20 Search Results for "Newman, Alantha"

Document
Track A: Algorithms, Complexity and Games
DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.ICALP.2026.48
Static to Dynamic Correlation Clustering

Authors: Nairen Cao, Vincent Cohen-Addad, Euiwoong Lee, Shi Li, David Rasmussen Lolck, Alantha Newman, Mikkel Thorup, Lukas Vogl, Shuyi Yan, and Hanwen Zhang

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 374, 53rd International Colloquium on Automata, Languages, and Programming (ICALP 2026)

Abstract
Correlation clustering is a well-studied problem, first proposed by Bansal, Blum, and Chawla [Mach. Learn. '04]. The input is an unweighted, undirected graph. The problem is to cluster the vertices so as to minimize the number of edges between vertices in different clusters and missing edges between vertices inside the same cluster. This problem has a wide application in data mining and machine learning. We introduce a general framework that transforms existing static correlation clustering algorithms into fully-dynamic ones that work against an adaptive adversary. We show how to apply our framework to known efficient correlation clustering algorithms, starting from the classic 3-approximate Pivot algorithm from Ailon, Charikar and Newman [JACM'08]. Applied to the most recent sublinear 1.485-approximation algorithm from Cao, Cohen-Addad, Lee, Li, Lolck, Newman, Thorup, Vogl, Yan and Zhang [STOC'25] , we get an 1.485-approximation fully-dynamic algorithm that works with worst-case constant update time. The original static algorithm gets its approximation factor with constant probability, and we get the same against an adaptive adversary in the sense that for any given update step, not known to our algorithm, our solution is an 1.485-approximation with constant probability when we reach this update. Most of previous dynamic algorithms, including the celebrated result from Behnezhad, Charikar, Ma and Tan [FOCS'19], had approximation factors around 3 in expectation, and they could only handle an oblivious adversary. A recent algorithm by Braverman, Dharangutte, Pai, Shah, and Wang [AISTATS'25] handles an adaptive adversary, but it has a large unspecified constant approximation ratio. This contrasts with our general transformation, which works with all the best approximation factors known for the static case.
Cite as

Nairen Cao, Vincent Cohen-Addad, Euiwoong Lee, Shi Li, David Rasmussen Lolck, Alantha Newman, Mikkel Thorup, Lukas Vogl, Shuyi Yan, and Hanwen Zhang. Static to Dynamic Correlation Clustering. In 53rd International Colloquium on Automata, Languages, and Programming (ICALP 2026). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 374, pp. 48:1-48:23, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2026)

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@InProceedings{cao_et_al:LIPIcs.ICALP.2026.48,
  author =	{Cao, Nairen and Cohen-Addad, Vincent and Lee, Euiwoong and Li, Shi and Lolck, David Rasmussen and Newman, Alantha and Thorup, Mikkel and Vogl, Lukas and Yan, Shuyi and Zhang, Hanwen},
  title =	{{Static to Dynamic Correlation Clustering}},
  booktitle =	{53rd International Colloquium on Automata, Languages, and Programming (ICALP 2026)},
  pages =	{48:1--48:23},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-428-4},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2026},
  volume =	{374},
  editor =	{Bhattacharya, Sayan and Nanongkai, Danupon and Benedikt, Michael and Puppis, Gabriele},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.ICALP.2026.48},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-264378},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.ICALP.2026.48},
  annote =	{Keywords: Dynamic Algorithms, Correlation Clustering, Approximation Algorithms}
}
Document
Track A: Algorithms, Complexity and Games
DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.ICALP.2026.53
Hardness and Approximation for Coloring Digraphs

Authors: Parinya Chalermsook, Harmender Gahlawat, Felix Klingelhoefer, Alantha Newman, and Chaoliang Tang

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 374, 53rd International Colloquium on Automata, Languages, and Programming (ICALP 2026)

Abstract
The dichromatic number χ(D) of a digraph is the minimum number k such that V(D) can be partitioned into k subsets, each inducing an acyclic digraph. The acyclic number α(D) is the cardinality of a largest induced acyclic subdigraph of D. We study these problems from an approximation point of view. We begin with establishing that even when restricted to tournaments, approximating χ and α remain as challenging as their undirected counterparts on general graphs. Specifically, we establish that for every ε > 0, it is hard to approximate both α and χ up to a factor of n^{1-ε} even when restricted to tournaments. We next consider approximate coloring of digraphs in special cases. We begin with establishing that we can color 𝓁-dicolorable digraphs using at most 𝓁 ⋅ n^{1-1/(𝓁)} colors in time O(n^{2𝓁}); in particular, we can color 2-dicolorable digraphs with 2√n colors in polynomial time. We then focus on bounding the dichromatic number of dense digraphs as a function of the independence number α of the underlying graph. We consider two special cases in this regard: digraphs with χ(D) ≤ 2 and digraphs that do not contain any directed triangle. For these cases, we present algorithms which generalize and improve existing tools and results.
Cite as

