Shape Derivatives

Shape Theory, together with Shape-and-Scale Theory, comprise Relational Theory. This consists of $N$-point models on a manifold $M$, for which some geometrical automorphism group $G$ is regarded as meaningless and is thus quotiented out from the $N$-point model's product space $\times_{I = 1}^N M$. Each such model has an associated function space of preserved quantities, solving the PDE system for zero brackets with the sums over $N$ of each of $G$'s generators. These are smooth functions of the $N$-point geometrical invariants. Each $(M, G)$ pair has moreover a `minimal nontrivially relational unit' value of $N$; we now show that relationally-invariant derivatives can be defined on these, yielding the titular notions of shape(-and-scale) derivatives. We obtain each by Taylor-expanding a functional version of the underlying geometrical invariant, and isolating a shape-independent derivative factor in the nontrivial leading-order term. We do this for translational, dilational, dilatational and projective geometries in 1-$d$, the last of which gives a shape-theoretic rederivation of the Schwarzian derivative. We next phrase and solve the ODEs for zero and constant values of each derivative. We then consider translational, dilational, rotational, rotational-and-dilational, Euclidean and equi-top-form (alias unimodular affine) cases in $\geq 2$-$d$. We finally pose the PDEs for zero and constant values of each of our $\geq 2$-$d$ derivatives, and solve a subset of these geometrically-motivated PDEs. This work is significant for Relational Motion and Background Independence in Theoretical Physics, and foundational for both Flat and Differential Geometry.Comment: 15 pages including 2 figure

Alice in Triangleland: Lewis Carroll's Pillow Problem and Variants Solved on Shape Space of Triangles

We provide a natural answer to Lewis Carroll's pillow problem of what is the probability that a triangle is obtuse, Prob(Obtuse). This arises by straightforward combination of a) Kendall's Theorem - that the space of all triangles is a sphere - and b) the natural map sending triangles in space to points in this shape sphere. The answer is 3/4. Our method moreover readily generalizes to a wider class of problems, since a) and b) both have many applications and admit large generalizations: Shape Theory. An elementary and thus widely accessible prototype for Shape Theory is thereby desirable, and extending Kendall's already-notable prototype a) by demonstrating that b) readily solves Lewis Carroll's well-known pillow problem indeed provides a memorable and considerably stronger prototype. This is a prototype of, namely, mapping flat geometry problems directly realized in a space to shape space, where differential-geometric tools are readily available to solve the problem and then finally re-interpret it in the original `shape-in-space' terms. We illustrate this program's versatility by posing and solving a number of variants of the pillow problem. We first find Prob(Isosceles is Obtuse). We subsequently define tall and flat triangles, as bounded by regular triangles whose base-to-median ratio is that of the equilateral triangle. These definitions have Jacobian and Hopfian motivation as well as entering Kendall's own considerations of `splinters': almost-collinear triangles. We find that Prob(Tall) = 1/2 = Prob(Flat) is immediately apparent from regularity's symmetric realization in shape space. However, Prob(Obtuse and Flat), Prob(Obtuse is Flat) and all other nontrivial expressions concerning having any two of the properties mentioned above, or having one of these conditioned on another, constitute nontrivial variants of the pillow problem, and we solve them all.Comment: 13 pages, 6 figure

Maximal Angle Flow on the Shape Sphere of Triangles

There has been recent work using Shape Theory to answer the longstanding and conceptually interesting problem of what is the probability that a triangle is obtuse. This is resolved by three kissing cap-circles of rightness being realized on the shape sphere; integrating up the interiors of these caps readily yields the answer to be 3/4. We now generalize this approach by viewing rightness as a particular value of maximal angle, and then covering the shape sphere with the maximal angle flow. Therein, we discover that the kissing cap-circles of rightness constitute a separatrix. The two qualitatively different regimes of behaviour thus separated both moreover carry distinct analytic pathologies: cusps versus excluded limit points. The equilateral triangles are centres in this flow, whereas the kissing points themselves -- binary collision shapes -- are more interesting and elaborate critical points. The other curves' formulae and associated area integrals are more complicated, and yet remain evaluable. As a particular example, we evaluate the probability that a triangle is Fermat-acute, meaning that its Fermat point is nontrivially located; the critical maximal angle in this case is 120 degrees.Comment: 18 pages including 9 figure

