Computing the bump number is easy

The bump number b(P) of a partial order P is the minimum number of comparable adjacent pairs in some linear extension of P. It has an interesting application in the context of linear circuit layout problems. Its determination is equivalent to maximizing the number of jumps in some linear extension of P, for which the corresponding minimization problem (the jump number problem) is known to be NP-hard. We derive a polynomial algorithm for determining b(P). The proof of its correctness is based on a min-max theorem involving simple-structured series-parallel partial orders contained in P. This approach also leads to a characterization of all minimal partial orders (with respect to inclusion of the order relations) with fixed bump number.Supported by Sonderforschungsbereich 303 of the University of Bonn.Supported by DAAD and SSHRC, Grant No. 451861295.     

Upward planarity testing

Acyclic digraphs, such as the covering digraphs of ordered sets, are usually drawn upward, i.e., with the edges monotonically increasing in the vertical direction. A digraph is upward planar if it admits an upward planar drawing. In this survey paper, we overview the literature on the problem of upward planarity testing. We present several characterizations of upward planarity and describe upward planarity testing algorithms for special classes of digraphs, such as embedded digraphs and single-source digraphs. We also sketch the proof of NP-completeness of upward planarity testing.Research supported in part by the National Science Foundation under grant CCR-9423847.     

Chaines maximales de préordres

Résumé La famille des préordres sur un ensemble fixé constitue un treillis pour l'inclusion. Répondant à une question rencontrée par S. Eilenberg dans l'étude des automates non déterministes on établit une propriété des chaînes maximales de préordres sur un ensemble fini.On en déduit que si l'ensemble a n éléments, de telles chaînes contiennent au plus [n(n + 1)]/2 préordres.

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ℰ-complete andD-generic filters of partially ordered sets

In this paper we prove theorems which ensure the existence of -complete andD-generic filters of partially ordered sets.     

Single-suit two-person card play II. Dominance

This paper studies a two-person constant sum perfect information game, the End Play Game, arising from an abstraction of end play in bridge. This game was described by Emanuel Lasker who called it whistette. The game uses a deck of cards consisting of a single totally ordered suit of 2n cards. The deck is divided into two hands A and B of n cards each, held by players Left and Right, and one player is designated as having the lead. The player on lead chooses one of his cards, and the other player after seeing this card selects one of his own to play. The player with the higher card wins a trick and obtains the lead. The cards in the trick are removed from each hand, and play then continues until all cards are exhausted. Each player strives to maximize his trick total, and the value of the game to each player is the number of tricks he takes. The strategy of this game seems to be quite complicated, despite its simple appearance. This paper studies partial orderings on hands. One partial order recognizes regularities in the value function that persist when extra cards are added to hands. A pair of hands (A ^* , B ^* ) dominates a pair of hands (A, B) for Left, if for any set of extra cards (C ₁, C ₂) added to the deck such that A B (which equals A ^* B ^* ) is a block of consecutive cards in the expanded deck A B {C ₁ , C ₂} the value of (A C ₁, B C ₂) to Left always is at least as much as the value to Left of (A ^* C ₁, B ^* C ₂) both when Left has the lead in both games and when Right has the lead in both games. The main result is that ({4, 1}, {3, 2}) dominates ({3, 2}, {4, 1}). Note that with just four cards the hands {4, 1} and {3, 2} are of identical value — they both take one trick independent of the lead or how the hands are played. The dominance result shows that {4, 1} is preferable to {3, 2} when other cards are present. We show that the dominance relation gives a partial order that is not a total order on hands of 3 or more cards. We also study the total point count ordering, which gives a rough estimate for the value of a hand. We derive upper and lower bounds for the value of a hand with given point count.     

Computing Numerically with Functions Instead of Numbers

Symbolic computation with functions of a real variable suffers from combinatorial explosion of memory and computation time. The alternative chebfun system for such computations is described, based on Chebyshev expansions and barycentric interpolation. For Richard Brent on his 60th birthday     

On minimizing the jump number for interval orders

The purpose of this paper is to give an effective characterization of all interval orders which are greedy with respect to the jump number problem.This research (Math/1406/30) was supported by the Research Center, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.     

