To prove that the Hamiltonian cycle problem is To prove that the Vertex Cover problem is The N-Queens problem
he N-Queens problem is a classic
NP-Complete, we need to show two things:
The Hamiltonian cycle problem is in NP
(Non-deterministic Polynomial time).
The Hamiltonian cycle problem is NP-Hard by
reducing a known NP-Complete problem to it.
Hamiltonian Cycle Problem (HC) is in NP:
Given a solution (a Hamiltonian cycle), we can
easily verify whether it is correct in polynomial
time. We can check if the cycle visits each
vertex exactly once and if there is an edge
between consecutive vertices in the cycle. This
verification can be done in polynomial time,
making the Hamiltonian cycle problem in NP.
Hamiltonian Cycle Problem (HC) is NP-Hard
To show that HC is NP-Hard, we can perform a
polynomial-time reduction from a known
NP-Complete problem to HC. One common
NP-Complete problem that can be used for this
purpose is the Boolean Satisfiability Problem
(SAT).
Reduction from SAT to HC:
Given a Boolean formula F with variables
x1,x2,…,xn and clauses C1,C2,…,Cm , we
construct a graph G as follows:
~ Create a vertex for each variable xi and its
negation ¬xi.
~ Create a vertex for each clause Cj.
~ For each clause Cj=(l1∨l2∨…∨lk), add
edges between the corresponding vertices of
literals l1,l2,…,lk and the vertex representing
clause Cj. ~ Add edges between
complementary literals (e.g., xi and ¬xi).
The construction of G can be done in
polynomial time.
Now, we claim that F is satisfiable if and only if
G has a Hamiltonian cycle.
If F is satisfiable:
If F is satisfiable, there exists an assignment of
truth values to variables such that each clause
has at least one true literal. In the corresponding
graph G, we can construct a Hamiltonian cycle
by selecting the vertices representing the true
literals in each clause.
If G has a Hamiltonian cycle:
If G has a Hamiltonian cycle, we can use it to
construct a satisfying assignment for F. For
each clause vertex, select one of the incident
literal vertices that are part of the Hamiltonian
cycle. The selected literals correspond to a
satisfying assignment for F.
This reduction is polynomial time, and the
Hamiltonian cycle problem is NP-Hard. Since it
is also in NP, the Hamiltonian cycle problem is
NP-Complete.
The flaw in the provided proof lies in the step
where it concludes that 3-SAT is in P and,
consequently, P = NP. The error is in assuming
that transforming a 3-SAT instance into an
equivalent formula in disjunctive normal form
(DNF) using the distributive law necessarily
results in a polynomial-time algorithm for solving
3-SAT. This assumption is incorrect.
While it's true that DNF-SAT (satisfiability of
formulas in disjunctive normal form) is in P, the
transformation from 3-SAT to DNF does not
necessarily preserve polynomial-time solvability.
The size of the resulting DNF formula can be
exponential in the size of the original 3-SAT
instance, making the transformation itself
In an inorder threaded binary tree, each node has
NP-Complete, we need to demonstrate two
things:
Vertex Cover is in NP (Non-deterministic
Polynomial time).
Vertex Cover is NP-Hard by reducing a known
NP-Complete problem to it.
Vertex Cover Problem (VC) is in NP:
Given a set of vertices, we can easily verify in
polynomial time whether it is a vertex cover for a
given graph. We can check if every edge in the
graph is incident to at least one vertex in the
proposed cover. This verification can be done in
polynomial time, making the Vertex Cover
problem in NP.
Vertex Cover Problem (VC) is NP-Hard:
To show that VC is NP-Hard, we can perform a
polynomial-time reduction from a known
NP-Complete problem to VC. One common
NP-Complete problem that can be used for this
purpose is the Boolean Satisfiability Problem
(SAT).
Reduction from SAT to VC:
Given a Boolean formula F with variables
x1,x2,…,xn and clauses C1,C2,…,Cm, we
construct a graph G as follows:
~ Create two vertices for each variable xi in F: xi
and ¬xi.
