The strong fixed point property for small sets

It is shown that every partially ordered set with the fixed point property and with ten or fewer elements actually has the strong fixed point property.Supported by NSERC Operating Grant A7884.Supported by NSERC Operating Grant 41702.     

Fixed points and products

We prove that if the finite ordered setsP andX have the fixed point property then so too doesP×X.Supported by NSERC Operating Grant 41702.     

Cores and retracts

Theretracts (idempotent, isotone self-maps) of an ordered set are naturally ordered as functions. In this note we characterize the possible ways that one retract can cover another one. This gives some insight into the structure of the ordered set of retracts and leads to a natural generalization of the core of an ordered set.Supported by NSERC Operating Grant 41702.     

A second note on the equational theory of modular ortholattices

We show how to alter the material in [4] to prove that every variety of modular ortholattices is generated by its simple members. Supported by NSERC Operating Grant 0041702.     

Affine isoparametric hypersurfaces

Research supported by an NSERC Postdoctoral Fellowship and NSERC Operating Grant OGP0002501     

A local trace formula

Supported in part by NSERC Operating Grant A3483.     

Retractability and the fixed point property for products

LetP, Q be ordered sets and letaP. IfP \ {a} is a retract ofP and setsP and {xP:x>p} (or its dual) have the fixed point property then, for each chain complete setP,P×Q has the fixed point property if and only if (P\{a})×Q has this property. This establishes the fixed point property for some products of ordered sets which are beyond the reach of all known product theorems.The work of the first of authors was supported in part by the K.B.N. Grant No. 2 2037 92 03.     

Finite axiomatizations for existentially closed posets and semilattices

In this paper we exhibit axiomatizations for the theories of existentially closed posets and existentially closed semilattices. We do this by considering an infinite axiomatization which characterizes these structures in terms of embeddings of finite substructures, an axiomatization which exists for any locally finite universal class with a finite language and with the joint embedding and amalgamation properties. We then find particular finite subsets of these axioms which suffice to axiomatize both classes. Research supported by an NSERC Postdoctoral Fellowship. Research supported by NSERC Grant No. A7256.     

Forbidden retracts for finite ordered sets of width at most four

The relationship between the fixed point property and forbidden retracts associated with a forgetful functor is formulated. Finite ordered sets of width at most four with fixed point free automorphisms are described. Linear time algorithms for deciding whether a finite ordered set of width two has the fixed point property and whether a finite ordered set of width at most three has a fixed point free automorphism are presented.     

A companion to Grillet's Theorem on maximal chains and antichains

It is shown that ifP is a poset containing noN, then every minimal cutset inP is an antichain, that the converse also holds whenP is finite, and that this converse fails in general.Research supported by NSERC Grant A-8054.     

Fixed points of posets and clique graphs

The fixed point property for partial orders has been the object of much attention in the past twenty years. Recently, M. Roddy ([7]) proved this famous conjecture of Rival (see [6]): the class of finite orders with the fixed point property is closed under finite products.In this article, we prove that a finite order has the fixed point property if the sequence of iterated clique graphs of its comparability graph tends to the trivial graph.     

Dimension two,fixed points and dismantlable ordered sets

When does the fixed point property of a finite ordered set imply its dismantlability by irreducible elements? For instance, if it has width two. Although every finite ordered set is dismantlable by retractible (not necessarily irreducible) elements, surprisingly, a finite, dimension two ordered set, need not be dismantlable by irreducible elements. If, however, a finite ordered set with the fixed point property is N-free and of dimension two, then it is dismantlable by irreducibles. A curious consequence is that every finite, dimension two ordered set has a complete endomorphism spectrum.     

Discs in unbreakable graphs

We show that every vertex in an unbreakable graph is in a disc, where a disc is a chordless cycle, or the complement of a chordless cycle, with at least five vertices. A corollary is that every vertex in a minimal imperfect graph is in a disc.This research was supported by NSERC Operating Grant OGP-0137764.     

The characters of supercuspidal representations as weighted orbital integrals

Weighted orbital integrals are the terms which occur on the geometric side of the trace formula. We shall investigate these distributions on ap-adic group. We shall evaluate the weighted orbital integral of a supercuspidal matrix coefficient as a multiple of the corresponding character. Supported in part by NSERC Operating Grant A3483.     

Fixed point theorems for ordered sets P with P ∖ {a,c} as retract

We prove fixed point theorems for ordered sets P that have a retract with two points less than P and show how they can be used to prove the fixed point property for various well-known and various new ordered sets.     

Fixed points of products and the strong fixed point property

This problem motivates the present work: If ordered sets X and Y both have the fixed point property for order preserving maps has their product as well? Here we present a related condition — the so-called strong fixed point property — which arises from naive attempts to solve the problem. We are concerned with determining the nature and extent of this property. Several questions are raised concerning its relation to the fixed point property and other conditions such as dismantlability and contractibility.     

Do minimal solutions of heat equations characterize diffusions?

Summary Brownian motion may be characterized as a process which, when composed with minimal parabolic functions, gives martingales. This note explores the extent to which this is true in general. For the diffusion associated with the Kohn Laplacian on the Heisenberg group it is shown to be false.Materially supported by NSERC Operating Grant # A3108 and the IMA (U. of Minn.)     

Uniform semigroups and fixed point properties

LetS be a uniform semigroup (this includes all topological groups and affine semigroups). We show that a certain space of uniformly continuous functions onS has a left invariant mean iffS has the fixed point property for uniformly continuous affine actions ofS on compact convex sets. This is closely related to but independent of the results of T. Mitchell in [13] and A. Lau in [10]. Interesting examples and consequences are given for the special cases of topological groups and affine convolution semigroups of probability measures on a locally compact semigroup or group. Research Supported by NSERC of Canada Grant No. A8227.     

The strong fixed point property for lexicographic sums

The following theorem is proved: If Q=L{P _t tT} is a finite lexicographic sum of posets such that T and all P _t have the strong fixed point property then Q has the strong fixed point property. Moreover we show the strong fixed point property for two more classes of posets.     

How to compute least infeasible flows

It is well-known how to use maximum flow to decide when a flow problem with demands, lower bounds, and upper bounds is infeasible. Less well-known is how to compute a flow that is least infeasible. This paper considers many possible ways to define “least infeasible” and shows how to compute optimal flows for each definition. For each definition it also gives a dual characterization in terms of cuts, a polynomial routine for recognizing that type of least infeasible flow, and relates that definition to dual cut canceling min-cost flow network algorithms. This research was partially supported by an NSERC Operating Grant, an NSERC Grant for Research Abroad, and a UBC Killam Faculty Study Leave Fellowship. Parts of this research were done while the author was visiting Laboratoire ARTEMIS IMAG at Université Joseph Fourier de Grenoble, France.