On systems with quasi-discrete spectrum

We re-examine the theory of systems with quasi-discrete spectrum initiated in the 1960's by Abramov, Hahn, and Parry. In the first part, we give a simpler proof of the Hahn-Parry theorem stating that each minimal topological system with quasidiscrete spectrum is isomorphic to a certain affine automorphism system on some compact Abelian group. Next, we show that a suitable application of Gelfand's theorem renders Abramov's theorem-the analogue of the Hahn-Parry theorem for measure-preserving systems-a straightforward corollary of the Hahn-Parry result. In the second part, independent of the first, we present a shortened proof of the fact that each factor of a totally ergodic system with quasi-discrete spectrum (a "QDS-system") again has quasi-discrete spectrum and that such systems have zero entropy. Moreover, we obtain a complete algebraic classification of the factors of a QDS-system. In the third part, we apply the results of the second to the (still open) question whether a Markov quasi-factor of a QDS-system is already a factor of it. We show that this is true when the system satisfies some algebraic constraint on the group of quasi-eigenvalues, which is satisfied, e.g., in the case of the skew shift.Analysi

On systems with quasi-discrete spectrum

We re-examine the theory of systems with quasi-discrete spectrum initiated in the 1960's by Abramov, Hahn, and Parry. In the first part, we give a simpler proof of the Hahn-Parry theorem stating that each minimal topological system with quasidiscrete spectrum is isomorphic to a certain affine automorphism system on some compact Abelian group. Next, we show that a suitable application of Gelfand's theorem renders Abramov's theorem-the analogue of the Hahn-Parry theorem for measure-preserving systems-a straightforward corollary of the Hahn-Parry result. In the second part, independent of the first, we present a shortened proof of the fact that each factor of a totally ergodic system with quasi-discrete spectrum (a "QDS-system") again has quasi-discrete spectrum and that such systems have zero entropy. Moreover, we obtain a complete algebraic classification of the factors of a QDS-system. In the third part, we apply the results of the second to the (still open) question whether a Markov quasi-factor of a QDS-system is already a factor of it. We show that this is true when the system satisfies some algebraic constraint on the group of quasi-eigenvalues, which is satisfied, e.g., in the case of the skew shift.Analysi

On systems with quasi-discrete spectrum

We re-examine the theory of systems with quasi-discrete spectrum initiated in the 1960's by Abramov, Hahn, and Parry. In the first part, we give a simpler proof of the Hahn-Parry theorem stating that each minimal topological system with quasidiscrete spectrum is isomorphic to a certain affine automorphism system on some compact Abelian group. Next, we show that a suitable application of Gelfand's theorem renders Abramov's theorem-the analogue of the Hahn-Parry theorem for measure-preserving systems-a straightforward corollary of the Hahn-Parry result. In the second part, independent of the first, we present a shortened proof of the fact that each factor of a totally ergodic system with quasi-discrete spectrum (a "QDS-system") again has quasi-discrete spectrum and that such systems have zero entropy. Moreover, we obtain a complete algebraic classification of the factors of a QDS-system. In the third part, we apply the results of the second to the (still open) question whether a Markov quasi-factor of a QDS-system is already a factor of it. We show that this is true when the system satisfies some algebraic constraint on the group of quasi-eigenvalues, which is satisfied, e.g., in the case of the skew shift.Analysi

Pan-cancer analysis of whole genomes

Cancer is driven by genetic change, and the advent of massively parallel sequencing has enabled systematic documentation of this variation at the whole-genome scale. Here we report the integrative analysis of 2,658 whole-cancer genomes and their matching normal tissues across 38 tumour types from the Pan-Cancer Analysis of Whole Genomes (PCAWG) Consortium of the International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC) and The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA). We describe the generation of the PCAWG resource, facilitated by international data sharing using compute clouds. On average, cancer genomes contained 4-5 driver mutations when combining coding and non-coding genomic elements; however, in around 5% of cases no drivers were identified, suggesting that cancer driver discovery is not yet complete. Chromothripsis, in which many clustered structural variants arise in a single catastrophic event, is frequently an early event in tumour evolution; in acral melanoma, for example, these events precede most somatic point mutations and affect several cancer-associated genes simultaneously. Cancers with abnormal telomere maintenance often originate from tissues with low replicative activity and show several mechanisms of preventing telomere attrition to critical levels. Common and rare germline variants affect patterns of somatic mutation, including point mutations, structural variants and somatic retrotransposition. A collection of papers from the PCAWG Consortium describes non-coding mutations that drive cancer beyond those in the TERT promoter; identifies new signatures of mutational processes that cause base substitutions, small insertions and deletions and structural variation; analyses timings and patterns of tumour evolution; describes the diverse transcriptional consequences of somatic mutation on splicing, expression levels, fusion genes and promoter activity; and evaluates a range of more-specialized features of cancer genomes