Isotropy Groups and Kinematic Orbits for 1 and 2-dd NN-Body Problems

Mitchell and Littlejohn showed that isotropy groups and orbits for $N$-body problems attain a sense of genericity for $N = 5$. The author recently showed that the arbitrary-$d$ generalization of this 3-$d$ result is that genericity in this sense occurs for $N = d + 2$. The author also showed that a second sense of genericity -- now order-theoretic rather than a matter of counting -- occurs for $N = 2 d + 1$, excepting $d = 3$, for which it is not 7 but 8. Applications of this work include 1) that some of the increase in complexity in passing from 3 to 4 and 5 body problems in 3-$d$ is already present in the more-well known setting of passing from intervals to triangles and then to quadrilaterals in 2-$d$. 2) That not $(d, N) = (3, 6)$ but $(4, 6)$ is a natural theoretical successor of $(3, 5)$. 3) Such consideration isotropy groups and orbits is moreover a model for a larger case of interest, namely that of GR's reduced configuration spaces. The current Article presents the lower-$d$ cases explicitly: 0, 1 and 2-$d$, including also the topological and geometrical form of the corresponding isotropy groups and orbits.Comment: 16 pages, including 4 figures. arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:1807.0839

Quadrilaterals in Shape Theory. II. Alternative Derivations of Shape Space: Successes and Limitations

We show that the recent derivation that triangleland's topology and geometry is $S^2$ from Heron's formula does not extend to quadrilaterals by considering Brahmagupta, Bretschneider and Coolidge's area formulae. That $N$-a-gonland is more generally $CP^{N - 2}$ (with $CP^1 = S^2$ recovering the triangleland sphere) follows from Kendall's extremization that is habitually used in Shape Theory, or the generalized Hopf map. We further explain our observation of non-extension in terms of total area not providing a shape quantity for quadrilaterals. It is rather the square root of of sums of squares of subsystem areas that provides a shape quantity; we clarify this further in representation-theoretic terms. The triangleland $S^2$ moreover also generalizes to $d$-simplexlands being $S^{d(d + 1)/2 - 1}$ topologically by Casson's observation. For the 3-simplex - alias tetrahaedron - while volume provides a shape quantity and is specified by the della Francesca-Tartaglia formula, the analogue of finding Heron eigenvectors is undefined. $d$-volume moreover provides a shape quantity for the $d$-simplex, specified by the Cayley-Menger formula generalization of the Heron and della Francesca-Tartaglia formulae. While eigenvectors can be defined for the even-$d$ Cayley-Menger formulae, the dimension count does not however work out for these to provide on-sphere conditions. We finally point out the multiple dimensional coincidences behind the derivation of the space of triangles from Heron's formula. This article is a useful check on how far the least technically involved derivation of the smallest nontrivial shape space can be taken. This is significant since Shape Theory is a futuristic branch of mathematics, with substantial applications in both Statistics (Shape Statistics) and Theoretical Physics (Background Independence: of major relevance to Classical and Quantum Gravitational Theory).Comment: 17 pages, including 7 figure

Shape (In)dependent Inequalities for Triangleland's Jacobi and Democratic-Linear Ellipticity Quantitities

Sides and medians are both Jacobi coordinate magnitudes, moreover then equably entering the spherical coordinates on Kendall's shape sphere and the Hopf coordinates. This motivates treating medians on the same footing as sides in triangle geometry and the resulting Shape Theory. In this paper, we consequently reformulate inequalities for the medians in terms of shape quantities, and proceed to find inequalities on the mass-weighted Jacobi coordinates. This work moreover identifies the $4/3$ -- powers of which occur frequently in the theory of medians -- as the ratio of Jacobi masses. One of the Hopf coordinates is tetra-area. Another is anisoscelesness, which parametrizes whether triangles are left-or-right leaning as bounded by isoscelesness itself. The third is ellipticity, which parametrizes tallness-or-flatness of triangles as bounded by regular triangles. Whereas tetra-area is clearly cluster choice invariant, Jacobi coordinates, anisoscelesness and ellipticity are cluster choice dependent but can be `democratized' by averaging over all clusters. Democratized ellipticity moreover trivializes, due to ellipticity being the difference of base-side and median second moments, whose averages are equal to each other. Thus we introduce a distinct `linear ellipticity' quantifier of tallness-or-flatness of triangles whose democratization is nontrivial, and find inequalities bounding this. Some of this paper's inequalities are shape-independent bounds, whereas others' bounds depend on the isoperimetric ratio and arithmetic-to-geometric side mean ratio shape variables.Comment: 22 pages including 8 figure

