1,940 research outputs found
Approximating Directed Steiner Problems via Tree Embedding
In the k-edge connected directed Steiner tree (k-DST) problem, we are given a
directed graph G on n vertices with edge-costs, a root vertex r, a set of h
terminals T and an integer k. The goal is to find a min-cost subgraph H of G
that connects r to each terminal t by k edge-disjoint r,t-paths. This problem
includes as special cases the well-known directed Steiner tree (DST) problem
(the case k = 1) and the group Steiner tree (GST) problem. Despite having been
studied and mentioned many times in literature, e.g., by Feldman et al.
[SODA'09, JCSS'12], by Cheriyan et al. [SODA'12, TALG'14] and by Laekhanukit
[SODA'14], there was no known non-trivial approximation algorithm for k-DST for
k >= 2 even in the special case that an input graph is directed acyclic and has
a constant number of layers. If an input graph is not acyclic, the complexity
status of k-DST is not known even for a very strict special case that k= 2 and
|T| = 2.
In this paper, we make a progress toward developing a non-trivial
approximation algorithm for k-DST. We present an O(D k^{D-1} log
n)-approximation algorithm for k-DST on directed acyclic graphs (DAGs) with D
layers, which can be extended to a special case of k-DST on "general graphs"
when an instance has a D-shallow optimal solution, i.e., there exist k
edge-disjoint r,t-paths, each of length at most D, for every terminal t. For
the case k= 1 (DST), our algorithm yields an approximation ratio of O(D log h),
thus implying an O(log^3 h)-approximation algorithm for DST that runs in
quasi-polynomial-time (due to the height-reduction of Zelikovsky
[Algorithmica'97]). Consequently, as our algorithm works for general graphs, we
obtain an O(D k^{D-1} log n)-approximation algorithm for a D-shallow instance
of the k-edge-connected directed Steiner subgraph problem, where we wish to
connect every pair of terminals by k-edge-disjoint paths
On the Complexity of Digraph Colourings and Vertex Arboricity
It has been shown by Bokal et al. that deciding 2-colourability of digraphs
is an NP-complete problem. This result was later on extended by Feder et al. to
prove that deciding whether a digraph has a circular -colouring is
NP-complete for all rational . In this paper, we consider the complexity
of corresponding decision problems for related notions of fractional colourings
for digraphs and graphs, including the star dichromatic number, the fractional
dichromatic number and the circular vertex arboricity. We prove the following
results:
Deciding if the star dichromatic number of a digraph is at most is
NP-complete for every rational .
Deciding if the fractional dichromatic number of a digraph is at most is
NP-complete for every .
Deciding if the circular vertex arboricity of a graph is at most is
NP-complete for every rational .
To show these results, different techniques are required in each case. In
order to prove the first result, we relate the star dichromatic number to a new
notion of homomorphisms between digraphs, called circular homomorphisms, which
might be of independent interest. We provide a classification of the
computational complexities of the corresponding homomorphism colouring problems
similar to the one derived by Feder et al. for acyclic homomorphisms.Comment: 21 pages, 1 figur
Fault-Tolerant Shortest Paths - Beyond the Uniform Failure Model
The overwhelming majority of survivable (fault-tolerant) network design
models assume a uniform scenario set. Such a scenario set assumes that every
subset of the network resources (edges or vertices) of a given cardinality
comprises a scenario. While this approach yields problems with clean
combinatorial structure and good algorithms, it often fails to capture the true
nature of the scenario set coming from applications.
One natural refinement of the uniform model is obtained by partitioning the
set of resources into faulty and secure resources. The scenario set contains
every subset of at most faulty resources. This work studies the
Fault-Tolerant Path (FTP) problem, the counterpart of the Shortest Path problem
in this failure model. We present complexity results alongside exact and
approximation algorithms for FTP. We emphasize the vast increase in the
complexity of the problem with respect to its uniform analogue, the
Edge-Disjoint Paths problem
On the utility of network coding in dynamic environments
Many wireless applications, such as ad-hoc networks and sensor networks, require decentralized operation in dynamically varying environments. We consider a distributed randomized network coding approach that enables efficient decentralized operation of multi-source multicast networks. We show that this approach provides substantial benefits over traditional routing methods in dynamically varying environments. We present a set of empirical trials measuring the performance of network coding versus an approximate online Steiner tree routing approach when connections vary dynamically. The results show that network coding achieves superior performance in a significant fraction of our randomly generated network examples. Such dynamic settings represent a substantially broader class of networking problems than previously recognized for which network coding shows promise of significant practical benefits compared to routing
Join-Reachability Problems in Directed Graphs
For a given collection G of directed graphs we define the join-reachability
graph of G, denoted by J(G), as the directed graph that, for any pair of
vertices a and b, contains a path from a to b if and only if such a path exists
in all graphs of G. Our goal is to compute an efficient representation of J(G).
In particular, we consider two versions of this problem. In the explicit
version we wish to construct the smallest join-reachability graph for G. In the
implicit version we wish to build an efficient data structure (in terms of
space and query time) such that we can report fast the set of vertices that
reach a query vertex in all graphs of G. This problem is related to the
well-studied reachability problem and is motivated by emerging applications of
graph-structured databases and graph algorithms. We consider the construction
of join-reachability structures for two graphs and develop techniques that can
be applied to both the explicit and the implicit problem. First we present
optimal and near-optimal structures for paths and trees. Then, based on these
results, we provide efficient structures for planar graphs and general directed
graphs
Complete Acyclic Colorings
We study two parameters that arise from the dichromatic number and the
vertex-arboricity in the same way that the achromatic number comes from the
chromatic number. The adichromatic number of a digraph is the largest number of
colors its vertices can be colored with such that every color induces an
acyclic subdigraph but merging any two colors yields a monochromatic directed
cycle. Similarly, the a-vertex arboricity of an undirected graph is the largest
number of colors that can be used such that every color induces a forest but
merging any two yields a monochromatic cycle. We study the relation between
these parameters and their behavior with respect to other classical parameters
such as degeneracy and most importantly feedback vertex sets.Comment: 17 pages, no figure
Hypergraphic LP Relaxations for Steiner Trees
We investigate hypergraphic LP relaxations for the Steiner tree problem,
primarily the partition LP relaxation introduced by Koenemann et al. [Math.
Programming, 2009]. Specifically, we are interested in proving upper bounds on
the integrality gap of this LP, and studying its relation to other linear
relaxations. Our results are the following. Structural results: We extend the
technique of uncrossing, usually applied to families of sets, to families of
partitions. As a consequence we show that any basic feasible solution to the
partition LP formulation has sparse support. Although the number of variables
could be exponential, the number of positive variables is at most the number of
terminals. Relations with other relaxations: We show the equivalence of the
partition LP relaxation with other known hypergraphic relaxations. We also show
that these hypergraphic relaxations are equivalent to the well studied
bidirected cut relaxation, if the instance is quasibipartite. Integrality gap
upper bounds: We show an upper bound of sqrt(3) ~ 1.729 on the integrality gap
of these hypergraph relaxations in general graphs. In the special case of
uniformly quasibipartite instances, we show an improved upper bound of 73/60 ~
1.216. By our equivalence theorem, the latter result implies an improved upper
bound for the bidirected cut relaxation as well.Comment: Revised full version; a shorter version will appear at IPCO 2010
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
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