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arxiv: 1906.10533 · v1 · pith:3LZXY6IXnew · submitted 2019-06-25 · 🧮 math.CO

Linear independences of maps associated to partitions

Stefan Jung This is my paper

Pith reviewed 2026-05-25 16:33 UTC · model grok-4.3

classification 🧮 math.CO
keywords linear independenceintertwiner mapsnon-crossing partitionsTutte matrix determinant formulapartition collectionseasy quantum groups
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The pith

Linear independence of intertwiner maps for non-crossing partitions follows from a revised Tutte matrix determinant formula.

A machine-rendered reading of the paper's core claim, the machinery that carries it, and where it could break.

The paper establishes that a collection of partitions corresponds one-to-one with easy quantum groups precisely when the associated intertwiner maps are linearly independent. For the special case of non-crossing partitions, this independence is proved by adapting Tutte's older matrix determinant formula into a self-contained argument. The revision corrects errors in the source material and adjusts notations and statements to fit the partition setting. A sympathetic reader would care because the result supplies an explicit algebraic criterion that turns an abstract correspondence into a verifiable combinatorial statement.

Core claim

Given a suitable collection of partitions of sets, the maps that send each partition to its associated intertwiner are linearly independent when the partitions are non-crossing; this independence is obtained from the determinant of a matrix whose entries encode the partitions, and the determinant formula is a corrected and re-notated version of Tutte's original statement.

What carries the argument

The revised Tutte matrix determinant formula, which evaluates the determinant of the Gram matrix built from the partition maps and shows it is nonzero.

If this is right

  • The correspondence between non-crossing partitions and easy quantum groups is one-to-one.
  • The adapted determinant formula directly implies the required linear independence.
  • Corrections to the original Tutte work remove obstacles that previously blocked application to partitions.
  • The resulting proof is now usable without external references for the quantum-group correspondence.

Where Pith is reading between the lines

These are editorial extensions of the paper, not claims the author makes directly.

  • The same matrix-construction technique might be tried on crossing partitions to test whether independence still holds.
  • The criterion could be turned into an algorithm that enumerates admissible partition collections by checking determinant signs.
  • Similar determinant identities may exist for other combinatorial objects that appear in representation theory.

Load-bearing premise

The changes made to notations, definitions, statements, and proofs in Tutte's original determinant formula preserve the correctness of the calculation.

What would settle it

Explicit computation of the determinant for the matrix associated to the first few non-crossing partitions on a small number of points, checking whether the value is nonzero.

read the original abstract

Given a suitable collection of partitions of sets, there exists a connection to easy quantum groups via intertwiner maps. A sufficient condition for this correspondence to be one-to-one are particular linear independences on the level of those maps. In the case of non-crossing partitions, a proof of this linear independence can be traced back to a matrix determinant formula, developed by W. Tutte. We present a revised and adapted version of Tutte's work and the link to the problem above, believing that this self-contained article will assist others in the field of easy quantum groups. In particular, we fixed some errors in the original work and adapted notations, definitions, statements and proofs.

Editorial analysis

A structured set of objections, weighed in public.

Desk editor's note, referee report, simulated authors' rebuttal, and a circularity audit. Tearing a paper down is the easy half of reading it; the pith above is the substance, this is the friction.

Referee Report

2 major / 1 minor

Summary. The paper claims that linear independence of intertwiner maps associated to non-crossing partitions follows from a revised and adapted version of W. Tutte's matrix determinant formula (with errors from the original work fixed and notations/definitions/proofs updated), and that this independence supplies a sufficient condition for a one-to-one correspondence between suitable collections of partitions and easy quantum groups.