~ For each clause Cj=(l1∨l2∨…∨lk), create a
"gadget" in the form of a path with k new
vertices, where each vertex represents a literal li
in the clause. Connect these vertices to the
corresponding variable vertices.
~ Add edges between complementary literals
(e.g., xi and ¬xi).
The construction of G can be done in polynomial
time.
Now, we claim that F is satisfiable if and only if
G has a vertex cover of size at most k+n, where k
is the number of clauses and n is the number of
variables.
If F is satisfiable:
If F is satisfiable, there exists an assignment of
truth values to variables such that each clause
has at least one true literal. In G, the
corresponding vertex cover can be constructed
by including the vertices representing the true
literals for each clause and the vertices
representing the assigned truth values for the
variables.
If G has a vertex cover of size at most k+n:
If G has a vertex cover of size at most k+n, each
edge in G must be covered by at least one
vertex. This means that for each clause gadget,
at least one vertex representing a true literal
must be included in the cover. Therefore, there
exists a satisfying assignment for F.
This reduction is polynomial time, and the Vertex
Cover problem is NP-Hard. Since it is also in NP,
the Vertex Cover problem is NP-Complete.
potentially time-consuming. Therefore, the proof
doesn't provide a valid polynomial-time algorithm
for solving 3-SAT.
The fact that DNF-SAT is in P does not imply
that the transformation of any formula into DNF
can be done efficiently, especially for a specific
class of problems like 3-SAT.
As of my last knowledge update in January
2022, the question of whether P equals NP
remains an open problem, and no
polynomial-time algorithm is known for solving
3-SAT in the general case.
The Knuth-Morris-Pratt (KMP) algorithm is a
combinatorial problem that involves placing N
queens on an N x N chessboard in such a way
that no two queens threaten each other. The
queens must be placed in a manner that no two
queens share the same row, column, or
diagonal. A backtracking algorithm is commonly
used to solve this problem. Here is a Python
implementation of a backtracking algorithm for
the N-Queens problem:
—-------------------------------------------------------------
def is_safe(board, row, col, n):
# Check if there is a queen in the same row
for i in range(col):
if board[row][i] == 1:
return False
# Check if there is a queen in the upper
diagonal
for i, j in zip(range(row, -1, -1), range(col, -1,
-1)):
if board[i][j] == 1:
return False
# Check if there is a queen in the lower
diagonal
for i, j in zip(range(row, n, 1), range(col, -1,
-1)):
if board[i][j] == 1:
return False
return True
def solve_n_queens_util(board, col, n,
solutions):
if col == n:
# All queens are placed, add the solution
to the list
solutions.append(["".join(["Q" if cell == 1
else "." for cell in row]) for row in board])
return
for i in range(n):
if is_safe(board, i, col, n):
board[i][col] = 1
solve_n_queens_util(board, col + 1, n,
solutions)
board[i][col] = 0
def solve_n_queens(n):
board = [[0] * n for _ in range(n)]
solutions = []
solve_n_queens_util(board, 0, n, solutions)
return solutions
# Example usage:
n=8
solutions = solve_n_queens(n)
print(f"Number of solutions for {n}-queens:
{len(solutions)}")
for i, solution in enumerate(solutions):
print(f"Solution {i + 1}:")
for row in solution:
print(row)
print("\n")
—-------------------------------------------------------------
In this code, `solve_n_queens` is the main
function that initialises the chessboard and calls
the utility function `solve_n_queens_util` to find
all solutions recursively. The `is_safe` function
checks whether it's safe to place a queen in a
particular cell. The solutions are stored in a list
of lists, where each solution is represented as a
list of strings, with "Q" indicating the queen's
position and "." indicating an empty cell. The
example usage demonstrates solving the
8-queens problem and printing the solutions.
pointers to its inorder predecessor and inorder linear time string-matching algorithm used to find
successor. These threads can be used to traverse occurrences of a pattern within a text. It
the tree efficiently without using recursion. To efficiently avoids unnecessary character
insert a node as a right child of its parent in an comparisons by utilising information from
inorder threaded binary tree, we need to follow previous matches.
