Let $H$ be a not necessarily separable Hilbert space, and let $\mathcal{B}(H)$ denote the space of all bounded linear operators on $H$. It is proved that a commutative lattice $\mathcal{D}$ of self-adjoint projections in $H$ that contains $0$ and $I$ is spatially complete if and only if it is a closed subset of $\mathcal{B}(H)$ in the strong operator topology. Some related results are obtained concerning commutative lattice-ordered cones of self-adjoint operators that contain $\mathcal{D}$.

Let $J$ be a Jacobi real symmetric matrix on $l_{2}$ with zero diagonal and non-diagonal entries of the form $\{1+p_{n}\}$. If $p_{n-1}\pm p_{n}=O(n^{-\alpha})$ with some $\alpha>2/3$, then the existence of bounded solutions of $Ju=\lambda u$ is proved for almost every $\lambda\in(-2,2)$ with the WKB-type asymptotic behavior.

A relatively long-standing problem concerning the best constants of approximation by entire functions of exponential type on the class $W^rH_{\omega}$ is solved. The central tool is a limit relation between the best constants of approximation by trigonometric polynomials and entire functions of exponential type on $W^rH_{\omega}$ and its periodic analogue.

An inequality is established involving colengths of the tight closure of ideals of systems of parameters in local rings with some mild conditions. As an application, a proof is given of a result due to Goto and Nakamura (first conjectured by Watanabe and Yoshida), which states that the Hilbert–Samuel multiplicity of a parameter ideal is greater than or equal to the colength of the tight closure of the ideal. The result is also further refined.

An alternative proof is given of a result, originally due to Guido Mislin, giving necessary and sufficient conditions for the inclusion of a subgroup to induce an isomorphism in mod p cohomology.

I exhibit a pair of non-symmetric operads that, while not themselves isomorphic, induce isomorphic monads. The existence of such a pair implies that if ‘algebraic theory’ is understood as meaning ‘monad’ then operads cannot be regarded as algebraic theories of a special kind.

The topological disc (De Paepe's) \[ P=\{(z^2,\bar{z}^2+\bar{z}^3):|z|\le 1\}\subset {\bb C}^2 \]

is shown here to have non-trivial polynomially convex hull. In fact, the authors show that this holds for all discs of the form $X=\{(z^2,f(\bar{z})):|z|\le r\}$ , where $f$ is holomorphic on $|z|\le r$ , and $f(z)=z^2+a_3z^3+\ldots$ , with all coefficients $a_n$ real, and at least one $a_{2n+1}\ne 0$ .

The notions of controlled truncations for operators in the Roe algebras $C^*(X)$ of a coarse space $(X, \cal{E})$ with uniformly locally finite coarse structure, and rank distributions on $(X, \cal{E})$ are introduced. It is shown that the controlled propagation operators in an ideal $I$ of $C^*(X)$ are exactly the controlled truncations of elements in $I$. It follows that the lattice of the ideals of $C^*(X)$ in which controlled propagation operators are dense is isomorphic to the lattice of all rank distributions on $(X, \cal{E})$. If $X$ is a discrete metric space with Yu's property A, then the ideal structure of the Roe algebra $C^*(X)$ is completely determined by the rank distributions on $X$.

We present a Borel reduction from a subset shift equivalence relation of a countable group to a subgroup conjugacy relation of a free product. The technique gives a much shorter proof of an earlier result of Thomas and Velickovic.

A complete characterization of the categorical quotients of $({\mathbb P}^1)^n$ by the diagonal action of $\SL(2, {\mathbb C})$ with respect to any polarization is given by M. Polito, in ‘$\SL(2, {\mathbb C})$-quotients de $({\mathbb P}^1)^n$’, C. R. Acad. Sci. Paris Sér. I 321 (1995) 1577–1582. In this paper, these categorical quotients are obtained by certain linear systems on ${\mathbb P}^{n-3}$?>, depending on the given polarization.

In this paper we characterise the kernel of a little Hankel operator on the Bergman space L2a(D) in terms of the inner divisors, and obtain a characterisation for finite rank little Hankel operators using the invariant subspace theory technique.

