26 research outputs found
Enumeration and Structure of Trapezoidal Words
Trapezoidal words are words having at most distinct factors of length
for every . They therefore encompass finite Sturmian words. We give
combinatorial characterizations of trapezoidal words and exhibit a formula for
their enumeration. We then separate trapezoidal words into two disjoint
classes: open and closed. A trapezoidal word is closed if it has a factor that
occurs only as a prefix and as a suffix; otherwise it is open. We investigate
open and closed trapezoidal words, in relation with their special factors. We
prove that Sturmian palindromes are closed trapezoidal words and that a closed
trapezoidal word is a Sturmian palindrome if and only if its longest repeated
prefix is a palindrome. We also define a new class of words, \emph{semicentral
words}, and show that they are characterized by the property that they can be
written as , for a central word and two different letters .
Finally, we investigate the prefixes of the Fibonacci word with respect to the
property of being open or closed trapezoidal words, and show that the sequence
of open and closed prefixes of the Fibonacci word follows the Fibonacci
sequence.Comment: Accepted for publication in Theoretical Computer Scienc
(Un)Decidability Results for Word Equations with Length and Regular Expression Constraints
We prove several decidability and undecidability results for the
satisfiability and validity problems for languages that can express solutions
to word equations with length constraints. The atomic formulas over this
language are equality over string terms (word equations), linear inequality
over the length function (length constraints), and membership in regular sets.
These questions are important in logic, program analysis, and formal
verification. Variants of these questions have been studied for many decades by
mathematicians. More recently, practical satisfiability procedures (aka SMT
solvers) for these formulas have become increasingly important in the context
of security analysis for string-manipulating programs such as web applications.
We prove three main theorems. First, we give a new proof of undecidability
for the validity problem for the set of sentences written as a forall-exists
quantifier alternation applied to positive word equations. A corollary of this
undecidability result is that this set is undecidable even with sentences with
at most two occurrences of a string variable. Second, we consider Boolean
combinations of quantifier-free formulas constructed out of word equations and
length constraints. We show that if word equations can be converted to a solved
form, a form relevant in practice, then the satisfiability problem for Boolean
combinations of word equations and length constraints is decidable. Third, we
show that the satisfiability problem for quantifier-free formulas over word
equations in regular solved form, length constraints, and the membership
predicate over regular expressions is also decidable.Comment: Invited Paper at ADDCT Workshop 2013 (co-located with CADE 2013
Finite Countermodel Based Verification for Program Transformation (A Case Study)
Both automatic program verification and program transformation are based on
program analysis. In the past decade a number of approaches using various
automatic general-purpose program transformation techniques (partial deduction,
specialization, supercompilation) for verification of unreachability properties
of computing systems were introduced and demonstrated. On the other hand, the
semantics based unfold-fold program transformation methods pose themselves
diverse kinds of reachability tasks and try to solve them, aiming at improving
the semantics tree of the program being transformed. That means some
general-purpose verification methods may be used for strengthening program
transformation techniques. This paper considers the question how finite
countermodels for safety verification method might be used in Turchin's
supercompilation method. We extract a number of supercompilation sub-algorithms
trying to solve reachability problems and demonstrate use of an external
countermodel finder for solving some of the problems.Comment: In Proceedings VPT 2015, arXiv:1512.0221
One-variable word equations in linear time
In this paper we consider word equations with one variable (and arbitrary
many appearances of it). A recent technique of recompression, which is
applicable to general word equations, is shown to be suitable also in this
case. While in general case it is non-deterministic, it determinises in case of
one variable and the obtained running time is O(n + #_X log n), where #_X is
the number of appearances of the variable in the equation. This matches the
previously-best algorithm due to D\k{a}browski and Plandowski. Then, using a
couple of heuristics as well as more detailed time analysis the running time is
lowered to O(n) in RAM model. Unfortunately no new properties of solutions are
shown.Comment: submitted to a journal, general overhaul over the previous versio
Recompression: a simple and powerful technique for word equations
In this paper we present an application of a simple technique of local
recompression, previously developed by the author in the context of compressed
membership problems and compressed pattern matching, to word equations. The
technique is based on local modification of variables (replacing X by aX or Xa)
and iterative replacement of pairs of letters appearing in the equation by a
`fresh' letter, which can be seen as a bottom-up compression of the solution of
the given word equation, to be more specific, building an SLP (Straight-Line
Programme) for the solution of the word equation.
