72k views

What exactly is polynomial time? [duplicate]

I'm trying to understand algorithm complexity, and a lot of algorithms are classified as polynomial. I couldn't find an exact definition anywhere. I assume it is the complexity that is not exponential....
15k views

What is meant by “solvable by non deterministic algorithm in polynomial time” [duplicate]

In many textbooks NP problems are defined as: Set of all decision problems solvable by non deterministic algorithms in polynomial time I couldn't understand the part "solvable by non deterministic ...
2k views

Why is SAT not in P? [duplicate]

I'm studing P and NP complexity classes. I like know, why is SAT not in P? Is it because I can not determine if any Boolean expression is satisfiable?
673 views

Which NPC problems are NP Hard [duplicate]

I have read that TSP and Subset Sum problems are NPC problems which are also NP Hard. There are also problems like Halting Problem which is NP Hard, but not NP Complete And Wikipedia defines this as ...
2k views

Proof of P ⊆ NP [duplicate]

What is the proof of P ⊆ NP? I cannot happen to find a good explanation for it. I read that the verifier will just ignore the proof and accept any proof if the ...
1k views

If I solve hard instance, therefore I prove NP=P? [duplicate]

If someone (off-topic) asks a question (on-topic) like this: Suppose that he claims that $\mathcal{P=NP}$. Suppose that someone else (on-topic) gives him an instance of an NP-complete problem that ...
3k views

Does NP mean verifiable in polynomial time or solvable in polynomial time? [duplicate]

Is NP defined as verifiable in polynomial time, or solvable in polynomial time? Verifiable meaning that the solution can be checked in polynomial time, and solvable meaning that the solution can be ...
786 views

NP hard relation with NP complete [duplicate]

If any problem P is NP complete then if there is a polynomial time reduction of P to another problem R then what can we say about R.Is it NP-hard or NP complete ? From Theory of computation of ...
998 views

The exact relation between complexity classes and algorithm complexities [duplicate]

Are all algorithms which have polynomial time complexity belong to P class ? And P class do not have any algorithm which does have not polynomial complexity ? Are all algorithms which have non ...
1k views

How to prove a Double CNF SAT is in NP [duplicate]

So I've been stuck trying to figure this problem out for a while. I've looked on wikis and all over stack exchange but I'm really stumped. This isn't my best subject, so any sort of explanation would ...
1k views

What is meant by problems not in NP but in NP hard? [duplicate]

If there is a proof that an NP-Hard problem which is not NP-Complete can be solved in P time, it does say that the verification time is polynomial too. Why doesn't it then mean that all NP-Hard are ...
532 views

Definition of NP [duplicate]

We know that NP is the class of languages recognized by a nondeterministic Turing machine (NTM) in polynomial time. I've also read that NP is the class of problems can be solved by NTM in polynomial ...
691 views

Would a polynomial-time algorithm for an NP-hard problem implies that P=NP? [duplicate]

An NP-hard problem is not in NP. (If it was in NP, it would be an NP-complete problem not NP-hard.) So my question is: if someone can find a polynomial-time algorithm for an NP-hard problem, would ...
883 views

How to prove membership of NP [duplicate]

My tutor often says that proving membership of NP is the easy part of proving that a problem is NP-complete, and that this should only take a minute. What I don't understand is what exactly you're ...
743 views

Does NP-hard problems have to be decision problems? [duplicate]

According to the selected answer on this question NP-hard problems do NOT have to be decision problem. But by definition all NP-hard problems can be karp-reduced from any NP-problem in polynomial time;...
491 views

Can someone provide an introductory example of a certificate in complexity theory? [duplicate]

Just stepping into complexity theory, I am befuddled by this notion of a certificate and can't find any utility of this concept. From my understanding, a certificate is used when you are trying to ...
364 views

Is it immediately true that the class of P is a subset of the class NP? [duplicate]

Forgive me if this is a stupid question - it's been a while since I thought at all about complexity theory and I want to make sure that I have covered all the possible angles with regards to the ...
203 views

Can someone explain in a simple way what “reducible” mean in complexity theory? [duplicate]

I find the word "reducible" used in complexity theory not very intuitive, and too general taken on a face value. What does it exactly mean by problem A reducible to B? Does it mean that A can be ...
271 views

How is the complexity of algorithms to solve 3CNF (decision problem) specified? [duplicate]

For k inputs, the complexity of naive algorithm is O(2^k). I understood this one. What is meant by "the size of the instance to be solved should be polynomial in k". Is it equivalent to the statement ...
150 views

complexity theory NP [duplicate]

Ok, I really need help because I have read in so many books but still don't understand the complexity class NP. These are the books: Theoretische Informatik; Katrin Erk, Lutz Priese (german) ...
150 views

How do we know that all NP problems reduce to NP-hard problems? [duplicate]

For example, how is it proven that any NP problem can reduce to subset sum, circuit satisfiability, etc.? Or could you link to a proof?
67 views

P versus NP and what we are looking for [duplicate]

I was reading the other day about this problem, refreshing it, and on a couple of places over the internet I read somebody explaining something in the line of '..does not matter as long as is ...
100 views

Does classification of a problem also require the algorithm used? [duplicate]

Just learnt that a problem in computer science can be divided into the following categories Polynomial problems NP problems NP hard problems NP complete problems ...
44 views

Why does $L\subseteq \textbf{P} \cap \textbf{NP}$ is $\textbf{NP}$-complete imply $\textbf{NP} = \textbf{P}$? [duplicate]

If I show that a language $L$ is contained in $\textbf{P}$ and $\textbf{NP}$ and I know that the language is $\textbf{NP}$-complete, why did I proof that $\textbf{P} = \textbf{NP}$?
112 views