Parinya Chalermsook, Harmender Gahlawat, Felix Klingelhoefer, Alantha Newman, and Chaoliang Tang. Hardness and Approximation for Coloring Digraphs. In 53rd International Colloquium on Automata, Languages, and Programming (ICALP 2026). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 374, pp. 53:1-53:21, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2026)

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@InProceedings{chalermsook_et_al:LIPIcs.ICALP.2026.53,
  author =	{Chalermsook, Parinya and Gahlawat, Harmender and Klingelhoefer, Felix and Newman, Alantha and Tang, Chaoliang},
  title =	{{Hardness and Approximation for Coloring Digraphs}},
  booktitle =	{53rd International Colloquium on Automata, Languages, and Programming (ICALP 2026)},
  pages =	{53:1--53:21},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-428-4},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2026},
  volume =	{374},
  editor =	{Bhattacharya, Sayan and Nanongkai, Danupon and Benedikt, Michael and Puppis, Gabriele},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.ICALP.2026.53},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-264421},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.ICALP.2026.53},
  annote =	{Keywords: Graph Algorithms, Hardness of Approximation, Polynomial Time Approximation Algorithms, Structural Graph Theory}
}
Document
DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.FUN.2026.20
Permutation Match Puzzles: How Young Tanvi Learned About Computational Complexity

Authors: Kshitij Gajjar and Neeldhara Misra

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 366, 13th International Conference on Fun with Algorithms (FUN 2026)

Abstract
We study a family of sorting match puzzles on grids, which we call permutation match puzzles. In this puzzle, each row and column of a n × n grid is labeled with an ordering constraint - ascending (A) or descending (D) - and the goal is to fill the grid with the numbers 1 through n² such that each row and column respects its constraint. We provide a complete characterization of solvable puzzles: a puzzle admits a solution if and only if its associated constraint graph is acyclic, which translates to a simple "at most one switch" condition on the A/D labels. When solutions exist, we show that their count is given by a hook length formula. For unsolvable puzzles, we present an O(n) algorithm to compute the minimum number of label flips required to reach a solvable configuration. Finally, we consider a generalization where rows and columns may specify arbitrary permutations rather than simple orderings, and establish that finding minimal repairs in this setting is NP-complete by a reduction from feedback arc set.
Cite as

Kshitij Gajjar and Neeldhara Misra. Permutation Match Puzzles: How Young Tanvi Learned About Computational Complexity. In 13th International Conference on Fun with Algorithms (FUN 2026). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 366, pp. 20:1-20:16, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2026)

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@InProceedings{gajjar_et_al:LIPIcs.FUN.2026.20,
  author =	{Gajjar, Kshitij and Misra, Neeldhara},
  title =	{{Permutation Match Puzzles: How Young Tanvi Learned About Computational Complexity}},
  booktitle =	{13th International Conference on Fun with Algorithms (FUN 2026)},
  pages =	{20:1--20:16},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-417-8},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2026},
  volume =	{366},
  editor =	{Iacono, John},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.FUN.2026.20},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-257398},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.FUN.2026.20},
  annote =	{Keywords: sorting match puzzles, permutation match puzzles, grid puzzles, constraint satisfaction, directed acyclic graphs, hook length formula, standard Young tableaux, NP-completeness, feedback arc set}
}
Document
DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.ITCS.2026.67
Query Lower Bounds for Correlation Clustering Under Memory Constraints

Authors: Sumegha Garg, Songhua He, and Periklis A. Papakonstantinou

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 362, 17th Innovations in Theoretical Computer Science Conference (ITCS 2026)

Abstract
This work initiates the study of memory–query tradeoffs for graph problems, with a focus on correlation clustering. Correlation clustering asks for a partition of the vertices that minimizes disagreements: non‑edges inside clusters plus edges across clusters. Our first result is a tight query lower bound: to output a partition whose cost approximates the optimum up to an additive error of ε n², any algorithm requires Ω(n/ε²) adjacency-matrix queries. Under memory constraints, we show that even for the seemingly easier task of approximating the optimal clustering cost (without producing a partition), any algorithm in the random query model must make ≫ n/ε² adjacency-matrix queries. Finally, we prove the first general graph model query lower bound for correlation clustering, where algorithms are allowed adjacency-matrix, neighbor, and degree queries. The latter two bounds are not yet tight, leaving room for sharper results.
Cite as

Sumegha Garg, Songhua He, and Periklis A. Papakonstantinou. Query Lower Bounds for Correlation Clustering Under Memory Constraints. In 17th Innovations in Theoretical Computer Science Conference (ITCS 2026). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 362, pp. 67:1-67:24, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2026)

