Related papers: The complexity of downward closure comparisons
A wide range of constraints can be compactly specified using automata or formal languages. In a sequence of recent papers, we have shown that an effective means to reason with such specifications is to decompose them into primitive…
In this paper, we study the word problem for automaton semigroups and automaton groups from a complexity point of view. As an intermediate concept between automaton semigroups and automaton groups, we introduce automaton-inverse semigroups,…
We show that there are $\Sigma_3^0$-complete languages of infinite words accepted by non-deterministic Petri nets with B\"uchi acceptance condition, or equivalently by B\"uchi blind counter automata. This shows that omega-languages accepted…
We study the relation between the palindromic and factor complexity of infinite words. We show that for uniformly recurrent words one has P(n)+P(n+1) \leq \Delta C(n) + 2, for all n \in N. For a large class of words it is a better estimate…
We introduce an operator on classes of regular languages, the star-free closure. Our motivation is to generalize standard results of automata theory within a unified framework. Given an arbitrary input class $C$, the star-free closure…
Deterministic 2-head finite automata which are machines that process an input word from both ends are analyzed for their ability to perform reversible computations. This implies that the automata are backward deterministic, enabling unique…
Imagine an assembly line where a box with a lid and liquid in it enters in some unknown orientation. The box should leave the line with the open lid facing upwards with the liquid still in it. To save costs there are no complex sensors or…
Gradual semantics with abstract argumentation provide each argument with a score reflecting its acceptability, i.e. how "much" it is attacked by other arguments. Many different gradual semantics have been proposed in the literature, each…
In this paper, we consider a variant of the classical algorithmic problem of checking whether a given word $v$ is a subsequence of another word $w$. More precisely, we consider the problem of deciding, given a number $p$ (defining a…
In the constrained synchronization problem we ask if a given automaton admits a synchronizing word coming from a fixed regular constraint language. We show that intersecting a given constraint language with an ideal language decreases the…
It is well known that the "store language" of every pushdown automaton -- the set of store configurations (state and stack contents) that can appear as an intermediate step in accepting computations -- is a regular language. Here many…
The syntactic complexity of a regular language is the cardinality of its syntactic semigroup. The syntactic complexity of a subclass of regular languages is the maximal syntactic complexity of languages in that subclass, taken as a function…
Among the approximation methods for the verification of counter systems, one of them consists in model-checking their flat unfoldings. Unfortunately, the complexity characterization of model-checking problems for such operational models is…
By algorithmic metatheorems for a model checking problem P over infinite-state systems we mean generic results that can be used to infer decidability (possibly complexity) of P not only over a specific class of infinite systems, but over a…
In this paper we explore fundamental concepts in computational complexity theory and the boundaries of algorithmic decidability. We examine the relationship between complexity classes \textbf{P} and \textbf{NP}, where $L \in \textbf{P}$…
Cryptic crosswords are puzzles that rely on general knowledge and the solver's ability to manipulate language on different levels, dealing with various types of wordplay. Previous research suggests that solving such puzzles is challenging…
In this paper we prove that for any infinite word W whose set of factors is closed under reversal, the following conditions are equivalent: (I) all complete returns to palindromes are palindromes; (II) P(n) + P(n+1) = C(n+1) - C(n) + 2 for…
The theory of higher-dimensional automata (HDAs) has seen rapid progress in recent years, and first applications, notably to Petri net analysis, are starting to show. It has, however, emerged that HDAs themselves often are too strict a…
We study decision problems of the form: given a regular or linear context-free language $L$, is there a word of a given fixed form in $L$, where given fixed forms are based on word operations copy, marked copy, shuffle and their…
For every fixed class of regular languages, there is a natural hierarchy of increasingly more general problems: Firstly, the membership problem asks whether a given language belongs to the fixed class of languages. Secondly, the separation…