Beyond Consistency and Substitutability

International audienceElimination of inconsistent values in instances of the constraint satisfaction problem (CSP) conserves all solutions. Elimination of substitutable values conserves at least one solution. We show that certain values which are neither inconsistent nor substitutable can also be deleted while conserving at least one solution. This allows us to state novel rules for the elimination of values in binary CSP. From a practical point of view, we show that one such rule can be applied in the same asymptotic time complexity as neighbourhood substitution but is strictly stronger. An alternative to the elimination of values from domains is the elimination of variables. We give novel satisfiability-preserving variable elimination operations. In each case we show that if the instance is satisfiable, then a solution to the original instance can always be recovered in low-order polynomial time from a solution to the reduced instance

Weak-scale hidden sector and electroweak Q-balls

By extending the scalar sector of the Standard Model (SM) by a U(1) singlet, we show that the electroweak symmetry breaking enables the formation of a stable, electrically neutral, colorless Q-ball which couples to the SM particle spectrum solely through the Higgs boson. This Q-ball has mainly weak and gravitational interactions, and behaves as a collection of weakly interacting massive particles. Therefore, it can be a candidate for the dark matter in the universe.Comment: 10 pages, typos corrected, new references adde

Short time decay of the Loschmidt echo

The Loschmidt echo measures the sensitivity to perturbations of quantum evolutions. We study its short time decay in classically chaotic systems. Using perturbation theory and throwing out all correlation imposed by the initial state and the perturbation, we show that the characteristic time of this regime is well described by the inverse of the width of the local density of states. This result is illustrated and discussed in a numerical study in a 2-dimensional chaotic billiard system perturbed by various contour deformations and using different types of initial conditions. Moreover, the influence to the short time decay of sub-Planck structures developed by time evolution is also investigated.Comment: 7 pages, 7 figures, published versio

Pedagogical conditions of training future managers of foreign economic activity for cross-cultural communication

The study reveals the pedagogical conditions of training future managers of foreign economic activity for cross-cultural communication. The analysis of the scientific research in this field has shown that the essence of the pedagogical conditions has not been generalized or systemized yet. On the base of the invariable vectors of the pedagogical process, the pedagogical conditions of training future managers of foreign economic activity for cross-cultural communication are outlined. They are: creating multicultural surrounding in the process of training managers for gaining experience in cross-cultural communication (organization); adaptive gradual management of the educational activity with due regards for personal, professional, communicative qualities of future managers of foreign economic activity (management); subject and subject interaction, directed at the optimal management of cross-cultural conflicts (communication)

Hypergraph Acyclicity and Propositional Model Counting

We show that the propositional model counting problem #SAT for CNF- formulas with hypergraphs that allow a disjoint branches decomposition can be solved in polynomial time. We show that this class of hypergraphs is incomparable to hypergraphs of bounded incidence cliquewidth which were the biggest class of hypergraphs for which #SAT was known to be solvable in polynomial time so far. Furthermore, we present a polynomial time algorithm that computes a disjoint branches decomposition of a given hypergraph if it exists and rejects otherwise. Finally, we show that some slight extensions of the class of hypergraphs with disjoint branches decompositions lead to intractable #SAT, leaving open how to generalize the counting result of this paper

Tractable Combinations of Global Constraints

We study the complexity of constraint satisfaction problems involving global constraints, i.e., special-purpose constraints provided by a solver and represented implicitly by a parametrised algorithm. Such constraints are widely used; indeed, they are one of the key reasons for the success of constraint programming in solving real-world problems. Previous work has focused on the development of efficient propagators for individual constraints. In this paper, we identify a new tractable class of constraint problems involving global constraints of unbounded arity. To do so, we combine structural restrictions with the observation that some important types of global constraint do not distinguish between large classes of equivalent solutions.Comment: To appear in proceedings of CP'13, LNCS 8124. arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:1307.179

On Broken Triangles (CP 2014)

