Error bounds for least squares approximation by polynomials

Let f ε Cⁿ⁺¹[−1, 1] and let H[f](x) be the nth degree weighted least squares polynomial approximation to f with respect to the orthonormal polynomials q_k associated with a distribution dα on [−1, 1]. It is shown that if q_n+1/q_n max(q_n+1(1)/q_n(1), −q_n+1(−1)/q_n(−1)), then f − H[f] f^{n + 1} · q_n+1/q_{n + 1}^{(n + 1)}, where · denotes the supremum norm. Furthermore, it is shown that in the case of Jacobi polynomials with distribution (1 − t)^α (1 + t)^β dt, α, β > −1, the condition on q_n+1/q_n is satisfied when either max(α,β) −1/2 or −1 < α = β < −1/2.     

Lower bounds for the cardinality of minimal blocking sets in projective spaces

In this paper new lower bounds for the cardinality of minimal m-blocking sets are determined. Let r₂(q) be the number such that q+r₂(q)+1 is the cardinality of the smallest non-trivial line-blocking set in a plane of order q. If B is a minimal m-blocking set in PG(n,q) that contains at most q^m+q^m−1+…+q+1+r₂(q)·(∑_i=2m−n′^m−1qⁱ) points for an integer n′ satisfying mn′2m, then the dimension of B is at most n′. If the dimension of B is n′, then the following holds. The cardinality of B equals q^m+q^m−1+…+q+1+r₂(q)(∑_i=2m−n′^m−1qⁱ). For n′=m the set B is an m-dimensional subspace and for n′=m+1 the set B is a cone with an (m−2)-dimensional vertex over a non-trivial line-blocking set of cardinality q+r₂(q)+1 in a plane skew to the vertex. This result is due to Heim (Mitt. Math. Semin. Giessen 226 (1996), 4–82). For n′>m+1 and q not a prime the number q is a square and for q16 the set B is a Baer cone. If q is odd and |B|<q^m+q^m−1+…+q+1+r₂(q)(q^m−1+q^m−2), it follows from this result that the subspace generated by B has dimension at most m+1. Furthermore we prove that in this case, if , then B is an m-dimensional subspace or a cone with an (m−2)-dimensional vertex over a non-trivial line-blocking set of cardinality q+r₂(q)+1 in a plane skew to the vertex. For q=p^3h, p7 and q not a square we show this assertion for |B|q^m+q^m−1+…+q+1+q^2/3·(q^m−1+…+1).     

Mixed partitions of PG(3,q)

A mixed partition of PG(2n−1,q²) is a partition of the points of PG(2n−1,q²) into (n−1)-spaces and Baer subspaces of dimension 2n−1. In (Bruck and Bose, J. Algebra 1 (1964) 85) it is shown that such a mixed partition of PG(2n−1,q²) can be used to construct a (2n−1)-spread of PG(4n−1,q) and hence a translation plane of order q²ⁿ. In this paper, we provide several new examples of such mixed partitions in the case when n=2.     

Kernels and <Emphasis Type="Italic">p</Emphasis>-Kernels of <Emphasis Type="Italic">p</Emphasis><Superscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">r</Emphasis></Superscript>-ary 1-Perfect Codes

The rank of a q-ary code C is the dimension of the subspace spanned by C. The kernel of a q-ary code C of length n can be defined as the set of all translations leaving C invariant. Some relations between the rank and the dimension of the kernel of q-ary 1-perfect codes, over as well as over the prime field , are established. Q-ary 1-perfect codes of length n=(q^m − 1)/(q − 1) with different kernel dimensions using switching constructions are constructed and some upper and lower bounds for the dimension of the kernel, once the rank is given, are established.Communicated by: I.F. Blake     

Lower bounds for adaptive locally decodable codes

An error‐correcting code is said to be locally decodable if a randomized algorithm can recover any single bit of a message by reading only a small number of symbols of a possibly corrupted encoding of the message. Katz and Trevisan 12 showed that any such code C : {0, 1}ⁿ → Σ^m with a decoding algorithm that makes at most q probes must satisfy m = Ω((n/log |Σ|)^q/(q?1)). They assumed that the decoding algorithm is non‐adaptive, and left open the question of proving similar bounds for adaptive decoders. We show m = Ω((n/log |Σ|)^q/(q?1)) without assuming that the decoder is nonadaptive. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Random Struct. Alg., 2005     

On generalized Hadamard matrices of minimum rank

Generalized Hadamard matrices of order qⁿ⁻¹ (q—a prime power, n2) over GF(q) are related to symmetric nets in affine 2-(qⁿ,qⁿ⁻¹,(qⁿ⁻¹−1)/(q−1)) designs invariant under an elementary abelian group of order q acting semi-regularly on points and blocks. The rank of any such matrix over GF(q) is greater than or equal to n−1. It is proved that a matrix of minimum q-rank is unique up to a monomial equivalence, and the related symmetric net is a classical net in the n-dimensional affine geometry AG(n,q).     

