Inequalities for convex sequences and their applications (Q2460609)

A useful tool to describe the property of convexity is provided by the notion of majorization. Given two real sequences \(a=(a_{k})_{k=1}^{n}\) and \(b=(b_{k})_{k=1}^{n}\) we say that \(a\) is \textit{majorized} by \(b\) (i.e., \(a\prec b)\) if their decreasing rearrangements \(a_{[1]}\geq\cdots\geq a_{[n]}\) and \(b_{[1]}\geq\cdots\geq b_{[n]}\) verify the relations \(\sum_{i=1} ^{k}a_{[i]}\leq\sum_{i=1}^{k}b_{[i]}\) for \(k\in\{1,\dots,n-1\}\) and \(\sum _{i=1}^{n}a_{[i]}=\sum_{i=1}^{n}b_{[i]}\). A real sequence \((a_{k})_{k=1}^{n}\) is called \textit{convex} if \(2a_{k}\leq a_{k-1}+a_{k+1}\) for all \(k\in\{2,\dots,n-1\}\). The main result of the paper under review provides an extension of the well known inequality of majorization due to Hardy-Littlewood-Pólya. It asserts that for every nondecreasing continuous convex function \(f\) (given on an interval \(I)\) and every convex sequence \((a_{k})_{k=1}^{n}\) in \(I\) we have the inequality \(\sum_{i=1}^{k} f(a_{p(i)})\leq\sum_{i=1}^{n}f(a_{q(i)}),\) whenever \((p(i))_{i=1}^{k} \prec(q(i))_{i=1}^{k}\) are two sequences in \(\{1,\ldots,n\}.\) Several applications are included.