Related papers: Cell-Probe Lower Bounds via Semi-Random CSP Refuta…
We give an efficient algorithm to strongly refute \emph{semi-random} instances of all Boolean constraint satisfaction problems. The number of constraints required by our algorithm matches (up to polylogarithmic factors) the best-known…
Random constraint satisfaction problems (CSPs) are known to exhibit threshold phenomena: given a uniformly random instance of a CSP with $n$ variables and $m$ clauses, there is a value of $m = \Omega(n)$ beyond which the CSP will be…
We present an efficient algorithm to solve semirandom planted instances of any Boolean constraint satisfaction problem (CSP). The semirandom model is a hybrid between worst-case and average-case input models, where the input is generated by…
Random constraint satisfaction problems (CSPs) such as random $3$-SAT are conjectured to be computationally intractable. The average case hardness of random $3$-SAT and other CSPs has broad and far-reaching implications on problems in…
Strong refutation of random CSPs is a fundamental question in theoretical computer science that has received particular attention due to the long-standing gap between the information-theoretic limit and the computational limit. This gap is…
We study certificates in static data structures. In the cell-probe model, certificates are the cell probes which can uniquely identify the answer to the query. As a natural notion of nondeterministic cell probes, lower bounds for…
We present an algorithm for strongly refuting smoothed instances of all Boolean CSPs. The smoothed model is a hybrid between worst and average-case input models, where the input is an arbitrary instance of the CSP with only the negation…
In this paper, we consider lower bounds on the query complexity for testing CSPs in the bounded-degree model. First, for any ``symmetric'' predicate $P:{0,1}^{k} \to {0,1}$ except \equ where $k\geq 3$, we show that every (randomized)…
Different techniques have been used to prove several transference theorems of the form "nontrivial algorithms for a circuit class C yield circuit lower bounds against C". In this survey we revisit many of these results. We discuss how…
Under what condition is a random constraint satisfaction problem hard to refute by the sum-of-squares (SoS) algorithm? A sufficient condition is t-wise uniformity, that is, each constraint has a t-wise uniform distribution of satisfying…
For a $k$-ary predicate $P$, a random instance of CSP$(P)$ with $n$ variables and $m$ constraints is unsatisfiable with high probability when $m \gg n$. The natural algorithmic task in this regime is \emph{refutation}: finding a proof that…
One of the prominent current challenges in complexity theory is the attempt to prove lower bounds for $TC^0$, the class of constant-depth, polynomial-size circuits with majority gates. Relying on the results of Williams (2013), an appealing…
We show tight lower bounds for the entire trade-off between space and query time for the Approximate Near Neighbor search problem. Our lower bounds hold in a restricted model of computation, which captures all hashing-based approaches. In…
Let $P$ be a $k$-ary predicate over a finite alphabet. Consider a random CSP$(P)$ instance $I$ over $n$ variables with $m$ constraints. When $m \gg n$ the instance $I$ will be unsatisfiable with high probability, and we want to find a…
We study connections between Natural Proofs, derandomization, and the problem of proving "weak" circuit lower bounds such as ${\sf NEXP} \not\subset {\sf TC^0}$. Natural Proofs have three properties: they are constructive (an efficient…
Raghavendra (STOC 2008) gave an elegant and surprising result: if Khot's Unique Games Conjecture (STOC 2002) is true, then for every constraint satisfaction problem (CSP), the best approximation ratio is attained by a certain simple…
We present a generic way to obtain level lower bounds for (promise) CSP hierarchies from degree lower bounds for algebraic proof systems. More specifically, we show that pseudo-reduction operators in the sense of Alekhnovich and Razborov…
We study the complexity of inverse cellular automata on configurations of bounded size. Deciding injectivity in this setting is co-NP-complete by a theorem of Durand. We give a simpler proof of this theorem by a direct reduction from UNSAT…
We study the problem of strongly refuting semirandom $k$-LIN$(\mathbb{F})$ instances: systems of $k$-sparse inhomogeneous linear equations over a finite field $\mathbb{F}$. For the case of $\mathbb{F} = \mathbb{F}_2$, this is the…
Let $P:\{0,1\}^k \to \{0,1\}$ be a nontrivial $k$-ary predicate. Consider a random instance of the constraint satisfaction problem $\mathrm{CSP}(P)$ on $n$ variables with $\Delta n$ constraints, each being $P$ applied to $k$ randomly chosen…