Related papers: Shotgun Assembly of Random Jigsaw Puzzles
We propose a new kind of sliding-block puzzle, called Gourds, where the objective is to rearrange 1 x 2 pieces on a hexagonal grid board of 2n + 1 cells with n pieces, using sliding, turning and pivoting moves. This puzzle has a single…
Jigsaw percolation is a model for the process of solving puzzles within a social network, which was recently proposed by Brummitt, Chatterjee, Dey and Sivakoff. In the model there are two graphs on a single vertex set (the `people' graph…
Let $S$ be a finite set of positive integers with largest element $m$. Let us randomly select a composition $a$ of the integer $n$ with parts in $S$, and let $m(a)$ be the multiplicity of $m$ as a part of $a$. Let $0\leq r<q$ be integers,…
Working in Winfree's abstract tile assembly model, we show that a constant-size tile assembly system can be programmed through relative tile concentrations to build an n x n square with high probability, for any sufficiently large n. This…
Consider an urn model where at each step one of $q$ colors is sampled according to some probability distribution and a ball of that color is placed in an urn. The distribution of assigning balls to urns may depend on the color of the ball.…
Puzzle solving is a combinatorial challenge due to the difficulty of matching adjacent pieces. Instead, we infer a mental image from all pieces, which a given piece can then be matched against avoiding the combinatorial explosion.…
Jigsaw puzzles are typically labeled with their finished area and number of pieces. With this information, is it possible to estimate the area required to lay each piece flat before assembly? We derive a simple formula based on…
We study the problem of constructing a (near) random proper $q$-colouring of a simple k-uniform hypergraph with n vertices and maximum degree \Delta. (Proper in that no edge is mono-coloured and simple in that two edges have maximum…
Automatic assembly of apictorial jigsaw puzzles presents a classic curve matching problem, fundamentally challenged by discrete and noisy contour data obtained from digitization. Conventional smoothing methods, which are required to process…
The classical Gaussian ensembles of random matrices can be constructed by maximizing Boltzmann-Gibbs-Shannon's entropy, S_{BGS} = - \int d{\bf H} [P({\bf H})] \ln [P({\bf H})], with suitable constraints. Here we construct and analyze…
We solve an open problem of Diaconis that asks what are the largest orders of $p_n$ and $q_n$ such that $Z_n,$ the $p_n\times q_n$ upper left block of a random matrix $\boldsymbol{\Gamma}_n$ which is uniformly distributed on the orthogonal…
Skill mastery is a priority for success in all fields. We present a parallel between the development of skill mastery and the process of solving jigsaw puzzles. We show that iterative random sampling solves jigsaw puzzles in two phases: a…
We consider the Norros-Reittu random graph $NR_n(\textbf{w})$, where edges are present independently but edge probabilities are moderated by vertex weights, and use probabilistic arguments based on martingales to analyse the component sizes…
The prevalent technique for DNA sequencing consists of two main steps: shotgun sequencing, where many randomly located fragments, called reads, are extracted from the overall sequence, followed by an assembly algorithm that aims to…
Given $n>0$, let $S\subset [0,1]^2$ be a set of $n$ points, chosen uniformly at random. Let $R\cup B$ be a random partition, or coloring, of $S$ in which each point of $S$ is included in $R$ uniformly at random with probability $1/2$.…
We revisit the classical problem of determining the largest copy of a simple polygon $P$ that can be placed into a simple polygon $Q$. Despite significant effort, known algorithms require high polynomial running times. (Barequet and…
In the abstract Tile Assembly Model, self-assembling systems consisting of tiles of different colors can form structures on which colored patterns are ``painted.'' We explore the complexity, in terms of the numbers of unique tile types…
An ordered triple $(s,p,n)$ is called admissible if there exist two different multisets $X=\{x_1,x_2,\dotsc,x_n\}$ and $Y=\{y_1,y_2,\dotsc,y_n\}$ such that $X$ and $Y$ share the same sum $s$, the same product $p$, and the same size $n$. We…
The finite colliding bullets problem is the following simple problem: consider a gun, whose barrel remains in a fixed direction; let $(V_i)_{1\le i\le n}$ be an i.i.d.\ family of random variables with uniform distribution on $[0,1]$; shoot…
We derive a mixed integer nonlinear programming formulation for the problem of finding a convex polygon with a given number of vertices that is small (diameter at most one) and has maximum perimeter. The formulation is based on a geometric…