Related papers: $O_n$ is an $n$-MCFL

Classifying formal languages according to the expressiveness of grammars able to generate them is a fundamental problem in computational linguistics and, therefore, in the theory of computation. Furthermore, such kind of analysis can give…

We present a new proof that $O_2$ is a multiple context-free language. It contrasts with a recent proof by Salvati (2015) in its avoidance of concepts that seem specific to two-dimensional geometry, such as the complex exponential function.…

We give a new proof of Salvati's theorem that the group language $O_2$ is $2$ multiple context free. Unlike Salvati's proof, our arguments do not use any idea specific to two-dimensions. This raises the possibility that the argument might…

It is known that if a B\"uchi context-free language (BCFL) consists of scattered words, then there is an integer $n$, depending only on the language, such that the Hausdorff rank of each word in the language is bounded by $n$. Every BCFL is…

Context-free grammars are not able to model cross-serial dependencies in natural languages. To overcome this issue, Seki et al. introduced a generalization called $m$-multiple context-free grammars ($m$-MCFGs), which deal with $m$-tuples of…

We consider first-order logic with monoidal quantifiers over words. We show that all languages with a neutral letter, definable using the addition numerical predicate are also definable with the order predicate as the only numerical…

We study the membership problem to context-free languages L (CFLs) on probabilistic words, that specify for each position a probability distribution on the letters (assuming independence across positions). Our task is to compute, given a…

We introduce a new notion of C-simple problems for a class C of decision problems (i.e. languages), w.r.t. a particular reduction. A problem is C-simple if it can be reduced to each problem in C. This can be viewed as a conceptual…

To Rogers (1994) we owe the insight that monadic second order predicate logic with multiple successors (MSO) is well suited in many respects as a realistic formal base for syntactic theorizing. However, the agreeable formal properties of…

Transformers excel empirically on tasks that process well-formed inputs according to some grammar, such as natural language and code. However, it remains unclear how they can process grammatical syntax. In fact, under standard complexity…

A finite word is closed if it contains a factor that occurs both as a prefix and as a suffix but does not have internal occurrences, otherwise it is open. We are interested in the {\it oc-sequence} of a word, which is the binary sequence…

Back in the 80s, the class of mildly context-sensitive formalisms was introduced so as to capture the syntax of natural languages. While the languages generated by such formalisms are constrained by the constant-growth property, the most…

The \emph{word problem} of a group $G = \langle \Sigma \rangle$ can be defined as the set of formal words in $\Sigma^*$ that represent the identity in $G$. When viewed as formal languages, this gives a strong connection between classes of…

Let $A_N$ denote nondeterministic automatic complexity and \[ L_{k,c}=\{x\in [k]^* : A_N(x)> |x|/c\}. \] In particular, $L_{k,2}$ is the language of all $k$-ary words for which $A_N$ is maximal, while $L_{k,3}$ gives a rough dividing line…

Orthographic similarities across languages provide a strong signal for probabilistic decipherment, especially for closely related language pairs. The existing decipherment models, however, are not well-suited for exploiting these…

Let 2<n\leq l<m< \omega. Let L_n denote first order logic restricted to the first n variables. We show that the omitting types theorem fails dramatically for the n--variable fragments of first order logic with respect to clique guarded…

The paper is about a class of languages that extends context-free languages (CFL) and is stable under shuffle. Specifically, we investigate the class of partially-commutative context-free languages (PCCFL), where non-terminal symbols are…

We continue our study of open and closed languages. We investigate how the properties of being open and closed are preserved under concatenation. We investigate analogues, in formal languages, of the separation axioms in topological spaces;…

We show that for any $i > 0$, it is decidable, given a regular language, whether it is expressible in the $\Sigma_i[<]$ fragment of first-order logic FO[<]. This settles a question open since 1971. Our main technical result relies on the…

The ambiguity of a nondeterministic finite automaton (NFA) N for input size n is the maximal number of accepting computations of N for an input of size n. For all k, r 2 N we construct languages Lr,k which can be recognized by NFA's with…