The assignment (nonstable K_0-theory), that to a ring R associates the monoid
V(R) of Murray-von Neumann equivalence classes of idempotent infinite matrices
with only finitely nonzero entries over R, extends naturally to a functor. We
prove the following lifting properties of that functor: (1) There is no functor
F, from simplicial monoids with order-unit with normalized positive
homomorphisms to exchange rings, such that VF is equivalent to the identity.
(2) There is no functor F, from simplicial monoids with order-unit with
normalized positive embeddings to C*-algebras of real rank 0 (resp., von
Neumann regular rings), such that VF is equivalent to the identity. (3) There
is a {0,1}^3-indexed commutative diagram D of simplicial monoids that can be
lifted, with respect to the functor V, by exchange rings and by C*-algebras of
real rank 1, but not by semiprimitive exchange rings, thus neither by regular
rings nor by C*-algebras of real rank 0. By using categorical tools from an
earlier paper (larders, lifters, CLL), we deduce that there exists a unital
exchange ring of cardinality aleph three (resp., an aleph three-separable
unital C*-algebra of real rank 1) R, with stable rank 1 and index of nilpotence
2, such that V(R) is the positive cone of a dimension group and V(R) is not
isomorphic to V(B) for any ring B which is either a C*-algebra of real rank 0
or a regular ring.Comment: 34 pages. Algebras and Representation Theory, to appea