Homological stability for configuration spaces of manifolds

Let C _n (M) be the configuration space of n distinct ordered points in M. We prove that if M is any connected orientable manifold (closed or open), the homology groups H _i (C _n (M);ℚ) are representation stable in the sense of Church and Farb (). Applying this to the trivial representation, we obtain as a corollary that the unordered configuration space B _n (M) satisfies classical homological stability: for each i, H _i (B _n (M);ℚ)≈H _i (B _n+1(M);ℚ) for n>i. This improves on results of McDuff, Segal, and others for open manifolds. Applied to closed manifolds, this provides natural examples where rational homological stability holds even though integral homological stability fails.     

On certain spaces of lattice diagram determinants

The aim of this work is to study some lattice diagram determinants Δ_L(X,Y) as defined in (Adv. Math. 142 (1999) 244) and to extend results of Aval et al. (J. Combin. Theory Ser. A, to appear). We recall that M_L denotes the space of all partial derivatives of Δ_L. In this paper, we want to study the space M_i,j^k(X,Y) which is defined as the sum of M_L spaces where the lattice diagrams L are obtained by removing k cells from a given partition, these cells being in the “shadow” of a given cell (i,j) in a fixed Ferrers diagram. We obtain an upper bound for the dimension of the resulting space M_i,j^k(X,Y), that we conjecture to be optimal. This dimension is a multiple of n! and thus we obtain a generalization of the n! conjecture. Moreover, these upper bounds associated to nice properties of some special symmetric differential operators (the “shift” operators) allow us to construct explicit bases in the case of one set of variables, i.e. for the subspace M_i,j^k(X) consisting of elements of 0 Y-degree.     

Lefschetz Complex Conditions for Complex Manifolds

For any compact complex manifold M with a compatible symplectic form, we consider the homomorphisms L _1,0: H ^1,0(M) H ^{{n, n–1}(M) and L _{0, 1}: H ^{0, 1}(M) H ^{n – 1, n} (M) given by the cup product with [] ^{n – 1}, n being the complex dimension of M andH ^{*, *}(M) the Dolbeault cohomology of M. We say that Mhas Lefschetz complex type (1, 0) (resp. (0, 1)) if L _{1, 0} (resp.L _{0, 1}) is injective. Such conditions can be considered as complexversions of the (real) Lefschetz condition studied by Benson and Gordonin [Topology 27 (1988), 513–518]for symplectic manifolds. Within the class of compactcomplex nilmanifolds, we prove that the injectivity of L _{1, 0}characterizes those complex structures which are Abelian in the sense ofBarberis et al. [Ann. Global Anal. Geom. 13 (1995), 289–301]. In contrast, complex tori are the only nilmanifolds having Lefschetz complex type (0, 1).     

Upper bounds on the length of a shortest closed geodesic and quantitative Hurewicz theorem

In this paper we present two upper bounds on the length of a shortest closed geodesic on compact Riemannian manifolds. The first upper bound depends on an upper bound on sectional curvature and an upper bound on the volume of the manifold. The second upper bound will be given in terms of a lower bound on sectional curvature, an upper bound on the diameter and a lower bound on the volume.The related questions that will also be studied are the following: given a contractible k-dimensional sphere in M ⁿ , how “fast” can this sphere be contracted to a point, if π _i (M ⁿ )={0} for 1≤i<k. That is, what is the maximal length of the trajectory described by a point of a sphere under an “optimal” homotopy? Also, what is the “size” of the smallest non-contractible k-dimensional sphere in a (k-1)-connected manifold M ⁿ providing that M ⁿ is not k-connected?     

A random intersection digraph: Indegree and outdegree distributions

Let S(1),…,S(n),T(1),…,T(n) be random subsets of the set [m]={1,…,m}. We consider the random digraph D on the vertex set [n] defined as follows: the arc i→j is present in D whenever S(i)∩T(j)≠0?. Assuming that the pairs of sets (S(i),T(i)), 1≤i≤n, are independent and identically distributed, we study the in- and outdegree distributions of a typical vertex of D as n,m→∞.     

Lower bounds on the minimum average distance of binary codes

Let β(n,M) denote the minimum average Hamming distance of a binary code of length n and cardinality M. In this paper we consider lower bounds on β(n,M). All the known lower bounds on β(n,M) are useful when M is at least of size about 2ⁿ⁻¹/n. We derive new lower bounds which give good estimations when size of M is about n. These bounds are obtained using a linear programming approach. In particular, it is proved that lim_n→∞β(n,2n)=5/2. We also give a new recursive inequality for β(n,M).     

On a conjecture by B. Grünbaum

Denote by p_k(M) or υ_k(M) the number of k-gonal faces or k-valent of the convex 3-polytope M, respectively. Completely solving a problem by B. Grünbaum, the following theorem is proved: Given sequences of nonnegative integers p = (p₃, p₄,…p_m), υ = (υ₃, υ₄,…,υ_n) satisfying ∑_k?3(6−k)p_k + 2∑_k?3(3−k)υ_k = 12, there exists a convex 3-polytope M with p_k(M) = p_k for all k ≠ 6 and υ_k for all k ≠ 3 if and only if for the sequences p, υ the following does not hold: ∑p_i = 0 for i odd and ∑υ_i = 1 for i ? 0 (mod 3).     

