Given a holomorphic Hilbertian bundle on a compact complex manifold, we introduce the notion of holomorphic $L^2$ torsion, which lies in the determinant line of the twisted $L^2$ Dolbeault cohomology and represents a volume element there. Here we utilise the theory of determinant lines of Hilbertian modules over finite von~Neumann algebras as developed in \cite{CFM}. This specialises to the Ray-Singer-Quillen holomorphic torsion in the finite dimensional case. We compute a metric variation formula for the holomorphic $L^2$ torsion, which shows that it is {\it not\/} in general independent of the choice of Hermitian metrics on the complex manifold and on the holomorphic Hilbertian bundle, which are needed to define it. We therefore initiate the theory of correspondences of determinant lines, that enables us to define a relative holomorphic $L^2$ torsion for a pair of flat Hilbertian bundles, which we prove is independent of the choice of Hermitian metrics on the complex manifold and on the flat Hilbertian bundles.

We consider germs of mappings of a line to contact space and classify the first simple singularities up to the action of contactomorphisms in the target space and diffeomorphisms of the line. Even in these first cases there arises a new interesting interaction of local commutative algebra with contact structure.

We give necessary and sufficient conditions for a norm-compact subset of a Hilbert space to admit a $C^1$ embedding into a finite dimensional Euclidean space. Using quasibundles, we prove a structure theorem saying that the stratum of $n$-dimensional points is contained in an $n$-dimensional $C^1$ submanifold of the ambient Hilbert space. This work sharpens and extends earlier results of G.~Glaeser on paratingents. As byproducts we obtain smoothing theorems for compact subsets of Hilbert space and disjunction theorems for locally compact subsets of Euclidean space.