The condition number of certain matrices and applications

This paper addresses the problem of estimating the eigenvalues and condition numbers of matrices of the form R=r(t_i-t_j). We begin by mentioning some of the problems in which such matrices occur, and to which the results obtained in this paper may be applied. Examples of such problems include (i) approximation by sums of irregular translates (ii) the missing data problem and incomplete sampling series. Then we describe the method for estimating the eigenvalues and the condition number. Some open issues are also discussed