The Fredholm properties of Toeplitz operators $T_a$ on Hardy spaces $H^p$ ($1<p<\infty$) with continuous symbols $a$ are well understood. We consider $T_a$ acting on $H^1$, where the operator is bounded provided that $a$ belongs to the class of symbols given by Janson and Stegenga's result on the pointwise multipliers on $H^1$. A necessary and sufficient condition for $T_a$ to be a Fredholm operator is given when $a$ is continuous and satisfies a mild additional condition (much weaker than Hölder continuity). A formula for the index of $T_a$ is also derived. In addition, we study the case of matrix-valued symbols and Toeplitz operators on $\rm{BMO}_A$.

We study the behaviour of non-negative solutions to the equation

formula here

This equation is an ‘explicitly’ soluble special case of a class of non-local evolution equations, of which the behaviour of solutions has been studied by Uchiyama [9]. In this paper, certain fine properties of solutions such as a local relaxation within their supports are obtained for the present special case. The asymptotic forms (for large time) of the solutions whose initial measures have compact supports are identified within the error of the order O(t−3/2). It is also shown that the comparison principle does not hold. With a simple change of variables, the equation ([midast ]) is transformed to the equation arising in Dyson's approach to the Wigner semi-circle law of eigenvalues of random matrices, and the present results have immediate consequences on the latter.

In this paper the domain in which any two points are joined by finite numbers of arbitrarily small homeomorphisms is studied, and two examples are given.

A criterion of isomorphism for symmetry groups of set ideals is provided in terms of ideal quotients and cardinal invariants. Furthermore, set ideals with complete symmetry group are characterized. They form a wide class, comprising, for example, all uniform dense ideals and the ideals of ‘thin’ sets in separable metric spaces. If the symmetry group of a set ideal is not complete, then its outer automorphism group is shown to be cyclic of order 2.

The distribution on the torus ℝ/ℤ of a set of fractions of the form

(formula here)

is investigated, where q is a large integer, m is the inverse of m modulo q, R(x) is a rational function defined modulo q, and [Uscr ], [Mscr ], [Nscr ] are subsets of {1,…,q}. Under some natural assumptions, it is shown that the set [Rscr ] is uniformly distributed on ℝ/ℤ.

This paper proves that a difference field (E, σ) admits quantifier elimination if and only if E is an algebraically closed field, and σ is an integer power of the Frobenius automorphism.

In a previous paper, the author proved a recent Wiener–Hopf formula, established by Alili and Doney, by means of a path transform. We derive here two other results using this path transform.

It is known [10, 11] that if T is an integral operator with an extended totally positive kernel, then T has a countably infinite family of simple, positive eigenvalues. We prove a similar result for a rather larger class of kernels and, writing the eigenvalues of T in decreasing order as (λn)n∈IN, we use results obtained in [4] and [5] to give a formula for the ratio λn+1/ lambda;n analogous to that given in [3] for the case of a strictly totally positive matrix, and to the spectral radius formula

formula here

This may be regarded as a generalisation of inequalities due to Hopf [8, 9].

Philip Holgate was born in Chesterfield on 8 December 1934. His family moved from Derbyshire to Devon in 1945, and he was educated at Newton Abbot Grammar School from 1945 to 1952, and the University College of the South-West (now Exeter University, but which then awarded London degrees) from 1952 to 1955. He qualified as both a teacher (King's College, London, 1955–56) and a statistician (University College, London, 1956–57).

After teaching mathematics and physics at Burgess Hill School, in Hampstead and then in Borehamwood, Philip joined the Statistics Section at Rothamsted Experimental Station (1961–62). He then spent five years in the Biometrics Section of the Nature Conservancy. His first publications date from this period, and the interests he acquired then were to develop into what became his most enduring, and distinctive, scientific interests.

Philip joined the Department of Statistics, Birkbeck College, University of London, in 1967, and remained at Birkbeck for the rest of his career, until his death from a heart attack on 13 April 1993.