A compactness result for Kähler Ricci solitons

In this paper we prove a compactness result for compact Kähler Ricci gradient shrinking solitons. If (Mi,gi) is a sequence of Kähler Ricci solitons of real dimension n?4, whose curvatures have uniformly bounded Ln/2 norms, whose Ricci curvatures are uniformly bounded from below and μ(gi,1/2)?A (where μ is Perelman's functional), there is a subsequence (Mi,gi) converging to a compact orbifold (M_∞,g_∞) with finitely many isolated singularities, where g_∞ is a Kähler Ricci soliton metric in an orbifold sense (satisfies a soliton equation away from singular points and smoothly extends in some gauge to a metric satisfying Kähler Ricci soliton equation in a lifting around singular points).     

A survey on labeling graphs with a condition at distance two

For positive integers k,d₁,d₂, a k-L(d₁,d₂)-labeling of a graph G is a function f:V(G)→{0,1,2,…,k} such that |f(u)-f(v)|?d_i whenever the distance between u and v is i in G, for i=1,2. The L(d₁,d₂)-number of G, λ_d1,d2(G), is the smallest k such that there exists a k-L(d₁,d₂)-labeling of G. This class of labelings is motivated by the code (or frequency) assignment problem in computer network. This article surveys the results on this labeling problem.     

Twisted Hecke L-values and period polynomials

Let f₁,…,fd be an orthogonal basis for the space of cusp forms of even weight 2k on Γ₀(N). Let L(fi,s) and L(fi,χ,s) denote the L-function of fi and its twist by a Dirichlet character χ, respectively. In this note, we obtain a “trace formula” for the values at integers m and n with 0<m,n<2k and proper parity. In the case N=1 or N=2, the formula gives us a convenient way to evaluate precisely the value of the ratio L(f,χ,m)/L(f,n) for a Hecke eigenform f.     

On the Existence of Absolutely Simple Abelian Varieties of a Given Dimension over an Arbitrary Field

We prove that for every field k and every positive integer n there exists an absolutely simple n-dimensional abelian variety over k. We also prove an asymptotic result for finite fields: For every finite field k and positive integer n, we let S(k, n) denote the fraction of the isogeny classes of n-dimensional abelian varieties over k that consist of absolutely simple ordinary abelian varieties. Then for every n we have S(F_q, n)→1 as q→∞ over the prime powers.     

Approximation by light maps and parametric Lelek maps

The class of metrizable spaces M with the following approximation property is introduced and investigated: M∈AP(n,0) if for every ε>0 and a map g:In→M there exists a 0-dimensional map g^′:In→M which is ε-homotopic to g. It is shown that this class has very nice properties. For example, if Mi∈AP(ni,0), i=1,2, then M₁×M₂∈AP(n₁+n₂,0). Moreover, M∈AP(n,0) if and only if each point of M has a local base of neighborhoods U with U∈AP(n,0). Using the properties of AP(n,0)-spaces, we generalize some results of Levin and Kato-Matsuhashi concerning the existence of residual sets of n-dimensional Lelek maps.     

Uniformly optimal graphs in some classes of graphs with node failures

The uniformly optimal graph problem with node failures consists of finding the most reliable graph in the class Ω(n,m) of all graphs with n nodes and m edges in which nodes fail independently and edges never fail. The graph G is called uniformly optimal in Ω(n,m) if, for all node-failure probabilities q∈(0,1), the graph G is the most reliable graph in the class of graphs Ω(n,m). This paper proves that the multipartite graphs K(b,b+1,…,b+1,b+2) are uniformly optimal in their classes Ω((k+2)(b+1),(k²+3k+2)(b+1)²/2−1), where k is the number of partite sets of size (b+1), while for i>2, the multipartite graphs K(b,b+1,…,b+1,b+i) are not uniformly optimal in their classes Ω((k+2)b+k+i,(k+2)(k+1)b²/2+(k+1)(k+i)b+k(k+2i−1)/2).     

Upper bound theorems for homology manifolds

In this paper we prove the Upper Bound Conjecture (UBC) for some classes of (simplicial) homology manifolds: we show that the UBC holds for all odd-dimensional homology manifolds and for all 2k-dimensional homology manifolds Δ such that β _k (Δ)⩽Σ{β _i (Δ):i ≠k-2,k,k+2 and 1 ⩽i⩽2k-1}, where β _i (Δ) are reduced Betti numbers of Δ. (This condition is satisfied by 2k-dimensional homology manifolds with Euler characteristic χ≤2 whenk is even or χ≥2 whenk is odd, and for those having vanishing middle homology.) We prove an analog of the UBC for all other even-dimensional homology manifolds. Kuhnel conjectured that for every 2k-dimensional combinatorial manifold withn vertices, . We prove this conjecture for all 2k-dimensional homology manifolds withn vertices, wheren≥4k+3 orn≤3k+3. We also obtain upper bounds on the (weighted) sum of the Betti numbers of odd-dimensional homology manifolds.     

