5 Search Results for "Coulombe, Michael"

Document
DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.SAND.2025.11
Hardness of Traversing Gadget Systems with Small Bandwidth

Authors: MIT Gadgets Group, Erik D. Demaine, Jenny Diomidova, Timothy Gomez, Markus Hecher, and Jayson Lynch

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 330, 4th Symposium on Algorithmic Foundations of Dynamic Networks (SAND 2025)

Abstract
The motion-planning-through-gadgets framework has enabled proofs of PSPACE-completeness for many motion-planning problems, ranging from swarm and modular robotics to DNA computing to video games. In this paper, we strengthen this framework to show that, for several useful gadgets and gadget families, motion planning remains PSPACE-complete even when gadgets are connected together into a graph of constant bandwidth (which implies constant pathwidth, treewidth, and cliquewidth). We then show how this result applies to several geometric/grid-based motion-planning problems, establishing PSPACE-completeness even when restricted to a rectangle/box where only one dimension is large (superconstant). On the positive side, we find one family of gadgets (DAG gadgets) for which motion planning is fixed-parameter tractable with respect to bandwidth.
Cite as

MIT Gadgets Group, Erik D. Demaine, Jenny Diomidova, Timothy Gomez, Markus Hecher, and Jayson Lynch. Hardness of Traversing Gadget Systems with Small Bandwidth. In 4th Symposium on Algorithmic Foundations of Dynamic Networks (SAND 2025). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 330, pp. 11:1-11:16, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2025)

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@InProceedings{mitgadgetsgroup_et_al:LIPIcs.SAND.2025.11,
  author =	{MIT Gadgets Group and Demaine, Erik D. and Diomidova, Jenny and Gomez, Timothy and Hecher, Markus and Lynch, Jayson},
  title =	{{Hardness of Traversing Gadget Systems with Small Bandwidth}},
  booktitle =	{4th Symposium on Algorithmic Foundations of Dynamic Networks (SAND 2025)},
  pages =	{11:1--11:16},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-368-3},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2025},
  volume =	{330},
  editor =	{Meeks, Kitty and Scheideler, Christian},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.SAND.2025.11},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-230648},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.SAND.2025.11},
  annote =	{Keywords: Gadgets, Motion Planning, Parameterized Complexity, Hardness}
}
Document
DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.DNA.29.10
Complexity of Reconfiguration in Surface Chemical Reaction Networks

Authors: Robert M. Alaniz, Josh Brunner, Michael Coulombe, Erik D. Demaine, Jenny Diomidova, Timothy Gomez, Elise Grizzell, Ryan Knobel, Jayson Lynch, Andrew Rodriguez, Robert Schweller, and Tim Wylie

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 276, 29th International Conference on DNA Computing and Molecular Programming (DNA 29) (2023)

Abstract
We analyze the computational complexity of basic reconfiguration problems for the recently introduced surface Chemical Reaction Networks (sCRNs), where ordered pairs of adjacent species nondeterministically transform into a different ordered pair of species according to a predefined set of allowed transition rules (chemical reactions). In particular, two questions that are fundamental to the simulation of sCRNs are whether a given configuration of molecules can ever transform into another given configuration, and whether a given cell can ever contain a given species, given a set of transition rules. We show that these problems can be solved in polynomial time, are NP-complete, or are PSPACE-complete in a variety of different settings, including when adjacent species just swap instead of arbitrary transformation (swap sCRNs), and when cells can change species a limited number of times (k-burnout). Most problems turn out to be at least NP-hard except with very few distinct species (2 or 3).
Cite as

Robert M. Alaniz, Josh Brunner, Michael Coulombe, Erik D. Demaine, Jenny Diomidova, Timothy Gomez, Elise Grizzell, Ryan Knobel, Jayson Lynch, Andrew Rodriguez, Robert Schweller, and Tim Wylie. Complexity of Reconfiguration in Surface Chemical Reaction Networks. In 29th International Conference on DNA Computing and Molecular Programming (DNA 29). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 276, pp. 10:1-10:18, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2023)

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@InProceedings{alaniz_et_al:LIPIcs.DNA.29.10,
  author =	{Alaniz, Robert M. and Brunner, Josh and Coulombe, Michael and Demaine, Erik D. and Diomidova, Jenny and Gomez, Timothy and Grizzell, Elise and Knobel, Ryan and Lynch, Jayson and Rodriguez, Andrew and Schweller, Robert and Wylie, Tim},
  title =	{{Complexity of Reconfiguration in Surface Chemical Reaction Networks}},
  booktitle =	{29th International Conference on DNA Computing and Molecular Programming (DNA 29)},
  pages =	{10:1--10:18},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-297-6},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2023},
  volume =	{276},
  editor =	{Chen, Ho-Lin and Evans, Constantine G.},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.DNA.29.10},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-187936},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.DNA.29.10},
  annote =	{Keywords: Chemical Reaction Networks, reconfiguration, hardness}
}
Document
DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.SAND.2023.5
Complexity of Motion Planning of Arbitrarily Many Robots: Gadgets, Petri Nets, and Counter Machines

Authors: Joshua Ani, Michael Coulombe, Erik D. Demaine, Yevhenii Diomidov, Timothy Gomez, Dylan Hendrickson, and Jayson Lynch

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 257, 2nd Symposium on Algorithmic Foundations of Dynamic Networks (SAND 2023)