Using this technique we give a new, independent and self-contained proofs of
most of the known results for word equations. To be more specific, the
presented (nondeterministic) algorithm runs in O(n log n) space and in time
polynomial in log N, where N is the size of the length-minimal solution of the
word equation. The presented algorithm can be easily generalised to a generator
of all solutions of the given word equation (without increasing the space
usage). Furthermore, a further analysis of the algorithm yields a doubly
exponential upper bound on the size of the length-minimal solution. The
presented algorithm does not use exponential bound on the exponent of
periodicity. Conversely, the analysis of the algorithm yields an independent
proof of the exponential bound on exponent of periodicity.
We believe that the presented algorithm, its idea and analysis are far
simpler than all previously applied. Furthermore, thanks to it we can obtain a
unified and simple approach to most of known results for word equations.
As a small additional result we show that for O(1) variables (with arbitrary
many appearances in the equation) word equations can be solved in linear space,
i.e. they are context-sensitive.Comment: Submitted to a journal. Since previous version the proofs were
simplified, overall presentation improve
Solving One Variable Word Equations in the Free Group in Cubic Time
A word equation with one variable in a free group is given as , where
both and are words over the alphabet of generators of the free group
and , for a fixed variable . An element of the free group is a
solution when substituting it for yields a true equality (interpreted in
the free group) of left- and right-hand sides. It is known that the set of all
solutions of a given word equation with one variable is a finite union of sets
of the form , where are reduced words over the alphabet of generators, and a polynomial-time
algorithm (of a high degree) computing this set is known. We provide a cubic
time algorithm for this problem, which also shows that the set of solutions
consists of at most a quadratic number of the above-mentioned sets. The
algorithm uses only simple tools of word combinatorics and group theory and is
simple to state. Its analysis is involved and focuses on the combinatorics of
occurrences of powers of a word within a larger word.Comment: 52 pages, accepted to STACS 202
Finding All Solutions of Equations in Free Groups and Monoids with Involution
The aim of this paper is to present a PSPACE algorithm which yields a finite
graph of exponential size and which describes the set of all solutions of
equations in free groups as well as the set of all solutions of equations in
free monoids with involution in the presence of rational constraints. This
became possible due to the recently invented emph{recompression} technique of
the second author.
He successfully applied the recompression technique for pure word equations
without involution or rational constraints. In particular, his method could not
be used as a black box for free groups (even without rational constraints).
Actually, the presence of an involution (inverse elements) and rational
constraints complicates the situation and some additional analysis is
necessary. Still, the recompression technique is general enough to accommodate
both extensions. In the end, it simplifies proofs that solving word equations
is in PSPACE (Plandowski 1999) and the corresponding result for equations in
free groups with rational constraints (Diekert, Hagenah and Gutierrez 2001). As
a byproduct we obtain a direct proof that it is decidable in PSPACE whether or
not the solution set is finite.Comment: A preliminary version of this paper was presented as an invited talk
at CSR 2014 in Moscow, June 7 - 11, 201
The Hardness of Solving Simple Word Equations
We investigate the class of regular-ordered word equations. In such equations, each variable occurs at most once in each side and the order of the variables occurring in both left and right hand sides is preserved (the variables can be, however, separated by potentially distinct constant factors). Surprisingly, we obtain that solving such simple equations, even when the sides contain exactly the same variables, is NP-hard. By considerations regarding the combinatorial structure of the minimal solutions of the more general quadratic equations we obtain that the satisfiability problem for regular-ordered equations is in NP. The complexity of solving such word equations under regular constraints is also settled. Finally, we show that a related class of simple word equations, that generalises one-variable equations, is in P