@article{2061,
  abstract     = {Development of cambium and its activity is important for our knowledge of the mechanism of secondary growth. Arabidopsis thaliana emerges as a good model plant for such a kind of study. Thus, this paper reports on cellular events taking place in the interfascicular regions of inflorescence stems of A. thaliana, leading to the development of interfascicular cambium from differentiated interfascicular parenchyma cells (IPC). These events are as follows: appearance of auxin accumulation, PIN1 gene expression, polar PIN1 protein localization in the basal plasma membrane and periclinal divisions. Distribution of auxin was observed to be higher in differentiating into cambium parenchyma cells compared to cells within the pith and cortex. Expression of PIN1 in IPC was always preceded by auxin accumulation. Basal localization of PIN1 was already established in the cells prior to their periclinal division. These cellular events initiated within parenchyma cells adjacent to the vascular bundles and successively extended from that point towards the middle region of the interfascicular area, located between neighboring vascular bundles. The final consequence of which was the closure of the cambial ring within the stem. Changes in the chemical composition of IPC walls were also detected and included changes of pectic epitopes, xyloglucans (XG) and extensins rich in hydroxyproline (HRGPs). In summary, results presented in this paper describe interfascicular cambium ontogenesis in terms of successive cellular events in the interfascicular regions of inflorescence stems of Arabidopsis.},
  author       = {Mazur, Ewa and Kurczyñska, Ewa and Friml, Jiří},
  journal      = {Protoplasma},
  number       = {5},
  pages        = {1125 -- 1139},
  publisher    = {Springer},
  title        = {{Cellular events during interfascicular cambium ontogenesis in inflorescence stems of Arabidopsis}},
  doi          = {10.1007/s00709-014-0620-5},
  volume       = {251},
  year         = {2014},
}

@article{2062,
  abstract     = {The success story of fast-spiking, parvalbumin-positive (PV+) GABAergic interneurons (GABA, γ-aminobutyric acid) in the mammalian central nervous system is noteworthy. In 1995, the properties of these interneurons were completely unknown. Twenty years later, thanks to the massive use of subcellular patch-clamp techniques, simultaneous multiple-cell recording, optogenetics, in vivo measurements, and computational approaches, our knowledge about PV+ interneurons became more extensive than for several types of pyramidal neurons. These findings have implications beyond the “small world” of basic research on GABAergic cells. For example, the results provide a first proof of principle that neuroscientists might be able to close the gaps between the molecular, cellular, network, and behavioral levels, representing one of the main challenges at the present time. Furthermore, the results may form the basis for PV+ interneurons as therapeutic targets for brain disease in the future. However, much needs to be learned about the basic function of these interneurons before clinical neuroscientists will be able to use PV+ interneurons for therapeutic purposes.},
  author       = {Hu, Hua and Gan, Jian and Jonas, Peter M},
  journal      = {Science},
  number       = {6196},
  publisher    = {American Association for the Advancement of Science},
  title        = {{Fast-spiking parvalbumin^+ GABAergic interneurons: From cellular design to microcircuit function}},
  doi          = {10.1126/science.1255263},
  volume       = {345},
  year         = {2014},
}

@inproceedings{2063,
  abstract     = {We consider Markov decision processes (MDPs) which are a standard model for probabilistic systems.We focus on qualitative properties forMDPs that can express that desired behaviors of the system arise almost-surely (with probability 1) or with positive probability. We introduce a new simulation relation to capture the refinement relation ofMDPs with respect to qualitative properties, and present discrete graph theoretic algorithms with quadratic complexity to compute the simulation relation.We present an automated technique for assume-guarantee style reasoning for compositional analysis ofMDPs with qualitative properties by giving a counterexample guided abstraction-refinement approach to compute our new simulation relation. We have implemented our algorithms and show that the compositional analysis leads to significant improvements.},
  author       = {Chatterjee, Krishnendu and Chmelik, Martin and Daca, Przemyslaw},
  location     = {Vienna, Austria},
  pages        = {473 -- 490},
  publisher    = {Springer},
  title        = {{CEGAR for qualitative analysis of probabilistic systems}},
  doi          = {10.1007/978-3-319-08867-9_31},
  volume       = {8559},
  year         = {2014},
}

