The Tropical Totally Positive Grassmannian

Tropical algebraic geometry is the geometry of the tropical semiring (ℝ, min, +). The theory of total positivity is a natural generalization of the study of matrices with all minors positive. In this paper we introduce the totally positive part of the tropicalization of an arbitrary affine variety, an object which has the structure of a polyhedral fan. We then investigate the case of the Grassmannian, denoting the resulting fan Trop⁺ Gr_k,n. We show that Trop⁺ Gr_2,n is the Stanley-Pitman fan, which is combinatorially the fan dual to the (type A_n−3) associahedron, and that Trop⁺ Gr_3,6 and Trop⁺ Gr_3,7 are closely related to the fans dual to the types D₄ and E₆ associahedra. These results are strikingly reminiscent of the results of Fomin and Zelevinsky, and Scott, who showed that the Grassmannian has a natural cluster algebra structure which is of types A_n−3, D₄, and E₆ for Gr_2,n, Gr_3,6, and Gr_3,7. We suggest a general conjecture about the positive part of the tropicalization of a cluster algebra.     

Ideal einstein,conformally flat and semi-symmetric immersions

Recently, B. Y. Chen introduced a new intrinsic invariant of a manifold, and proved that everyn-dimensional submanifold of real space formsR ^m (ε) of constant sectional curvature ε satisfies a basic inequality δ(n ₁,…,n _k )≤c(n ₁,…,n _k )H ²+b(n ₁,…,n _k )ε, whereH is the mean curvature of the immersion, andc(n ₁,…,n _k ) andb(n ₁,…,n _k ) are constants depending only onn ₁,…,n _k ,n andk. The immersion is calledideal if it satisfies the equality case of the above inequality identically for somek-tuple (n ₁,…,n _k ). In this paper, we first prove that every ideal Einstein immersion satisfyingn≥n ₁+…+n _k +1 is totally geodesic, and that every ideal conformally flat immersion satisfyingn≥n ₁+…+n _k +2 andk≥2 is also totally geodesic. Secondly we completely classify all ideal semi-symmetric hypersurfaces in real space forms. The author was supported by the NSFC and RFDP.     

Stirling polynomials

An investigation is made of the polynomials f_k(n) = S(n + k, n) and g_k(n) = (?1)^ks(n, n ? k), where S and s denote the Stirling numbers of the second and first kind, respectively. The main result gives a combinatorial interpretation of the coefficients of the polynomial (1 ? x)^2k+1Σ_n=0^∞f_k(n)xⁿ analogous to the well-known combinatorial interpretation of the Eulerian numbers in terms of descents of permutations.     

Matching polytopes,toric geometry,and the totally non-negative Grassmannian

In this paper we use toric geometry to investigate the topology of the totally non-negative part of the Grassmannian, denoted (Gr _k,n )_≥0. This is a cell complex whose cells Δ _G can be parameterized in terms of the combinatorics of plane-bipartite graphs G. To each cell Δ _G we associate a certain polytope P(G). The polytopes P(G) are analogous to the well-known Birkhoff polytopes, and we describe their face lattices in terms of matchings and unions of matchings of G. We also demonstrate a close connection between the polytopes P(G) and matroid polytopes. We use the data of P(G) to define an associated toric variety X _G . We use our technology to prove that the cell decomposition of (Gr _k,n )_≥0 is a CW complex, and furthermore, that the Euler characteristic of the closure of each cell of (Gr _k,n )_≥0 is 1. Alexander Postnikov was supported in part by NSF CAREER Award DMS-0504629. David Speyer was supported by a research fellowship from the Clay Mathematics Institute. Lauren Williams was supported in part by the NSF.     

Betti Numbers of Toric Varieties and Eulerian Polynomials

It is well known that the Eulerian polynomials, which count permutations in S _n by their number of descents, give the h-polynomial/h-vector of the simple polytopes known as permutohedra, the convex hull of the S _n -orbit for a generic weight in the weight lattice of S _n . Therefore, the Eulerian polynomials give the Betti numbers for certain smooth toric varieties associated with the permutohedra.

In this article we derive recurrences for the h-vectors of a family of polytopes generalizing this. The simple polytopes we consider arise as the orbit of a nongeneric weight, namely, a weight fixed by only the simple reflections J = {s _n , s _n?1, s _n?2,…, s _n?k+2, s _n?k+1} for some k with respect to the A _n root lattice. Furthermore, they give rise to certain rationally smooth toric varieties X(J) that come naturally from the theory of algebraic monoids. Using effectively the theory of reductive algebraic monoids and the combinatorics of simple polytopes, we obtain a recurrence formula for the Poincaré polynomial of X(J) in terms of the Eulerian polynomials.     

