Single facility location problems with unbounded unit balls

In this paper we consider a new class of continuous location problems where the distances are measured by gauges of closed (not necessarily bounded) convex sets. These distance functions do not satisfy the definiteness property and therefore they can be used to model those situations where there exist zero-distance regions. We prove a geometrical characterization of these measures of distance as the length of shortest paths between points using only a subset of directions of their unit balls. We also characterize the complete set of optimal solutions for this class of continuous single facility location problems and we give resolution methods to solve them. Our analysis allows to consider new models of location problems and generalizes previously known results.     

Primitive Inner Illuminating Systems for Convex Bodies

A set X of boundary points of a (possibly unbounded) convex body KE ^d illuminating K from within is called primitive if no proper subset of X still illuminates K from within. We prove that for such a primitive set X of an unbounded, convex set KE ^d (distinct from a cone) one has X=2 if d=2, X6 if d=3, and that there is no upper bound for X if d4.     

Intersections of apartments

We show that, if a building is endowed with its complete system of apartments, and if each panel is contained in at least four chambers, then the intersection of two apartments can be any convex subcomplex contained in an apartment. This combinatorial result is particularly interesting for lower-dimensional convex subcomplexes of apartments, where we definitely need the assumption on the four chambers per panel in the building. The corresponding statement is not true anymore for arbitrary systems of apartments, and counter-examples for infinite convex subcomplexes exist for any type of buildings. However, when we restrict to finite convex subcomplexes, the above remains true for arbitrary systems of apartments if and only if every finite subset of chambers of the standard Coxeter complex is contained in the convex hull of two chambers.     

Shearing effects on the breathing mechanism of a cracked beam section in bi-axial flexure

The main purpose of this paper is to complete the works presented by Andrieux and Varé (2002) and El Arem et al. (2003) by taking into account the effects of shearing in the constitutive equations of a beam cracked section in bi-axial flexure. The paper describes the derivation of a lumped cracked beam model from the three-dimensional formulation of the general problem of elasticity with unilateral contact conditions on the crack lips. Properties of the potential energy and convex analysis are used to reduce the three-dimensional computations needed for the model identification, and to derive the final form of the elastic energy that determines the nonlinear constitutive equations of the cracked transverse section. We aim to establish a relation of behavior between the applied forces and the resulting displacements field vectors, which is compatible with the beams theory in order to allow the model exploitation for shafts dynamics analysis. The approach has been applied to the case of a cracked beam with a single crack covering the half of its circular cross section.     

ON MEAN CURVATURES OF A PARALLEL CONVEX BODY

In this article, we obtain some results about the mean curvature integrals of the parallel body of a convex set in R^n. These mean curvature integrals are generalizations of the Santalo＇s results.     

Sequential optimality conditions for composed convex optimization problems

Using a general approach which provides sequential optimality conditions for a general convex optimization problem, we derive necessary and sufficient optimality conditions for composed convex optimization problems. Further, we give sequential characterizations for a subgradient of the precomposition of a K-increasing lower semicontinuous convex function with a K-convex and K-epi-closed (continuous) function, where K is a nonempty convex cone. We prove that several results from the literature dealing with sequential characterizations of subgradients are obtained as particular cases of our results. We also improve the above mentioned statements.     

A note on natural risk statistics

Recently Heyde, Kou and Peng [C.C. Heyde, S.G. Kou, X.H. Peng, What is a good external risk measure: Bridging the gaps between robustness, subadditivity, and insurance risk measures, 2007, preprint.] proposed the notion of a natural risk statistic associated with a finite sample that relaxes the subadditivity assumption in the classical coherent risk statistics. In this note we use convex analysis to provide alternate proofs of the representation results regarding natural risk statistics.     

Duality Theorem for a Three-Phase Partition Problem

In some nonlinear diffusive phenomena, the systems have three or more stable states. Sternberg and Zeimer established the existence of minimal solutions for the problem of partitioning a certain domain Ω⊂ℝ² into three subdomains having least interfacial area. Ikota and Yanagida investigated stability and instability for stationary curves with one triple junction and for stationary binary-tree type interfaces. In this paper, we introduce a new concept of separation of three convex sets by a triangle, define a dual problem to the three-phase partition problem, and present a duality theorem. The author thanks Professor F. Giannessi for valuable comments, especially on Gale and Klee-type separation theorems. This research was partially supported by Kyushu University 21st Century COE Program (Development of Dynamic Mathematics with High Functionality) and by the Grant-in-Aid for General Scientific Research from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science 14340037.     

Improved convex upper bound via conditional comonotonicity

Comonotonicity provides a convenient convex upper bound for a sum of random variables with arbitrary dependence structure. Improved convex upper bound was introduced via conditioning by Kaas et al. [Kaas, R., Dhaene, J., Goovaerts, M., 2000. Upper and lower bounds for sums of random variables. Insurance: Math. Econ. 27, 151-168]. In this paper, we unify these results in a more general context using the concept of conditional comonotonicity. We also construct an approximating sequence of convex upper bounds with nice convergence properties.     

Bessel functions of third order and the distribution of cyclic planar motions with three directions

The exact distribution of a cyclic planar motion with three directions is explicitly derived in terms of Bessel functions of order three (suitably combined). The absolutely continuous part of the distribution is proved to satisfy suitable boundary conditions and some of its properties are analyzed. The transformations converting the governing equations of order three is presented and its solutions (used here) derived by applying the Frobenius method.