Related papers: On the Combinatorial Lower Bound for the Extension…

We show that the expected size of the maximum agreement subtree of two $n$-leaf trees, uniformly random among all trees with the shape, is $\Theta(\sqrt{n})$. To derive the lower bound, we prove a global structural result on a decomposition…

Sometimes, it is possible to represent a complicated polytope as a projection of a much simpler polytope. To quantify this phenomenon, the extension complexity of a polytope $P$ is defined to be the minimum number of facets of a (possibly…

Chung and Graham [J. London Math. Soc., 1983] claimed that there exists an $n$-vertex graph $G$ containing all $n$-vertex trees as subgraphs that has at most $\frac{5}{2}n \log_2 n + O(n)$ edges. We identify an error in their proof. This…

Consider the following generalization of the classic binary search problem: a searcher is required to find a hidden vertex $x$ in a tree $T$. To do so, they iteratively perform queries to an oracle, each about a chosen vertex $v$. After…

We develop lower bounds on communication in the memory hierarchy or between processors for nested bilinear algorithms, such as Strassen's algorithm for matrix multiplication. We build on a previous framework that establishes communication…

We consider the problem of minimizing a fixed-degree polynomial over the standard simplex. This problem is well known to be NP-hard, since it contains the maximum stable set problem in combinatorial optimization as a special case. In this…

A code is called a $q$-query locally decodable code (LDC) if there is a randomized decoding algorithm that, given an index $i$ and a received word $w$ close to an encoding of a message $x$, outputs $x_i$ by querying only at most $q$…

In this paper we extend recent results of Fiorini et al. on the extension complexity of the cut polytope and related polyhedra. We first describe a lifting argument to show exponential extension complexity for a number of NP-complete…

This paper tightens the best known analysis of Hein's 1989 algorithm to infer the topology of a weighted tree based on the lengths of paths between its leaves. It shows that the number of length queries required for a degree-$k$ tree of $n$…

Square grids play a pivotal role in Robertson and Seymour's work on graph minors as planar obstructions to small treewidth. We introduce a three-sided bramble in a plane graph called a net, which generalizes the standard bramble of crosses…

Fischer has shown how to compute a minimum weight spanning tree of degree at most $b \Delta^* + \lceil \log\_b n\rceil$ in time $O(n^{4 + 1/\ln b})$ for any constant $b > 1$, where $\Delta^*$ is the value of an optimal solution and $n$ is…

Let $L$ be a finite lattice and $\mathcal{E}(L)$ be the set of join endomorphisms of $L$. We consider the problem of given $L$ and $f,g \in \mathcal{E}(L)$, finding the greatest lower bound $f \sqcap_{{\scriptsize \mathcal{E}(L)}} g$ in the…

In this paper, we compute the tightest possible bounds on the probability that the optimal value of a combinatorial optimization problem in maximization form with a random objective exceeds a given number, assuming only knowledge of the…

This paper studies lower bounds for fundamental optimization problems in the CONGEST model. We show that solving problems exactly in this model can be a hard task, by providing $\tilde{\Omega}(n^2)$ lower bounds for cornerstone problems,…

We obtain new lower and upper bounds for the maximum multiplicity of some weighted and, respectively, non-weighted common geometric graphs drawn on n points in the plane in general position (with no three points collinear): perfect…

We construct $n$-node graphs on which any $O(n)$-size spanner has additive error at least $+\Omega(n^{3/17})$, improving on the previous best lower bound of $\Omega(n^{1/7})$ [Bodwin-Hoppenworth FOCS '22]. Our construction completes the…

We study the worst-case communication complexity of distributed algorithms computing a path problem based on stationary distributions of random walks in a network $G$ with the caveat that $G$ is also the communication network. The problem…

The segment number of a planar graph $G$ is the smallest number of line segments needed for a planar straight-line drawing of $G$. Dujmovi\'c, Eppstein, Suderman, and Wood [CGTA'07] introduced this measure for the visual complexity of…

We investigate the complexity of finding a transformation from a given spanning tree in a graph to another given spanning tree in the same graph via a sequence of edge flips. The exchange property of the matroid bases immediately yields…

We introduce a new theoretical framework for deriving lower bounds on data movement in bilinear algorithms. Bilinear algorithms are a general representation of fast algorithms for bilinear functions, which include computation of matrix…