Basic Category Theory
Self-study notes for Tom Leinster’s Basic Category Theory Chapters 1-4, covering basic definitions, adjunction, representables, and universal constructions.
My interest in category theory stems from studying MacLane and Birkhoff’s Algebra. Category theory offers precise yet abstract tools to justify mathematical constructions by focusing on their unifying properties. It provides a broad perspective that applies across various fields. Key insights from this brief dip include:
- Mathematical objects are understood through their relationships with other objects.
- Constructions are anchored in their universal properties.
- Definitions and axioms are validated by the theorems they enable one to prove.
These earlier notes are served in notion: functors and natural transformations, adjunction, representables. Notes on the Yoneda lemma are lost.