@article{2064,
  abstract     = {We examined the synaptic structure, quantity, and distribution of α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methylisoxazole-4-propionic acid (AMPA)- and N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA)-type glutamate receptors (AMPARs and NMDARs, respectively) in rat cochlear nuclei by a highly sensitive freeze-fracture replica labeling technique. Four excitatory synapses formed by two distinct inputs, auditory nerve (AN) and parallel fibers (PF), on different cell types were analyzed. These excitatory synapse types included AN synapses on bushy cells (AN-BC synapses) and fusiform cells (AN-FC synapses) and PF synapses on FC (PF-FC synapses) and cartwheel cell spines (PF-CwC synapses). Immunogold labeling revealed differences in synaptic structure as well as AMPAR and NMDAR number and/or density in both AN and PF synapses, indicating a target-dependent organization. The immunogold receptor labeling also identified differences in the synaptic organization of FCs based on AN or PF connections, indicating an input-dependent organization in FCs. Among the four excitatory synapse types, the AN-BC synapses were the smallest and had the most densely packed intramembrane particles (IMPs), whereas the PF-CwC synapses were the largest and had sparsely packed IMPs. All four synapse types showed positive correlations between the IMP-cluster area and the AMPAR number, indicating a common intrasynapse-type relationship for glutamatergic synapses. Immunogold particles for AMPARs were distributed over the entire area of individual AN synapses; PF synapses often showed synaptic areas devoid of labeling. The gold-labeling for NMDARs occurred in a mosaic fashion, with less positive correlations between the IMP-cluster area and the NMDAR number. Our observations reveal target- and input-dependent features in the structure, number, and organization of AMPARs and NMDARs in AN and PF synapses.},
  author       = {Rubio, Maía and Fukazawa, Yugo and Kamasawa, Naomi and Clarkson, Cheryl and Molnár, Elek and Shigemoto, Ryuichi},
  journal      = {Journal of Comparative Neurology},
  number       = {18},
  pages        = {4023 -- 4042},
  publisher    = {Wiley-Blackwell},
  title        = {{Target- and input-dependent organization of AMPA and NMDA receptors in synaptic connections of the cochlear nucleus}},
  doi          = {10.1002/cne.23654},
  volume       = {522},
  year         = {2014},
}

@inproceedings{2080,
  abstract     = {Spinning tops and yo-yos have long fascinated cultures around the world with their unexpected, graceful motions that seemingly elude gravity. We present an algorithm to generate designs for spinning objects by optimizing rotational dynamics properties. As input, the user provides a solid 3D model and a desired axis of rotation. Our approach then modifies the mass distribution such that the principal directions of the moment of inertia align with the target rotation frame. We augment the model by creating voids inside its volume, with interior fill represented by an adaptive multi-resolution vox-elization. The discrete voxel fill values are optimized using a continuous, nonlinear formulation. Further, we optimize for rotational stability by maximizing the dominant principal moment. We extend our technique to incorporate deformation and multiple materials for cases where internal voids alone are insufficient. Our method is well-suited for a variety of 3D printed models, ranging from characters to abstract shapes. We demonstrate tops and yo-yos that spin surprisingly stably despite their asymmetric appearance. },
  author       = {Bac̈her, Moritz and Whiting, Emily and Bernd Bickel and Sorkine-Hornung, Olga},
  number       = {4},
  publisher    = {ACM},
  title        = {{Spin-It: Optimizing moment of inertia for spinnable objects}},
  doi          = {10.1145/2601097.2601157},
  volume       = {33},
  year         = {2014},
}