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@InProceedings{garg_et_al:LIPIcs.ITCS.2026.67,
  author =	{Garg, Sumegha and He, Songhua and Papakonstantinou, Periklis A.},
  title =	{{Query Lower Bounds for Correlation Clustering Under Memory Constraints}},
  booktitle =	{17th Innovations in Theoretical Computer Science Conference (ITCS 2026)},
  pages =	{67:1--67:24},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-410-9},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2026},
  volume =	{362},
  editor =	{Saraf, Shubhangi},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.ITCS.2026.67},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-253542},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.ITCS.2026.67},
  annote =	{Keywords: correlation clustering, query-space complexity, information theory}
}
Document
DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.ESA.2025.27
Online Makespan Scheduling Under Scenarios

Authors: Ekin Ergen

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 351, 33rd Annual European Symposium on Algorithms (ESA 2025)

Abstract
We consider a natural extension of online makespan scheduling on identical parallel machines by introducing scenarios. A scenario is a subset of jobs, and the task of our problem is to find a global assignment of the jobs to machines so that the maximum makespan under a scenario, i.e., the maximum makespan of any schedule restricted to a scenario, is minimized. For varying values of the number of scenarios and machines, we explore the competitiveness of online algorithms. We prove tight and near-tight bounds, several of which are achieved through novel constructions. In particular, we leverage the interplay between the unit processing time case of our problem and the hypergraph coloring problem both ways: We use hypergraph coloring techniques to steer an adversarial family of instances proving lower bounds for our problem, which in turn leads to lower bounds for several variants of online hypergraph coloring.
Cite as

Ekin Ergen. Online Makespan Scheduling Under Scenarios. In 33rd Annual European Symposium on Algorithms (ESA 2025). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 351, pp. 27:1-27:16, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)

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@InProceedings{ergen:LIPIcs.ESA.2025.27,
  author =	{Ergen, Ekin},
  title =	{{Online Makespan Scheduling Under Scenarios}},
  booktitle =	{33rd Annual European Symposium on Algorithms (ESA 2025)},
  pages =	{27:1--27:16},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-395-9},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{351},
  editor =	{Benoit, Anne and Kaplan, Haim and Wild, Sebastian and Herman, Grzegorz},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.ESA.2025.27},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-244950},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.ESA.2025.27},
  annote =	{Keywords: online scheduling, scenario-based model, online algorithms}
}
Document
DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.ESA.2025.111
Hardness of Median and Center in the Ulam Metric

Authors: Nick Fischer, Elazar Goldenberg, Mursalin Habib, and Karthik C. S.

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 351, 33rd Annual European Symposium on Algorithms (ESA 2025)

Abstract
The classical rank aggregation problem seeks to combine a set X of n permutations into a single representative "consensus" permutation. In this paper, we investigate two fundamental rank aggregation tasks under the well-studied Ulam metric: computing a median permutation (which minimizes the sum of Ulam distances to X) and computing a center permutation (which minimizes the maximum Ulam distance to X) in two settings. - Continuous Setting: In the continuous setting, the median/center is allowed to be any permutation. It is known that computing a center in the Ulam metric is NP-hard and we add to this by showing that computing a median is NP-hard as well via a simple reduction from the Max-Cut problem. While this result may not be unexpected, it had remained elusive until now and confirms a speculation by Chakraborty, Das, and Krauthgamer [SODA '21]. - Discrete Setting: In the discrete setting, the median/center must be a permutation from the input set. We fully resolve the fine-grained complexity of the discrete median and discrete center problems under the Ulam metric, proving that the naive Õ(n² L)-time algorithm (where L is the length of the permutation) is conditionally optimal. This resolves an open problem raised by Abboud, Bateni, Cohen-Addad, Karthik C. S., and Seddighin [APPROX '23]. Our reductions are inspired by the known fine-grained lower bounds for similarity measures, but we face and overcome several new highly technical challenges.
Cite as

Nick Fischer, Elazar Goldenberg, Mursalin Habib, and Karthik C. S.. Hardness of Median and Center in the Ulam Metric. In 33rd Annual European Symposium on Algorithms (ESA 2025). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 351, pp. 111:1-111:17, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)

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@InProceedings{fischer_et_al:LIPIcs.ESA.2025.111,
  author =	{Fischer, Nick and Goldenberg, Elazar and Habib, Mursalin and Karthik C. S.},
  title =	{{Hardness of Median and Center in the Ulam Metric}},
  booktitle =	{33rd Annual European Symposium on Algorithms (ESA 2025)},
  pages =	{111:1--111:17},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-395-9},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{351},
  editor =	{Benoit, Anne and Kaplan, Haim and Wild, Sebastian and Herman, Grzegorz},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.ESA.2025.111},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-245809},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.ESA.2025.111},
  annote =	{Keywords: Ulam distance, median, center, rank aggregation, fine-grained complexity}
}
Document
DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.ESA.2025.41
Min-Max Correlation Clustering via Neighborhood Similarity

