On Computability and Triviality of Well Groups

The concept of well group in a special but important case captures homological properties of the zero set of a continuous map $f:K\to R^n$ on a compact space K that are invariant with respect to perturbations of f. The perturbations are arbitrary continuous maps within $L_\infty$ distance r from f for a given r>0. The main drawback of the approach is that the computability of well groups was shown only when dim K=n or n=1. Our contribution to the theory of well groups is twofold: on the one hand we improve on the computability issue, but on the other hand we present a range of examples where the well groups are incomplete invariants, that is, fail to capture certain important robust properties of the zero set. For the first part, we identify a computable subgroup of the well group that is obtained by cap product with the pullback of the orientation of R^n by f. In other words, well groups can be algorithmically approximated from below. When f is smooth and dim K<2n-2, our approximation of the (dim K-n)th well group is exact. For the second part, we find examples of maps $f,f': K\to R^n$ with all well groups isomorphic but whose perturbations have different zero sets. We discuss on a possible replacement of the well groups of vector valued maps by an invariant of a better descriptive power and computability status.Comment: 20 pages main paper including bibliography, followed by 22 pages of Appendi

Persistence of Zero Sets

We study robust properties of zero sets of continuous maps $f:X\to\mathbb{R}^n$. Formally, we analyze the family $Z_r(f)=\{g^{-1}(0):\,\,\|g-f\|<r\}$ of all zero sets of all continuous maps $g$ closer to $f$ than $r$ in the max-norm. The fundamental geometric property of $Z_r(f)$ is that all its zero sets lie outside of $A:=\{x:\,|f(x)|\ge r\}$. We claim that once the space $A$ is fixed, $Z_r(f)$ is \emph{fully} determined by an element of a so-called cohomotopy group which---by a recent result---is computable whenever the dimension of $X$ is at most $2n-3$. More explicitly, the element is a homotopy class of a map from $A$ or $X/A$ into a sphere. By considering all $r>0$ simultaneously, the pointed cohomotopy groups form a persistence module---a structure leading to the persistence diagrams as in the case of \emph{persistent homology} or \emph{well groups}. Eventually, we get a descriptor of persistent robust properties of zero sets that has better descriptive power (Theorem A) and better computability status (Theorem B) than the established well diagrams. Moreover, if we endow every point of each zero set with gradients of the perturbation, the robust description of the zero sets by elements of cohomotopy groups is in some sense the best possible (Theorem C)

Generalized Verma module homomorphisms in singular character

summary:In this paper we study invariant differential operators on manifolds with a given parabolic structure. The model for the parabolic geometry is the quotient of the orthogonal group by a maximal parabolic subgroup corresponding to crossing of the $k$-th simple root of the Dynkin diagram. In particular, invariant differential operators discussed in the paper correspond (in a flat model) to the Dirac operator in several variables

On Computability and Triviality of Well Groups

The concept of well group in a special but important case captures homological properties of the zero set of a continuous map f from K to R^n on a compact space K that are invariant with respect to perturbations of f. The perturbations are arbitrary continuous maps within L_infty distance r from f for a given r > 0. The main drawback of the approach is that the computability of well groups was shown only when dim K = n or n = 1. Our contribution to the theory of well groups is twofold: on the one hand we improve on the computability issue, but on the other hand we present a range of examples where the well groups are incomplete invariants, that is, fail to capture certain important robust properties of the zero set. For the first part, we identify a computable subgroup of the well group that is obtained by cap product with the pullback of the orientation of R^n by f. In other words, well groups can be algorithmically approximated from below. When f is smooth and dim K < 2n-2, our approximation of the (dim K-n)th well group is exact. For the second part, we find examples of maps f, f\u27 from K to R^n with all well groups isomorphic but whose perturbations have different zero sets. We discuss on a possible replacement of the well groups of vector valued maps by an invariant of a better descriptive power and computability status