@inproceedings{2081,
  abstract     = {We propose an interactive, optimization-in-the-loop tool for designing inflatable structures. Given a target shape, the user draws a network of seams defining desired segment boundaries in 3D. Our method computes optimally-shaped flat panels for the segments, such that the inflated structure is as close as possible to the target while satisfying the desired seam positions. Our approach is underpinned by physics-based pattern optimization, accurate coarse-scale simulation using tension field theory, and a specialized constraint-optimization method. Our system is fast enough to warrant interactive exploration of different seam layouts, including internal connections, and their effects on the inflated shape. We demonstrate the resulting design process on a varied set of simulation examples, some of which we have fabricated, demonstrating excellent agreement with the design intent.},
  author       = {Skouras, Mélina and Thomaszewski, Bernhard and Kaufmann, Peter and Garg, Akash and Bickel, Bernd and Grinspun, Eitan and Gross, Markus},
  number       = {4},
  publisher    = {ACM},
  title        = {{Designing inflatable structures}},
  doi          = {10.1145/2601097.2601166},
  volume       = {33},
  year         = {2014},
}

@inproceedings{2082,
  abstract     = {NMAC is a mode of operation which turns a fixed input-length keyed hash function f into a variable input-length function. A practical single-key variant of NMAC called HMAC is a very popular and widely deployed message authentication code (MAC). Security proofs and attacks for NMAC can typically be lifted to HMAC. NMAC was introduced by Bellare, Canetti and Krawczyk [Crypto'96], who proved it to be a secure pseudorandom function (PRF), and thus also a MAC, assuming that (1) f is a PRF and (2) the function we get when cascading f is weakly collision-resistant. Unfortunately, HMAC is typically instantiated with cryptographic hash functions like MD5 or SHA-1 for which (2) has been found to be wrong. To restore the provable guarantees for NMAC, Bellare [Crypto'06] showed its security based solely on the assumption that f is a PRF, albeit via a non-uniform reduction. - Our first contribution is a simpler and uniform proof for this fact: If f is an ε-secure PRF (against q queries) and a δ-non-adaptively secure PRF (against q queries), then NMAC f is an (ε+ℓqδ)-secure PRF against q queries of length at most ℓ blocks each. - We then show that this ε+ℓqδ bound is basically tight. For the most interesting case where ℓqδ ≥ ε we prove this by constructing an f for which an attack with advantage ℓqδ exists. This also violates the bound O(ℓε) on the PRF-security of NMAC recently claimed by Koblitz and Menezes. - Finally, we analyze the PRF-security of a modification of NMAC called NI [An and Bellare, Crypto'99] that differs mainly by using a compression function with an additional keying input. This avoids the constant rekeying on multi-block messages in NMAC and allows for a security proof starting by the standard switch from a PRF to a random function, followed by an information-theoretic analysis. We carry out such an analysis, obtaining a tight ℓq2/2 c bound for this step, improving over the trivial bound of ℓ2q2/2c. The proof borrows combinatorial techniques originally developed for proving the security of CBC-MAC [Bellare et al., Crypto'05].},
  author       = {Gazi, Peter and Pietrzak, Krzysztof Z and Rybar, Michal},
  editor       = {Garay, Juan and Gennaro, Rosario},
  location     = {Santa Barbara, USA},
  number       = {1},
  pages        = {113 -- 130},
  publisher    = {Springer},
  title        = {{The exact PRF-security of NMAC and HMAC}},
  doi          = {10.1007/978-3-662-44371-2_7},
  volume       = {8616},
  year         = {2014},
}

@article{2083,
  abstract     = {Understanding the effects of sex and migration on adaptation to novel environments remains a key problem in evolutionary biology. Using a single-cell alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, we investigated how sex and migration affected rates of evolutionary rescue in a sink environment, and subsequent changes in fitness following evolutionary rescue. We show that sex and migration affect both the rate of evolutionary rescue and subsequent adaptation. However, their combined effects change as the populations adapt to a sink habitat. Both sex and migration independently increased rates of evolutionary rescue, but the effect of sex on subsequent fitness improvements, following initial rescue, changed with migration, as sex was beneficial in the absence of migration but constraining adaptation when combined with migration. These results suggest that sex and migration are beneficial during the initial stages of adaptation, but can become detrimental as the population adapts to its environment.},
  author       = {Lagator, Mato and Morgan, Andrew and Neve, Paul and Colegrave, Nick},
  journal      = {Evolution},
  number       = {8},
  pages        = {2296 -- 2305},
  publisher    = {Wiley},
  title        = {{Role of sex and migration in adaptation to sink environments}},
  doi          = {10.1111/evo.12440},
  volume       = {68},
  year         = {2014},
}

