Related papers: Inherited conics in Hall planes

No regular hyperoval of the Desarguesian affine plane $AG(2,2^{2h})$, with $h>1$, is inherited by a dual Andr\'e plane of order $2^{2h}$ with dimension 2 over its centre.

We consider a non-degenerate conic in $\PG(2,q^2)$, $q$ odd, that is tangent to $\ell_\infty$ and look at its structure in the Bruck-Bose representation in $\PG(4,q)$. We determine which combinatorial properties of this set of points in…

We classify nets of conics in Desarguesian projective planes over finite fields of odd order, namely, two-dimensional linear systems of conics containing a repeated line. Our proof is geometric in the sense that we solve the equivalent…

The existence of certain monomial hyperovals $D(x^k)$ in the finite Desarguesian projective plane $PG(2,q)$, $q$ even, is related to the existence of points on certain projective plane curves $g_k(x,y,z)$. Segre showed that some values of…

Let $\A$ be the incidence matrix of lines and points of the classical projective plane $PG(2,q)$ with $q$ odd. With respect to a conic in $PG(2,q)$, the matrix $\A$ is partitioned into 9 submatrices. The rank of each of these submatices…

Let $p$ denote the characteristic of ${\mathbb F}_q$, the finite field with $q$ elements. We prove that if $q$ is odd then an arc of size $q+2-t$ in the projective plane over ${\mathbb F}_q$, which is not contained in a conic, is contained…

Segre's theorem on ovals in projective spaces is an ingenious result from the mid-twentieth century which requires surprisingly little background to prove. This note, suitable for undergraduates with experience of linear and abstract…

In this article, a combinatorial characterization of the family of planes of $\PG(3,q)$ which meet a hyperbolic quadric in an irreducible conic, using their intersection properties with the points and lines of $\PG(3,q)$, is given.

Invariant notions of a class of Segre varieties $\Segrem(2)$ of PG(2^m - 1, 2) that are direct products of $m$ copies of PG(1, 2), $m$ being any positive integer, are established and studied. We first demonstrate that there exists a…

A {\em generalized hyperfocused arc} $\mathcal H $ in $PG(2,q)$ is an arc of size $k$ with the property that the $k(k-1)/2$ secants can be blocked by a set of $k-1$ points not belonging to the arc. We show that if $q$ is a prime and…

In 1955 B. Segre showed that any oval in a projective plane over a finite field of odd order is a conic. His proof constructs a conic which matches the oval in some points and tangents, and then shows that it actually coincides with the…

Menon's proof of the preservation of log-concavity of sequences under convolution becomes simpler when adapted to 2-sided infinite sequences. Under assumption of log-concavity of two 2-sided infinite sequences, the existence of the…

The subject of this paper is the study of small complete arcs in $\mathrm{PG}(2,q)$, for $q$ odd, with at least $(q+1)/2$ points on a conic. We give a short comprehensive proof of the completeness problem left open by Segre in his seminal…

A {\em pseudo-arc} in $\mathrm{PG}(3n-1,q)$ is a set of $(n-1)$-spaces such that any three of them span the whole space. A pseudo-arc of size $q^n+1$ is a {\em pseudo-oval}. If a pseudo-oval $\mathcal{O}$ is obtained by applying field…

It is shown that the structure of the generalized quadrangle of order two is fully encoded in the properties of the Desargues configuration. A point of the quadrangle is represented by a geometric hyperplane of the Desargues configuration…

A k-arc in a Dearguesian projective plane whose secants meet some external line in k-1 points is said to be hyperfocused. Hyperfocused arcs are investigated in connection with a secret sharing scheme based on geometry due to Simmons. In…

Let $K$ be a set of $q^2+2q+1$ points in $PG(4,q)$. We show that if every 3-space meets $K$ in either one, two or three lines, a line and a non-degenerate conic, or a twisted cubic, then $K$ is a ruled cubic surface. Moreover, $K$…

The pencil of conics featuring three degenerate conics each of which is a line-pair is briefly inspected in a Galois field of characteristic two. It is shown that if two degenerates are conjugate imaginary line pairs, the third must be a…

Let $\pi$ be a set of primes. We say that a finite group $G$ is a $\mathcal{D}_\pi$-group if the maximal $\pi$-subgroups of $G$ are conjugate. In this paper, we give an affirmative answer to Problem 17.44(b) from "Kourovka notebook", namely…

For an irreducible conic $\mathcal C$ in a Desarguesian plane of odd square order, estimating the number of points from a Baer subplane which are external to $\mathcal C$ is a natural problem. In this paper, a complete list of possibilities…