Authors: Nairen Cao, Steven Roche, and Hsin-Hao Su

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 351, 33rd Annual European Symposium on Algorithms (ESA 2025)

Abstract
We present an efficient algorithm for the min-max correlation clustering problem. The input is a complete graph where edges are labeled as either positive (+) or negative (-), and the objective is to find a clustering that minimizes the 𝓁_∞-norm of the disagreement vector over all vertices. We address this problem with an efficient (3 + ε)-approximation algorithm that runs in nearly linear time, Õ(|E^+|), where |E^+| denotes the number of positive edges. This improves upon the previous best-known approximation guarantee of 4 by Heidrich, Irmai, and Andres [Heidrich et al., 2024], whose algorithm runs in O(|V|² + |V| D²) time, where |V| is the number of nodes and D is the maximum degree in the graph (V,E^+). Furthermore, we extend our algorithm to the massively parallel computation (MPC) model and the semi-streaming model. In the MPC model, our algorithm runs on machines with memory sublinear in the number of nodes and takes O(1) rounds. In the streaming model, our algorithm requires only Õ(|V|) space, where |V| is the number of vertices in the graph. Our algorithms are purely combinatorial. They are based on a novel structural observation about the optimal min-max instance, which enables the construction of a (3 + ε)-approximation algorithm using O(|E^+|) neighborhood similarity queries. By leveraging random projection, we further show these queries can be computed in nearly linear time.
Cite as

Nairen Cao, Steven Roche, and Hsin-Hao Su. Min-Max Correlation Clustering via Neighborhood Similarity. In 33rd Annual European Symposium on Algorithms (ESA 2025). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 351, pp. 41:1-41:18, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)

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@InProceedings{cao_et_al:LIPIcs.ESA.2025.41,
  author =	{Cao, Nairen and Roche, Steven and Su, Hsin-Hao},
  title =	{{Min-Max Correlation Clustering via Neighborhood Similarity}},
  booktitle =	{33rd Annual European Symposium on Algorithms (ESA 2025)},
  pages =	{41:1--41:18},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-395-9},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{351},
  editor =	{Benoit, Anne and Kaplan, Haim and Wild, Sebastian and Herman, Grzegorz},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.ESA.2025.41},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-245098},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.ESA.2025.41},
  annote =	{Keywords: Min Max Correlation Clustering, Approximate algorithms}
}
Document
APPROX
DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.APPROX/RANDOM.2025.5
Min-CSPs on Complete Instances II: Polylogarithmic Approximation for Min-NAE-3-SAT

Authors: Aditya Anand, Euiwoong Lee, Davide Mazzali, and Amatya Sharma

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 353, Approximation, Randomization, and Combinatorial Optimization. Algorithms and Techniques (APPROX/RANDOM 2025)

Abstract
This paper studies complete k-Constraint Satisfaction Problems (CSPs), where an n-variable instance has exactly one nontrivial constraint for each subset of k variables, i.e., it has binom(n,k) constraints. A recent work started a systematic study of complete k-CSPs [Anand, Lee, Sharma, SODA'25], and showed a quasi-polynomial time algorithm that decides if there is an assignment satisfying all the constraints of any complete Boolean-alphabet k-CSP, algorithmically separating complete instances from dense instances. The tractability of this decision problem is necessary for any nontrivial (multiplicative) approximation for the minimization version, whose goal is to minimize the number of violated constraints. The same paper raised the question of whether it is possible to obtain nontrivial approximation algorithms for complete Min-k-CSPs with k ≥ 3. In this work, we make progress in this direction and show a quasi-polynomial time polylog(n)-approximation to Min-NAE-3-SAT on complete instances, which asks to minimize the number of 3-clauses where all the three literals equal the same bit. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first known example of a CSP whose decision version is NP-Hard in general (and dense) instances while admitting a polylog(n)-approximation in complete instances. Our algorithm presents a new iterative framework for rounding a solution from the Sherali-Adams hierarchy, where each iteration interleaves the two well-known rounding tools: the conditioning procedure, in order to "almost fix" many variables, and the thresholding procedure, in order to "completely fix" them. Finally, we improve the running time of the decision algorithms of Anand, Lee, and Sharma and show a simple algorithm that decides any complete Boolean-alphabet k-CSP in polynomial time.
Cite as

Aditya Anand, Euiwoong Lee, Davide Mazzali, and Amatya Sharma. Min-CSPs on Complete Instances II: Polylogarithmic Approximation for Min-NAE-3-SAT. In Approximation, Randomization, and Combinatorial Optimization. Algorithms and Techniques (APPROX/RANDOM 2025). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 353, pp. 5:1-5:23, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)

