A non-regular Groebner fan

The Groebner fan of an ideal $I\subset k[x_1,...,x_n]$, defined by Mora and Robbiano, is a complex of polyhedral cones in $R^n$. The maximal cones of the fan are in bijection with the distinct monomial initial ideals of $I$ as the term order varies. If $I$ is homogeneous the Groebner fan is complete and is the normal fan of the state polytope of $I$. In general the Groebner fan is not complete and therefore not the normal fan of a polytope. We may ask if the restricted Groebner fan, a subdivision of $R_{>=0}^n$, is regular i.e. the normal fan of a polyhedron. The main result of this paper is an example of an ideal in $Q[x_1,...,x_4]$ whose restricted Groebner fan is not regular.Comment: 11 page

NaDeA: A Natural Deduction Assistant with a Formalization in Isabelle

We present a new software tool for teaching logic based on natural deduction. Its proof system is formalized in the proof assistant Isabelle such that its definition is very precise. Soundness of the formalization has been proved in Isabelle. The tool is open source software developed in TypeScript / JavaScript and can thus be used directly in a browser without any further installation. Although developed for undergraduate computer science students who are used to study and program concrete computer code in a programming language we consider the approach relevant for a broader audience and for other proof systems as well.Comment: Proceedings of the Fourth International Conference on Tools for Teaching Logic (TTL2015), Rennes, France, June 9-12, 2015. Editors: M. Antonia Huertas, Jo\~ao Marcos, Mar\'ia Manzano, Sophie Pinchinat, Fran\c{c}ois Schwarzentrube

An algorithm for lifting points in a tropical variety

The aim of this paper is to give a constructive proof of one of the basic theorems of tropical geometry: given a point on a tropical variety (defined using initial ideals), there exists a Puiseux-valued ``lift'' of this point in the algebraic variety. This theorem is so fundamental because it justifies why a tropical variety (defined combinatorially using initial ideals) carries information about algebraic varieties: it is the image of an algebraic variety over the Puiseux series under the valuation map. We have implemented the ``lifting algorithm'' using Singular and Gfan if the base field are the rational numbers. As a byproduct we get an algorithm to compute the Puiseux expansion of a space curve singularity in (K^{n+1},0).Comment: 33 page

Optimal Investment Horizons

In stochastic finance, one traditionally considers the return as a competitive measure of an asset, {\it i.e.}, the profit generated by that asset after some fixed time span $\Delta t$, say one week or one year. This measures how well (or how bad) the asset performs over that given period of time. It has been established that the distribution of returns exhibits ``fat tails'' indicating that large returns occur more frequently than what is expected from standard Gaussian stochastic processes (Mandelbrot-1967,Stanley1,Doyne). Instead of estimating this ``fat tail'' distribution of returns, we propose here an alternative approach, which is outlined by addressing the following question: What is the smallest time interval needed for an asset to cross a fixed return level of say 10%? For a particular asset, we refer to this time as the {\it investment horizon} and the corresponding distribution as the {\it investment horizon distribution}. This latter distribution complements that of returns and provides new and possibly crucial information for portfolio design and risk-management, as well as for pricing of more exotic options. By considering historical financial data, exemplified by the Dow Jones Industrial Average, we obtain a novel set of probability distributions for the investment horizons which can be used to estimate the optimal investment horizon for a stock or a future contract.Comment: Latex, 5 pages including 4 figur

A model analysis on nitrate leaching under different soil and climate conditions and use of catch crops

The use of crops and catch crops with deep rooting can strongly improve the possibility of retaining nitrate-N that will otherwise be leached to the deeper soil layers and end up in the surrounding environment. But will it always be an advantage for the farmer to grow a catch crop? This will depend on factors such as soil mineral nitrogen level, soil water holding capacity, winter precipitation, rooting depth and N demand of the scceeding crop. These factors interact, and it can be very difficult for farmers or advisors to use this information to decide whether growing a catch crop will be beneficial. To analyse the effect of catch crops under different Danish soil and precipitation conditions, we used the soil, plant and atmosphere model Daisy