Extremal problems concerning Kneser graphs

Let and be two intersecting families of k-subsets of an n-element set. It is proven that | | ≤ (_k−1ⁿ⁻¹) + (_k−1ⁿ⁻¹) holds for , and equality holds only if there exist two points a, b such that {a, b} ∩ F ≠ for all F . For an example showing that in this case max | | = (1−o(1))(_kⁿ) is given. This disproves an old conjecture of Erdös [7]. In the second part we deal with several generalizations of Kneser's conjecture.     

Caps on Elliptic Quadrics

G. L. Ebert (1985) constructed (qⁿ + 1)-caps in PG(2n − 1, q), n even, which were the orbits of the subgroup of order qⁿ + 1 of a cyclic Singer group of PG(2n − 1, q). This article shows that these caps are the intersection of n − 1 linearly independent elliptic quadrics of PG(2n − 1, q).     

Nonexistence of [n, 5, d]q Codes Attaining the Griesmer Bound for q4 ?2q2 ?2q+1 ≤ d≤ q4?2q2 ?q

We prove that there does not exist a [q⁴+q³−q²−3q−1, 5, q⁴−2q²−2q+1]_q code over the finite field for q≥ 5. Using this, we prove that there does not exist a [g_q(5, d), 5, d]_q code with q⁴ −2q² −2q +1 ≤ d ≤ q⁴ −2q² −q for q≥ 5, where g_q(k,d) denotes the Griesmer bound.MSC 2000: 94B65, 94B05, 51E20, 05B25     

Cyclic Difference Packing and Covering Arrays

Let n and k be positive integers. Let C_q be a cyclic group of order q. A cyclic difference packing (covering) array, or a CDPA(k, n; q) (CDCA(k, n; q)), is a k × n array (a_ij) with entries a_ij (0 ≤ i ≤ k−1, 0 ≤ j ≤ n−1) from C_q such that, for any two rows t and h (0 ≤ t < h ≤ k−1), every element of C_q occurs in the difference list at most (at least) once. When q is even, then n ≤ q−1 if a CDPA(k, n; q) with k ≥ 3 exists, and n ≥ q+1 if a CDCA(k, n; q) with k ≥ 3 exists. It is proved that a CDCA(4, q+1; q) exists for any even positive integers, and so does a CDPA(4, q−1; q) or a CDPA(4, q−2; q). The result is established, for the most part, by means of a result on cyclic difference matrices with one hole, which is of interest in its own right.     

Second-order linearity of the general signed-rank statistic

Let X₁,…, X_n be i.i.d. random variables symmetric about zero. Let R_i(t) be the rank of |X_i − tn^−1/2| among |X₁ − tn^−1/2|,…, |X_n − tn^−1/2| and T_n(t) = Σ_{i = 1}ⁿφ((n + 1)⁻¹R_i(t))sign(X_i − tn^−1/2). We show that there exists a sequence of random variables V_n such that sup_{0 ≤ t ≤ 1} |T_n(t) − T_n(0) − tV_n| → 0 in probability, as n → ∞. V_n is asymptotically normal.     

Properties of convergence for -Bernstein polynomials

In this paper, we discuss properties of the ω,q-Bernstein polynomials introduced by S. Lewanowicz and P. Woźny in [S. Lewanowicz, P. Woźny, Generalized Bernstein polynomials, BIT 44 (1) (2004) 63–78], where fC[0,1], ω,q>0, ω≠1,q⁻¹,…,q⁻ⁿ⁺¹. When ω=0, we recover the q-Bernstein polynomials introduced by [G.M. Phillips, Bernstein polynomials based on the q-integers, Ann. Numer. Math. 4 (1997) 511–518]; when q=1, we recover the classical Bernstein polynomials. We compute the second moment of , and demonstrate that if f is convex and ω,q(0,1) or (1,∞), then are monotonically decreasing in n for all x[0,1]. We prove that for ω(0,1), q_n(0,1], the sequence converges to f uniformly on [0,1] for each fC[0,1] if and only if lim_n→∞q_n=1. For fixed ω,q(0,1), we prove that the sequence converges for each fC[0,1] and obtain the estimates for the rate of convergence of by the modulus of continuity of f, and the estimates are sharp in the sense of order for Lipschitz continuous functions.     

On Intersection Problem for Perfect Binary Codes

The main result is that to any even integer q in the interval 0 ≤ q ≤ 2^{n+1-2log(n+1)}, there are two perfect codes C₁ and C₂ of length n = 2^m − 1, m ≥ 4, such that |C₁ ∩ C₂| = q.     

