ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Homotopy group with coefficients

When we're talking about the homotopy group with coefficients, it's like playing a game with a team of friends. Each friend has their own special skill that they bring to the game. In this case, the "team" is the homotopy group, and the "special skill" is the coefficient.

When we talk about the homotopy group, we're really talking about a group of shapes. These shapes can be anything, like circles or spheres or even more complicated shapes. The homotopy group is like a team made up of these shapes, and they work together to help us understand different parts of mathematics.

Now, imagine that each shape on the homotopy group team has a special power. This power is called the coefficient. The coefficient helps us understand different aspects of the shape and how it fits into the homotopy group.

For example, let's say we're looking at the homotopy group of a circle. The coefficient could be something like a number, which helps us understand how many times this circle can be wrapped around itself without any twists or bends. This number could be 1, 2, 3, or even higher!

So, when we talk about the homotopy group with coefficients, we're really talking about the team of shapes working together with their special powers to help us understand different parts of mathematics. It's like a game with friends where everyone has their own unique talent, but they all work together to win the game.