Comparing 2-handle additions to a genus 2 boundary component

Abstract

We prove that knots obtained by attaching a band to a split link satisfy the cabling conjecture. We also give new proofs that unknotting number one knots are prime and that genus is superadditive under band sum. Additionally, we prove a collection of results comparing two 2-handle additions to a genus two boundary component of a compact, orientable 3-manifold. These results give a near complete solution to a conjecture of Scharlemann and provide evidence for a conjecture of Scharlemann and Wu. The proofs make use of a new theorem concerning the effects of attaching a 2-handle to a suture in the boundary of a sutured manifold.