The cone length Cl(f) of a map f: X → Y is defined to be the least number of attaching maps possible in a conic (or iterated mapping cone) structure for f. Cone length is a homotopy invariant in the sense that if φ: X → X and ρ: Y → Y are homotopy equivalences then Cl (ρ°f°φ) = Cl(f). Furthermore Cl(f) depends only on the homotopy class of f. It was shown by Ganea [8] that the cone length of the map * → X coincides with the strong Lusternik-Schnirelmann category of X as a space (see Proposition 1.6 below). Recent work of Cornea ([3]–[6]) is much concerned with cone length and its role in critical point theory. For example, let f be a smooth real valued function on a manifold triad (M; V0, V1) with V0 ≠ θ. Under certain conditions, if f has only “reasonable” critical points then it must have at least Cl(V0↪M) of them (see [6]).

Let G be a finite group. The real genus p(G) [8] is the minimum algebraic genus of any compact bordered Klein surface on which G acts. There are now several results about the real genus parameter. The groups with real genus p ≤ 5 have been classified [8,9,12], and genus formulas have been obtained for several classes of groups [8,9,10,11,12]. Most notably, McCullough calculated the real genus of each finite abelian group [13]. In addition, there is a good general lower bound for the real genus of a finite group [11].

We use the principle of symmetric criticality to connect the Willmore variational problem for surfaces in a warped product space with base a circle, and the free elastica variational problem for curves on its fiber. In addition we obtain a rational oneparameter family of closed helices in the anti De Sitter 3-space which are critical points of the total squared curvature functional. This means they are free elasticae. Also they are spacelike; this allows us to construct a corresponding family of spacelike Willmore tori in a certain kind of spacetime close to the Robertson-Walker spaces.

Recently, Saleh [3] claimed to have solved ‘a long standing open question’ in topology; namely, he proved that every almost continuous function is clousure continuous (= θ = continuous). Unforunately, this problem was settled long time ago and even a better result is known. Consider the following implications: Cont. ⇒ Almost cont. ⇒ Almost α-cont.⇒ η-cont. ⇒.θ-cont. ⇒ Weakley cont.

On the setting of the unit ball of the complex n-space, some characterizations of M-harmonic Bloch functions are obtained. As an application, Carleson measures are characterized by means of Berezin type integrals of M-harmonic Bloch functions. As one may expect, these results carry over to M-harmonic little Bloch functions and vanishing Carleson measures.

Proposition 3.1 of the paper Annihilators and the CS-condition, Glasgow Math. J. 40 (1998), 213–222, is incorrect as stated, and consequently the note added in proof is incorrect. Hence the question of Faith and Menal whether every strongly right Johns ring is quasi- Frobenius remains open. The problem is that the assumption that the left socle S1 and the right socle Sr are equal is not established. All we know is that Si⊆Sr = r(J) = l(J) by [8, Lemma 2.2]. We can prove the following result.

We consider a real-valued function r = M(t) on the real axis, such that M(t) < 0 for t < 0. Under appropriate assumptions on M, the pull-back operator M* gives rise to a transform of Sobolev spaces Ws.p (-∞, 0) that restricts to a transform of Ws.p(-∞, ∞). We construct a bounded linear extension operator Ws.p(-∞, 0) → Ws.p(−∞, ∞), commuting with this transform.

We gave an elementary proof of Theorem 4 in the paper, published in the Glasgow Mathematical Journal 39(1997), 275–284. The result provides an algorithm for approximating the maximal eigenvalue of a nonnegative matrix. Recently the author has learnt that the result can be proved immediately from Theorem 6.8 in [1]. Indeed, the paper [1] determines necessary and sufficient conditions for the convergence of an iterative sequence to the maximal eigenvalue. Their proof needs knowledge of graph theoretical concepts.