@article{2084,
  abstract     = {Receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) are a large family of cell surface receptors that sense growth factors and hormones and regulate a variety of cell behaviours in health and disease. Contactless activation of RTKs with spatial and temporal precision is currently not feasible. Here, we generated RTKs that are insensitive to endogenous ligands but can be selectively activated by low-intensity blue light. We screened light-oxygen-voltage (LOV)-sensing domains for their ability to activate RTKs by light-activated dimerization. Incorporation of LOV domains found in aureochrome photoreceptors of stramenopiles resulted in robust activation of the fibroblast growth factor receptor 1 (FGFR1), epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and rearranged during transfection (RET). In human cancer and endothelial cells, light induced cellular signalling with spatial and temporal precision. Furthermore, light faithfully mimicked complex mitogenic and morphogenic cell behaviour induced by growth factors. RTKs under optical control (Opto-RTKs) provide a powerful optogenetic approach to actuate cellular signals and manipulate cell behaviour.},
  author       = {Grusch, Michael and Schelch, Karin and Riedler, Robert and Gschaider-Reichhart, Eva and Differ, Christopher and Berger, Walter and Inglés Prieto, Álvaro and Janovjak, Harald L},
  journal      = {EMBO Journal},
  number       = {15},
  pages        = {1713 -- 1726},
  publisher    = {Wiley-Blackwell},
  title        = {{Spatio-temporally precise activation of engineered receptor tyrosine kinases by light}},
  doi          = {10.15252/embj.201387695},
  volume       = {33},
  year         = {2014},
}

@article{2086,
  abstract     = {Pathogens may gain a fitness advantage through manipulation of the behaviour of their hosts. Likewise, host behavioural changes can be a defence mechanism, counteracting the impact of pathogens on host fitness. We apply harmonic radar technology to characterize the impact of an emerging pathogen - Nosema ceranae (Microsporidia) - on honeybee (Apis mellifera) flight and orientation performance in the field. Honeybees are the most important commercial pollinators. Emerging diseases have been proposed to play a prominent role in colony decline, partly through sub-lethal behavioural manipulation of their hosts. We found that homing success was significantly reduced in diseased (65.8%) versus healthy foragers (92.5%). Although lost bees had significantly reduced continuous flight times and prolonged resting times, other flight characteristics and navigational abilities showed no significant difference between infected and non-infected bees. Our results suggest that infected bees express normal flight characteristics but are constrained in their homing ability, potentially compromising the colony by reducing its resource inputs, but also counteracting the intra-colony spread of infection. We provide the first high-resolution analysis of sub-lethal effects of an emerging disease on insect flight behaviour. The potential causes and the implications for both host and parasite are discussed.},
  author       = {Wolf, Stephan and Mcmahon, Dino and Lim, Ka and Pull, Christopher and Clark, Suzanne and Paxton, Robert and Osborne, Juliet},
  journal      = {PLoS One},
  number       = {8},
  publisher    = {Public Library of Science},
  title        = {{So near and yet so far: Harmonic radar reveals reduced homing ability of Nosema infected honeybees}},
  doi          = {10.1371/journal.pone.0103989},
  volume       = {9},
  year         = {2014},
}