a series of steps:
KMP Algorithm:
Algorithm:
1. Preprocessing (Building the Prefix Function):
1. Create a new node to be inserted. - Construct an auxiliary array called the "prefix
2. Find the parent node of the node to be function" or "failure function."
inserted. This involves traversing the tree using - For each position \(i\) in the pattern, calculate
the inorder threads. the length of the longest proper prefix which is
3. Set the right child of the parent node to the new also a suffix for the substring pattern[0:i]. This
node. information is stored in the prefix function array.
4. Set the inorder successor of the new node to —--------------------------------------------------------------
the inorder successor of the parent node. def compute_prefix_function(pattern):
5. Set the inorder predecessor of the inorder m = len(pattern)
successor of the parent node to the new node. prefix_function = [0] * m
6. Set the inorder predecessor of the new node to k=0
the parent node.
—--------------------------------------------------------------- for i in range(1, m):
Here is a simple Python implementation of the while k > 0 and pattern[k] != pattern[i]:
algorithm: k = prefix_function[k - 1]
class ThreadedBinaryTreeNode: if pattern[k] == pattern[i]:
def __init__(self, key): k += 1
self.key = key
self.left = None prefix_function[i] = k
self.right = None
self.inorder_predecessor = None # Thread return prefix_function
to the inorder predecessor —--------------------------------------------------------------
self.inorder_successor = None # Thread to 2. Searching:
the inorder successor - Iterate through the text and pattern
simultaneously.
def insert_right_child(parent, new_key): - If a mismatch occurs at position \(i\) of the
new_node = pattern, use the prefix function to determine the
ThreadedBinaryTreeNode(new_key) next position to compare.
—--------------------------------------------------------------
if parent is None: def kmp_search(text, pattern):
# If the parent is None, the tree is empty, and n = len(text)
new node becomes the root m = len(pattern)
return new_node prefix_function =
compute_prefix_function(pattern)
# Find the parent node's inorder successor j=0
successor = parent.inorder_successor
for i in range(n):
# Update the pointers to insert the new node as while j > 0 and text[i] != pattern[j]:
a right child j = prefix_function[j - 1]
parent.right = new_node
new_node.inorder_successor = successor if text[i] == pattern[j]:
new_node.inorder_predecessor = parent j += 1
if successor: if j == m:
successor.inorder_predecessor = new_node # Match found at position i - m + 1
print("Pattern found at index:", i - m + 1)
return new_node j = prefix_function[j - 1]
—--------------------------------------------------------------
# Example usage: Analysis:
# Construct a threaded binary tree: 1 - 2 - 3
root = ThreadedBinaryTreeNode(2) Time Complexity:
root.left = ThreadedBinaryTreeNode(1) - The preprocessing step (building the prefix
root.right = ThreadedBinaryTreeNode(3) function) takes \(O(m)\) time, where \(m\) is the
length of the pattern.
# Insert a node with key 4 as a right child of the - The searching step iterates through the text
root once, making at most \(O(n)\) character
insert_right_child(root, 4) comparisons.
# The updated tree: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 Therefore, the overall time complexity of the
—--------------------------------------------------------------- KMP algorithm is \(O(n + m)\), making it linear in
In this example, the `insert_right_child` function the size of the text and pattern.
inserts a new node as a right child of its parent in
an inorder threaded binary tree. The Space Complexity:
`ThreadedBinaryTreeNode` class represents a - The space complexity is \(O(m)\) due to the
node with pointers to its left child, right child, prefix function array.
inorder predecessor, and inorder successor. The
function finds the parent's inorder successor and Example:
updates the pointers accordingly.
Let's find the pattern "ababcab" in the text
"ababcabababcababcabababc."
1. Compute the prefix function for the pattern: [0,
0, 1, 2, 0, 1, 2].
