1, so e 6= −1. Therefore,
no value of e exists, so the group has no identity.

(2) (4 points) Let G be a group which contains an element of order k for all
1 ≤ k ≤ 12. What is the smallest possible order of G? Justify your answer.

27720
By Lagrange’s Theorem, the order of G must be divisible by the order of any
element of G. Therefore |G| is divisible by every integer between 1 and 12
inclusive. The smallest number divisible by every k ∈ [1, 12] is 27720.

Aurora University - Spring 2010 Dr. Prince

MTH6200: Abstract Algebra 2

(3) (7 points) Let G be a group and a ∈ G. Define C(a), the centralizer of a

in G, to be the set
{g ∈ G | ga = ag }.
Show that C(a) is a subgroup of G for all a ∈ G.

To show that C(a) is a subgroup of G, we must show that it is closed and

has inverses.

For closure, suppose that g, h ∈ C(a). Then, to see that gh ∈ C(a),

notice that

(gh)a = g(ha) = g(ah) = (ga)h = (ag)h = a(gh).

For inverses, notice that if ga = ag, multiplying on the left and right by
−1
a gives
a−1 gaa−1 = a−1 aga−1 ,
which simplifies to a−1 g = ga−1 , so a−1 ∈ C(a).

Aurora University - Spring 2010 Dr. Prince

MTH6200: Abstract Algebra 2 Name: Prince - KEY

(4) (a) (3 points) Show that the map g : U36 → U12 given by g([x]36 ) = [x]12
(recall that [x]n is the congruence class of x modulo n) is a homomorphism.

Let [x]36 , [y]36 ∈ U36 . Then

g([x]36 + [y]36 ) = g([x + y]36 ) = [x + y]12 = [x]12 + [y]12 = g([x]36 ) + g([y]36 ),

so g is a homomorphism.

(b) (2 points) What is the kernel of g?

{[1]36 , [13]36 , [25]36 }

The kernel is the set of elements of U36 mapped to the identity in U12 , namely
[1]12 .

(c) (2 points) What two groups does the First Isomorphism Theorem
guarantee are isomorphic?

U36
and U12 .
{[1]36 , [13]36 , [25]36 }

(5) (a) (4 points) Show that the group U18 is cyclic.

The set of elements of U18 is {1, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17}. Notice that 51 = 5,
52 = 7, 53 = 17, 54 = 13, 55 = 11, and 56 = 1, so U18 is cyclic generated by
the element 5.

Aurora University - Spring 2010 Dr. Prince

MTH6200: Abstract Algebra 2

(b) (4 points) Show that the group U20 is not cyclic.

The set of elements of U20 is {1, 3, 7, 9, 11, 13, 17, 19}. We can see that

h1i = {1}
h3i = {3, 9, 7, 1}
h7i = {7, 9, 3, 1}
h9i = {9, 1}
h11i = {11, 1}
h13i = {13, 9, 17, 1}
h17i = {17, 9, 13, 1}
h19i = {19, 1}

Since hai =
6 U20 for any a ∈ U20 , the group U20 is not cyclic.

(6) (9 points) Let G be a group and a ∈ G. Show that the function f : G → G

given by f (g) = aga−1 is an isomorphism.

We must show that f is a bijective homomorphism.

To see that f is a homomorphism, notice that

f (gh) = a(gh)a−1 = a(geh)a = a(g(a−1 a)h)a−1 = (aga−1 )(aha−1 ) = f (g)f (h).

To see that f is injective, notice that if f (g) = f (h), then aga−1 = aha−1 .
Multiplying by a−1 on the left and a on the right leaves g = h. Hence f is
injective.
To see that f is surjective, consider g ∈ G. Then f (a−1 ga) = a(a−1 ga)a−1 =
(aa−1 )g(aa−1 ) = g. Hence g is mapped to by f , so f is surjective.

Aurora University - Spring 2010 Dr. Prince