On the Residual Finiteness of Certain Mapping Class Groups

Let Tk be a compact orientable surface of genus k. By the mapping class group, M(Tk), of Tk we mean the group of all orientation-preserving homeomorphisms of Tkk modulo those isotopic to the identity. We prove here that M(Tk) is residually finite, using the algebraic interpretation of M(Tk) due to Nielsen.