@article{2115,
  abstract     = {The facial performance of an individual is inherently rich in subtle deformation and timing details. Although these subtleties make the performance realistic and compelling, they often elude both motion capture and hand animation. We present a technique for adding fine-scale details and expressiveness to low-resolution art-directed facial performances, such as those created manually using a rig, via marker-based capture, by fitting a morphable model to a video, or through Kinect reconstruction using recent faceshift technology. We employ a high-resolution facial performance capture system to acquire a representative performance of an individual in which he or she explores the full range of facial expressiveness. From the captured data, our system extracts an expressiveness model that encodes subtle spatial and temporal deformation details specific to that particular individual. Once this model has been built, these details can be transferred to low-resolution art-directed performances. We demonstrate results on various forms of input; after our enhancement, the resulting animations exhibit the same nuances and fine spatial details as the captured performance, with optional temporal enhancement to match the dynamics of the actor. Finally, we show that our technique outperforms the current state-of-the-art in example-based facial animation.},
  author       = {Bermano, Amit H and Bradley, Derek J and Beeler, Thabo and Zund, Fabio and Nowrouzezahrai, Derek and Baran, Ilya and Sorkine-Hornung, Olga and Pfister, Hanspeter and Sumner, Robert W and Bernd Bickel and Groß, Markus S},
  journal      = {ACM Transactions on Graphics},
  number       = {2},
  publisher    = {ACM},
  title        = {{Facial performance enhancement using dynamic shape space analysis}},
  doi          = {10.1145/2546276},
  volume       = {33},
  year         = {2014},
}

@article{2131,
  abstract     = {We study approximations to a class of vector-valued equations of Burgers type driven by a multiplicative space-time white noise. A solution theory for this class of equations has been developed recently in Probability Theory Related Fields by Hairer and Weber. The key idea was to use the theory of controlled rough paths to give definitions of weak/mild solutions and to set up a Picard iteration argument. In this article the limiting behavior of a rather large class of (spatial) approximations to these equations is studied. These approximations are shown to converge and convergence rates are given, but the limit may depend on the particular choice of approximation. This effect is a spatial analogue to the Itô-Stratonovich correction in the theory of stochastic ordinary differential equations, where it is well known that different approximation schemes may converge to different solutions.},
  author       = {Hairer, Martin M and Jan Maas and Weber, Hendrik},
  journal      = {Communications on Pure and Applied Mathematics},
  number       = {5},
  pages        = {776 -- 870},
  publisher    = {Wiley-Blackwell},
  title        = {{Approximating Rough Stochastic PDEs}},
  doi          = {10.1002/cpa.21495},
  volume       = {67},
  year         = {2014},
}

@article{2132,
  abstract     = {We consider discrete porous medium equations of the form ∂tρt=Δϕ(ρt), where Δ is the generator of a reversible continuous time Markov chain on a finite set χ, and ϕ is an increasing function. We show that these equations arise as gradient flows of certain entropy functionals with respect to suitable non-local transportation metrics. This may be seen as a discrete analogue of the Wasserstein gradient flow structure for porous medium equations in ℝn discovered by Otto. We present a one-dimensional counterexample to geodesic convexity and discuss Gromov-Hausdorff convergence to the Wasserstein metric.},
  author       = {Erbar, Matthias and Jan Maas},
  journal      = {Discrete and Continuous Dynamical Systems- Series A},
  number       = {4},
  pages        = {1355 -- 1374},
  publisher    = {Southwest Missouri State University},
  title        = {{Gradient flow structures for discrete porous medium equations}},
  doi          = {10.3934/dcds.2014.34.1355  },
  volume       = {34},
  year         = {2014},
}

@article{2133,
  abstract     = {Let ℭ denote the Clifford algebra over ℝ𝑛, which is the von Neumann algebra generated by n self-adjoint operators Q j , j = 1,…,n satisfying the canonical anticommutation relations, Q i Q j  + Q j Q i =  2δ ij I, and let τ denote the normalized trace on ℭ. This algebra arises in quantum mechanics as the algebra of observables generated by n fermionic degrees of freedom. Let 𝔓 denote the set of all positive operators 𝜌∈ℭ such that τ(ρ) = 1; these are the non-commutative analogs of probability densities in the non-commutative probability space (ℭ,𝜏). The fermionic Fokker–Planck equation is a quantum-mechanical analog of the classical Fokker–Planck equation with which it has much in common, such as the same optimal hypercontractivity properties. In this paper we construct a Riemannian metric on 𝔓 that we show to be a natural analog of the classical 2-Wasserstein metric, and we show that, in analogy with the classical case, the fermionic Fokker–Planck equation is gradient flow in this metric for the relative entropy with respect to the ground state. We derive a number of consequences of this, such as a sharp Talagrand inequality for this metric, and we prove a number of results pertaining to this metric. Several open problems are raised.},
  author       = {Carlen, Eric and Maas, Jan},
  journal      = {Communications in Mathematical Physics},
  number       = {3},
  pages        = {887 -- 926},
  publisher    = {Springer},
  title        = {{An analog of the 2-Wasserstein metric in non-commutative probability under which the fermionic Fokker-Planck equation is gradient flow for the entropy}},
  doi          = {10.1007/s00220-014-2124-8},
  volume       = {331},
  year         = {2014},
}