A Combinatorial Proof of the Log-Concavity of the Numbers of Permutations with k Runs

We combinatorially prove that the number R(n, k) of permutations of length n having k runs is a log-concave sequence in k, for all n. We also give a new combinatorial proof for the log-concavity of the Eulerian numbers.     

Representations of Integers as Sums of 32 Squares

In this paper, we derive a new explicit formula for r ₃₂(n), where r _k(n) is the number of representations of n as a sum of k squares. For a fixed integer k, our method can be used to derive explicit formulas for r _8k (n). We conclude the paper with various conjectures that lead to explicit formulas for r _2k (n), for any fixed positive integer k > 4.     

A note on properties of locally finitely convergent sequences with respect to median filter

Let F_k be a mapping from R^Z to R^Z, satisfying that for x∈R^Z and n∈Z, F_k(x)(n) is the (k+1)th largest value (median value) of the 2k+1 numbers x(n−k),…,x(n),…,x(n+k). In [3] [W.Z. Ye, L. Wang, L.G. Xu, Properties of locally convergent sequences with respect to median filter, Discrete Mathematics 309 (2009) 2775–2781], we conjectured that for k∈{2,3}, if there exists n₀∈Z such that x is locally finitely convergent with respect to F_k on {n₀,…,n₀+k−1}, then x is finitely convergent with respect to F_k. In this paper, we obtain some sufficient conditions for a sequence finitely converging with respect to median filters. Based on these results, we prove that the conjecture is true.     

Convolution identities and lacunary recurrences for Bernoulli numbers

We extend Euler's well-known quadratic recurrence relation for Bernoulli numbers, which can be written in symbolic notation as n(B₀+B₀)=−nBn−1−(n−1)Bn, to obtain explicit expressions for n(Bk+Bm) with arbitrary fixed integers k,m?0. The proof uses convolution identities for Stirling numbers of the second kind and for sums of powers of integers, both involving Bernoulli numbers. As consequences we obtain new types of quadratic recurrence relations, one of which gives B6k depending only on B2k,B2k+2,…,B4k.     

A multiindexed sturm sequence of polynomials and unimodality of certain combinatorial sequences

With any multiset n we associate the numbers $\text{O}$(n, k) of compositions of n into exactly k parts. The polynomials k_n(x) = Σ_kO(n, k)x^k are shown to form a multiindexed Sturm sequence over (?1, 0). As consequences we obtain the unimodality of the sequence {O(n, k)}_k for any n, of the generalized Eulerian numbers, and of the number of compositions of n with certain supplementary conditions imposed on the parts. The strong logarithmic concavity of the Stirling numbers of the second kind also follows as a corollary.     

Product of Uniform Distribution and Stirling Numbers of the First Kind

Let Vk=u1u2……uk, ui＇s be i.i.d - U（0, 1）, the p.d.f of 1 - Vk＋l be the GF of the unsigned Stirling numbers of the first kind s（n, k）. This paper discusses the applications of uniform distribution to combinatorial analysis and Riemann zeta function; several identities of Stifling series are established, and the Euler＇s result for ∑ Hn/n^k-l, k ≥ 3 is given a new probabilistic proof.     

On the representation of integers as sums of an odd number of squares

In a recent work, S. Cooper (J. Number Theory 103:135–162, [1988]) conjectured a formula for r _2k+1(p ²), the number of ways p ² can be expressed as a sum of 2k+1 squares. Inspired by this conjecture, we obtain an explicit formula for r _2k+1(n ²),n≥1. Dedicated to Srinivasa Ramanujan.     

The asymptotic formula in Waring’s problem for one square and seventeen fifth powers

Let R _k,s (n) denote the number of solutions of the equation n = x² + y₁^k + y₂^k + ?+ y_s^k{n= x^2 + y_1^k + y_2^k + \cdots + y_s^k} in natural numbers x, y ₁, . . . , y _s . By a straightforward application of the circle method, an asymptotic formula for R _k,s (n) is obtained when k ≥ 3 and s ≥ 2 ^k–1 + 2. When k ≥ 6, work of Heath-Brown and Boklan is applied to establish the asymptotic formula under the milder constraint s ≥ 7 · 2 ^k–4 + 3. Although the principal conclusions provided by Heath-Brown and Boklan are not available for smaller values of k, some of the underlying ideas are still applicable for k = 5, and the main objective of this article is to establish an asymptotic formula for R _5,17(n) by this strategy.     

