Cell transfer and monomial positivity

We give combinatorial proofs that certain families of differences of products of Schur functions are monomial-positive. We show in addition that such monomial-positivity is to be expected of a large class of generating functions with combinatorial definitions similar to Schur functions. These generating functions are defined on posets with labelled Hasse diagrams and include for example generating functions of Stanley's (P,ω)-partitions. T.L. was supported in part by NSF DMS-0600677.     

Dynamic supercoiling bifurcations of growing elastic filaments

Certain bacteria form filamentous colonies when the cells fail to separate after dividing. In Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus thermus, and Cyanobacteria, the filaments can wrap into complex supercoiled structures as the cells grow. The structures may be solenoids or plectonemes, with or without branches in the latter case. Any microscopic theory of these morphological instabilities must address the nature of pattern selection in the presence of growth, for growth renders the problem nonautonomous and the bifurcations dynamic. To gain insight into these phenomena, we formulate a general theory for growing elastic filaments with bending and twisting resistance in a viscous medium, and study an illustrative model problem: a growing filament with preferred twist, closed into a loop. Growth depletes the twist, inducing a twist strain. The closure of the loop prevents the filament from unwinding back to the preferred twist; instead, twist relaxation is accomplished by the formation of supercoils. Growth also produces viscous stresses on the filament which even in the absence of twist produce buckling instabilities. Our linear stability analysis and numerical studies reveal two dynamic regimes. For small intrinsic twist the instability is akin to Euler buckling, leading to solenoidal structures, while for large twist it is like the classic writhing of a twisted filament, producing plectonemic windings. This model may apply to situations in which supercoils form only, or more readily, when axial rotation of filaments is blocked. Applications to specific biological systems are proposed.     

Evaluation ofwaste perlite fines in the production of construction materials

The use of supplementary cementitious materials (SCM) is a well established practice worldwide in the manufacture of Portland cement (PC)-based construction materials. While utilisation of industrial by-products has been successful, the potential of mining wastes is yet to receive adequate attention in the context of construction materials. In an expanded form perlite, which is a naturally occurring, hydrated volcanic siliceous glass, is an ideal material as a lightweight aggregate for use in a wide range of construction materials including concrete. The mining and processing of the grades of perlite required for the production of lightweight aggregate results in the creation of a fine grained waste which currently has no economic value. This paper reports preliminary data on the utilisation of waste perlite fines as a SCM in calcium silicate-based construction material and discusses the potential of this mining waste to reduce the environmental impact of the production of conventional cement-based construction materials.     

On the structure of stationary sets

We isolate several classes of stationary sets of [k]ωand investigate implications among them. Under a large cardinal assumption, we prove a structure theorem for stationary sets.     

Survivable network design under optimal and heuristic interdiction scenarios

We examine the problem of building or fortifying a network to defend against enemy attacks in various scenarios. In particular, we examine the case in which an enemy can destroy any portion of any arc that a designer constructs on the network, subject to some interdiction budget. This problem takes the form of a three-level, two-player game, in which the designer acts first to construct a network and transmit an initial set of flows through the network. The enemy acts next to destroy a set of constructed arcs in the designer’s network, and the designer acts last to transmit a final set of flows in the network. Most studies of this nature assume that the enemy will act optimally; however, in real-world scenarios one cannot necessarily assume rationality on the part of the enemy. Hence, we prescribe optimal network design algorithms for three different profiles of enemy action: an enemy destroying arcs based on capacities, based on initial flows, or acting optimally to minimize our maximum profits obtained from transmitting flows.     

Dupin hypersurfaces with four principal Curvatures,II

If M is an isoparametric hypersurface in a sphere S ⁿ with four distinct principal curvatures, then the principal curvatures κ₁, . . . , κ₄ can be ordered so that their multiplicities satisfy m ₁ = m ₂ and m ₃ = m ₄, and the cross-ratio r of the principal curvatures (the Lie curvature) equals −1. In this paper, we prove that if M is an irreducible connected proper Dupin hypersurface in R ⁿ (or S ⁿ ) with four distinct principal curvatures with multiplicities m ₁ = m ₂ ≥ 1 and m ₃ = m ₄ = 1, and constant Lie curvature r = −1, then M is equivalent by Lie sphere transformation to an isoparametric hypersurface in a sphere. This result remains true if the assumption of irreducibility is replaced by compactness and r is merely assumed to be constant.      

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