@article{2140,
  abstract     = {We propose a technique for engineering momentum-dependent dissipation in Bose-Einstein condensates with non-local interactions. The scheme relies on the use of momentum-dependent dark-states in close analogy to velocity-selective coherent population trapping. During the short-time dissipative dynamics, the system is driven into a particular finite-momentum phonon mode, which in real space corresponds to an ordered structure with non-local density-density correlations. Dissipation-induced ordering can be observed and studied in present-day experiments using cold atoms with dipole-dipole or off-resonant Rydberg interactions. Due to its dissipative nature, the ordering does not require artificial breaking of translational symmetry by an opticallattice or harmonic trap. This opens up a perspective of direct cooling of quantum gases into strongly-interacting phases.},
  author       = {Otterbach, Johannes and Lemeshko, Mikhail},
  journal      = {Physical Review Letters},
  number       = {7},
  publisher    = {American Physical Society},
  title        = {{Dissipative preparation of spatial order in Rydberg-dressed Bose-Einstein condensates}},
  doi          = {10.1103/PhysRevLett.113.070401},
  volume       = {113},
  year         = {2014},
}

@article{2141,
  abstract     = {The computation of the winning set for Büchi objectives in alternating games on graphs is a central problem in computer-aided verification with a large number of applications. The long-standing best known upper bound for solving the problem is Õ(n ⋅ m), where n is the number of vertices and m is the number of edges in the graph. We are the first to break the Õ(n ⋅ m) boundary by presenting a new technique that reduces the running time to O(n2). This bound also leads to O(n2)-time algorithms for computing the set of almost-sure winning vertices for Büchi objectives (1) in alternating games with probabilistic transitions (improving an earlier bound of Õ(n ⋅ m)), (2) in concurrent graph games with constant actions (improving an earlier bound of O(n3)), and (3) in Markov decision processes (improving for m&gt;n4/3 an earlier bound of O(m ⋅ √m)). We then show how to maintain the winning set for Büchi objectives in alternating games under a sequence of edge insertions or a sequence of edge deletions in O(n) amortized time per operation. Our algorithms are the first dynamic algorithms for this problem. We then consider another core graph theoretic problem in verification of probabilistic systems, namely computing the maximal end-component decomposition of a graph. We present two improved static algorithms for the maximal end-component decomposition problem. Our first algorithm is an O(m ⋅ √m)-time algorithm, and our second algorithm is an O(n2)-time algorithm which is obtained using the same technique as for alternating Büchi games. Thus, we obtain an O(min &amp;lcu;m ⋅ √m,n2})-time algorithm improving the long-standing O(n ⋅ m) time bound. Finally, we show how to maintain the maximal end-component decomposition of a graph under a sequence of edge insertions or a sequence of edge deletions in O(n) amortized time per edge deletion, and O(m) worst-case time per edge insertion. Again, our algorithms are the first dynamic algorithms for this problem.},
  author       = {Chatterjee, Krishnendu and Henzinger, Monika H},
  journal      = {Journal of the ACM},
  number       = {3},
  publisher    = {ACM},
  title        = {{Efficient and dynamic algorithms for alternating Büchi games and maximal end-component decomposition}},
  doi          = {10.1145/2597631},
  volume       = {61},
  year         = {2014},
}