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@InProceedings{anand_et_al:LIPIcs.APPROX/RANDOM.2025.5,
  author =	{Anand, Aditya and Lee, Euiwoong and Mazzali, Davide and Sharma, Amatya},
  title =	{{Min-CSPs on Complete Instances II: Polylogarithmic Approximation for Min-NAE-3-SAT}},
  booktitle =	{Approximation, Randomization, and Combinatorial Optimization. Algorithms and Techniques (APPROX/RANDOM 2025)},
  pages =	{5:1--5:23},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-397-3},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{353},
  editor =	{Ene, Alina and Chattopadhyay, Eshan},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.APPROX/RANDOM.2025.5},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-243712},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.APPROX/RANDOM.2025.5},
  annote =	{Keywords: Constraint Satisfiability Problems, Approximation Algorithms, Sherali Adams}
}
Document
APPROX
DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.APPROX/RANDOM.2025.21
Dual Charging for Half-Integral TSP

Authors: Nathan Klein and Mehrshad Taziki

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 353, Approximation, Randomization, and Combinatorial Optimization. Algorithms and Techniques (APPROX/RANDOM 2025)

Abstract
In this extended abstract, we show that the max entropy algorithm is a randomized 1.49776 approximation for half-integral TSP, improving upon the previous known bound of 1.49993 from Karlin et al. This also improves upon the best-known approximation for half-integral TSP due to Gupta et al. Our improvement results from using the dual, instead of the primal, to analyze the expected cost of the matching. We believe this method of analysis could lead to a simpler proof that max entropy is a better-than-3/2 approximation in the general case.
Cite as

Nathan Klein and Mehrshad Taziki. Dual Charging for Half-Integral TSP. In Approximation, Randomization, and Combinatorial Optimization. Algorithms and Techniques (APPROX/RANDOM 2025). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 353, pp. 21:1-21:22, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)

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@InProceedings{klein_et_al:LIPIcs.APPROX/RANDOM.2025.21,
  author =	{Klein, Nathan and Taziki, Mehrshad},
  title =	{{Dual Charging for Half-Integral TSP}},
  booktitle =	{Approximation, Randomization, and Combinatorial Optimization. Algorithms and Techniques (APPROX/RANDOM 2025)},
  pages =	{21:1--21:22},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-397-3},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{353},
  editor =	{Ene, Alina and Chattopadhyay, Eshan},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.APPROX/RANDOM.2025.21},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-243879},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.APPROX/RANDOM.2025.21},
  annote =	{Keywords: Approximation Algorithms, Graph Algorithms, Randomized Rounding, Linear Programming}
}
Document
Track A: Algorithms, Complexity and Games
DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.ICALP.2025.42
Fitting Tree Metrics and Ultrametrics in Data Streams

Authors: Amir Carmel, Debarati Das, Evangelos Kipouridis, and Evangelos Pipis

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 334, 52nd International Colloquium on Automata, Languages, and Programming (ICALP 2025)

Abstract
Fitting distances to tree metrics and ultrametrics are two widely used methods in hierarchical clustering, primarily explored within the context of numerical taxonomy. Formally, given a positive distance function D: binom(V,2) → ℝ_{>0}, the goal is to find a tree (or an ultrametric) T including all elements of set V, such that the difference between the distances among vertices in T and those specified by D is minimized. Numerical taxonomy was first introduced by Sneath and Sokal [Nature 1962], and since then it has been studied extensively in both biology and computer science. In this paper, we initiate the study of ultrametric and tree metric fitting problems in the semi-streaming model, where the distances between pairs of elements from V (with |V| = n), defined by the function D, can arrive in an arbitrary order. We study these problems under various distance norms; namely the 𝓁₀ objective, which aims to minimize the number of modified entries in D to fit a tree-metric or an ultrametric; the 𝓁₁ objective, which seeks to minimize the total sum of distance errors across all pairs of points in V; and the 𝓁_∞ objective, which focuses on minimizing the maximum error incurred by any entries in D. - Our first result addresses the 𝓁₀ objective. We provide a single-pass polynomial-time Õ(n)-space O(1) approximation algorithm for ultrametrics and prove that no single-pass exact algorithm exists, even with exponential time. - Next, we show that the algorithm for 𝓁₀ implies an O(Δ/δ) approximation for the 𝓁₁ objective, where Δ is the maximum, and δ is the minimum absolute difference between distances in the input. This bound matches the best-known approximation for the RAM model using a combinatorial algorithm when Δ/δ = O(n). - For the 𝓁_∞ objective, we provide a complete characterization of the ultrametric fitting problem. First, we present a single-pass polynomial-time Õ(n)-space 2-approximation algorithm and show that no better than 2-approximation is possible, even with exponential time. Furthermore, we show that with an additional pass, it is possible to achieve a polynomial-time exact algorithm for ultrametrics. - Finally, we extend all these results to tree metrics by using only one additional pass through the stream and without asymptotically increasing the approximation factor.
Cite as

