Related papers: Latin Puzzles

An arrangement of s elements in s rows and s columns, such that no element repeats more than once in each row and each column is called a Latin square of order s. If two Latin squares of the same order superimposed one on the other and in…

The parity type of a Latin square is defined in terms of the numbers of even and odd rows and columns. It is related to an Alon-Tarsi-like conjecture that applies to Latin squares of odd order. Parity types are used to derive upper bounds…

Based on Lyndon words, a new Sudoku-like puzzle is presented and some relative theoretical questions are proposed.

A multi-latin square of order $n$ and index $k$ is an $n\times n$ array of multisets, each of cardinality $k$, such that each symbol from a fixed set of size $n$ occurs $k$ times in each row and $k$ times in each column. A multi-latin…

Semi-Latin squares have been extensively studied. They can be interpreted as a special case of latinized block designs where the number of columns is equal to the number of replicates in the design. Latinized row-column designs are…

We develop a limit theory of Latin squares, paralleling the recent limit theories of dense graphs and permutations. We introduce a notion of density, an appropriate version of the cut distance, and a space of limit objects - so-called…

Goyeneche et al recently proposed a notion of orthogonality for quantum Latin squares, and showed that orthogonal quantum Latin squares yield quantum codes. We give a simplified characterization of orthogonality for quantum Latin squares,…

Let $m \leq n \leq k$. An $m \times n \times k$ 0-1 array is a Latin box if it contains exactly $mn$ ones, and has at most one $1$ in each line. As a special case, Latin boxes in which $m = n = k$ are equivalent to Latin squares. Let…

A $k$-plex in a latin square of order $n$ is a selection of $kn$ entries that includes $k$ representatives from each row and column and $k$ occurrences of each symbol. A $1$-plex is also known as a transversal. It is well known that if $n$…

We show that any partial Latin square of order $n$ can be embedded in a Latin square of order at most $16n^2$ which has at least $2n$ mutually orthogonal mates. We also show that for any $t\geq 2$, a pair of orthogonal partial Latin squares…

Puzzle solving is a difficult problem in its own right, even when the pieces are all square and build up a natural image. But what if these ideal conditions do not hold? One such application domain is archaeology, where restoring an…

We introduce a condition on arrays in some way maximally distinct from Latin square condition, as well as some other conditions on algebras, graphs and $0,1$-matrices. We show that these are essentially the same structures, generalising a…

This paper deals with a generalized Sudoku problem and investigates the unicity of a given solution. We introduce constraint sets, which is a generalization of the rows, columns and blocks of a classical Sudoku puzzle. The unicity property…

A $k \times n$ partial Latin rectangle is \textit{$C$-sparse} if the number of nonempty entries in each row and column is at most $C$ and each symbol is used at most $C$ times. We prove that the probability a uniformly random $k \times n$…

A Latin square of side n defines in a natural way a finite geometry on 3n points, with three lines of size n and n^2 lines of size 3. A Latin square of side n with a transversal similarly defines a finite geometry on 3n+1 points, with three…

We introduce higher-dimensional cubical sliding puzzles that are inspired by the classical 15 Puzzle from the 1880s. In our puzzles, on a $d$-dimensional cube, a labeled token can be slid from one vertex to another if it is topologically…

In this short paper we present an algorithm for finding a solution to a generalized Sudoku.

In 1974 Allan Cruse provided necessary and sufficient conditions to extend an $r\times s$ partial latin rectangle consisting of $t$ distinct symbols to a latin square of order $n$. Here we provide some generalizations and consequences of…

We consider a mathematical model for the classical Sudoku puzzle, which we call the primal problem and introduce a corresponding dual problem. Both problems are constraint satisfaction models and a duality relation between them is proved.…

Ever since E. T. Parker constructed an orthogonal pair of $10\times10$ Latin squares in 1959, an orthogonal triple of $10\times10$ Latin squares has been one of the most sought-after combinatorial designs. Despite extensive work, the…