No-dimensional results of combinatorial convexity. Dimension strikes back

Abstract

We discuss no-dimensional (approximate) versions of Carath\'eodory's and Helly's theorems. Our goal is to draw attention to open problems and potential applications related to these results. We survey recent progress and pose several questions. We also point out a simple way to ``bring the dimension back into the picture'': by combining no-dimensional statements with dimension-dependent norm comparisons, one can transfer problems in $\ell_1^d$, $\ell_\infty^d$, and Schatten classes $S_1, S_\infty$ to nearby $\ell_p^d$ or $S_p$ spaces with better geometry. As elementary applications, we obtain a weak additive analogue of the Johnson--Lindenstrauss flattening lemma, local-to-global estimates for Chebyshev regression over the $\ell_1$ ball, and a local-to-global guarantee for quantum feasibility from locally consistent linear measurements.