2. Use the KMP algorithm to search for the
pattern in the text.
text = "ababcabababcababcabababc"
pattern = "ababcab"
kmp_search(text, pattern)
The output will be:
Pattern found at index: 0
Pattern found at index: 6
Pattern found at index: 12
These indices indicate the starting positions of
occurrences of the pattern in the text.
To find the ith smallest item from a set of n
values in linear time, you can use the
QuickSelect algorithm. QuickSelect is a
randomized algorithm based on the partitioning
technique used in the QuickSort algorithm. It
has an average-case time complexity of O(n),
making it a linear-time algorithm.
Here is a high-level description of the
QuickSelect algorithm:
1. Select a pivot element: Choose a pivot
element from the set of n values randomly.
2. Partition the set: Partition the set into two
groups – elements smaller than the pivot and
elements greater than the pivot.
3. Recurrence: Determine the position of the
pivot in the sorted order. If the pivot is at the ith
position, you're done. If the pivot is at a position
greater than i, then recurse on the left subarray.
If the pivot is at a position less than i, then
recurse on the right subarray.
4. Repeat: Repeat the process until the pivot is
at the ith position.
The proof of linear time complexity for
QuickSelect involves analyzing the expected
time complexity. On average, the algorithm
performs well because the random choice of
pivots helps balance the partitioning, making it
similar to an average-case QuickSort.
To prove the linear time complexity:
1. Base Case: If the size of the array is 1, the
algorithm is trivially linear.
2. Recursive Case Analysis: In each step, the
algorithm reduces the problem size by at least a
constant factor (1/4 on average, assuming a
good random pivot selection). This leads to a
recurrence relation T(n) = T(n/4) + O(n), where
O(n) represents the partitioning time.
3. Solution to the Recurrence: Solving this
recurrence shows that the average time
complexity is O(n). It's important to note that the
constant factors involved in the O(n) term are
hidden in the big-O notation.
The average-case time complexity analysis
assumes that the pivot is chosen randomly and
independently at each step. This randomness
ensures that the algorithm has a good average
performance, making QuickSelect an efficient
linear-time algorithm for finding the ith smallest
item in a set of n values.
The algorithm to find the kth smallest
element from a list of n elements is
essentially a modification of the QuickSelect
algorithm. QuickSelect allows us to find the kth
smallest element in linear average time
complexity. Here's a simple Python-like
pseudocode for the algorithm:
—-------------------------------------------------------------
import random
def partition(arr, low, high):
pivot_index = random.randint(low, high)
pivot = arr[pivot_index]
# Move pivot to the end
arr[pivot_index], arr[high] = arr[high],
arr[pivot_index]
i = low - 1
for j in range(low, high):
if arr[j] <= pivot:
i += 1
arr[i], arr[j] = arr[j], arr[i]
# Move pivot to its final place
arr[i + 1], arr[high] = arr[high], arr[i + 1]
return i + 1
def quick_select(arr, low, high, k):
if low <= high:
pivot_index = partition(arr, low, high)
if pivot_index == k:
# Found the kth smallest element
return arr[pivot_index]
elif pivot_index < k:
# Recur on the right subarray
return quick_select(arr, pivot_index + 1,
high, k)
else:
# Recur on the left subarray
return quick_select(arr, low, pivot_index -
1, k)
# Function to find the kth smallest element
def find_kth_smallest(arr, k):
if 0 < k <= len(arr):
return quick_select(arr, 0, len(arr) - 1, k - 1)
else:
return None
—-------------------------------------------------------------
Time Complexity Analysis:
The time complexity of the average case for
QuickSelect is O(n), where n is the number of
elements in the input list. This average-case
time complexity holds when the pivot is
randomly chosen, and the partitioning is
balanced. The worst-case time complexity,
however, is O(n^2), but the worst case is highly
unlikely due to the random pivot selection.
In practice, QuickSelect is a very efficient
algorithm for finding the kth smallest element,
and it often outperforms other algorithms like
sorting the entire list. The efficiency of the
algorithm is due to its ability to eliminate a large
portion of the elements in each step, leading to a
fast convergence towards the kth smallest
element.