On finite homogeneous metric spaces

This survey is devoted to recently obtained results on finite homogeneous metric spaces. The main subject of discussion is the classification of regular and semiregular polytopes in Euclidean spaces by whether or not their vertex sets have the normal homogeneity property or the Clifford — Wolf homogeneity property. Every finite homogeneous metric subspace of an Euclidean space represents the vertex set of a compact convex polytope with the isometry group that is transitive on the set of vertices, moreover, all these vertices lie on some sphere. Consequently, the study of such subsets is closely related to the theory of convex polytopes in Euclidean spaces. The normal generalized homogeneity and the Clifford — Wolf homogeneity describe more stronger properties than the homogeneity. Therefore, it is natural to first check the presence of these properties for the vertex sets of regular and semiregular polytopes. In addition to the classification results, the paper contains a description of the main tools for the study of the relevant objects.