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Abstract Let $$k \leq n$$ be positive integers, and let $$X_n = (x_1, \dots , x_n)$$ be a list of $$n$$ variables. The Boolean product polynomial$$B_{n,k}(X_n)$$ is the product of the linear forms $$\sum _{i \in S} x_i$$, where $$S$$ ranges over all $$k$$-element subsets of $$\{1, 2, \dots , n\}$$. We prove that Boolean product polynomials are Schur positive. We do this via a new method of proving Schur positivity using vector bundles and a symmetric function operation we call Chern plethysm. This gives a geometric method for producing a vast array of Schur positive polynomials whose Schur positivity lacks (at present) a combinatorial or representation theoretic proof. We relate the polynomials $$B_{n,k}(X_n)$$ for certain $$k$$ to other combinatorial objects including derangements, positroids, alternating sign matrices, and reverse flagged fillings of a partition shape. We also relate $$B_{n,n-1}(X_n)$$ to a bigraded action of the symmetric group $${\mathfrak{S}}_n$$ on a divergence free quotient of superspace. 

Positroids are certain representable matroids originally studied by Post- nikov in connection with the totally nonnegative Grassmannian and now used widely in algebraic combinatorics. The positroids give rise to determinantal equations defin- ing positroid varieties as subvarieties of the Grassmannian variety. Rietsch, Knutson– Lam–Speyer and Pawlowski studied geometric and cohomological properties of these varieties. In this paper, we continue the study of the geometric properties of positroid varieties by establishing several equivalent conditions characterizing smooth positroid varieties using a variation of pattern avoidance defined on decorated permutations, which are in bijection with positroids. Furthermore, we give a combinatorial method for determining the dimension of the tangent space of a positroid variety at key points using an induced subgraph of the Johnson graph. We also give a Bruhat interval char- acterization of positroids. 

An open problem of Manuel Abellanas asks whether every set of disjoint closed unit disks in the plane can be connected by a conveyor belt, which means a tight simple closed curve that touches the boundary of each disk, possibly multiple times. We prove three main results: For unit disks whose centers are both $$x$$-monotone and $$y$$-monotone, or whose centers have $$x$$-coordinates that differ by at least two units, a conveyor belt always exists and can be found efficiently. It is NP-complete to determine whether disks of arbitrary radii have a conveyor belt, and it remains NP-complete when we constrain the belt to touch disks exactly once. Any disjoint set of $$n$$ disks of arbitrary radii can be augmented by $O(n)$ "guide" disks so that the augmented system has a conveyor belt touching each disk exactly once, answering a conjecture of Demaine, Demaine, and Palop. 

Pop-stack sorting is an important variation for sorting permutations via a stack. A single iteration of pop-stack sorting is the transformation T : S_n -> S_n that reverses all the maximal descending sequences of letters in a permutation. We investigate structural and enumerative aspects of pop-stacked permutations – the permutations that belong to the image of Sn under T. This work is part of a project aiming to provide the full combinatorial analysis of sorting with a pop-stack, as it was successfully done for sorting with a stack (though, even in this case, some famous problems are still open). The first results already show that pop-stack sorting has a very rich combinatorial structure, and leads to surprising phenomena.