TITLE: Explicit isomorphism $\tilde{H_n}(X)\simeq \tilde{H}_{n+1}(SX)$.
QUESTION [15 upvotes]: Let $X$ be a topological space and $S:\mathbf{Top}\to \mathbf{Top}$ be the suspension functor.
It's not hard to show using e.g. the long exact sequence of homology that $\tilde{H_n}(X)\simeq \tilde{H}_{n+1}(SX)$ (where $\tilde{H_n}$ denotes reduced homology).
However, I need to

"construct explicit chain maps $f:C_n(X)\to C_{n+1}(SX)$ inducing isomorphisms $\tilde{H_n}(X)\to \tilde{H_{n+1}}(SX)$"

(this is problem 21 in section 2.1 of Hatcher's book).
Here's my attempt:
Define $f:C_n(X)\to C_{n+1}(SX)$ as follows. If $\sigma:\Delta^n\to X$ is a singular $n$-chain, then its suspension is $S\sigma:S\Delta^n\to SX$.
It's geometrically clear that $S\Delta^n$ is the union of two $n+1$- standard simplexes, call them $\Delta^{n+1}_0$ and $\Delta^{n+1}_1$, identified by a face.
Let $f(\sigma):=S\sigma|_{\Delta^{n+1}_1}-S\sigma|_{\Delta^{n+1}_0}$. Then extend $f$ linearly to all of $C_n(X)$.
A little manipulation proves that $f$ is indeed a chain map.
Now the problem is: how to prove that $f_*:\tilde{H_n}(X)\to \tilde{H}_{n+1}(SX)$ is an isomorphism?
I thought perhaps the connecting homomorphism $\partial:H_{n+1}(CX,X)\to \tilde{H}_n(X)$ could help. Since $(CX,X)$ is a good pair, there is an isomorphism $\varphi:\tilde{H_{n+1}}(CX/X)=\tilde{H}_{n+1}(SX)\to H_{n+1}(CX,X)$.
But how to prove that $\partial \varphi$ is the inverse of $f_*$?
Or perhaps this is a terrible approach... but I've run out of ideas.

REPLY [10 votes]: I believe your map will work, but here's my suggestion.
We work with relative groups everywhere, since we want the conclusion to hold for reduced homology.
Consider the maps
$$C_*(X, *) \to C_{*+1}(CX, X) \to C_{*+1}(SX, *)$$
The first map is defined by taking a simplex $\Delta^n \to X$ to the simplex $\Delta^{n+1} = C\Delta^n \to CX$. The second map is the collapse map $(CX, X) \to (CX/X, X/X) = (SX, *)$. The second map is automatically a chain map, and it should be easy to check that the first map is also a chain map.
Consider the long exact homology sequence of the triple $(CX, X, *)$, then it should be easy to see, just by computing the map directly following chains around, that the connecting map $\delta: H_{*+1}(CX, X) \to H_*(X, *)$ is inverse to the induced map on homology $H_*(X, *) \to H_{*+1}(CX, X)$.
Using excision or what have you, you can then prove that the map $C_{*+1}(CX, X) \to C_{*+1}(SX, *)$ induces an isomorphism on homology. This shows that the above composition does the job.
I think if you do some work you can prove this map is homotopic to the map that you constructed, but this seems easier to me.