Amir Carmel, Debarati Das, Evangelos Kipouridis, and Evangelos Pipis. Fitting Tree Metrics and Ultrametrics in Data Streams. In 52nd International Colloquium on Automata, Languages, and Programming (ICALP 2025). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 334, pp. 42:1-42:21, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)

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@InProceedings{carmel_et_al:LIPIcs.ICALP.2025.42,
  author =	{Carmel, Amir and Das, Debarati and Kipouridis, Evangelos and Pipis, Evangelos},
  title =	{{Fitting Tree Metrics and Ultrametrics in Data Streams}},
  booktitle =	{52nd International Colloquium on Automata, Languages, and Programming (ICALP 2025)},
  pages =	{42:1--42:21},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-372-0},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{334},
  editor =	{Censor-Hillel, Keren and Grandoni, Fabrizio and Ouaknine, Jo\"{e}l and Puppis, Gabriele},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.ICALP.2025.42},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-234197},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.ICALP.2025.42},
  annote =	{Keywords: Streaming, Clustering, Ultrametrics, Tree metrics, Distance fitting}
}
Document
Track A: Algorithms, Complexity and Games
DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.ICALP.2025.40
Simultaneously Approximating All Norms for Massively Parallel Correlation Clustering

Authors: Nairen Cao, Shi Li, and Jia Ye

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 334, 52nd International Colloquium on Automata, Languages, and Programming (ICALP 2025)

Abstract
We revisit the simultaneous approximation model for the correlation clustering problem introduced by Davies, Moseley, and Newman [Davies et al., 2024]. The objective is to find a clustering that minimizes given norms of the disagreement vector over all vertices. We present an efficient algorithm that produces a clustering that is simultaneously a 63.3-approximation for all monotone symmetric norms. This significantly improves upon the previous approximation ratio of 6348 due to Davies, Moseley, and Newman [Davies et al., 2024], which works only for 𝓁_p-norms. To achieve this result, we first reduce the problem to approximating all top-k norms simultaneously, using the connection between monotone symmetric norms and top-k norms established by Chakrabarty and Swamy [Chakrabarty and Swamy, 2019]. Then we develop a novel procedure that constructs a 12.66-approximate fractional clustering for all top-k norms. Our 63.3-approximation ratio is obtained by combining this with the 5-approximate rounding algorithm by Kalhan, Makarychev, and Zhou [Kalhan et al., 2019]. We then demonstrate that with a loss of ε in the approximation ratio, the algorithm can be adapted to run in nearly linear time and in the MPC (massively parallel computation) model with poly-logarithmic number of rounds. By allowing a further trade-off in the approximation ratio to (359+ε), the number of MPC rounds can be reduced to a constant.
Cite as

Nairen Cao, Shi Li, and Jia Ye. Simultaneously Approximating All Norms for Massively Parallel Correlation Clustering. In 52nd International Colloquium on Automata, Languages, and Programming (ICALP 2025). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 334, pp. 40:1-40:20, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)

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@InProceedings{cao_et_al:LIPIcs.ICALP.2025.40,
  author =	{Cao, Nairen and Li, Shi and Ye, Jia},
  title =	{{Simultaneously Approximating All Norms for Massively Parallel Correlation Clustering}},
  booktitle =	{52nd International Colloquium on Automata, Languages, and Programming (ICALP 2025)},
  pages =	{40:1--40:20},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-372-0},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{334},
  editor =	{Censor-Hillel, Keren and Grandoni, Fabrizio and Ouaknine, Jo\"{e}l and Puppis, Gabriele},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.ICALP.2025.40},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-234171},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.ICALP.2025.40},
  annote =	{Keywords: Correlation Clustering, All-Norms, Approximation Algorithm, Massively Parallel Algorithm}
}
Document
Track A: Algorithms, Complexity and Games
DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.ICALP.2025.100
Robust-Sorting and Applications to Ulam-Median

Authors: Ragesh Jaiswal, Amit Kumar, and Jatin Yadav

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 334, 52nd International Colloquium on Automata, Languages, and Programming (ICALP 2025)