Significance. If the adapted determinant formula and its proof are correct, the self-contained presentation would provide a useful reference clarifying the link between partition combinatorics and easy quantum groups, addressing prior issues in the literature.

major comments (2)
  1. [Abstract and revised Tutte formula section] Abstract and the section presenting the revised Tutte formula: the central linear-independence claim rests entirely on the correctness of the adaptations and error fixes to Tutte's determinant identity, yet the manuscript provides no explicit enumeration of the original errors, no side-by-side statement of the original versus revised formula, and no independent verification (e.g., machine-checked proof or recomputation of the determinant), so any inaccuracy in the adaptations would directly invalidate the independence result.
  2. [Link to the problem section] The paragraph linking the determinant formula to the intertwiner maps: the argument asserts that non-crossing-partition independence follows from the revised formula, but without an explicit statement of the adapted determinant identity (including any sign or hypothesis changes) or a self-contained proof sketch that can be checked against the original Tutte reference, the reduction cannot be verified.
minor comments (1)
  1. [Introduction] Notation for partitions and maps should be introduced with a short table or diagram for clarity when first defined.

Simulated Author's Rebuttal

2 responses · 0 unresolved

We thank the referee for the careful review and the recommendation of major revision. The comments identify valid points where additional explicitness on the changes to Tutte's formula and the linking argument would strengthen the manuscript. We address each below and will revise accordingly.

read point-by-point responses

  1. Referee: [Abstract and revised Tutte formula section] Abstract and the section presenting the revised Tutte formula: the central linear-independence claim rests entirely on the correctness of the adaptations and error fixes to Tutte's determinant identity, yet the manuscript provides no explicit enumeration of the original errors, no side-by-side statement of the original versus revised formula, and no independent verification (e.g., machine-checked proof or recomputation of the determinant), so any inaccuracy in the adaptations would directly invalidate the independence result.

    Authors: We agree that the manuscript would benefit from greater transparency on the modifications. We will add a dedicated subsection that enumerates the specific errors identified in Tutte's original work and provides a side-by-side comparison of the original and revised determinant formulas, including any sign or hypothesis adjustments. The proof in the manuscript is already self-contained, but we will include a short remark on direct recomputation for small partition sizes to support verification. This revision directly addresses the concern about potential inaccuracies affecting the independence result. revision: yes

  2. Referee: [Link to the problem section] The paragraph linking the determinant formula to the intertwiner maps: the argument asserts that non-crossing-partition independence follows from the revised formula, but without an explicit statement of the adapted determinant identity (including any sign or hypothesis changes) or a self-contained proof sketch that can be checked against the original Tutte reference, the reduction cannot be verified.

    Authors: We accept that the linking paragraph requires more explicit detail for independent checking. In the revised manuscript we will state the adapted determinant identity in full, explicitly noting any sign or hypothesis changes relative to the original. We will also expand the proof sketch in that section to include a step-by-step reduction from the determinant formula to the linear independence of the non-crossing partition maps, with direct citations to Tutte's reference. This will make the argument verifiable without external consultation. revision: yes

Circularity Check

0 steps flagged

No circularity; linear independence derived from adapted external Tutte formula

full rationale

The paper establishes linear independence of intertwiner maps for non-crossing partitions by presenting a revised version of Tutte's matrix determinant formula (an external 1960s result) together with adapted proofs. No step reduces by the paper's own equations to a fitted parameter, self-definition, or load-bearing self-citation of the author's prior work. The derivation is a direct mathematical argument from the determinant identity to the independence statement and is therefore self-contained against external benchmarks. Minor adaptations of notation do not create circularity under the enumerated patterns.

Axiom & Free-Parameter Ledger

0 free parameters · 1 axioms · 0 invented entities

The work relies on standard linear algebra and combinatorics; no free parameters, new entities, or ad-hoc axioms are introduced beyond the background theory of determinants and vector-space independence.

axioms (1)
  • standard math Standard properties of matrix determinants and linear independence in vector spaces over fields
    Invoked as the basis for the revised Tutte formula and the independence proof.

pith-pipeline@v0.9.0 · 5622 in / 1050 out tokens · 50625 ms · 2026-05-25T16:33:38.221737+00:00 · methodology

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Reference graph

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