On union-closed families. I (Q5967026)

A union-closed (UC) family \({\mathcal A}\) is a finite family of sets such that the union of any two sets in \({\mathcal A}\) is also in \({\mathcal A}\). \textit{Peter Frankl} [Families of finite sets satisfying a union condition, Discrete Math. 26, 111-118 (1979; Zbl 0397.05004)] conjectured that (*) if \({\mathcal A}\) is a UC-family, then there exists some \(x\) contained in at least half the members of \({\mathcal A}\). This conjecture is not solved as yet. In the present paper the authors prove that if \({\mathcal A}\) is a \(\text{UC}^*\)-family (its definition is given in the paper), then either \({\mathcal A}\) or its dual satisfies the conjecture (*). See also the review above.