Mathematics Commons^™

Recounting Determinants For A Class Of Hessenberg Matrices, Arthur T. Benjamin, Mark A. Shattuck

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

We provide combinatorial interpretations for determinants which are Fibonacci numbers of several recently introduced Hessenberg matrices. Our arguments make use of the basic definition of the determinant as a signed sum over the symmetric group.

Solution To Problem 1751, A Combinatorial Identity, Arthur T. Benjamin, Andrew Carman '09

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

A combinatorial proof to Iliya Bluskov's proposed Problem 1751.

Fibonacci Deteminants - A Combinatorial Approach, Arthur T. Benjamin, Naiomi T. Cameron, Jennifer J. Quinn

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

In this paper, we provide combinatorial interpretations for some determinantal identities involving Fibonacci numbers. We use the method due to Lindström-Gessel-Viennot in which we count nonintersecting n-routes in carefully chosen digraphs in order to gain insight into the nature of some well-known determinantal identities while allowing room to generalize and discover new ones.

A Combinatorial Solution To Intertwined Recurrences, Arthur T. Benjamin, Michael D. Hirschhorn

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

We provide combinatorial derivations of solutions to intertwined second order linear recurrences (such as a_n = pb_n-1 + qa_n-2, b_n = ra_n-1 + sb_n-2) by counting tilings of length n strips with squares and dominoes of various colors and shades. A similar approach can be applied to intertwined third order recurrences with coefficients equal to one. Here we find that all solutions can be expressed in terms of tribonacci numbers. The method can also be easily extended to solve and combinatorially comprehend kth order Fibonacci recurrences.

Self-Avoiding Walks And Fibonacci Numbers, Arthur T. Benjamin

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

By combinatorial arguments, we prove that the number of self-avoiding walks on the strip {0, 1} × Z is 8F_n − 4 when n is odd and is 8F_n − n when n is even. Also, when backwards moves are prohibited, we derive simple expressions for the number of length n self-avoiding walks on {0, 1} × Z, Z × Z, the triangular lattice, and the cubic lattice.

Summing Cubes By Counting Rectangles, Arthur T. Benjamin, Jennifer J. Quinn, Calyssa Wurtz

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

No abstract provided in this article.

On The Combinatorics Of Certain Garside Semigroups, Christopher R. Cornwell

Theses and Dissertations

In his dissertation, F.A. Garside provided a solution to the word and conjugacy problems in the braid group on n-strands, using a particular element that he called the fundamental word. Others have since defined fundamental words in the generalized setting of Artin groups, and even more recently in Garside groups. We consider the problem of finding the number of representations of a power of the fundamental word in these settings. In the process, we find a Pascal-like identity that is satisfied in a certain class of Garside groups.

The Linear Complexity Of A Graph, David L. Neel, Michael E. Orrison Jr.

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

The linear complexity of a matrix is a measure of the number of additions, subtractions, and scalar multiplications required to multiply that matrix and an arbitrary vector. In this paper, we define the linear complexity of a graph to be the linear complexity of any one of its associated adjacency matrices. We then compute or give upper bounds for the linear complexity of several classes of graphs.

Pythagorean Primes And Palindromic Continued Fractions, Arthur T. Benjamin, Doron Zeilberger

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

In this note, we prove that every prime of the form 4m + 1 is the sum of the squares of two positive integers in a unique way. Our proof is based on elementary combinatorial properties of continued fractions. It uses an idea by Henry J. S. Smith ([3], [5], and [6]) most recently described in [4] (which provides a new proof of uniqueness and reprints Smith's paper in the original Latin). Smith's proof makes heavy use of nontrivial properties of determinants. Our purely combinatorial proof is self-contained and elementary.

Q.954 And A.954, Quickie Problem And Solution, Arthur T. Benjamin, Michel Bataille

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

Problem and proof proposed by authors.

Another proof, using lattice paths, can be found in Robert A. Sulanke's article, Objects Counted by the Central Delannoy Numbers, The Journal of Integer Sequences, Vol 6, 2003. A proof by polynomials is in Michel Bataille's paper Some Identities about an Old Combinatorial Sum, The Mathematical Gazette, March 2003, pp. 144-8. A slight change in the above proof leads to m ≥ n, a generalization proved by Li Zhou using lattice paths in The Mathematical Gazette.

Jump Systems And Laminated Manhattan Sets, Jessica Cuomo, Nkiruka Nwasokwa, Vadim Ponomarenko

Mathematics Faculty Research

A jump system is a set of lattice points satisfying a certain "two-step" axiom. A Manhattan set is the convex hull of a two-dimensional jump system. Taking multiple Manhattan sets, in layers, forms a three-dimensional object. We determine under what conditions this object is, in turn, a jump system.

A Combinatorial Approach To Hyperharmonic Numbers, Arthur T. Benjamin, David Gaebler '04, Robert Gaebler '04

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

Hyperharmonic numbers arise by taking repeated partial sums of harmonic numbers. These numbers can be expressed in terms of r-Stirling numbers, leading to combinatorial interpretations of many interesting identities.

A Probabilistic View Of Certain Weighted Fibonacci Sums, Arthur T. Benjamin, Judson D. Neer, Daniel T. Otero, James A. Sellers

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

In this article, we pursue the reverse strategy of using probability to derive a_n and develop an exponential generating function for a_n in Section 3. In Section 4, we present a method for finding an exact, non-recursive, formula for a_n.

