Geometric permutations for convex sets (Q2266447)

In connection with Helly's theorem about families of convex sets, much research has been devoted to the search for a similar theory concerning common transversals. The present paper may well be a major step toward such a theory: If A is a family of pairwise disjoint convex sets, and if the straight line G meets all members of A, then each of the two standard linear orderings of G induces an ordering of A. Let f(n) be the maximal possible number of pairs of orderings which can be induced in this way on any family A of pairwise disjoint convex sets in the Euclidean plane, and denote by g(n) the corresponding number for families of linesegments. The authors improve earlier bounds for f and show, by ingenious geometric arguments, that \(g(n)=n\), for every \(n\geq 3\). The paper ends with a number of open questions, also concerning the situation in higher dimensions.