Minimizing setups in ordered sets of fixed width

A simply polynomial time algorithm is given for computing the setup number, or jump number, of an ordered set with fixed width. This arises as an interesting application of a polynomial time algorithm for solving a more general weighted problem in precedence constrained scheduling.     

The jump number of suborders of the power set order

Let P be an ordered set induced by several levels of a power set. We give a formula for the jump number of P and show that reverse lexicographic orderings of P are optimal. The proof is based on an extremal set result of Frankl and Kalai.     

Synchronizing and Collapsing Words

A word w over a finite alphabet Σ is called k-collapsing if for each finite deterministic automaton the inequality holds provided that for some word , depending on . A word over the alphabet Σ is called k-synchronizing if it is a reset word for all synchronizing automata with k + 1 states and input alphabet Σ. The aim of this work is to give the motivations of the interest in these words and to provide an overview of some results in this area. Received: May 2007     

Recognition of order-preserving maps

The following algorithmic problem is considered. Let P and Q be finite partially ordered sets. Given an unknown order-preserving map f: P→Q what is the minimum number of evaluations of f on elements of P which are needed to determine f completely in the worst case? Here the algorithms considered are ‘adaptive’, in the sense that the choice of the next element x of P for which f (x) is requested, can depend on the information gathered so far. Bounds are given for this minimum number. It is determined exactly in the case that P satisfies certain conditions.     

Quantum Computation and the Localization of Modular Functors

The mathematical problem of localizing modular functors to neighborhoods of points is shown to be closely related to the physical problem of engineering a local Hamiltonian for a computationally universal quantum medium. For genus =0 surfaces, such a local Hamiltonian is mathematically defined. Braiding defects of this medium implements a representation associated to the Jones polynomial and this representation is known to be universal for quantum computation. May 15, 2000. Final version received: November 15, 2000. Online publication: February 20, 2001.     

Finite digraphs with given regular automorphism groups

With five exceptions, every finite regular permutation group occurs as the automorphism group of a digraph.One of the corollaries: given a finite groupG of ordern, there is a commutative semigroupS of order 2n+2 such that AutSG. The problem whether a latticeL of order Cn with AutLG exists (for some constantC), remains open.     

A quick distributional way to the prime number theorem

We use distribution theory (generalized functions) to show the prime number theorem. No tauberian results are employed.     

Rational preemptive scheduling

In scheduling jobs subject to precedence constraints that form a partial order, it is advantageous to interrupt (preempt) jobs, and return to complete them at a later time in order to minimize total completion time. It is clearly desirable to see that such preemptive scheduling by finitely many machines requires only intervals of work, and not a more general assignment of tasks over measurable sets, for optimal completion. It is a deeper fact that arbitrarily small intervals are required for a fixed number of machines m>-3 for optimal preemptive scheduling. On the other hand, if the number of jobs is fixed, say n, then it is intuitively clear that it suffices to use only comparatively large intervals (but less clear how large will suffice!). The authors address these and certain related questions.     

A structure theorem for right invariant right holoids

Communicated by Boris M. Schein     

Cycle-free partial orders and chordal comparability graphs

This paper studies a number of problems on cycle-free partial orders and chordal comparability graphs. The dimension of a cycle-free partial order is shown to be at most 4. A linear time algorithm is presented for determining whether a chordal directed graph is transitive, which yields an O(n ²) algorithm for recognizing chordal comparability graphs. An algorithm is presented for determining whether the transitive closure of a digraph is a cycle-free partial order in O(n+m _t)time, where m _tis the number of edges in the transitive closure.     

Minimizing the jump number for partially ordered sets: A graph-theoretic approach

The purpose of this paper is to present a graph-theoretic approach to the jump number problem for N-free posets which is based on the observation that the Hasse diagram of an N-free poset is a line digraph. Therefore, to every N-free poset P we can assign another digraph which is the root digraph of the Hasse diagram of P. Using this representation we show that the jump number of an N-free poset is equal to the cyclomatic number of its root digraph and can be found (without producing any linear extension) by an algorithm which tests if a given poset is N-free. Moreover, we demonstrate that there exists a correspondence between optimal linear extensions of an N-free poset and spanning branchings of its root digraph. We provide also another proof of the fact that optimal linear extensions of N-free posets are exactly greedy linear extensions. In conclusion, we discuss some possible generalizations of these results to arbitrary posets.