Composition conjecture for lasso contractions

Let (L,η)(\operatorname{\mathcal{L}},\eta) be a lasso on a category C\mathsf{C}. For monomorphisms f1 ⁣:X1Yf_1\colon X_1\hookrightarrow Y and f2 ⁣:X2Y/ff_2\colon X_2\to Y_{/f} arranged as in the source diagrams, let Y/f1Y_{/f_1} and (Y/f1)/f2(Y_{/f_1})_{/f_2} denote the successive contractions, with induced maps ηX1#\eta_{X_1}^{\#} and ηX2#\eta_{X_2}^{\#}. Composition conjecture for lasso contractions. There is a subobject f ⁣:XYf\colon X\hookrightarrow Y whose lasso contraction satisfies

Y/f=(Y/f1)/f2Y_{/f}=(Y_{/f_1})_{/f_2}

and

ηX#=ηX2#ηX1#.\eta_X^{\#}=\eta_{X_2}^{\#}\eta_{X_1}^{\#}.

The claim would imply that lasso-contractions are closed under composition, a prerequisite for making the relevant category of objects and lasso-contractions functorial. The source explicitly says that this general composition question is unresolved, although it is straightforward for graph contractions.

Sources & referencesView supporting material

Primary source

Benjamin Merlin Bumpus, James Fairbanks and Will J. Turner, “Lassos: Pushing Tree Decompositions Forward Along Homomorphisms”, arXiv:2408.15184 (2025).

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