Asymptotic Upper Bounds for Ramsey Functions

 We show that for any graph G with N vertices and average degree d, if the average degree of any neighborhood induced subgraph is at most a, then the independence number of G is at least Nf _{a +1}(d), where f _{a +1}(d)=∫₀ ¹(((1−t)^{1/( a +1)})/(a+1+(d−a−1)t))dt. Based on this result, we prove that for any fixed k and l, there holds r(K _k + _l ,K _n )≤ (l+o(1))n ^k /(logn) ^{k −1}. In particular, r(K _k , K _n )≤(1+o(1))n ^{k −1}/(log n) ^{k −2}. Received: May 11, 1998 Final version received: March 24, 1999     

On additive maps of prime rings satisfying the engel condition

Let A be a prime ring with nonzero right ideal R and f : R → A an additive map. Next, let k,n₁, n₂,…,n_k be natural numbers. Suppose that […[[(x), xn¹], xn²],…, xn^k]=0 for all x ∈ R. Then it is proved in Theorem 1.1 that [f(x),x]=0 provided that either char(A)=0 or char (A)> n₁+n₂+ …+n_k Theorem 1.1 is a simultaneous generalization of a number of results proved earlier.     

Refined enumerations of alternating sign matrices: monotone (<Emphasis Type="Italic">d</Emphasis>,<Emphasis Type="Italic">m</Emphasis>)-trapezoids with prescribed top and bottom row

Monotone triangles are plane integer arrays of triangular shape with certain monotonicity conditions along rows and diagonals. Their significance is mainly due to the fact that they correspond to n×n alternating sign matrices when prescribing (1,2,…,n) as bottom row of the array. We define monotone (d,m)-trapezoids as monotone triangles with m rows where the d−1 top rows are removed. (These objects are also equivalent to certain partial alternating sign matrices.) It is known that the number of monotone triangles with bottom row (k ₁,…,k _n ) is given by a polynomial α(n;k ₁,…,k _n ) in the k _i ’s. The main purpose of this paper is to show that the number of monotone (d,m)-trapezoids with prescribed top and bottom row appears as a coefficient in the expansion of a specialisation of α(n;k ₁,…,k _n ) with respect to a certain polynomial basis. This settles a generalisation of a recent conjecture of Romik et al. (Adv. Math. 222:2004–2035, 2009). Among other things, the result is used to express the number of monotone triangles with bottom row (1,2,…,i−1,i+1,…,j−1,j+1,…,n) (which is, by the standard bijection, also the number of n×n alternating sign matrices with given top two rows) in terms of the number of n×n alternating sign matrices with prescribed top and bottom row, and, by a formula of Stroganov for the latter numbers, to provide an explicit formula for the first numbers. (A formula of this type was first derived by Karklinsky and Romik using the relation of alternating sign matrices to the six-vertex model.)     

Polynomial interpolation and sums of powers of integers

In this note, we revisit the problem of polynomial interpolation and explicitly construct two polynomials in n of degree k + 1, P_k(n) and Q_k(n), such that P_k(n) = Q_k(n) = f_k(n) for n = 1, 2,…?, k, where f_k(1), f_k(2),…?, f_k(k) are k arbitrarily chosen (real or complex) values. Then, we focus on the case that f_k(n) is given by the sum of powers of the first n positive integers S_k(n) = 1^k + 2^k + ??? + n^k, and show that S_k(n) admits the polynomial representations S_k(n) = P_k(n) and S_k(n) = Q_k(n) for all n = 1, 2,…?, and k ≥ 1, where the first representation involves the Eulerian numbers, and the second one the Stirling numbers of the second kind. Finally, we consider yet another polynomial formula for S_k(n) alternative to the well-known formula of Bernoulli.     

On sharp conditions for the global stability of a difference equation satisfying the Yorke condition

Continuing our previous investigations, we give simple sufficient conditions for the global stability of the zero solution of the difference equation x _n+1 = qx _n + ƒ_n(x _n, …, x _n−k), n ∈ ℤ, where the nonlinear functions ƒ_n satisfy the Yorke condition. For every positive integer k, we represent the interval (0, 1] as the union of [(2k + 2)/3] disjoint subintervals, and, for q from each subinterval, we present a global-stability condition in explicit form. The conditions obtained are sharp for the class of equations satisfying the Yorke condition. __________ Translated from Ukrains’kyi Matematychnyi Zhurnal, Vol. 60, No. 1, pp. 73–80, January, 2008.     

Nonhomogeneous recursions and Generalised Continued Fractions

Consider the (n+1)st order nonhomogeneous recursionX _k+n+1=b _k X _k+n +a _k ⁽ⁿ⁾ X _k+n-1+...+a _k ⁽¹⁾ X _k +X _k .Leth be a particular solution, andf ⁽¹⁾,...,f ⁽ⁿ⁾,g independent solutions of the associated homogeneous equation. It is supposed thatg dominatesf ⁽¹⁾,...,f ⁽ⁿ⁾ andh. If we want to calculate a solutiony which is dominated byg, but dominatesf ⁽¹⁾,...,f ⁽ⁿ⁾, then forward and backward recursion are numerically unstable. A stable algorithm is derived if we use results constituting a link between Generalised Continued Fractions and Recursion Relations.