92 research outputs found
Exact Localisations of Feedback Sets
The feedback arc (vertex) set problem, shortened FASP (FVSP), is to transform
a given multi digraph into an acyclic graph by deleting as few arcs
(vertices) as possible. Due to the results of Richard M. Karp in 1972 it is one
of the classic NP-complete problems. An important contribution of this paper is
that the subgraphs , of all elementary
cycles or simple cycles running through some arc , can be computed in
and , respectively. We use
this fact and introduce the notion of the essential minor and isolated cycles,
which yield a priori problem size reductions and in the special case of so
called resolvable graphs an exact solution in . We show
that weighted versions of the FASP and FVSP possess a Bellman decomposition,
which yields exact solutions using a dynamic programming technique in times
and
, where , , respectively. The parameters can
be computed in , ,
respectively and denote the maximal dimension of the cycle space of all
appearing meta graphs, decoding the intersection behavior of the cycles.
Consequently, equal zero if all meta graphs are trees. Moreover, we
deliver several heuristics and discuss how to control their variation from the
optimum. Summarizing, the presented results allow us to suggest a strategy for
an implementation of a fast and accurate FASP/FVSP-SOLVER
Vertex Disjoint Path in Upward Planar Graphs
The -vertex disjoint paths problem is one of the most studied problems in
algorithmic graph theory. In 1994, Schrijver proved that the problem can be
solved in polynomial time for every fixed when restricted to the class of
planar digraphs and it was a long standing open question whether it is
fixed-parameter tractable (with respect to parameter ) on this restricted
class. Only recently, \cite{CMPP}.\ achieved a major breakthrough and answered
the question positively. Despite the importance of this result (and the
brilliance of their proof), it is of rather theoretical importance. Their proof
technique is both technically extremely involved and also has at least double
exponential parameter dependence. Thus, it seems unrealistic that the algorithm
could actually be implemented. In this paper, therefore, we study a smaller
class of planar digraphs, the class of upward planar digraphs, a well studied
class of planar graphs which can be drawn in a plane such that all edges are
drawn upwards. We show that on the class of upward planar digraphs the problem
(i) remains NP-complete and (ii) the problem is fixed-parameter tractable.
While membership in FPT follows immediately from \cite{CMPP}'s general result,
our algorithm has only single exponential parameter dependency compared to the
double exponential parameter dependence for general planar digraphs.
Furthermore, our algorithm can easily be implemented, in contrast to the
algorithm in \cite{CMPP}.Comment: 14 page
Robust optimization with incremental recourse
In this paper, we consider an adaptive approach to address optimization
problems with uncertain cost parameters. Here, the decision maker selects an
initial decision, observes the realization of the uncertain cost parameters,
and then is permitted to modify the initial decision. We treat the uncertainty
using the framework of robust optimization in which uncertain parameters lie
within a given set. The decision maker optimizes so as to develop the best cost
guarantee in terms of the worst-case analysis. The recourse decision is
``incremental"; that is, the decision maker is permitted to change the initial
solution by a small fixed amount. We refer to the resulting problem as the
robust incremental problem. We study robust incremental variants of several
optimization problems. We show that the robust incremental counterpart of a
linear program is itself a linear program if the uncertainty set is polyhedral.
Hence, it is solvable in polynomial time. We establish the NP-hardness for
robust incremental linear programming for the case of a discrete uncertainty
set. We show that the robust incremental shortest path problem is NP-complete
when costs are chosen from a polyhedral uncertainty set, even in the case that
only one new arc may be added to the initial path. We also address the
complexity of several special cases of the robust incremental shortest path
problem and the robust incremental minimum spanning tree problem
Quantifying the Extent of Lateral Gene Transfer Required to Avert a `Genome of Eden'
The complex pattern of presence and absence of many genes across different
species provides tantalising clues as to how genes evolved through the
processes of gene genesis, gene loss and lateral gene transfer (LGT). The
extent of LGT, particularly in prokaryotes, and its implications for creating a
`network of life' rather than a `tree of life' is controversial. In this paper,
we formally model the problem of quantifying LGT, and provide exact
mathematical bounds, and new computational results. In particular, we
investigate the computational complexity of quantifying the extent of LGT under
the simple models of gene genesis, loss and transfer on which a recent
heuristic analysis of biological data relied. Our approach takes advantage of a
relationship between LGT optimization and graph-theoretical concepts such as
tree width and network flow
The Rabin index of parity games
We study the descriptive complexity of parity games by taking into account
the coloring of their game graphs whilst ignoring their ownership structure.
Colored game graphs are identified if they determine the same winning regions
and strategies, for all ownership structures of nodes. The Rabin index of a
parity game is the minimum of the maximal color taken over all equivalent
coloring functions. We show that deciding whether the Rabin index is at least k
is in PTIME for k=1 but NP-hard for all fixed k > 1. We present an EXPTIME
algorithm that computes the Rabin index by simplifying its input coloring
function. When replacing simple cycle with cycle detection in that algorithm,
its output over-approximates the Rabin index in polynomial time. Experimental
results show that this approximation yields good values in practice.Comment: In Proceedings GandALF 2013, arXiv:1307.416
- …