10
$\begingroup$

Given two symbols $\text{a}$ and $\text{b}$, let's define the $k$-th Fibonacci string as follows:

$$ F(k) = \begin{cases} \text{b} &\mbox{if } k = 0 \\ \text{a} &\mbox{if } k = 1 \\ F(k-1) \star F(k-2) &\mbox{else} \end{cases} $$

with $\star$ denoting string concatenation.

Thus we'll have:

  • $F(0) = \text{b}$
  • $F(1) = \text{a}$
  • $F(2) = F(1) \star F(0) = \text{ab}$
  • $F(3) = F(2) \star F(1) = \text{aba}$
  • $F(4) = F(3) \star F(2) = \text{abaab}$
  • ...

Given a string $S$ formed by $n$ symbols, we define a Fibonacci substring as any substring of $S$ which is also a Fibonacci string for a suitable choice of $\text{a}$ and $\text{b}$.

The problem

Given $S$, we want to find its longest Fibonacci substring.

A trivial algorithm

For each position $i$ of the string $S$, suppose that $F(2)$ starts there (it's enough to check that the $i$-th and $(i+1)$-th symbols are distinct). If that's the case, check if it can be extended to $F(3)$, then $F(4)$, and so on. After that, start again from the position $i+1$. Repeat until you reach the position $n$.

We must look at each symbol at least once, so it's $\Omega(n)$. There are only two for loops involved, so we can furthermore say that it's $O(n^2)$.

However (somewhat unsurprisingly) this naive algorithm performs much better than usual quadratic algorithms (if it does a lot of work on the $i$-th position, it won't do a lot of work in the next positions).

How can I use Fibonacci properties to find tighter bounds for the execution time of this algorithm?

$\endgroup$
0

1 Answer 1

5
$\begingroup$

Say that $F(n)$ occurs at some position if the substring starting at that position is compatible with either $F(n)$ or its complementation. How close can occurrences of $F(n)$ be? Take as an example $F(4) = abaab$. If $F(4)$ occurs at position $p$ then it cannot occur at position $p+1$ or $p+2$, but it can appear at position $p+3$. We let $\ell(n)$ be the smallest number such that two occurrences of $F(\ell)$ can occur at distance of $\ell$. You can prove by induction that for $n \geq 4$ we have $\ell(n) = |F(n-1)|$ (for example, $\ell(4) = 3$).

Given a string of length $N$, for each $n$ let $P(n)$ be the set of positions at which $F(n)$ occurs. We can upper bound the running time of your procedure roughly by $\sum_n |P(n)| |F(n)|$, where the sum runs over all $n$ such that $|F(n-1)| \leq N$ (say). Since occurrences of $F(n)$ are separated by at least $|F(n-1)|$, we see that the running time is bounded by order of $$ \sum_n |F(n)| \left(\frac{N}{|F(n-1)|} + 1\right). $$ Since the lengths of the Fibonacci words increase exponentially, $\sum_n |F(n)| = O(N)$. The remaining term is $\sum_n O(N) = O(N\log N)$, since the sum contains $\log N$ many terms. We conclude that the running time is $O(N\log N)$.

Conversely, the running time on $F_n$ is $\Omega(|F_n|\log|F_n|)$, as can be proved by induction. We conclude that the worst case running time on strings of length $N$ is $\Theta(N\log N)$.

$\endgroup$

Your Answer

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

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