scholarly journals Fault Tolerant Boolean Satisfiability

2006 ◽  
Vol 25 ◽  
pp. 503-527 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Roy

A delta-model is a satisfying assignment of a Boolean formula for which any small alteration, such as a single bit flip, can be repaired by flips to some small number of other bits, yielding a new satisfying assignment. These satisfying assignments represent robust solutions to optimization problems (e.g., scheduling) where it is possible to recover from unforeseen events (e.g., a resource becoming unavailable). The concept of delta-models was introduced by Ginsberg, Parkes and Roy (AAAI 1998) , where it was proved that finding delta-models for general Boolean formulas is NP-complete. In this paper, we extend that result by studying the complexity of finding delta-models for classes of Boolean formulas which are known to have polynomial time satisfiability solvers. In particular, we examine 2-SAT, Horn-SAT, Affine-SAT, dual-Horn-SAT, 0-valid and 1-valid SAT. We see a wide variation in the complexity of finding delta-models, e.g., while 2-SAT and Affine-SAT have polynomial time tests for delta-models, testing whether a Horn-SAT formula has one is NP-complete.

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (7) ◽  
pp. 736-751
Author(s):  
Hans Kleine Büning ◽  
P. Wojciechowski ◽  
K. Subramani

AbstractIn this paper, we analyze Boolean formulas in conjunctive normal form (CNF) from the perspective of read-once resolution (ROR) refutation schemes. A read-once (resolution) refutation is one in which each clause is used at most once. Derived clauses can be used as many times as they are deduced. However, clauses in the original formula can only be used as part of one derivation. It is well known that ROR is not complete; that is, there exist unsatisfiable formulas for which no ROR exists. Likewise, the problem of checking if a 3CNF formula has a read-once refutation is NP-complete. This paper is concerned with a variant of satisfiability called not-all-equal satisfiability (NAE-satisfiability). A CNF formula is NAE-satisfiable if it has a satisfying assignment in which at least one literal in each clause is set to false. It is well known that the problem of checking NAE-satisfiability is NP-complete. Clearly, the class of CNF formulas which are NAE-satisfiable is a proper subset of satisfiable CNF formulas. It follows that traditional resolution cannot always find a proof of NAE-unsatisfiability. Thus, traditional resolution is not a sound procedure for checking NAE-satisfiability. In this paper, we introduce a variant of resolution called NAE-resolution which is a sound and complete procedure for checking NAE-satisfiability in CNF formulas. The focus of this paper is on a variant of NAE-resolution called read-once NAE-resolution in which each clause (input or derived) can be part of at most one NAE-resolution step. Our principal result is that read-once NAE-resolution is a sound and complete procedure for 2CNF formulas. Furthermore, we provide an algorithm to determine the smallest such NAE-resolution in polynomial time. This is in stark contrast to the corresponding problem concerning 2CNF formulas and ROR refutations. We also show that the problem of checking whether a 3CNF formula has a read-once NAE-resolution is NP-complete.


2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Noureddine Bouhmala

The simplicity of the maximum satisfiability problem (MAX-SAT) combined with its applicability in many areas of artificial intelligence and computing science made it one of the fundamental optimization problems. This NP-complete problem refers to the task of finding a variable assignment that satisfies the maximum number of clauses (or the sum of weights of satisfied clauses) in a Boolean formula. The Walksat algorithm is considered to be the main skeleton underlying almost all local search algorithms for MAX-SAT. Most local search algorithms including Walksat rely on the 1-flip neighborhood structure. This paper introduces a variable neighborhood walksat-based algorithm. The neighborhood structure can be combined easily using any local search algorithm. Its effectiveness is compared with existing algorithms using 1-flip neighborhood structure and solvers such as CCLS and Optimax from the eighth MAX-SAT evaluation.


Entropy ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 253 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zufeng Fu ◽  
Daoyun Xu ◽  
Yongping Wang

A (1,0)-super solution is a satisfying assignment such that if the value of any one variable is flipped to the opposite value, the new assignment is still a satisfying assignment. Namely, every clause must contain at least two satisfied literals. Because of its robustness, super solutions are concerned in combinatorial optimization problems and decision problems. In this paper, we investigate the existence conditions of the (1,0)-super solution of ( k , s ) -CNF formula, and give a reduction method that transform from k-SAT to (1,0)- ( k + 1 , s ) -SAT if there is a ( k + 1 , s )-CNF formula without a (1,0)-super solution. Here, ( k , s ) -CNF is a subclass of CNF in which each clause has exactly k distinct literals, and each variable occurs at most s times. (1,0)- ( k , s ) -SAT is a problem to decide whether a ( k , s ) -CNF formula has a (1,0)-super solution. We prove that for k > 3 , if there exists a ( k , s ) -CNF formula without a (1,0)-super solution, (1,0)- ( k , s ) -SAT is NP-complete. We show that for k > 3 , there is a critical function φ ( k ) such that every ( k , s ) -CNF formula has a (1,0)-super solution for s ≤ φ ( k ) and (1,0)- ( k , s ) -SAT is NP-complete for s > φ ( k ) . We further show some properties of the critical function φ ( k ) .


