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### Having problem understanding the formal definition of NP

So I'm having a tad bit of a problem deciphering the formal definition of NP. In my text book (Algorithm Design, Tardos et al) it says that a problem $X$ belongs to $NP$ iff; there exists a "...
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### How do we know any problem is in NP-complete if we don't know all problems in NP?

A problem is NP-complete if: It is in NP. All problems in NP can reduce to it. It's number 2 that I'm concerned with here. I would be highly surprised if we knew every problem in NP. Based on that ...
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### If NP is the class of problems that cannot be solved in polynomial time, what is co-NP?

In my super non-rigorous class on optimization, the prof defined NP as the class of decision problems that cannot be solved in polynomial time. By definition, P is the class of decision problems that ...
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### Simple graph canonization algorithm

I'm looking for an algorithm that provides a canonical string for a given colored graph. Ie. an algorithm that returns a string for a graph, such that two graphs get the same string if and only if ...
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this is my first question on this site. I‌ recently, study on NP. I have some confusion about this Topic, and want to propose my inference and some one verify me. I) each NP problem can be solved ...
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### If X reduces to a problem in NP, is X in NP?

Let $X$ and $Y$ be problems, and let $X \le_p Y$. Is it true that $$Y \in NP \rightarrow X \in NP\ ?$$ I do mean $NP$ here, not $NP$-complete or $NP$-hard. The solution ...
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### Combinatory interpretation of lambda calculus

According to Peter Selinger, The Lambda Calculus is Algebraic (PDF). Early in this article he says: The combinatory interpretation of the lambda calculus is known to be imperfect, because it does ...
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### Can all NP-complete cryptosystems be broken if one is broken?

I was just reading something about NP-hard problems and cryptosystems. I was thinking: Every NP-complete problem can be reduced to another and every NP-complete problem has an equivalent (NP-hard) ...
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### If an NP-complete problem is shown to have a non-polynomial lower bound, would that prove that P != NP?

I understand that the Cook-Levin theorem proved that any NP problem is reducible to an NP-complete problem, which signifies that if a polynomial-time algorithm for an NP-complete problem is found, it ...
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### Find 8 numbers whose sum is closest to a defined value

I have a file that has a number (a positive integer) on each row. Given a number $q$, I want to find a value that's a sum of some 8 numbers in the file, and is as close to $q$ as possible. So, ...
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### Showing that CLIQUE can be verified in polynomial time

The CLIQUE problem -- problem of finding the maximum clique in a graph -- is NP-complete. That is, CLIQUE is in NP and there is an NP complete problem, 3-SAT for one, that reduces to CLIQUE in ...
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### Why is determining if there is a solution to a Battleship puzzle NP-Complete?

This paper http://www.mountainvistasoft.com/docs/BattleshipsAsDecidabilityProblem.pdf says that the decision problem, "Given a particular puzzle, is there a solution?" is NP-Complete. I don't ...
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### NP-complete and polynomial time reduction

A decision problem is NP-complete if it is in NP and all other problems in NP can be reduced to it by a reduction that runs in polynomial time. Why it is important to require that the reduction runs ...