An embedding from a Cartesian product of two spaces into the Cartesian product of two spaces is said to be factorwise rigid provided that it is the product of embeddings on the individual factors composed with a permutation of the coordinates. We prove that each embedding of a product of two pseudo-arcs into itself is factorwise rigid. As a consequence, if X and Y are metric continua with the property that each of their nondegenerate proper subcontinua is homeomorphic to the pseudo-arc, then X ×...

The first author has recently proved that if f: X → Y is a k-dimensional map between compacta and Y is p-dimensional (0 ≤ k, p < ∞), then for each 0 ≤ i ≤ p + k, the set of maps g in the space $C(X,I^{p+2k+1-i})$ such that the diagonal product $f\times g:X\to Y\times I^{p+2k+1-i}$ is an (i+1)-to-1 map is a dense $G_{\delta }$-subset of $C(X,I^{p+2k+1-i})$. In this paper, we prove that if f: X → Y is as above and $D_j$ (j = 1,..., k) are superdendrites, then the set of maps h in $C(X,{\prod }_{j=1}^k{D}_j\times I^{p+1-i})$ such that $f\times h:X\to Y\times \left({\prod }_{j=1}^k{D}_j\times I^{p+1-i}\right)$ is (i+1)-to-1 is a dense $G_{\delta }$-subset of $C(X,{\prod }_{j=1}^k{D}_j\times I^{p+1-i})$ for each 0 ≤ i ≤ p.

Let X be a metrizable one-dimensional continuum. We describe the fundamental group of X as a subgroup of its Čech homotopy group. In particular, the elements of the Čech homotopy group are represented by sequences of words. Among these sequences the elements of the fundamental group are characterized by a simple stabilization condition. This description of the fundamental group is used to give a new algebro-combinatorial proof of a result due to Eda on continuity properties of homomorphisms from...