Gromoll and Meyer have represented a certain exotic 7-sphere $Sigma^7$ as a biquotient of the Lie group $G = Sp(2)$. We show for a 2-parameter family of left invariant metrics on $G$ that the induced metric on $Sigma^7$ has strictly positive sectional curvature at all points outside four subvarieties of codimension $geq 1$ which we describe explicitly.
Among a family of 2-parameter left invariant metrics on Sp(2), we determine which have nonnegative sectional curvatures and which are Einstein. On the quotiente $widetilde{N}^{11}=(Sp(2)times S^4)/S^3$, we construct a homogeneous isoparametric foliation with isoparametric hypersurfaces diffeomorphic to Sp(2). Furthermore, on the quotiente $widetilde{N}^{11}/S^3$, we construct a transnormal system with transnormal hypersurfaces diffeomorphic to the Gromoll-Meyer sphere $Sigma^7$. Moreover, the induced metric on each hypersurface has positive Ricci curvature and quasi-positive sectional curvature simultaneously.
A metric with positive sectional curvature on the Gromoll-Meyer exotic 7-sphere is constructed explicitly. The proof relies on a 2-parameter family of left invariant metrics on Sp(2) and a one-parameter family of conformal deformations via an isoparametric function F on it. One byproduct is a metric with positive sectional curvature on a homotopy (but not diffeomorphic) $RP^7$.
The paper provides a different proof of the result of Brendle-Schoen on the differential sphere theorem. It is shown directly that the invariant cone of curvature operators with positive (or non-negative) complex sectional curvature is preserved by the Ricci flow. This implies, by a result of Bohm-Wilking, that the normalized Ricci flow deforms such a metric to a metric of constant positive curvature. Using earlier work of Yau and Zheng it can be shown that a metric with strictly (pointwise) 1/4-pinched sectional curvature has positive complex sectional curvature. This gives a direct proof of Brendle-Schoens recent differential sphere theorem, bypassing any discussion of positive isotropic curvature.
Motivated by the recent work of Chu-Lee-Tam on the nefness of canonical line bundle for compact K{a}hler manifolds with nonpositive $k$-Ricci curvature, we consider a natural notion of {em almost nonpositive $k$-Ricci curvature}, which is weaker than the existence of a K{a}hler metric with nonpositive $k$-Ricci curvature. When $k=1$, this is just the {em almost nonpositive holomorphic sectional curvature} introduced by Zhang. We firstly give a lower bound for the existence time of the twisted K{a}hler-Ricci flow when there exists a K{a}hler metric with $k$-Ricci curvature bounded from above by a positive constant. As an application, we prove that a compact K{a}hler manifold of almost nonpositive $k$-Ricci curvature must have nef canonical line bundle.
For $k ge 2,$ let $M^{4k-1}$ be a $(2k{-}2)$-connected closed manifold. If $k equiv 1$ mod $4$ assume further that $M$ is $(2k{-}1)$-parallelisable. Then there is a homotopy sphere $Sigma^{4k-1}$ such that $M sharp Sigma$ admits a Ricci positive metric. This follows from a new description of these manifolds as the boundaries of explicit plumbings.