Interpolation by a Game

We introduce a notion of a real game (a generalisation of the Karchmer-Wigderson game (cf. [3]) and of real communication complexity, and relate this complexity to the size of monotone real formulas and circuits. We give an exponential lower bound for tree-like monotone protocols (defined in [4, Definition 2.2]) of small real communication complexity solving the monotone communication complexity problem associated with the bipartite perfect matching problem. This work is motivated by a research in interpolation theorems for prepositional logic (by a problem posed in [5, Section 8], in particular). Our main objective is to extend the communication complexity approach of [4, 5] to a wider class of proof systems. In this direction we obtain an effective interpolation in a form of a protocol of small real communication complexity. Together with the above mentioned lower bound for tree-like protocols this yields as a corollary a lower bound on the number of steps for particular semantic derivations of Hall's theorem (these include tree-like cutting planes proofs for which an exponential lower bound was demonstrated in [2]).     

A four-parameter partition identity

We present a new partition identity and give a combinatorial proof of our result. This generalizes a result of Andrews in which he considers the generating function for partitions with respect to size, number of odd parts, and number of odd parts of the conjugate. 2000 Mathematics Subject Classification Primary—05A17; Secondary—11P81     

Triterpene glycosides ofFatsia japonica. I. Isolation and structure of glycosides fromFatsia japonica seeds

The known triterpene glycosides hederagenin 3-O--L-arabinopyranoside, hederagenin 3-O-\-D-glucopyranoside, oleanolic acid 3-O--sophoroside, hederagenin 3-O--sophoroside, and their 28-O--gentiobiosyl esters, respectively, in addition to the new triterpene glycoside 3-O--sophorosyl-28-O--L-rhamnopyranosyl-(14)-O--gentiobiosyl hederagenin are isolated fromFatsia japonica (Araliaceae) seeds. The structures of these glycosides are established using chemical and spectral methods.Translated from Khimiya Prirodnykh Soedinenii, No. 2, pp. 131–133, March–April, 2000.     

一道行列式证明题的多种证明方法

针对线性代数教材中一道行列式证明题，利用行列式的性质，给出多种证明方法，旨在启发学生对相关行列式计算或证明题的解题方法进行探索．     

正整数的一类三分拆的应用

利用正整数n的一类特殊的3分拆n=n1+n2+n3,n1>n2>n3≥1,且n2+n3>n1的Ferrers图将不定方程4x1+3x2+2x3=n(n≥9)的正整数解与这种分拆联系起来,从而得到了该不定方程的正整数解数公式;同时也给出了正整数n的一类4分拆的计数公式.此外,还给出了周长为n的整边三角形的计数公式的一个简单证明.     

Erratum to: Remarks on lines and minimal rational curves

<正>Erratum to:Science in China Series A:Mathematics,April 2009 Vol.52 No.4:617–630doi:10.1007/s11425-009-0038-2There is a mistake in the proof of[1,Lemma 2.2],which occurs in 4-th line at[1,p.619],     

Theo’s reinvention of the logic of conditional statements’ proofs rooted in set-based reasoning

This report documents how one undergraduate student used set-based reasoning to reinvent logical principles related to conditional statements and their proofs. This learning occurred in a teaching experiment intended to foster abstraction of these logical relationships by comparing the relationships between predicates within the conditional statements and inference structures among various proofs (in number theory and geometry). We document the progression of Theo’s set-based emergent model (Gravemeijer, 1999) from a model-of the truth of statements to a model-for logical relationships. This constitutes some of the first evidence for how students can abstract such logical concepts in this way and provides evidence for the viability of the learning progression that guided the instructional design.     

Enumeration of non-crossing pairings on bit strings

A non-crossing pairing on a bit string is a matching of 1s and 0s in the string with the property that the pairing diagram has no crossings. For an arbitrary bit-string w=p₁¹q₁⁰…pr¹qr⁰, let φ(w) be the number of such pairings. This enumeration problem arises when calculating moments in the theory of random matrices and free probability, and we are interested in determining useful formulas and asymptotic estimates for φ(w). Our main results include explicit formulas in the “symmetric” case where each pi=qi, as well as upper and lower bounds for φ(w) that are uniform across all words of fixed length and fixed r. In addition, we offer more refined conjectural expressions for the upper bounds. Our proofs follow from the construction of combinatorial mappings from the set of non-crossing pairings into certain generalized “Catalan” structures that include labeled trees and lattice paths.     

Students’ ways of understanding a proof

We present a model for describing the growth of students’ understandings when reading a proof. The model is composed of two main paths. One is focused on becoming aware of the deductive structure of the proof, in other words, understanding the proof at a semantic level. Generalization, abstraction, and formalization are the most important transitions in this path. The other path focuses on the surface-level form of the proof, and the use of symbolic representations. At the end of this path, students understand how and why symbolic computations formally establish a claim, at a syntactic level. We make distinctions between states in the model and illustrate them with examples from early secondary students’ mathematical activity. We then apply the model to one student’s developing understanding in order to show how the model works in practice. We close with some suggestions for further research.