Polynomial Eulerian shape distributions

In this paper a new approach is derived in the context of shape theory. The implemented methodology is motivated in an open problem proposed in \citet{GM93} about the construction of certain shape density involving Euler hypergeometric functions of matrix arguments. The associated distribution is obtained by establishing a connection between the required shape invariants and a known result on canonical correlations available since 1963; as usual in statistical shape theory and the addressed result, the densities are expressed in terms of infinite series of zonal polynomials which involves considerable difficulties in inference. Then the work proceeds to solve analytically the problem of computation by using the Eulerian matrix relation of two matrix argument for deriving the corresponding polynomial distribution in certain parametric space which allows to perform exact inference based on exact distributions characterized for polynomials of very low degree. A methodology for comparing correlation shape structure is proposed and applied in handwritten differentiation.Comment: 26 page

Absolute versus Relational Debate: a Modern Global Version

Suppose one seeks to free oneself from a symmetric absolute space by quotienting out its symmetry group. This in general however fails to erase all memory of this absolute space's symmetry properties. Stratification is one major reason for this, which is present in both a) Kendall-type Shape Theory and subsequent Relational Mechanics, and b) General Relativity configuration spaces. We consider the alternative starting point with a generic absolute space, meaning with no nontrivial generalized Killing vectors whatsoever. In this approach, generically Shape-and-Scale Theory is but trivially realized, there is no separate Shape Theory and indeed no stratification. While the GR configuration space version of these considerations was already expounded in 1996 by Fischer and Moncrief, the Kendall-type shape theory version is new to the current article. In each case, this amounts to admitting some small deformation by which symmetry's hard consequences at the level of reduced configuration spaces are warded off.We end by discussing the senses in which each of the above two strategies retain absolutist features, each's main known technical advantages and disadvantages, and the desirability of replacing Kendall-type Shape Theory with a Local-and-Approximate Shape Theory. This article is in honour of Prof. Niall \'{o} Murchadha, on the occasion of his Festschrift.Comment: 22 page

Manifolds of Projective Shapes

The projective shape of a configuration of k points or "landmarks" in RP(d) consists of the information that is invariant under projective transformations and hence is reconstructable from uncalibrated camera views. Mathematically, the space of projective shapes for these k landmarks can be described as the quotient space of k copies of RP(d) modulo the action of the projective linear group PGL(d). Using homogeneous coordinates, such configurations can be described as real k-times-(d+1)-dimensional matrices given up to left-multiplication of non-singular diagonal matrices, while the group PGL(d) acts as GL(d+1) from the right. The main purpose of this paper is to give a detailed examination of the topology of projective shape space, and, using matrix notation, it is shown how to derive subsets that are in a certain sense maximal, differentiable Hausdorff manifolds which can be provided with a Riemannian metric. A special subclass of the projective shapes consists of the Tyler regular shapes, for which geometrically motivated pre-shapes can be defined, thus allowing for the construction of a natural Riemannian metric

Specific PDEs for Preserved Quantities in Geometry. II. Affine Transformations and Subgroups

We extend finding geometrically-significant preserved quantities by solving specific PDEs to the affine transformations and subgroups. This can be viewed not only as a purely geometrical problem but also as a subcase of finding physical observables, and furthermore as part of the comparative study of Background Independence level-by-level in mathematical structure. While cross and scalar-triple products (combined with differences and ratios) suffice to formulate these preserved quantities in 2- and 3-$d$ respectively, the arbitrary-dimensional generalization evokes the theory of forms. The affine preserved quantities are ratios of $d$-volume forms of differences, $d$-volume forms being the `top forms' supported by dimension $d$, and referring moreover to $d$-volumes of relationally-defined subsystems.Comment: 15 pages, including 3 figures. Updated reference