Author(s):  
Frank Vega

$P$ versus $NP$ is considered as one of the most important open problems in computer science. This consists in knowing the answer of the following question: Is $P$ equal to $NP$? It was essentially mentioned in 1955 from a letter written by John Nash to the United States National Security Agency. However, a precise statement of the $P$ versus $NP$ problem was introduced independently by Stephen Cook and Leonid Levin. Since that date, all efforts to find a proof for this problem have failed. It is one of the seven Millennium Prize Problems selected by the Clay Mathematics Institute to carry a US 1,000,000 prize for the first correct solution. Another major complexity class is $\textit{P-Sel}$. $\textit{P-Sel}$ is the class of decision problems for which there is a polynomial time algorithm (called a selector) with the following property: Whenever it's given two instances, a "yes" and a "no" instance, the algorithm can always decide which is the "yes" instance. It is known that if $NP$ is contained in $\textit{P-Sel}$, then $P = NP$. In this paper we consider the problem of computing the sum of the weighted densities of states of a Boolean formula in $3CNF$. Given a Boolean formula $\phi$, the density of states $n(E)$ counts the number of truth assignments that leave exactly $E$ clauses unsatisfied in $\phi$. The weighted density of states $m(E)$ is equal to $E \times n(E)$. The sum of the weighted densities of states of a Boolean formula in $3CNF$ with $m$ clauses is equal to $\sum_{E = 0}^{m} m(E)$. We prove that we can calculate the sum of the weighted densities of states in polynomial time. The lowest value of $E$ with a non-zero density (i.e. $min_{E}\{E|n(E) > 0\}$) is the solution of the corresponding $\textit{MAX-SAT}$ problem. The minimum lowest value with a non-zero density from the two formulas $\phi_{1}$ and $\phi_{2}$ is equal to the minimum value between $E_{1}$ and $E_{2}$, where $E_{i}$ is the lowest value with a non-zero density of $\phi_{i}$ for $i \in \{1, 2\}$. Given two Boolean formulas $\phi_{1}$ and $\phi_{2}$ in $3CNF$ with $n$ variables and $m$ clauses, the combinatorial optimization problem $\textit{SELECTOR-3SAT}$ consists in selecting the formula which has the minimum lowest value with a non-zero density, where every clause from $\phi_{1}$ and $\phi_{2}$ can be unsatisfied for some truth assignment. We assume that the formula with the minimum lowest value with a non-zero density has the minimum sum of the weighted densities of states. In this way, we solve $\textit{SELECTOR-3SAT}$ with an exact polynomial time algorithm. Finally, we claim that this could be used for a possible selector of $3SAT$ and thus, $P = NP$.


Symmetry ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 571 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eligijus Sakalauskas ◽  
Aleksejus Mihalkovich

This paper is a continuation of our previous publication of enhanced matrix power function (MPF) as a conjectured one-way function. We are considering a problem introduced in our previous paper and prove that tis problem is NP-Complete. The proof is based on the dual interpretation of well known multivariate quadratic (MQ) problem defined over the binary field as a system of MQ equations, and as a general satisfiability (GSAT) problem. Due to this interpretation the necessary constraints to MPF function for cryptographic protocols construction can be added to initial GSAT problem. Then it is proved that obtained GSAT problem is NP-Complete using Schaefer dichotomy theorem. Referencing to this result, GSAT problem by polynomial-time reduction is reduced to the sub-problem of enhanced MPF, hence the latter is NP-Complete as well.


2012 ◽  
Vol Vol. 14 no. 2 (Graph Theory) ◽  
Author(s):  
Laurent Gourvès ◽  
Adria Lyra ◽  
Carlos A. Martinhon ◽  
Jérôme Monnot

Graph Theory International audience In this paper we deal from an algorithmic perspective with different questions regarding properly edge-colored (or PEC) paths, trails and closed trails. Given a c-edge-colored graph G(c), we show how to polynomially determine, if any, a PEC closed trail subgraph whose number of visits at each vertex is specified before hand. As a consequence, we solve a number of interesting related problems. For instance, given subset S of vertices in G(c), we show how to maximize in polynomial time the number of S-restricted vertex (resp., edge) disjoint PEC paths (resp., trails) in G(c) with endpoints in S. Further, if G(c) contains no PEC closed trails, we show that the problem of finding a PEC s-t trail visiting a given subset of vertices can be solved in polynomial time and prove that it becomes NP-complete if we are restricted to graphs with no PEC cycles. We also deal with graphs G(c) containing no (almost) PEC cycles or closed trails through s or t. We prove that finding 2 PEC s-t paths (resp., trails) with length at most L > 0 is NP-complete in the strong sense even for graphs with maximum degree equal to 3 and present an approximation algorithm for computing k vertex (resp., edge) disjoint PEC s-t paths (resp., trails) so that the maximum path (resp., trail) length is no more than k times the PEC path (resp., trail) length in an optimal solution. Further, we prove that finding 2 vertex disjoint s-t paths with exactly one PEC s-t path is NP-complete. This result is interesting since as proved in Abouelaoualim et. al.(2008), the determination of two or more vertex disjoint PEC s-t paths can be done in polynomial time. Finally, if G(c) is an arbitrary c-edge-colored graph with maximum vertex degree equal to four, we prove that finding two monochromatic vertex disjoint s-t paths with different colors is NP-complete. We also propose some related problems.


Author(s):  
Robert Ganian ◽  
Thekla Hamm ◽  
Guillaume Mescoff

The Resource-Constrained Project Scheduling Problem (RCPSP) and its extension via activity modes (MRCPSP) are well-established scheduling frameworks that have found numerous applications in a broad range of settings related to artificial intelligence. Unsurprisingly, the problem of finding a suitable schedule in these frameworks is known to be NP-complete; however, aside from a few results for special cases, we have lacked an in-depth and comprehensive understanding of the complexity of the problems from the viewpoint of natural restrictions of the considered instances. In the first part of our paper, we develop new algorithms and give hardness-proofs in order to obtain a detailed complexity map of (M)RCPSP that settles the complexity of all 1024 considered variants of the problem defined in terms of explicit restrictions of natural parameters of instances. In the second part, we turn to implicit structural restrictions defined in terms of the complexity of interactions between individual activities. In particular, we show that if the treewidth of a graph which captures such interactions is bounded by a constant, then we can solve MRCPSP in polynomial time.


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