Extending MDS Codes

A q-ary (n, k)-MDS code, linear or not, satisfies n ≤ q + k − 1. A code meeting this bound is said to have maximum length. Using purely combinatorial methods we show that an MDS code with n = q + k − 2 can be uniquely extended to a maximum length code if and only if q is even. This result is best possible in the sense that there is, for example, a non-extendable 4-ary (5, 4)-MDS code. It may be that the proof of our result is as interesting as the result itself. We provide a simple necessary and sufficient condition for code extendability. In future work, this condition might be suitably modified to give an extendability condition for arbitrary (shorter) MDS codes.Received December 1, 2003     

On deviations between empirical and quantile processes for mixing random variables

Let {X_n} be a strictly stationary φ-mixing process with Σ_j=1^∞ φ^1/2(j) < ∞. It is shown in the paper that if X₁ is uniformly distributed on the unit interval, then, for any t [0, 1], |F_n⁻¹(t) − t + F_n(t) − t| = O(n^−3/4(log log n)^3/4) a.s. and sup_0≤t≤1 |F_n⁻¹(t) − t + F_n(t) − t| = (O(n^−3/4(log n)^1/2(log log n)^1/4) a.s., where F_n and F_n⁻¹(t) denote the sample distribution function and tth sample quantile, respectively. In case {X_n} is strong mixing with exponentially decaying mixing coefficients, it is shown that, for any t [0, 1], |F_n⁻¹(t) − t + F_n(t) − t| = O(n^−3/4(log n)^1/2(log log n)^3/4) a.s. and sup_0≤t≤1 |F_n⁻¹(t) − t + F_n(t) − t| = O(n^−3/4(log n)(log log n)^1/4) a.s. The results are further extended to general distributions, including some nonregular cases, when the underlying distribution function is not differentiable. The results for φ-mixing processes give the sharpest possible orders in view of the corresponding results of Kiefer for independent random variables.     

q-Bernstein polynomials and their iterates

Let B_n( f,q;x), n=1,2,… be q-Bernstein polynomials of a function f : [0,1]→C. The polynomials B_n( f,1;x) are classical Bernstein polynomials. For q≠1 the properties of q-Bernstein polynomials differ essentially from those in the classical case. This paper deals with approximating properties of q-Bernstein polynomials in the case q>1 with respect to both n and q. Some estimates on the rate of convergence are given. In particular, it is proved that for a function f analytic in {z: |z|<q+} the rate of convergence of {B_n( f,q;x)} to f(x) in the norm of C[0,1] has the order q⁻ⁿ (versus 1/n for the classical Bernstein polynomials). Also iterates of q-Bernstein polynomials {B_n^j_n( f,q;x)}, where both n→∞ and j_n→∞, are studied. It is shown that for q(0,1) the asymptotic behavior of such iterates is quite different from the classical case. In particular, the limit does not depend on the rate of j_n→∞.     

Matroids with No (q+2)-Point-Line Minors

It is known that a geometry with rankrand no minor isomorphic to the (q+2)-point line has at most (q^r−1)/(q−1) points, with strictly fewer points ifr>3 andqis not a prime power. Forqnot a prime power andr>3, we show thatq^r−1−1 is an upper bound. Forqa prime power andr>3, we show that any rank-rgeometry with at leastq^r−1points and no (q+2)-point-line minor is representable overGF(q). We strengthen these bounds toq^r−1−(q^r−2−1)/(q−1)−1 andq^r−1−(q^r−2−1)/(q−1) respectively whenqis odd. We give an application to unique representability and a new proof of Tutte's theorem: A matroid is binary if and only if the 4-point line is not a minor.     

Average CaseL∞-Approximation in the Presence of Gaussian Noise

We consider the average caseL_∞-approximation of functions fromC^r([0, 1]) with respect to ther-fold Wiener measure. An approximation is based onnfunction evaluations in the presence of Gaussian noise with varianceσ²>0. We show that the n th minimal average error is of ordern^{−(2r+1)/(4r+4)} ln^1/2 n, and that it can be attained either by the piecewise polynomial approximation using repetitive observations, or by the smoothing spline approximation using non-repetitive observations. This completes the already known results forL_q-approximation withq<∞ andσ0, and forL_∞-approximation withσ=0.     

Some extensions of the Kantorovich inequality and statistical applications

Kantorovich gave an upper bound to the product of two quadratic forms, (X′AX) (X′A⁻¹X), where X is an n-vector of unit length and A is a positive definite matrix. Bloomfield, Watson and Knott found the bound for the product of determinants |X′AX| |X′A⁻¹X| where X is n × k matrix such that X′X = I_k. In this paper we determine the bounds for the traces and determinants of matrices of the type X′AYY′A⁻¹X, X′B²X(X′BCX)⁻¹ X′C²X(X′BCX)⁻¹ where X and Y are n × k matrices such that X′X = Y′Y = I_k and A, B, C are given matrices satisfying some conditions. The results are applied to the least squares theory of estimation.     

On the Problem of the Averaging of Solutions to the Laplace Operator in Domains with Narrow Slanting Channels

We consider the problem of the averaging of solutions to the Laplace operator in domains with narrow slanting channels of length O(ε^q), q = const > 0, and diameter a _ε = o(ε ^q), where ε is a small parameter. The number of channels is N _ε = O (ε ¹⁻ⁿ ), where n is the dimension of the space. We study the asymptotic behavior of solutions, obtain the limit problem, and estimate the closeness of the initial and limit problem.__________Translated from Sovremennaya Matematika i Ee Prilozheniya (Contemporary Mathematics and Its Applications), Vol. 10, Suzdal Conference-4, 2003.