Abstract
Sorting is one of the most basic primitives in many algorithms and data analysis tasks. Comparison-based sorting algorithms, like quick-sort and merge-sort, are known to be optimal when the outcome of each comparison is error-free. However, many real-world sorting applications operate in scenarios where the outcome of each comparison can be noisy. In this work, we explore settings where a bounded number of comparisons are potentially corrupted by erroneous agents, resulting in arbitrary, adversarial outcomes. We model the sorting problem as a query-limited tournament graph where edges involving erroneous nodes may yield arbitrary results. Our primary contribution is a randomized algorithm inspired by quick-sort that, in expectation, produces an ordering close to the true total order while only querying Õ(n) edges. We achieve a distance from the target order π within (3 + ε)|B|, where B is the set of erroneous nodes, balancing the competing objectives of minimizing both query complexity and misalignment with π. Our algorithm needs to carefully balance two aspects - identify a pivot that partitions the vertex set evenly and ensure that this partition is "truthful" and yet query as few "triangles" in the graph G as possible. Since the nodes in B can potentially hide in an intricate manner, our algorithm requires several technical steps that ensure that progress is made in each recursive step. Additionally, we demonstrate significant implications for the Ulam-k-Median problem. This is a classical clustering problem where the metric is defined on the set of permutations on a set of d elements. Chakraborty, Das, and Krauthgamer gave a (2-ε) FPT approximation algorithm for this problem, where the running time is super-linear in both n and d. We give the first (2-ε) FPT linear time approximation algorithm for this problem. Our main technical result gives a strengthening of the results in Chakraborty et al. by showing that a good 1-median solution can be obtained from a constant-size random sample of the input. We use our robust sorting framework to find a good solution from such a random sample. We feel that the notion of robust sorting should have applications in several such settings.
Cite as

Ragesh Jaiswal, Amit Kumar, and Jatin Yadav. Robust-Sorting and Applications to Ulam-Median. In 52nd International Colloquium on Automata, Languages, and Programming (ICALP 2025). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 334, pp. 100:1-100:19, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)

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@InProceedings{jaiswal_et_al:LIPIcs.ICALP.2025.100,
  author =	{Jaiswal, Ragesh and Kumar, Amit and Yadav, Jatin},
  title =	{{Robust-Sorting and Applications to Ulam-Median}},
  booktitle =	{52nd International Colloquium on Automata, Languages, and Programming (ICALP 2025)},
  pages =	{100:1--100:19},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-372-0},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{334},
  editor =	{Censor-Hillel, Keren and Grandoni, Fabrizio and Ouaknine, Jo\"{e}l and Puppis, Gabriele},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.ICALP.2025.100},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-234774},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.ICALP.2025.100},
  annote =	{Keywords: Sorting, clustering, query complexity}
}
Document
DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.STACS.2025.32
A Faster Algorithm for Constrained Correlation Clustering

Authors: Nick Fischer, Evangelos Kipouridis, Jonas Klausen, and Mikkel Thorup

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 327, 42nd International Symposium on Theoretical Aspects of Computer Science (STACS 2025)

Abstract
In the Correlation Clustering problem we are given n nodes, and a preference for each pair of nodes indicating whether we prefer the two endpoints to be in the same cluster or not. The output is a clustering inducing the minimum number of violated preferences. In certain cases, however, the preference between some pairs may be too important to be violated. The constrained version of this problem specifies pairs of nodes that must be in the same cluster as well as pairs that must not be in the same cluster (hard constraints). The output clustering has to satisfy all hard constraints while minimizing the number of violated preferences. Constrained Correlation Clustering is APX-Hard and has been approximated within a factor 3 by van Zuylen et al. [SODA '07]. Their algorithm is based on rounding an LP with Θ(n³) constraints, resulting in an Ω(n^{3ω}) running time. In this work, using a more combinatorial approach, we show how to approximate this problem significantly faster at the cost of a slightly weaker approximation factor. In particular, our algorithm runs in Õ(n³) time (notice that the input size is Θ(n²)) and approximates Constrained Correlation Clustering within a factor 16. To achieve our result we need properties guaranteed by a particular influential algorithm for (unconstrained) Correlation Clustering, the CC-PIVOT algorithm. This algorithm chooses a pivot node u, creates a cluster containing u and all its preferred nodes, and recursively solves the rest of the problem. It is known that selecting pivots at random gives a 3-approximation. As a byproduct of our work, we provide a derandomization of the CC-PIVOT algorithm that still achieves the 3-approximation; furthermore, we show that there exist instances where no ordering of the pivots can give a (3-ε)-approximation, for any constant ε. Finally, we introduce a node-weighted version of Correlation Clustering, which can be approximated within factor 3 using our insights on Constrained Correlation Clustering. As the general weighted version of Correlation Clustering would require a major breakthrough to approximate within a factor o(log n), Node-Weighted Correlation Clustering may be a practical alternative.
Cite as

Nick Fischer, Evangelos Kipouridis, Jonas Klausen, and Mikkel Thorup. A Faster Algorithm for Constrained Correlation Clustering. In 42nd International Symposium on Theoretical Aspects of Computer Science (STACS 2025). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 327, pp. 32:1-32:18, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)

