nLab
(-1)-groupoid

Definition

A $(-1)$-groupoid or (-1)-type is a truth value, or equivalently an (−1)-truncated object in ∞Grpd. By excluded middle, this is either the empty groupoid (false) or the terminal groupoid (true, the point).

Remarks

Compare the concept of 0-groupoid (a set) and (−2)-groupoid (which is trivial). The point of $(-1)$-groupoids is that they complete some patterns in the periodic table of $n$-categories. (They also shed light on the theory of homotopy groups and n-stuff.)

For example, there should be a $0$-category of $(-1)$-groupoids; a $0$-category is also a set, and this set is the set of truth values: classically

$$(-1)\mathrm{Grpd}:=\{\perp ,\top \}$$(-1)Grpd := \{\bot, \top\}

Actually, since for other values of $n$, n-groupoids form not just an $(n+1)$-category but an $(n+1,1)$-category, we should expect the $0$-category of $(-1)$-groupoids to be a $(0,1)$-category, or $1$-poset. This simply means a poset, and indeed truth values do always form a poset, classically ($\perp \le \top$).

If we equip the category of $(-1)$-groupoids with the monoidal structure of conjunction (the logical AND operation), then a groupoid enriched over this is a setoid, and a category enriched over it is a proset. Up to equivalence of categories, these are the same as a set (a $0$-groupoid) and a poset (a (0,1)-category); this fits the patterns of the periodic table.

See (−1)-category for more on this sort of negative thinking.

Related concepts

homotopy level	n-truncation	homotopy theory	higher category theory	higher topos theory	homotopy type theory
h-level 0	(-2)-truncated	contractible space	(-2)-groupoid		true/unit type/contractible type
h-level 1	(-1)-truncated		(-1)-groupoid/truth value		h-proposition
h-level 2	0-truncated	discrete space	0-groupoid/set	sheaf	h-set
h-level 3	1-truncated	homotopy 1-type	1-groupoid/groupoid	(2,1)-sheaf/stack	h-groupoid
h-level 4	2-truncated	homotopy 2-type	2-groupoid		h-2-groupoid
h-level 5	3-truncated	homotopy 3-type	3-groupoid		h-3-groupoid
h-level $n+2$	$n$-truncated	homotopy n-type	n-groupoid		h-$n$-groupoid
h-level $\mathrm{\infty }$	untruncated	homotopy type	∞-groupoid	(∞,1)-sheaf/∞-stack	h-$\mathrm{\infty }$-groupoid