Computing simplicial representatives of homotopy group elements

A central problem of algebraic topology is to understand the homotopy groups $\pi_d(X)$ of a topological space $X$. For the computational version of the problem, it is well known that there is no algorithm to decide whether the fundamental group $\pi_1(X)$ of a given finite simplicial complex $X$ is trivial. On the other hand, there are several algorithms that, given a finite simplicial complex $X$ that is simply connected (i.e., with $\pi_1(X)$ trivial), compute the higher homotopy group $\pi_d(X)$ for any given $d\geq 2$. %The first such algorithm was given by Brown, and more recently, \v{C}adek et al. However, these algorithms come with a caveat: They compute the isomorphism type of $\pi_d(X)$, $d\geq 2$ as an \emph{abstract} finitely generated abelian group given by generators and relations, but they work with very implicit representations of the elements of $\pi_d(X)$. Converting elements of this abstract group into explicit geometric maps from the $d$-dimensional sphere $S^d$ to $X$ has been one of the main unsolved problems in the emerging field of computational homotopy theory. Here we present an algorithm that, given a~simply connected space $X$, computes $\pi_d(X)$ and represents its elements as simplicial maps from a suitable triangulation of the $d$-sphere $S^d$ to $X$. For fixed $d$, the algorithm runs in time exponential in $size(X)$, the number of simplices of $X$. Moreover, we prove that this is optimal: For every fixed $d\geq 2$, we construct a family of simply connected spaces $X$ such that for any simplicial map representing a generator of $\pi_d(X)$, the size of the triangulation of $S^d$ on which the map is defined, is exponential in $size(X)$

Effective Topological Degree Computation Based on Interval Arithmetic

We describe a new algorithm for calculating the topological degree deg (f, B, 0) where B \subseteq Rn is a product of closed real intervals and f : B \rightarrow Rn is a real-valued continuous function given in the form of arithmetical expressions. The algorithm cleanly separates numerical from combinatorial computation. Based on this, the numerical part provably computes only the information that is strictly necessary for the following combinatorial part, and the combinatorial part may optimize its computation based on the numerical information computed before. We also present computational experiments based on an implementation of the algorithm. Also, in contrast to previous work, the algorithm does not assume knowledge of a Lipschitz constant of the function f, and works for arbitrary continuous functions for which some notion of interval arithmetic can be defined

LIPIcs

The concept of well group in a special but important case captures homological properties of the zero set of a continuous map f from K to R^n on a compact space K that are invariant with respect to perturbations of f. The perturbations are arbitrary continuous maps within L_infty distance r from f for a given r &gt; 0. The main drawback of the approach is that the computability of well groups was shown only when dim K = n or n = 1. Our contribution to the theory of well groups is twofold: on the one hand we improve on the computability issue, but on the other hand we present a range of examples where the well groups are incomplete invariants, that is, fail to capture certain important robust properties of the zero set. For the first part, we identify a computable subgroup of the well group that is obtained by cap product with the pullback of the orientation of R^n by f. In other words, well groups can be algorithmically approximated from below. When f is smooth and dim K &lt; 2n-2, our approximation of the (dim K-n)th well group is exact. For the second part, we find examples of maps f, f' from K to R^n with all well groups isomorphic but whose perturbations have different zero sets. We discuss on a possible replacement of the well groups of vector valued maps by an invariant of a better descriptive power and computability status

Role of tectonic stress in seepage evolution along the gas hydrate‐charged Vestnesa Ridge, Fram Strait

Methane expulsion from the world ocean floor is a broadly observed phenomenon known to be episodic. Yet the processes that modulate seepage remain elusive. In the Arctic offshore west Svalbard, for instance, seepage at 200–400 m water depth may be explained by ocean temperature‐controlled gas hydrate instabilities at the shelf break, but additional processes are required to explain seepage in permanently cold waters at depths \u3e1000 m. We discuss the influence of tectonic stress on seepage evolution along the ~100 km long hydrate‐bearing Vestnesa Ridge in Fram Strait. High‐resolution P‐Cable 3‐D seismic data revealed fine‐scale (\u3e10 m width) near‐vertical faults and fractures controlling seepage distribution. Gas chimneys record multiple seepage events coinciding with glacial intensification and active faulting. The faults document the influence of nearby tectonic stress fields in seepage evolution along this deepwater gas hydrate system for at least the last ~2.7 Ma