The Parameterised Complexity of List Problems on Graphs of Bounded Treewidth

We consider the parameterised complexity of several list problems on graphs, with parameter treewidth or pathwidth. In particular, we show that List Edge Chromatic Number and List Total Chromatic Number are fixed parameter tractable, parameterised by treewidth, whereas List Hamilton Path is W[1]-hard, even parameterised by pathwidth. These results resolve two open questions of Fellows, Fomin, Lokshtanov, Rosamond, Saurabh, Szeider and Thomassen (2011).Comment: Author final version, to appear in Information and Computation. Changes from previous version include improved literature references and restructured proof in Section

Some Problems in Graph Theory and Scheduling

In this dissertation, we present three results related to combinatorial algorithms in graph theory and scheduling, both of which are important subjects in the area of discrete mathematics and theoretical computer science. In graph theory, a graph is a set of vertices and edges, where each edge is a pair of vertices. A coloring of a graph is a function that assigns each vertex a color such that no two adjacent vertices share the same color. The first two results are related to coloring graphs belonging to specific classes. In scheduling problems, we are interested in how to efficiently schedule a set of jobs on machines. The last result is related to a scheduling problem in an environment where there is uncertainty on the number of machines. The first result of this thesis is a polynomial time algorithm that determines if an input graph containing no induced seven-vertex path is 3-colorable. This affirmatively answers a question posed by Randerath, Schiermeyer and Tewes in 2002. Our algorithm also solves the list-coloring version of the 3-coloring problem, where every vertex is assigned a list of colors that is a subset of {1, 2, 3}, and gives an explicit coloring if one exists. This is joint work with Flavia Bonomo, Maria Chundnovsky, Peter Maceli, Oliver Schaudt, and Maya Stein. A graph is H-free if it has no induced subgraph isomorphic to H. In the second part of this thesis, we characterize all graphs $H$ for which there are only finitely many minimal non-three-colorable H-free graphs. This solves a problem posed by Golovach et al. We also characterize all graphs H for which there are only finitely many H-free minimal obstructions for list 3-colorability. This is joint work with Maria Chudnovsky, Jan Goedgebeur and Oliver Schaudt. The last result of this thesis deals with a scheduling problem addressing the uncertainty regarding the machines. We study a scheduling environment in which jobs first need to be grouped into some sets before the number of machines is known, and then the sets need to be scheduled on machines without being separated. In order to evaluate algorithms in such an environment, we introduce the idea of an alpha-robust algorithm, one which is guaranteed to return a schedule on any number m of machines that is within an alpha factor of the optimal schedule on m machines, where the optimum is not subject to the restriction that the sets cannot be separated. Under such environment, we give a (5/3+epsilon)-robust algorithm for scheduling on parallel machines to minimize makespan, and show a lower bound of 4/3. For the special case when the jobs are infinitesimal, we give a 1.233-robust algorithm with an asymptotic lower bound of 1.207. This is joint work with Clifford Stein

Mixing graph colourings

This thesis investigates some problems related to graph colouring, or, more precisely, graph re-colouring. Informally, the basic question addressed can be phrased as follows. Suppose one is given a graph G whose vertices can be properly k-coloured, for some k ≥ 2. Is it possible to transform any k-colouring of G into any other by recolouring vertices of G one at a time, making sure a proper k-colouring of G is always maintained? If the answer is in the affirmative, G is said to be k-mixing. The related problem of deciding whether, given two k-colourings of G, it is possible to transform one into the other by recolouring vertices one at a time, always maintaining a proper k-colouring of G, is also considered. These questions can be considered as having a bearing on certain mathematical and ‘real-world’ problems. In particular, being able to recolour any colouring of a given graph to any other colouring is a necessary pre-requisite for the method of sampling colourings known as Glauber dynamics. The results presented in this thesis may also find application in the context of frequency reassignment: given that the problem of assigning radio frequencies in a wireless communications network is often modelled as a graph colouring problem, the task of re-assigning frequencies in such a network can be thought of as a graph recolouring problem. Throughout the thesis, the emphasis is on the algorithmic aspects and the computational complexity of the questions described above. In other words, how easily, in terms of computational resources used, can they be answered? Strong results are obtained for the k = 3 case of the first question, where a characterisation theorem for 3-mixing graphs is given. For the second question, a dichotomy theorem for the complexity of the problem is proved: the problem is solvable in polynomial time for k ≤ 3 and PSPACE-complete for k ≥ 4. In addition, the possible length of a shortest sequence of recolourings between two colourings is investigated, and an interesting connection between the tractability of the problem and its underlying structure is established. Some variants of the above problems are also explored

LIPIcs, Volume 244, ESA 2022, Complete Volume

LIPIcs, Volume 244, ESA 2022, Complete Volum

Thomassen’s 5-Choosability Theorem Extends to Many Faces

We prove in this thesis that planar graphs can be L-colored, where L is a list-assignment in which every vertex has a 5-list except for a collection of arbitrarily large faces which have 3-lists, as long as those faces are at least a constant distance apart. Such a result is analogous to Thomassen’s 5-choosability proof where arbitrarily many faces, rather than just one face, are permitted to have 3-lists. This result can also be thought of as a stronger form of a conjecture of Albertson which was solved in 2012 and asked whether a planar graph can be 5-list-colored even if it contains distant precolored vertices. Our result has useful applications in proving that drawings with arbitrarily large pairwise far-apart crossing structures are 5-choosable under certain conditions, and we prove one such result at the end of this thesis