A complete characterization of Boolean algebras which admit nonatomic charges (i.e. finitely additive measures) is obtained. This also gives rise to a characterization of superatomic Boolean algebras. We also consider the problem of denseness of the set of all nonatomic charges in the space of all charges on a given Boolean algebra, equipped with a suitable topology.

Conditions are found for several intrinsically defined partial orders on b, the vector space of order-bounded additive functionals on a commutative pogroup, to have Riesz interpolation properties, and to make b a TRL group.

Suppose we are given a “Thue equation” f(x, y) = 1, where f is a binary form with coefficients in a function field K of characteristic zero. A typical result is that if f is of degree at least 5 and has no multiple factors, then every solution x = (x, y) of the equation with components in K has H(x)≤90H(f) + 250g. Here g is the genus of K and H(x), H(f) are suitably defined heights. No assumption is made that x be “integral” in some sense. As an application, bounds are derived for “integral” solutions of hyperelliptic equations over K.

A variety B is called solutionally complete if any system of algebraic equations over an algebra A in B has a solution in A provided it is solvable in B and has at most one solution in any extension of A in B. B is called solutionally compatible if every solvable system of equations over an algebra in B is also solvable over any extension of that algebra. It is shown that solutional compatibility is equivalent with the amalgamation property and that a weaker form of the strong amalgamation property is sufficient but not necessary for equational completeness.

Nikolskii-type inequalities, thus inequalities between different metrics of a function, are established for trigonometric polynomials and pth power integrable functions, 0<p<∞, of several variables having Fourier transform with compact support. It is shown that certain gaps in the spectra of the functions involved may be taken into account. As an immediate consequence it follows that the general results cover the classical inequalities which are concerned with functions of rectangular type. But at the same time one may give applications to functions of type K where K is a symmetric body in Euclidean n–space.

There is an old conjecture that every integer can be decomposed into four (positive or negative) perfect cubes. More specifically one would like to know the asymptotic number of solutions of when a large bound N is placed on the parts mi. Using the circle method it is shown that the number of such representations of n when N → ∞ is asymptotically equal to C(n). N for a certain positive constant C(n), provided that the contribution of the minor arcs can be neglected.

Let k be a complex number and let u be an element of a finite group G. Suppose that u does not belong to O(G), the maximal normal subgroup of G of odd order. It is shown that G satisfies X(1) – X(u) = k for every complex nonprincipal irreducible character X in the principal 2-block of G if and only if G/O(G) is isomorphic either to C2, a cyclic group of order 2, or to PSL (2, 2n), n ≧ 2.

Let G be a finite group with d(G) = α, d(G/G′) = β≥1. If G has non-abelian simple images, let s denote the order of a smallest such image. Then d(Gn) = βn provided that βn≥α + 1 + log8n. If all simple images of G are abelian, then d(Gn) = βn provided that βn≥α. If G is non-trivial and perfect, with s again denoting the order of a smallest non-abelian simple image, then d(Gsn)≼d(G) + n for all n≥0. These results improve on results in previous papers with similar titles.

This is the text of an invited address given at the Summer Research Institute of the Australian National University in January 1978. It provides a survey of the subject matter of the title.

A construction is given for a non-desarguesian projective plane P and an absolute-point free polarity on P such that the group of collineations of P which commute with the polarity is isomorphic to an arbitrary preassigned finite group.

Let G be a doubly transitive permutation group on a finite set Ω, and let Kα be a normal subgroup of the stabilizer Gα of a point α in Ω. If the action of Gα on the set of orbits of Kα in Ω − {α} is 2-primitive with kernel Kα it is shown that either G is a normal extension of PSL(3, q) or Kα ∩ Gγ is a strongly closed subgroup of Gαγ in Gα, where γ ∈ Ω − {α}. If in addition the action of Gα on the set of orbits of Kα is assumed to be 3-transitive, extra information is obtained using permutation theoretic and centralizer ring methods. In the case where Kα has three orbits in Ω − {α} strong restrictions are obtained on either the structure of G or the degrees of certain irreducible characters of G. Subject classification (Amer. Math. Soc. (MOS) 1970: 20 B 20, 20 B 25.

J. F. C. Kingman (1967) proved that if {φn}, n = 1, 2, …, N is any set of Radon-Nikodym derivatives of λn w.r.t. μn, when λn, μn are the restrictions of λ, μ respectively to a sub σ-algebra Gn of G then where bn ≧ 0 ∀n and .

We investigate the problem of the existence of filters with some properties. This leads to a solution of two problems of Ulam concerning σ-fields on the real line.

In the present paper, we derive transcendence measures for the numbers log α, eβ, αβ, (log α1)/(log α2) from a previous lower bound of ours on linear forms in the logarithms of algebraic numbers.

All three-groups with cyclic centre and such that the quotient by the centre has maximal class are listed and a presentation with generators and relations for each is given.

Results concerning a class of lacunary sets are generalized from compact abelian to compact nonabelian groups. This class was introduced for compact abelian groups by Bozejko and Pytlik; it includes the p-Sidon sets of Edwards and Ross. A notion of test family is introduced and is used to give necessary conditions for a set to be lacunary. Using this, it is shown that (2) has no infinite p-Sidon sets for 1 ≤p<2.

An integer n >0 is called a CLT-number if any group of order n has subgroups of order d for every divisor d of n. The Set of CLT-numbers n is characterized by properties of the prime factorization of n. In addition, if G has order dividing a CLT-number then the structure of G/CG(U) is given where U is a chief factor of G. As a consequence, it is shown that G is solvable of Fitting height at most 3.

A semigroup over a generalized tree, denoted by the term ℳL-semigroup, is a compact semigroup S such that Green's relation H is a congruence on S and S/H is an abelian generalized tree with idempotent endpoints and E(S/H) a Lawson semilattice. Each such semigroup is characterized as being constructible from cylindrical subsemigroups of S and the generalized tree S/H in a manner similar to the construction of semigroups over trees and of the hormos. Indeed, semigroups over trees are shown to be particular examples of the construction given herein.

We give several results concerning the simultaneous approximation of certain complex numbers. For instance, we give lower bounds for |a–ξo |+ | ea – ξ1 |, where a is any non-zero complex number, and ξ are two algebraic numbers. We also improve the estimate of the so-called Franklin Schneider theorem concerning | b – ξ | + | a – ξ | + | ab – ξ. We deduce these results from an estimate for linear forms in logarithms.

A certain natural extension B of the Borel σ-algebra is studied in generalized weakly θ-refinable spaces. It is shown that a set belongs to B whenever it belongs to B locally. From this it is derived that if ℵωα is more complicated than aunion of less than ℵα weakly θ-refinable subspaces.