We consider finite dimensional representations of the dihedral group D2p over an algebraically closed field of characteristic two where p is an odd prime and study the degrees of generating and separating polynomials in the corresponding ring of invariants. We give an upper bound for the degrees of the polynomials in a minimal generating set that does not depend on p when the dimension of the representation is sufficiently large. We also show that p + 1 is the minimal number such that the invariants up to that degree always form a separating set. We also give an explicit description of a separating set.

We explicitly find lower bounds on the volume of threefolds and fourfolds of general type in order to have non-vanishing of pluricanonical systems and birationality of pluricanonical maps. In the case of threefolds of large volume, we also give necessary and sufficient conditions for the fourth canonical map to be birational.

Let k be an algebraically closed field of any characteristic except 2, and let G = GLn(k) be the general linear group, regarded as an algebraic group over k. Using an algebro-geometric argument and Dynkin–Kostant theory for G we begin by obtaining a canonical form for nilpotent Ad(G)-orbits in (k) which is symmetric with respect to the non-main diagonal (i.e. it is fixed by the map f : (xi,j) ↦ (xn+1−j,n+1−i)), with entries in {0,1}. We then show how to modify this form slightly in order to satisfy a non-degenerate symmetric or skew-symmetric bilinear form, assuming that the orbit does not vanish in the presence of such a form. Replacing G by any simple classical algebraic group we thus obtain a unified approach to computing representatives for nilpotent orbits of all classical Lie algebras. By applying Springer morphisms, this also yields representatives for the corresponding unipotent classes in G. As a corollary we obtain a complete set of generic canonical representatives for the unipotent classes in finite general unitary groups GUn(q) for all prime powers q.

Homotopy on nanophrases is an equivalence relation defined using some data called a homotopy data triple. We define a product on homotopy data triples. We show that any homotopy data triple can be factorized into a product of prime homotopy data triples and this factorization is unique up to isomorphism and order. For any homotopy given by a composite homotopy data triple we define a complete invariant of nanophrases. This invariant is used to show that equivalence of nanophrases under such a homotopy can be calculated just by using the homotopies given by its prime factors.

Let G denote a topological group. In this paper the descending central series of free groups are used to construct simplicial spaces of homomorphisms with geometric realizations B(q, G) that provide a filtration of the classifying space BG. In particular this setting gives rise to a single space constructed out of all the spaces of ordered commuting n–tuples of elements in G. Basic properties of these constructions are discussed, including the homotopy type and cohomology when the group G is either a finite group or a compact connected Lie group. For a finite group the construction gives rise to a covering space with monodromy related to a delicate result in group theory equivalent to the odd-order theorem of Feit–Thompson. The techniques here also yield a counting formula for the cardinality of Hom(π, G) where π is any descending central series quotient of a finitely generated free group. Another application is the determination of the structure of the spaces B(2, G) obtained from commuting n-tuples in G for finite groups such that the centralizer of every non–central element is abelian (known as transitively commutative groups), which played a key role in work by Suzuki on the structure of finite simple groups.

We establish a necessary condition that an automorphism of a nontrivial finitely generated bi-orderable group can preserve a bi-ordering: at least one of its eigenvalues, suitably defined, must be real and positive. Applications are given to knot theory, spaces which fibre over the circle and to the Heegaard–Floer homology of surgery manifolds. In particular, we show that if a nontrivial fibred knot has bi-orderable knot group, then its Alexander polynomial has a positive real root. This implies that many specific knot groups are not bi-orderable. We also show that if the group of a nontrivial knot is bi-orderable, surgery on the knot cannot produce an L-space, as defined by Ozsváth and Szabó.

The purpose of this paper is to compare some classical positions of convex bodies. We provide exact quantitative results which show that the minimal surface area position and the minimal mean width position are not necessarily M-positions. We also construct examples of unconditional convex bodies of minimal surface area that exhibit the worst possible behavior with respect to their mean width or their minimal hyperplane projection.

We study different aspects of the connections between local theory of Banach spaces and the problem of the extension of bilinear forms from subspaces of Banach spaces. Among other results, we prove that if X is not a Hilbert space then one may find a subspace of X for which there is no Aron–Berner extension. We also obtain that the extension of bilinear forms from all the subspaces of a given X forces such X to contain no uniform copies of ℓpn for p ∈ [1, 2). In particular, X must have type 2 − ϵ for every ϵ > 0. Also, we show that the bilinear version of the Lindenstrauss–Pełczyński and Johnson–Zippin theorems fail. We will then consider the notion of locally α-complemented subspace for a reasonable tensor norm α, and study the connections between α-local complementation and the extendability of α*-integral operators.

We study some properties of Lipschitz exact Lagrangian manifolds isotopic to the zero section. We prove that if such a manifold is invariant under an optical Hamiltonian, then it must be a Lipschitz graph. This extends a recent result of Marie–Claude Arnaud. We also obtain a new geometric description of the Mañé–Mather invariant set.

Improving on estimates of Erdős, Halász and Ruzsa, we provide new upper and lower bounds for the concentration function of the limit law of certain additive arithmetic functions under hypotheses involving only their average behaviour on the primes. In particular we partially confirm a conjecture of Erdős and Kátai. The upper bound is derived via a reappraisal of the method of Diamond and Rhoads, resting upon the theory of functions with bounded mean oscillation.

Suite à une remarque de Dimitris Koukoulopoulos, que nous prenons plaisir à remercier ici, nous modifions légèrement l'énoncé et la démonstration du Corollaire 1.4, de façon à justifier la remarque (ii).