3
$\begingroup$

Problem:

Consider a k-SAT solver that assigns values independently uniformly at random to all the variables. Given the formula has $m$ clauses provide an upper bound for the probability of a random assignment to be unsatisfiable.


The issue is that I have no clue from where to start. Both Markov, Chernoff, Chebyshev and McDiarmid's inequalities seem to be not applicable in this situation as the probability of a particular clause to be unsatisfiable depends on the probability of other clauses with overlapping variables to be unsatisfiable.

For every clause the probability of it to be unsatisfiable is $${1 \over {2^k}}$$

There are $m$ clauses in total, so if there are all independent, the answer would be $$P(\mathit{assignment~is~unsatisfiable}) = (2^{-k})^m$$

If somebody would help me a bit with at least some kind of hint I would be extremely grateful.

$\endgroup$
1

1 Answer 1

2
$\begingroup$

Hint: Use a union bound.

Note that for $m \geq 2^k$ you cannot provide any non-trivial bound, since there are formulas with $2^k$ clauses of width $k$ that are unsatisfiable. The same example shows that the bounded hinted above is tight (for all $m \leq 2^k$).

$\endgroup$

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.