We prove that a finitely generated group contains a sequence of non-trivial elements that converge to the identity in every compact homomorphic image if and only if the group is not virtually abelian. As a consequence of the methods used, we show that a finitely generated group satisfies Chu duality if and only if it is virtually abelian.

Following a similar result of Uspenskij on the unitary group of a separable Hilbert space, we show that, with respect to the lower (or Roelcke) uniform structure, the Polish group $G= \operatorname{Aut}(\mu)$ of automorphisms of an atomless standard Borel probability space $(X,\mu)$ is precompact. We identify the corresponding compactification as the space of Markov operators on $L_2(\mu)$ and deduce that the algebra of right and left uniformly continuous functions, the algebra of weakly almost periodic functions, and the algebra of Hilbert functions on $G$, i.e., functions on $G$ arising from unitary representations, all coincide. Again following Uspenskij, we also conclude that $G$ is totally minimal.