ON THE TOPOLOGICAL CENTRE OF L1(G/H)**

Let G be a locally compact group and H be a compact subgroup of G. Using a general criterion established by Neufang [‘A unified approach to the topological centre problem for certain Banach algebras arising in abstract harmonic analysis’, Arch. Math.82(2) (2004), 164–171], we show that the Banach algebra L1(G/H) is strongly Arens irregular for a large class of locally compact groups.

SKEW-PRODUCT DYNAMICAL SYSTEMS, ELLIS GROUPS AND TOPOLOGICAL CENTRE

In this paper, a general construction of a skew-product dynamical system, for which the skew-product dynamical system studied by Hahn is a special case, is given. Then the ergodic and topological properties (of a special type) of our newly defined systems (called Milnes-type systems) are investigated. It is shown that the Milnes-type systems are actually natural extensions of dynamical systems corresponding to some special distal functions. Finally, the topological centre of Ellis groups of any skew-product dynamical system is calculated.

Decomposability of von Neumann Algebras and the Mazur Property of Higher Level

The decomposability number of a von Neumann algebra ℳ (denoted by dec(ℳ)) is the greatest cardinality of a family of pairwise orthogonal non-zero projections in ℳ. In this paper, we explore the close connection between dec(ℳ) and the cardinal level of the Mazur property for the predual ℳ* of ℳ, the study of which was initiated by the second author. Here, our main focus is on those von Neumann algebras whose preduals constitute such important Banach algebras on a locally compact group G as the group algebra L1(G), the Fourier algebra A(G), the measure algebra M(G), the algebra LUC(G)*, etc. We show that for any of these von Neumann algebras, say ℳ, the cardinal number dec(ℳ) and a certain cardinal level of the Mazur property of ℳ* are completely encoded in the underlying group structure. In fact, they can be expressed precisely by two dual cardinal invariants of G: the compact covering number κ(G) of G and the least cardinality ᙭(G) of an open basis at the identity of G. We also present an application of the Mazur property of higher level to the topological centre problem for the Banach algebra A(G)**.