The existence and uniqueness of strong kings in tournaments

A king x in a tournament T is a player who beats any other player y directly (i.e., x→y) or indirectly through a third player z (i.e., x→z and z→y). For x,y∈V(T), let b(x,y) denote the number of third players through which x beats y indirectly. Then, a king x is strong if the following condition is fulfilled: b(x,y)>b(y,x) whenever y→x. In this paper, a result shows that for a tournament on n players there exist exactly k strong kings, 1?k?n, with the following exceptions: k=n-1 when n is odd and k=n when n is even. Moreover, we completely determine the uniqueness of tournaments.     

Weighted inequalities and pointwise estimates for the multilinear fractional integral and maximal operators

In this article we prove weighted norm inequalities and pointwise estimates between the multilinear fractional integral operator and the multilinear fractional maximal. As a consequence of these estimations we obtain weighted weak and strong inequalities for the multilinear fractional maximal operator or function. In particular, we extend some results given in Carro et al. (2005) [7] to the multilinear context. On the other hand we prove weighted pointwise estimates between the multilinear fractional maximal operator Mα,B associated to a Young function B and the multilinear maximal operators Mψ=M0,ψ, ψ(t)=B(t1−α/(nm))^nm/(nm−α). As an application of these estimate we obtain a direct proof of the Lp−Lq boundedness results of Mα,B for the case B(t)=t and Bk(t)=tk(1+log⁺t) when 1/q=1/p−α/n. We also give sufficient conditions on the weights involved in the boundedness results of Mα,B that generalizes those given in Moen (2009) [22] for B(t)=t. Finally, we prove some boundedness results in Banach function spaces for a generalized version of the multilinear fractional maximal operator.     

Adding machines, kneading maps, and endpoints

Given a unimodal map f, let I=[c₂,c₁] denote the core and set E={(x₀,x₁,…)∈(I,f)|xi∈ω(c,f) for all i∈N}. It is known that there exist strange adding machines embedded in symmetric tent maps f such that the collection of endpoints of (I,f) is a proper subset of E and such that limk→∞Q(k)≠∞, where Q(k) is the kneading map.We use the partition structure of an adding machine to provide a sufficient condition for x to be an endpoint of (I,f) in the case of an embedded adding machine. We then show there exist strange adding machines embedded in symmetric tent maps for which the collection of endpoints of (I,f) is precisely E. Examples of this behavior are provided where limk→∞Q(k) does and does not equal infinity, and in the case where limk→∞Q(k)=∞, the collection of endpoints of (I,f) is always E.     

On openness and surjectivity of lifted frame homomorphisms

Given a completely regular frame L, let, as usual, βL, λL and υL denote, respectively, the Stone-?ech compactification, the universal Lindelöfication and the Hewitt realcompactification of L. Let γ denote any of the functors β, λ or υ. It is well known that any frame homomorphism h:L→M has a unique “lift” to a frame homomorphism hγ:γL→γM such that σM⋅hγ=h⋅σL, where the σ-maps are effected by join. We find a condition on h such that if h satisfies it, then h is open iff its lift hγ is open. Furthermore, the same condition ensures that hγ is nearly open iff h is nearly open. This latter result is, in fact, a special case of a more general phenomenon. In the last part of the paper we investigate when hυ is surjective. The instances when hβ or hλ is surjective are known. It turns out that the surjectivity of the lifted map hυ:υL→υM captures Blair's notion of υ-embedding in the sense that a subspace S of a Tychonoff space X is υ-embedded iff the lifted map υ(Oi):υ(OX)→υ(OS) is surjective, where i:S→X is the subspace embedding.     

Isoperimetric inequalities,isometric actions and the higher Newman numbers

M will be a compact connected n-dimensional Riemannian manifold. If M contains a closed connected k-dimensional, 2 k < n, minimal immersed submanifold of M, we define the kth isoperimetric number of M, Ñ _k (M), as the infimum of the volumes of all such submanifolds. We obtain a number of interesting estimates for Ñ _k (M), for both general and special manifolds, which appear to be new.Next we turn to isometric actions and a 1931 theorem of M. H. A. Newman involving the size of orbits of group actions on manifolds. We introduce the higher Newman numbers N _k (M), 1 k n. Roughly speaking, if M admits isometric actions of compact connected Lie groups with k-dimensional principal orbits, N _k (M) is defined as the infimum over all such actions of the maximum volume of all maximal dimensional orbits. We observe that N _k (M) Ñ _k (M), 2 k < n, provided N _k (M) is defined; hence our prior estimates for the isoperimetric numbers of M apply directly to the higher Newman numbers.As a best possible candidate we conjecture that N _k (M) vol S ^k (i(M)/), 1 k n, where i(M) denotes the radius of injectivity of M and S ^k (i(M)/) denotes the standard k-sphere of radius i(M)/. We verify the conjecture for various special cases. We conclude the paper by studying Newman's theorem for compact connected Lie groups with invariant metrics and obtaining a lower bound for the size of small subgroups.