The defining property of problems in NP [duplicate]

I'm coming to Computer Science from Mathematics and am familiar with the idea of building classes of objects using Propositional Logic. Namely, start with some universe of objects, define some ...
51 views

Given an integer n, print all integers from 1 to 2^n. Why does this not prove that P!=NP? [duplicate]

I only just recently learned about the P=NP problem in introduction to algorithms class, and I'm still trying to wrap my head around it. I thought of this situation while cleaning my room today and ...
69 views

Reducible and NP Hard [duplicate]

I have been confusing a bit about these relationship: Given A polynomial reducible to B 1/ If A is NP hard, what is the hardness of B? 2/ If B is NP hard, what is the hardness of A? 3/ If A has ...
55 views

Why proving the solution of a problem is polynomial time is sufficient enough to say that it is a NP prolbem? [duplicate]

Why proving that we can verify the solution of a problem is polynomial time is sufficient enough to say that the problem is nondeterministic polynomial time? Please note: this is not a question on how ...
43 views

Confusion about P versus NP [duplicate]

I'm sure that in my following question my reasoning is extremely simplistic and flawed, but I think if someone answered this it would help me understand what the P vs NP conundrum is. So here is my ...
43 views

NP-Completeness: A question about reduction and hardness [duplicate]

I am trying to understand the definition / meaning of reduction. Is it correct to say that the statement "Problem $A$ reduces to Problem $B$ in $x$-time" is the same as writing $A \leq_{x} B$? For ...
40 views

NP Problem and reduction [duplicate]

I've read that "Every problem in NP can be reduced to every NP-complete problem". I want to know why the term "Every" is important.If we have one problem in NP that is reduced to one NP complete ...
40 views

What are the differences between NP-Complete and NP-Hard? [duplicate]

What are the differences between NP, NP-Complete and NP-Hard? I am aware of many resources all over the web. I'd like to read your explanations, and the reason is they might be different from what's ...
34 views

Why some state that Primes is in NP? [duplicate]

Why some books state that Primes is a NP problem if, as a decidibility problem, it can be solved in polynomial time? A simple example: A number can has its primality tested by dividing it by all ...
32 views

Where f(n) = n! belongs to? P, co-P, NPComplete or NPHard? [duplicate]

Where f(n) = n! belongs to? P, co-P, NPComplete or NPHard?
29 views

Is this line from the rational wiki p vs np bit correct? “ A computational problem is considered ”in P [duplicate]

http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Pseudomathematics#P_vs._NP_problem A computational problem is considered "in P" if an algorithm exists that can solve the problem in "polynomial time" — that is, it's ...
29 views

Is there a general form of polynomial reductions in complexity theory? [duplicate]

While reading Sipser, in computability I read about many to one mapping reducibility and Turing reducibility,the latter one being a more general form of reducibility. But in the introductory chapter ...
28 views

Reducing SAT to a P problem in polinomial time [duplicate]

Does reducing SAT in polynomial time to a P problem would mean that P = NP?
27 views

Cyclic definition of NP-completeness [duplicate]

Trying to understand the concept of NP-completeness, I came across this pearl on Wikipedia: From NP-complete: A decision problem L is NP-complete if it is in the set of NP problems and also ...
25 views

NP-Hard for resolving P=NP [duplicate]

Im studing complexity theory and im reading this question on Quora. According to what the guy is saying : if we are able to solve a NP-Hard problem in polynomial time we have prooved that P=NP. But, ...
25 views

are all problems in P in NP [duplicate]

I know this is a similar question to this post, but I want to further clarify my understanding. In the picture from wikipedia: I understand that every problem that's in $P$ is also in NP. does this ...
23 views

what is NP class? [duplicate]

I actually started to read complexity classes of problems. and I know that NP class include P class problems and even more problems call NP-complete ... as many books define NP class as well But I ...
22 views

Place 4 notorious problems into 2 diagrams (one assuming P=NP, and the other one assuming P!=NP) [duplicate]

This diagram is on Wikipedia: On left side we see NP-hard intersecting NP class (assuming P!=NP), on right side we see NP-hard including NP (assuming P=NP) Where should I place the following ...
21 views

NP hardness - Why is one harder than the other? [duplicate]

As far as my understanding goes, to show that a problem A is NP-hard, we use another NP-complete problem B. We reduce (in polynomial time) from B to A, i.e. use A to solve B. This shows that A is ...
18 views

Proving a problem is NP [duplicate]

I've seen in many textbooks if say we have a problem $Q$, we write a non-deterministic algorithm in polynomial time to solve problem $Q$, and then from that point it results that $Q\in NP$. Why is ...
18 views

Is NP-complete complexity defined in terms of polynomial reductions or polynomial transformations? [duplicate]

How do you know that a decision problem $X$ is NP-complete?, if all other NP-problems polynomially transform to $X$ or if all other NP-problems polynomially reduces (there exist a polynomial time ...
11 views

Proof/certificate in a decision problem? [duplicate]

In this wikipedia article, the following comment is made: Consider an arbitrary decision problem in the class NP. By definition each problem instance $x$ which are answered 'yes' have a certificate ...
16k views

How not to solve P=NP?

There are lots of attempts at proving either $\mathsf{P} = \mathsf{NP}$ or $\mathsf{P} \neq \mathsf{NP}$, and naturally many people think about the question, having ideas for proving either direction....
13k views

Why are some games np-complete?

I read the Wikipedia entry about "List of NP-complete problems" and found that games like super mario, pokemon, tetris or candy crush saga are np-complete. How can I imagine np-completeness of a game? ...