Sandwich Theorem And Calculation Of The Theta Function For Several Graphs, Marcia Ling Riddle

Theses and Dissertations

This paper includes some basic ideas about the computation of a function theta(G), the theta number of a graph G, which is known as the Lovasz number of G. theta(G^c) lies between two hard-to-compute graph numbers omega(G), the size of the largest lique in a graph G, and chi(G), the minimum number of colors need to properly color the vertices of G. Lovasz and Grotschel called this the "Sandwich Theorem". Donald E. Knuth gives four additional definitions of theta, theta_1, theta_2, theta_3, theta_4 and proves that they are all equal.

First I am going to describe the proof of the …

Bounding The Number Of Graphs Containing Very Long Induced Paths, Steven Kay Butler

Theses and Dissertations

Induced graphs are used to describe the structure of a graph, one such type of induced graph that has been studied are long paths.

In this thesis we show a way to represent such graphs in terms of an array with two colors and a labeled graph. Using this representation and the techniques of Polya counting we will then be able to get upper and lower bounds for graphs containing a long path as an induced subgraph.

In particular, if we let P(n,k) be the number of graphs on n+k vertices which contains P_n, a path on n vertices, as …

A Stirling Encounter With Harmonic Numbers, Arthur T. Benjamin, Gregory O. Preston '01, Jennifer J. Quinn

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

No abstract provided in this article.

Phased Tilings And Generalized Fibonacci Identities, Arthur T. Benjamin, Jennifer J. Quinn, Francis E. Su

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

Fibonacci numbers arise in the solution of many combinatorial problems. They count the number of binary sequences with no consecutive zeros, the number of sequences of 1's and 2's which sum to a given number, and the number of independent sets of a path graph. Similar interpretations exist for Lucas numbers. Using these interpretations, it is possible to provide combinatorial proofs that shed light on many interesting Fibonacci and Lucas identities (see [1], [3]). In this paper we extend the combinatorial approach to understand relationships among generalized Fibonacci numbers.

Given G₀ and G₁ a generalized Fibonacci sequence G …

Counting On Continued Fractions, Arthur T. Benjamin, Francis E. Su, Jennifer J. Quinn

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

No abstract provided in this article.

Unevening The Odds Of "Even Up", Arthur T. Benjamin, Jennifer J. Quinn

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

No abstract provided in this article.

Even Subgraphs Of A Graph, Hong-Jian Lai, Zhi-Hong Chen

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

No abstract provided.

New Families Of Semi-Regular Relative Difference Sets, James A. Davis, Jonathan Jedwab, Miranda Mowbray

Department of Math & Statistics Faculty Publications

We give two constructions for semi-regular relative difference sets (RDSs) in groups whose order is not a prime power, where the order u of the forbidden subgroup is greater than 2. No such RDSs were previously known. We use examples from the first construction to produce semi-regular RDSs in groups whose order can contain more than two distinct prime factors. For u greater than 2 these are the first such RDSs, and for u = 2 we obtain new examples.

Combinatorics And Campus Security, Arthur T. Benjamin

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

One day I received electronic mail from our director of campus security [Gilbraith 1993]:

"I have a puzzle for you that has practical applications for me. I need to know how many different combinations there are for our combination locks. A lock has 5 buttons. In setting the combination you can use only 1button or as many as 5. Buttons may be pressed simultaneously and / or successively, but the same button cannot be used more than once in the same combination.

I had a student (obviously not a math major) email me that there are only 120 possibilities, but …

Construction Of Relative Difference Sets In P-Groups, James A. Davis

Department of Math & Statistics Faculty Publications

Jungnickel (1982) and Elliot and Butson (1966) have shown that (p^j+1,p,p^j+1,p^j) relative difference sets exist in the elementary abelian p-group case (p an odd prime) and many 2-groups for the case p = 2. This paper provides two new constructions of relative difference sets with these parameters; the first handles any p-group (including non-abelian) with a special subgroup if j is odd, and any 2-group with that subgroup if j is even. The second construction shows that if j is odd, every abelian group …

An Exponent Bound For Relative Difference Sets In P-Groups, James A. Davis

Department of Math & Statistics Faculty Publications

An exponent bound is presented for abelian (p^i+j, pⁱ, p^i+j, pⁱ) relative difference sets: this bound can be met for i≤j.

The Arboricity Of The Random Graph, Paul A. Catlin, Zhi-Hong Chen

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

No abstract provided.

Nonsupereulerian Graphs With Large Size, Paul A. Catlin, Zhi-Hong Chen

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

No abstract provided.

A Note On Intersection Numbers Of Difference Sets, K. T. Arasu, James A. Davis, Dieter Jungnickel, Alexander Pott

Department of Math & Statistics Faculty Publications

We present a condition on the intersection numbers of difference sets which follows from a result of Jungnickel and Pott [3]. We apply this condition to rule out several putative (non-abelian) difference sets and to correct erroneous proofs of Lander [4] for the nonexistence of (352, 27, 2)- and (122, 37, 12)-difference sets.

Combinatorics And Diagonals Of Matrices., K. Balasubramanian Dr.

Doctoral Theses

This theale maindy desie with conbinatoriel aspocte of diayonale of natelees. or enurne, there are aleo eosulte which are nat sunbinatorial in naturos but thase ara neroly by-producta. Chapter-0 gives e very short nary ot the cnntenta of the theete. The raeulte aro ofr tuo kinde. (1) complately rev and (2) old results through rew rethude.Thịa thasle, wholly or pertly, has not baon subnittad to any othor Univerdity or Inatitute for e degree.I exprees hoceby ry doopost sonse of grotitude to br. KA. PARTHASARATHY, Haed of the Doparteant af Mathemties, Indian Inatituta of Tochmlogy, Redras, under uhana bonign guidance thie …