Abstract
We extend the motion-planning-through-gadgets framework to several new scenarios involving various numbers of robots/agents, and analyze the complexity of the resulting motion-planning problems. While past work considers just one robot or one robot per player, most of our models allow for one or more locations to spawn new robots in each time step, leading to arbitrarily many robots. In the 0-player context, where all motion is deterministically forced, we prove that deciding whether any robot ever reaches a specified location is undecidable, by representing a counter machine. In the 1-player context, where the player can choose how to move the robots, we prove equivalence to Petri nets, EXPSPACE-completeness for reaching a specified location, PSPACE-completeness for reconfiguration, and ACKERMANN-completeness for reconfiguration when robots can be destroyed in addition to spawned. Finally, we consider a variation on the standard 2-player context where, instead of one robot per player, we have one robot shared by the players, along with a ko rule to prevent immediately undoing the previous move. We prove this impartial 2-player game EXPTIME-complete.
Cite as

Joshua Ani, Michael Coulombe, Erik D. Demaine, Yevhenii Diomidov, Timothy Gomez, Dylan Hendrickson, and Jayson Lynch. Complexity of Motion Planning of Arbitrarily Many Robots: Gadgets, Petri Nets, and Counter Machines. In 2nd Symposium on Algorithmic Foundations of Dynamic Networks (SAND 2023). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 257, pp. 5:1-5:21, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2023)

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@InProceedings{ani_et_al:LIPIcs.SAND.2023.5,
  author =	{Ani, Joshua and Coulombe, Michael and Demaine, Erik D. and Diomidov, Yevhenii and Gomez, Timothy and Hendrickson, Dylan and Lynch, Jayson},
  title =	{{Complexity of Motion Planning of Arbitrarily Many Robots: Gadgets, Petri Nets, and Counter Machines}},
  booktitle =	{2nd Symposium on Algorithmic Foundations of Dynamic Networks (SAND 2023)},
  pages =	{5:1--5:21},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-275-4},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2023},
  volume =	{257},
  editor =	{Doty, David and Spirakis, Paul},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.SAND.2023.5},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-179414},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.SAND.2023.5},
  annote =	{Keywords: Gadgets, robots, undecidability, Petri nets}
}
Document
DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.ISAAC.2022.32
Lower Bounds on Retroactive Data Structures

Authors: Lily Chung, Erik D. Demaine, Dylan Hendrickson, and Jayson Lynch

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 248, 33rd International Symposium on Algorithms and Computation (ISAAC 2022)

Abstract
We prove essentially optimal fine-grained lower bounds on the gap between a data structure and a partially retroactive version of the same data structure. Precisely, assuming any one of three standard conjectures, we describe a problem that has a data structure where operations run in O(T(n,m)) time per operation, but any partially retroactive version of that data structure requires T(n,m)⋅m^{1-o(1)} worst-case time per operation, where n is the size of the data structure at any time and m is the number of operations. Any data structure with operations running in O(T(n,m)) time per operation can be converted (via the "rollback method") into a partially retroactive data structure running in O(T(n,m)⋅m) time per operation, so our lower bound is tight up to an m^o(1) factor common in fine-grained complexity.
Cite as

Lily Chung, Erik D. Demaine, Dylan Hendrickson, and Jayson Lynch. Lower Bounds on Retroactive Data Structures. In 33rd International Symposium on Algorithms and Computation (ISAAC 2022). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 248, pp. 32:1-32:12, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2022)

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@InProceedings{chung_et_al:LIPIcs.ISAAC.2022.32,
  author =	{Chung, Lily and Demaine, Erik D. and Hendrickson, Dylan and Lynch, Jayson},
  title =	{{Lower Bounds on Retroactive Data Structures}},
  booktitle =	{33rd International Symposium on Algorithms and Computation (ISAAC 2022)},
  pages =	{32:1--32:12},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-258-7},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2022},
  volume =	{248},
  editor =	{Bae, Sang Won and Park, Heejin},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.ISAAC.2022.32},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-173171},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.ISAAC.2022.32},
  annote =	{Keywords: Retroactivity, time travel, rollback, fine-grained complexity}
}
Document
DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.FUN.2018.14
Cooperating in Video Games? Impossible! Undecidability of Team Multiplayer Games

Authors: Michael J. Coulombe and Jayson Lynch

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 100, 9th International Conference on Fun with Algorithms (FUN 2018)

Abstract
We show the undecidability of whether a team has a forced win in a number of well known video games including: Team Fortress 2, Super Smash Brothers: Brawl, and Mario Kart.To do so, we give a simplification of the Team Computation Game [Hearn and Demaine, 2009] and use that to give an undecidable abstract game on graphs. This graph game framework better captures the geometry and common constraints in many games and is thus a powerful tool for showing their computational complexity.
Cite as

Michael J. Coulombe and Jayson Lynch. Cooperating in Video Games? Impossible! Undecidability of Team Multiplayer Games. In 9th International Conference on Fun with Algorithms (FUN 2018). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 100, pp. 14:1-14:16, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2018)

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@InProceedings{coulombe_et_al:LIPIcs.FUN.2018.14,
  author =	{Coulombe, Michael J. and Lynch, Jayson},
  title =	{{Cooperating in Video Games? Impossible! Undecidability of Team Multiplayer Games}},
  booktitle =	{9th International Conference on Fun with Algorithms (FUN 2018)},
  pages =	{14:1--14:16},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-067-5},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2018},
  volume =	{100},
  editor =	{Ito, Hiro and Leonardi, Stefano and Pagli, Linda and Prencipe, Giuseppe},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.FUN.2018.14},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-88051},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.FUN.2018.14},
  annote =	{Keywords: computational complexity, undecidable, team games, imperfect information}
}
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