We consider the flow of closed convex hypersurfaces in Euclidean space R^{n+1} with speed given by a power of the k-th mean curvature E_k plus a global term chosen to impose a constraint involving the enclosed volume V_{n+1} and the mixed volume V_{n+1−k} of the evolving hypersurface. We prove that if the initial hypersurface is strictly convex, then the solution of the flow exists for all time and converges to a round sphere smoothly. No curvature pinching assumption is required on the initial hypersurface.

On a K-unstable toric variety we show the existence of an optimal destabilising convex function. We show that if this is piecewise linear then it gives rise to a decomposition into semistable pieces analogous to the Harder-Narasimhan filtration of an unstable vector bundle. We also show that if the Calabi flow exists for all time on a toric variety then it minimizes the Calabi functional. In this case the infimum of the Calabi functional is given by the supremum of the normalized Futaki invariants over all destabilising test-configurations, as predicted by a conjecture of Donaldson.

We prove global rigidity for compact hyperbolic and spherical cone-3-manifolds with cone-angles ≤ π (which are not Seifert fibered in the spherical case), furthermore for a class of hyperbolic cone-3-manifolds of finite volume with cone-angles ≤ π, possibly with boundary consisting of totally geodesic hyperbolic turnovers.To that end we first generalize the local rigidity result contained in [Wei] to the setting of hyperbolic cone-3-manifolds of finite volume as above. We then use the techniques developed in [BLP] to deform the cone-manifold structure to a complete non-singular or a geometric orbifold structure, where global rigidity holds due to Mostow-Prasad rigidity, cf. [Mos], [Pra], in the hyperbolic case,resp. [deR], cf. also [Rot], in the spherical case. This strategy has already been implemented successfully by [Koj] in the compact hyperbolic case if the singular locus is a link using HodgsonKerckhoff local rigidity, cf. [HK].

We prove that the second positive Neumann eigenvalue of a bounded simply-connected planar domain of a given area does not exceed the first positive Neumann eigenvalue on a disk of half this area. The estimate is sharp and attained by a sequence of domains degenerating to a union of two identical disks. In particular, this result implies the P´olya conjecture for the second Neumann eigenvalue. The proof is based on a combination of analytic and topological arguments. As a by-product of our method we obtain an upper bound on the second eigenvalue for conformally round metrics on odd-dimensional spheres.

No abstract uploaded!