39,569 research outputs found
Statistical Mechanics of maximal independent sets
The graph theoretic concept of maximal independent set arises in several
practical problems in computer science as well as in game theory. A maximal
independent set is defined by the set of occupied nodes that satisfy some
packing and covering constraints. It is known that finding minimum and
maximum-density maximal independent sets are hard optimization problems. In
this paper, we use cavity method of statistical physics and Monte Carlo
simulations to study the corresponding constraint satisfaction problem on
random graphs. We obtain the entropy of maximal independent sets within the
replica symmetric and one-step replica symmetry breaking frameworks, shedding
light on the metric structure of the landscape of solutions and suggesting a
class of possible algorithms. This is of particular relevance for the
application to the study of strategic interactions in social and economic
networks, where maximal independent sets correspond to pure Nash equilibria of
a graphical game of public goods allocation
Minimizing Unsatisfaction in Colourful Neighbourhoods
Colouring sparse graphs under various restrictions is a theoretical problem
of significant practical relevance. Here we consider the problem of maximizing
the number of different colours available at the nodes and their
neighbourhoods, given a predetermined number of colours. In the analytical
framework of a tree approximation, carried out at both zero and finite
temperatures, solutions obtained by population dynamics give rise to estimates
of the threshold connectivity for the incomplete to complete transition, which
are consistent with those of existing algorithms. The nature of the transition
as well as the validity of the tree approximation are investigated.Comment: 28 pages, 12 figures, substantially revised with additional
explanatio
Free Energy Approximations for CSMA networks
In this paper we study how to estimate the back-off rates in an idealized
CSMA network consisting of links to achieve a given throughput vector using
free energy approximations. More specifically, we introduce the class of
region-based free energy approximations with clique belief and present a closed
form expression for the back-off rates based on the zero gradient points of the
free energy approximation (in terms of the conflict graph, target throughput
vector and counting numbers). Next we introduce the size clique free
energy approximation as a special case and derive an explicit expression for
the counting numbers, as well as a recursion to compute the back-off rates. We
subsequently show that the size clique approximation coincides with a
Kikuchi free energy approximation and prove that it is exact on chordal
conflict graphs when . As a by-product these results provide us
with an explicit expression of a fixed point of the inverse generalized belief
propagation algorithm for CSMA networks. Using numerical experiments we compare
the accuracy of the novel approximation method with existing methods
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