International audienceA binary CSP instance satisfying the broken-triangle property (BTP) can be solved in polynomial time. Unfortunately, in practice, few instances satisfy the BTP. We show that a local version of the BTP allows the merging of domain values in binary CSPs, thus providing a novel polynomial-time reduction operation. Experimental trials on benchmark instances demonstrate a significant decrease in instance size for certain classes of problems. We show that BTP-merging can be generalised to instances with constraints of arbitrary arity. A directional version of the general-arity BTP then allows us to extend the BTP tractable class previously defined only for binary CSP

Park use and physical activity among adolescent girls at two time points

This longitudinal study described park usage and assessed the contribution of parks to moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) among adolescent girls. High school girls from California (n = 131) and Minnesota (n = 134) wore a global positioning system (GPS) monitor and accelerometer for 6 consecutive days at two time points, one year apart. Park visits were classified by linking the GPS, accelerometer, and park and built environment data around home and school locations into a geographic information system. At baseline, 20% of girls visited a park at least once (mean 0.1 times/day), which was similar one year later (19%, mean 0.1 times/day). Girls lived a mean Euclidean distance of 0.2 miles to the nearest park at both times. Among all park visits, the mean Euclidean distance of the park visited was 4.1 (baseline) and 3.9 miles (follow-up). The average duration of park visits was higher at baseline (63.9 minutes) compared to follow-up (38.4 minutes). On days when a park was visited, MVPA was higher than on days when a park was not visited. On average, 1.9% (baseline) and 2.8% (follow-up) of MVPA occurred in parks. In this study, parks were an under-used resource for adolescent girls, particularly for MVPA

Relating the Time Complexity of Optimization Problems in Light of the Exponential-Time Hypothesis

Obtaining lower bounds for NP-hard problems has for a long time been an active area of research. Recent algebraic techniques introduced by Jonsson et al. (SODA 2013) show that the time complexity of the parameterized SAT($\cdot$) problem correlates to the lattice of strong partial clones. With this ordering they isolated a relation $R$ such that SAT($R$) can be solved at least as fast as any other NP-hard SAT($\cdot$) problem. In this paper we extend this method and show that such languages also exist for the max ones problem (MaxOnes($\Gamma$)) and the Boolean valued constraint satisfaction problem over finite-valued constraint languages (VCSP($\Delta$)). With the help of these languages we relate MaxOnes and VCSP to the exponential time hypothesis in several different ways.Comment: This is an extended version of Relating the Time Complexity of Optimization Problems in Light of the Exponential-Time Hypothesis, appearing in Proceedings of the 39th International Symposium on Mathematical Foundations of Computer Science MFCS 2014 Budapest, August 25-29, 201

Evolution of seaward-dipping reflectors at the onset of oceanic crust formation at volcanic passive margins: Insights from the South Atlantic

Seaward-dipping reflectors (SDRs) have long been recognized as a ubiquitous feature of volcanic passive margins, yet their evolution is much debated, and even the subject of the nature of the underlying crust is contentious. This uncertainty significantly restricts our understanding of continental breakup and ocean basin–forming processes. Using high-fidelity reflection data from offshore Argentina, we observe that the crust containing the SDRs has similarities to oceanic crust, albeit with a larger proportion of extrusive volcanics, variably interbedded with sediments. Densities derived from gravity modeling are compatible with the presence of magmatic crust beneath the outer SDRs. When these SDR packages are restored to synemplacement geometry we observe that they thicken into the basin axis with a nonfaulted, diffuse termination, which we associate with dikes intruding into initially horizontal volcanics. Our model for SDR formation invokes progressive rotation of these horizontal volcanics by subsidence driven by isostasy in the center of the evolving SDR depocenter as continental lithosphere is replaced by more dense oceanic lithosphere. The entire system records the migration of >10-km-thick new magmatic crust away from a rapidly subsiding but subaerial incipient spreading center at rates typical of slow oceanic spreading processes. Our model for new magmatic crust can explain SDR formation on magma-rich margins globally, but the estimated crustal thickness requires elevated mantle temperatures for their formation