This work is concerned with zeta functions of two-dimensional shifts of finite type. A two-dimensional zeta function ζ0(s) which generalizes the Artin-Mazur zeta function was given by Lind for Z2-action φ. The n-th order zeta function ζn of φ on Zn×∞, n ≥ 1, is studied first. The trace operator Tn which is the transition matrix for x-periodic patterns of period n with height 2 is rotationally symmetric. The rotational symmetry of Tn induces the reduced trace operator τn and ζn = (det (I − snτn))−1. The zeta function ζ =∞ Qn=1 (det (I − snτn))−1 in the x-direction is now a reciprocal of an infinite product of polynomials. The zeta function can be presented in the y-direction and in the coordinates of any unimodular transformation in GL2(Z). Therefore, there exists a family of zeta functions that are meromorphic extensions of the same analytic function ζ0(s). The Taylor series at the origin for these zeta functions are equal with integer coefficients, yielding a family of identities which are of interest in number theory. The method applies to thermodynamic zeta functions for the Ising model with finite range interactions.

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For origin-symmetric convex bodies (i.e., the unit balls of finite dimensional Banach spaces) it is conjectured that there exist a family of inequalities each of which is stronger than the classical Brunn–Minkowski inequality and a family of inequalities each of which is stronger than the classical Minkowski mixed-volume inequality. It is shown that these two families of inequalities are “equivalent” in that once either of these inequalities is established, the other must follow as a consequence. All of the conjectured inequalities are established for plane convex bodies.

We show that for a class of C2 quasiperiodic potentials and for any fixed Diophantinefrequency, the Lyapunov exponent of the corresponding Schrödinger cocycles, as a function of energies, are uniformly positive and weakly Hölder continuous. As a corollary, we obtain that the corresponding integrated density of states is weakly Hölder continuous as well. Our approach is of purely dynamical systems, which depends on a detailed analysis of asymptotic stable and unstable directions. We also apply it to more general SL(2, R)cocycles, which in turn can be applied to get uniform positivity and continuity of Lyapunovexponents around unique nondegenerate extremal points of any smooth potential, and to a certain class of C2 Szegő cocycles.

Recently Freed and Hopkins [11] proved that there is no parity anomaly in M-theory on pin+ manifolds in the low-energy field theory approximation, and they also developed an algebraic theory of cubic forms. Earlier Witten [33] proved the anomaly cancellation for spin manifolds by introducing the E8-bundle technique. Motivated by the cubic forms and the anomaly cancellation formulas of Witten-Freed-Hopkins, we give some new cubic forms on spin, spinc, spinω2 and orientable 12- manifolds respectively. We relate them to η-invariants when the manifolds are with boundary, and mod 2 indices on 10 dimensional characteristic submanifolds when the manifolds are spinc or spinω2 . Our method of producing these cubic forms is a combination of (generalized) Witten classes and the character of the basic representation of affine E8.