@inproceedings{2153,
  abstract     = {We define a simple, explicit map sending a morphism f : M → N of pointwise finite dimensional persistence modules to a matching between the barcodes of M and N. Our main result is that, in a precise sense, the quality of this matching is tightly controlled by the lengths of the longest intervals in the barcodes of ker f and coker f . As an immediate corollary, we obtain a new proof of the algebraic stability theorem for persistence barcodes [5, 9], a fundamental result in the theory of persistent homology. In contrast to previous proofs, ours shows explicitly how a δ-interleaving morphism between two persistence modules induces a δ-matching between the barcodes of the two modules. Our main result also specializes to a structure theorem for submodules and quotients of persistence modules. Copyright is held by the owner/author(s).},
  author       = {Bauer, Ulrich and Lesnick, Michael},
  booktitle    = {Proceedings of the Annual Symposium on Computational Geometry},
  location     = {Kyoto, Japan},
  pages        = {355 -- 364},
  publisher    = {ACM},
  title        = {{Induced matchings of barcodes and the algebraic stability of persistence}},
  doi          = {10.1145/2582112.2582168},
  year         = {2014},
}

@article{2154,
  abstract     = {A result of Boros and Füredi (d = 2) and of Bárány (arbitrary d) asserts that for every d there exists cd &gt; 0 such that for every n-point set P ⊂ ℝd, some point of ℝd is covered by at least (Formula presented.) of the d-simplices spanned by the points of P. The largest possible value of cd has been the subject of ongoing research. Recently Gromov improved the existing lower bounds considerably by introducing a new, topological proof method. We provide an exposition of the combinatorial component of Gromov's approach, in terms accessible to combinatorialists and discrete geometers, and we investigate the limits of his method. In particular, we give tighter bounds on the cofilling profiles for the (n - 1)-simplex. These bounds yield a minor improvement over Gromov's lower bounds on cd for large d, but they also show that the room for further improvement through the cofilling profiles alone is quite small. We also prove a slightly better lower bound for c3 by an approach using an additional structure besides the cofilling profiles. We formulate a combinatorial extremal problem whose solution might perhaps lead to a tight lower bound for cd.},
  author       = {Matoušek, Jiří and Wagner, Uli},
  journal      = {Discrete & Computational Geometry},
  number       = {1},
  pages        = {1 -- 33},
  publisher    = {Springer},
  title        = {{On Gromov's method of selecting heavily covered points}},
  doi          = {10.1007/s00454-014-9584-7},
  volume       = {52},
  year         = {2014},
}

@inproceedings{2155,
  abstract     = {Given a finite set of points in Rn and a positive radius, we study the Čech, Delaunay-Čech, alpha, and wrap complexes as instances of a generalized discrete Morse theory. We prove that the latter three complexes are simple-homotopy equivalent. Our results have applications in topological data analysis and in the reconstruction of shapes from sampled data. Copyright is held by the owner/author(s).},
  author       = {Bauer, Ulrich and Edelsbrunner, Herbert},
  booktitle    = {Proceedings of the Annual Symposium on Computational Geometry},
  location     = {Kyoto, Japan},
  pages        = {484 -- 490},
  publisher    = {ACM},
  title        = {{The morse theory of Čech and Delaunay filtrations}},
  doi          = {10.1145/2582112.2582167},
  year         = {2014},
}

@inproceedings{2156,
  abstract     = {We propose a metric for Reeb graphs, called the functional distortion distance. Under this distance, the Reeb graph is stable against small changes of input functions. At the same time, it remains discriminative at differentiating input functions. In particular, the main result is that the functional distortion distance between two Reeb graphs is bounded from below by the bottleneck distance between both the ordinary and extended persistence diagrams for appropriate dimensions. As an application of our results, we analyze a natural simplification scheme for Reeb graphs, and show that persistent features in Reeb graph remains persistent under simplification. Understanding the stability of important features of the Reeb graph under simplification is an interesting problem on its own right, and critical to the practical usage of Reeb graphs. Copyright is held by the owner/author(s).},
  author       = {Bauer, Ulrich and Ge, Xiaoyin and Wang, Yusu},
  booktitle    = {Proceedings of the Annual Symposium on Computational Geometry},
  location     = {Kyoto, Japan},
  pages        = {464 -- 473},
  publisher    = {ACM},
  title        = {{Measuring distance between Reeb graphs}},
  doi          = {10.1145/2582112.2582169},
  year         = {2014},
}

