Related papers: A Slow Relative of Hofstadter's Q-Sequence

In this paper, we study the three-term nested recurrence relation $B(n)=B(n-B(n-1))+B(n-B(n-2))+B(n-B(n-3))$ subject to initial conditions where the first $N$ terms are the integers $1$ through $N$. This recurrence is the three-term analog…

The Hofstadter Q-sequence, with its simple definition, has defied all attempts at analyzing its behavior. Defined by a simple nested recurrence and an initial condition, the sequence looks approximately linear, though with a lot of noise.…

A number of observations are made on Hofstadter's integer sequence defined by Q(n)= Q(n-Q(n-1))+Q(n-Q(n-2)), for n > 2, and Q(1)=Q(2)=1. On short scales the sequence looks chaotic. It turns out, however, that the Q(n) can be grouped into a…

We investigate the conditions on an integer sequence f(n), n 2 N, with f(1) = 0, such that the sequence q(n), computed recursively via q(n) = q(n - q(n - 1)) + f(n), with q(1) = 1, exists. We prove that f(n + 1) - f(n) in {0,1}, n > 0, is a…

Nested recurrence relations are highly sensitive to their initial conditions. The best-known nested recurrence, the Hofstadter $Q$-recurrence, generates sequences displaying a wide variety of behaviors. Most famous among these is the…

We continue work started in [1] concerning integer sequences q(n), n in N, defined by q(n) = q(n-q(n-1)) + f(n), with q(1) = 1. Here, f(n), with f(1) = 0, is a given sequence. We define F as the set of semi-infinite sequence f such that the…

The Hofstadter $H$ sequence is defined by $H(1) = 1$ and $H(n) = n-H(H(H(n-1)))$ for $n > 1$. If $\alpha$ is the real root of $x^3+x=1$ we show that the numbers $\alpha H(n) \mod 1$ are not uniformly distributed on $[0,1]$, but converge to…

The Hofstadter Q-sequence is a prominent example of nested recurrence. Despite decades of study, it is not even known whether Q(n) is defined for all n. Mantovanelli introduced a parity-perturbed variant $\widetilde{Q}$, obtained by adding…

We study a perturbed variant of Hofstadter's $Q$-recursion \[ Q(n)=Q(n-Q(n-1))+Q(n-Q(n-2))+(-1)^n, \qquad Q(1)=Q(2)=1 . \] Numerical experiments indicate that the sequence remains well defined for very large values of $n$ and exhibits an…

I study the recurrence D(n)= D(D(n-1))+D(n-1-D(n-2)), D(1)=D(2)=1. Its definition has some similarity to that of Conway's sequence defined through a(n)= a(a(n-1))+a(n-a(n-1)), a(1)=a(2)=1. However, in contradistinction to the completely…

In this work the generalized Collatz problem $qn+1$ ($q$ odd) is studied. As a natural generalization of the original $3n+1$ problem, it consists of a discrete dynamical system of an arithmetical kind. Using standard methods of number…

I propose and investigate the use of continuous functional equations for the study of meta-Fibonacci integer sequences. This exploratory study includes three sequences with quite different behavior: Conway's famous sequence $A(n)=…

Given k>1, let a_n be the sequence defined by the recurrence a_n=c_1a_{n-1}+c_2a_{n-2}+...+c_ka_{n-k} for n>=k, with initial values a_0=a_1=...=a_{k-2}=0 and a_{k-1}= 1. We show under a couple of assumptions concerning the constants c_i…

On the set of positive integers, we consider the iterative process that maps $n$ to either $\frac{3n+1}{2}$ or $\frac{n}{2}$ depending on the parity of $n$. The Collatz conjecture states that all such sequences eventually enter the trivial…

Following up on a paper of Balamohan, Kuznetsov, and Tanny, we analyze a variant of Hofstadter's Q-sequence and show it is 2-automatic. An automaton computing the sequence is explicitly given.

Hofstadter's G function is recursively defined via $G(0)=0$ and then $G(n)=n-G(G(n-1))$. Following Hofstadter, we vary the number $k$ of nested recursive calls in this equation and obtain a family of functions $(F\_k)$. Here we establish…

The Collatz sequence for a given natural number $N$ is generated by repeatedly applying the map $N$ $\rightarrow$ $3N+1$ if $N$ is odd and $N$ $\rightarrow$ $N/2$ if $N$ is even. One elusive open problem in Mathematics is whether all such…

In this study, we explore the properties of certain solutions of Hofstadter's famous $V$-recurrence, defined by the nested recurrence relation $V(n)=V(n-V(n-1))+V(n-V(n-4))$. First, we discover the nature behind a finite chaotic…

Let $(a_n)_{n\ge 1}$ be the greedy self-generating sequence defined by $a_1=1$, $a_2=2$, and, for $k\ge 3$, by taking $a_k$ to be the least integer greater than $a_{k-1}$ that can be written as a sum of at least two consecutive earlier…

We present a quite curious generalization of multi-step Fibonacci numbers. For any positive rational $q$, we enumerate binary words of length $n$ whose maximal factors of the form $0^a1^b$ satisfy $a = 0$ or $aq > b$. When $q$ is an integer…