2,004 research outputs found
Approximating the Minimum Equivalent Digraph
The MEG (minimum equivalent graph) problem is, given a directed graph, to
find a small subset of the edges that maintains all reachability relations
between nodes. The problem is NP-hard. This paper gives an approximation
algorithm with performance guarantee of pi^2/6 ~ 1.64. The algorithm and its
analysis are based on the simple idea of contracting long cycles. (This result
is strengthened slightly in ``On strongly connected digraphs with bounded cycle
length'' (1996).) The analysis applies directly to 2-Exchange, a simple ``local
improvement'' algorithm, showing that its performance guarantee is 1.75.Comment: conference version in ACM-SIAM Symposium on Discrete Algorithms
(1994
On Directed Feedback Vertex Set parameterized by treewidth
We study the Directed Feedback Vertex Set problem parameterized by the
treewidth of the input graph. We prove that unless the Exponential Time
Hypothesis fails, the problem cannot be solved in time on general directed graphs, where is the treewidth of
the underlying undirected graph. This is matched by a dynamic programming
algorithm with running time .
On the other hand, we show that if the input digraph is planar, then the
running time can be improved to .Comment: 20
Sizing the length of complex networks
Among all characteristics exhibited by natural and man-made networks the
small-world phenomenon is surely the most relevant and popular. But despite its
significance, a reliable and comparable quantification of the question `how
small is a small-world network and how does it compare to others' has remained
a difficult challenge to answer. Here we establish a new synoptic
representation that allows for a complete and accurate interpretation of the
pathlength (and efficiency) of complex networks. We frame every network
individually, based on how its length deviates from the shortest and the
longest values it could possibly take. For that, we first had to uncover the
upper and the lower limits for the pathlength and efficiency, which indeed
depend on the specific number of nodes and links. These limits are given by
families of singular configurations that we name as ultra-short and ultra-long
networks. The representation here introduced frees network comparison from the
need to rely on the choice of reference graph models (e.g., random graphs and
ring lattices), a common practice that is prone to yield biased interpretations
as we show. Application to empirical examples of three categories (neural,
social and transportation) evidences that, while most real networks display a
pathlength comparable to that of random graphs, when contrasted against the
absolute boundaries, only the cortical connectomes prove to be ultra-short
Consensus of Multi-Agent Networks in the Presence of Adversaries Using Only Local Information
This paper addresses the problem of resilient consensus in the presence of
misbehaving nodes. Although it is typical to assume knowledge of at least some
nonlocal information when studying secure and fault-tolerant consensus
algorithms, this assumption is not suitable for large-scale dynamic networks.
To remedy this, we emphasize the use of local strategies to deal with
resilience to security breaches. We study a consensus protocol that uses only
local information and we consider worst-case security breaches, where the
compromised nodes have full knowledge of the network and the intentions of the
other nodes. We provide necessary and sufficient conditions for the normal
nodes to reach consensus despite the influence of the malicious nodes under
different threat assumptions. These conditions are stated in terms of a novel
graph-theoretic property referred to as network robustness.Comment: This report contains the proofs of the results presented at HiCoNS
201
Minimum Number of Probes for Brain Dynamics Observability
In this paper, we address the problem of placing sensor probes in the brain
such that the system dynamics' are generically observable. The system dynamics
whose states can encode for instance the fire-rating of the neurons or their
ensemble following a neural-topological (structural) approach, and the sensors
are assumed to be dedicated, i.e., can only measure a state at each time. Even
though the mathematical description of brain dynamics is (yet) to be
discovered, we build on its observed fractal characteristics and assume that
the model of the brain activity satisfies fractional-order dynamics.
Although the sensor placement explored in this paper is particularly
considering the observability of brain dynamics, the proposed methodology
applies to any fractional-order linear system. Thus, the main contribution of
this paper is to show how to place the minimum number of dedicated sensors,
i.e., sensors measuring only a state variable, to ensure generic observability
in discrete-time fractional-order systems for a specified finite interval of
time. Finally, an illustrative example of the main results is provided using
electroencephalogram (EEG) data.Comment: arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:1507.0720
Parameterized Algorithms for Min-Max Multiway Cut and List Digraph Homomorphism
In this paper we design {\sf FPT}-algorithms for two parameterized problems.
The first is \textsc{List Digraph Homomorphism}: given two digraphs and
and a list of allowed vertices of for every vertex of , the question is
whether there exists a homomorphism from to respecting the list
constraints. The second problem is a variant of \textsc{Multiway Cut}, namely
\textsc{Min-Max Multiway Cut}: given a graph , a non-negative integer
, and a set of terminals, the question is whether we can
partition the vertices of into parts such that (a) each part contains
one terminal and (b) there are at most edges with only one endpoint in
this part. We parameterize \textsc{List Digraph Homomorphism} by the number
of edges of that are mapped to non-loop edges of and we give a time
algorithm, where is the order of the host graph . We also prove that
\textsc{Min-Max Multiway Cut} can be solved in time . Our approach introduces a general problem, called
{\sc List Allocation}, whose expressive power permits the design of
parameterized reductions of both aforementioned problems to it. Then our
results are based on an {\sf FPT}-algorithm for the {\sc List Allocation}
problem that is designed using a suitable adaptation of the {\em randomized
contractions} technique (introduced by [Chitnis, Cygan, Hajiaghayi, Pilipczuk,
and Pilipczuk, FOCS 2012]).Comment: An extended abstract of this work will appear in the Proceedings of
the 10th International Symposium on Parameterized and Exact Computation
(IPEC), Patras, Greece, September 201
On the Complexity of Existential Positive Queries
We systematically investigate the complexity of model checking the
existential positive fragment of first-order logic. In particular, for a set of
existential positive sentences, we consider model checking where the sentence
is restricted to fall into the set; a natural question is then to classify
which sentence sets are tractable and which are intractable. With respect to
fixed-parameter tractability, we give a general theorem that reduces this
classification question to the corresponding question for primitive positive
logic, for a variety of representations of structures. This general theorem
allows us to deduce that an existential positive sentence set having bounded
arity is fixed-parameter tractable if and only if each sentence is equivalent
to one in bounded-variable logic. We then use the lens of classical complexity
to study these fixed-parameter tractable sentence sets. We show that such a set
can be NP-complete, and consider the length needed by a translation from
sentences in such a set to bounded-variable logic; we prove superpolynomial
lower bounds on this length using the theory of compilability, obtaining an
interesting type of formula size lower bound. Overall, the tools, concepts, and
results of this article set the stage for the future consideration of the
complexity of model checking on more expressive logics
- …