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@InProceedings{fischer_et_al:LIPIcs.STACS.2025.32,
  author =	{Fischer, Nick and Kipouridis, Evangelos and Klausen, Jonas and Thorup, Mikkel},
  title =	{{A Faster Algorithm for Constrained Correlation Clustering}},
  booktitle =	{42nd International Symposium on Theoretical Aspects of Computer Science (STACS 2025)},
  pages =	{32:1--32:18},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-365-2},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{327},
  editor =	{Beyersdorff, Olaf and Pilipczuk, Micha{\l} and Pimentel, Elaine and Thắng, Nguy\~{ê}n Kim},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.STACS.2025.32},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-228585},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.STACS.2025.32},
  annote =	{Keywords: Clustering, Constrained Correlation Clustering, Approximation}
}
Document
DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.ITCS.2025.83
Fine-Grained Equivalence for Problems Related to Integer Linear Programming

Authors: Lars Rohwedder and Karol Węgrzycki

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 325, 16th Innovations in Theoretical Computer Science Conference (ITCS 2025)

Abstract
Integer Linear Programming with n binary variables and m many 0/1-constraints can be solved in time 2^Õ(m²) poly(n) and it is open whether the dependence on m is optimal. Several seemingly unrelated problems, which include variants of Closest String, Discrepancy Minimization, Set Cover, and Set Packing, can be modelled as Integer Linear Programming with 0/1 constraints to obtain algorithms with the same running time for a natural parameter m in each of the problems. Our main result establishes through fine-grained reductions that these problems are equivalent, meaning that a 2^O(m^{2-ε}) poly(n) algorithm with ε > 0 for one of them implies such an algorithm for all of them. In the setting above, one can alternatively obtain an n^O(m) time algorithm for Integer Linear Programming using a straightforward dynamic programming approach, which can be more efficient if n is relatively small (e.g., subexponential in m). We show that this can be improved to {n'}^O(m) + O(nm), where n' is the number of distinct (i.e., non-symmetric) variables. This dominates both of the aforementioned running times.
Cite as

Lars Rohwedder and Karol Węgrzycki. Fine-Grained Equivalence for Problems Related to Integer Linear Programming. In 16th Innovations in Theoretical Computer Science Conference (ITCS 2025). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 325, pp. 83:1-83:18, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)

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@InProceedings{rohwedder_et_al:LIPIcs.ITCS.2025.83,
  author =	{Rohwedder, Lars and W\k{e}grzycki, Karol},
  title =	{{Fine-Grained Equivalence for Problems Related to Integer Linear Programming}},
  booktitle =	{16th Innovations in Theoretical Computer Science Conference (ITCS 2025)},
  pages =	{83:1--83:18},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-361-4},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{325},
  editor =	{Meka, Raghu},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.ITCS.2025.83},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-227114},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.ITCS.2025.83},
  annote =	{Keywords: Integer Programming, Fine-Grained Complexity, Fixed-Parameter Tractable Algorithms}
}
Document
DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.FSTTCS.2024.30
Improved Linearly Ordered Colorings of Hypergraphs via SDP Rounding

Authors: Anand Louis, Alantha Newman, and Arka Ray

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 323, 44th IARCS Annual Conference on Foundations of Software Technology and Theoretical Computer Science (FSTTCS 2024)

Abstract
We consider the problem of linearly ordered (LO) coloring of hypergraphs. A hypergraph has an LO coloring if there is a vertex coloring, using a set of ordered colors, so that (i) no edge is monochromatic, and (ii) each edge has a unique maximum color. It is an open question as to whether or not a 2-LO colorable 3-uniform hypergraph can be LO colored with 3 colors in polynomial time. Nakajima and Živný recently gave a polynomial-time algorithm to color such hypergraphs with Õ(n^{1/3}) colors and asked if SDP methods can be used directly to obtain improved bounds. Our main result is to show how to use SDP-based rounding methods to produce an LO coloring with Õ(n^{1/5}) colors for such hypergraphs. We show how to reduce the problem to cases with highly structured SDP solutions, which we call balanced hypergraphs. Then we discuss how to apply classic SDP-rounding tools in this case to obtain improved bounds.
Cite as

Anand Louis, Alantha Newman, and Arka Ray. Improved Linearly Ordered Colorings of Hypergraphs via SDP Rounding. In 44th IARCS Annual Conference on Foundations of Software Technology and Theoretical Computer Science (FSTTCS 2024). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 323, pp. 30:1-30:19, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2024)

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@InProceedings{louis_et_al:LIPIcs.FSTTCS.2024.30,
  author =	{Louis, Anand and Newman, Alantha and Ray, Arka},
  title =	{{Improved Linearly Ordered Colorings of Hypergraphs via SDP Rounding}},
  booktitle =	{44th IARCS Annual Conference on Foundations of Software Technology and Theoretical Computer Science (FSTTCS 2024)},
  pages =	{30:1--30:19},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-355-3},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2024},
  volume =	{323},
  editor =	{Barman, Siddharth and Lasota, S{\l}awomir},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.FSTTCS.2024.30},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-222199},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.FSTTCS.2024.30},
  annote =	{Keywords: hypergraph coloring, SDP rounding, promise constraint satisfaction problems}
}
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