Problem 588 — Visual explainer (undergrad) ========================================== Problem statement --------------- Let $f_k(n)$ be minimal such that if $n$ points in $\mathbb{R}^2$ have no $k+1$ points on a line then there must be at most $f_k(n)$ many lines containing at least $k$ points. Is it true that\[f_k(n)=o(n^2)\]for $k\geq 4$? Picture ------- Many points on a line: o---o---o---o---o \ o o o Question: what to look at ------------------------ - Restate the problem as: given the constraint, what asymptotic bound or structure must follow? - Use the comments as benchmarks (best known bounds / constructions). Context ------- Area hint: incidence geometry / combinatorial geometry. Notation (if it appears above) ----------------------------- - `o(g(n))` means "grows strictly smaller than g(n)" (ratio → 0 as nā†’āˆž). Benchmarks / known results (from comments) ---------------------------------------- - A generalisation of [101] (which asks about $k=4$). - The restriction to $k\geq 4$ is necessary since Sylvester has shown that $f_3(n)= n^2/6+O(n)$. - (See also Burr, Gr\"{u}nbaum, and Sloane and F\"{u}redi and Pal\'{a}sti for constructions which show that $f_3(n)\geq(1/6+o(1))n^2$.) For $k\geq 4$, K\'{a}rteszi proved\[f_k(n)\gg_k n\log n\](resolving a conjecture of Erd\H{o}s that $f_k(n)/n\to \infty$).