Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Discrete Mathematics and Combinatorics Commons™

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Articles 1 - 13 of 13

Full-Text Articles in Discrete Mathematics and Combinatorics

Generalizations Of Two Statistics On Linear Tilings, Toufik Mansour, Mark Shattuck Dec 2012

Generalizations Of Two Statistics On Linear Tilings, Toufik Mansour, Mark Shattuck

Applications and Applied Mathematics: An International Journal (AAM)

In this paper, we study generalizations of two well-known statistics on linear square-and-domino tilings by considering only those dominos whose right half covers a multiple of 􀝇, where 􀝇 is a fixed positive integer. Using the method of generating functions, we derive explicit expressions for the joint distribution polynomials of the two statistics with the statistic that records the number of squares in a tiling. In this way, we obtain two families of q -generalizations of the Fibonacci polynomials. When 􀝇 􀵌 1, our formulas reduce to known results concerning previous statistics. Special attention is payed to the case 􀝇 …


Combinatorics Of Two-Toned Tilings, Arthur T. Benjamin, Phyllis Chinn, Jacob N. Scott '11, Greg Simay Nov 2011

Combinatorics Of Two-Toned Tilings, Arthur T. Benjamin, Phyllis Chinn, Jacob N. Scott '11, Greg Simay

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

We introduce the function a(r, n) which counts tilings of length n + r that utilize white tiles (whose lengths can vary between 1 and n) and r identical red squares. These tilings are called two-toned tilings. We provide combinatorial proofs of several identities satisfied by a(r, n) and its generalizations, including one that produces kth order Fibonacci numbers. Applications to integer partitions are also provided.


The 99th Fibonacci Identity, Arthur T. Benjamin, Alex K. Eustis '06, Sean S. Plott '08 Feb 2008

The 99th Fibonacci Identity, Arthur T. Benjamin, Alex K. Eustis '06, Sean S. Plott '08

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

We provide elementary combinatorial proofs of several Fibonacci and Lucas number identities left open in the book Proofs That Really Count [1], and generalize these to Gibonacci sequences Gn that satisfy the Fibonacci recurrence, but with arbitrary real initial conditions. We offer several new identities as well.

[1] A. T. Benjamin and J. J. Quinn, Proofs That Really Count: The Art of Combinatorial Proof, The Dolciani Mathematical Expositions, 27, Mathematical Association of America, Washington, DC, 2003


A Combinatorial Approach To Fibonomial Coefficients, Arthur T. Benjamin, Sean S. Plott '08 Feb 2008

A Combinatorial Approach To Fibonomial Coefficients, Arthur T. Benjamin, Sean S. Plott '08

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

A combinatorial argument is used to explain the integrality of Fibonomial coefficients and their generalizations. The numerator of the Fibonomial coeffcient counts tilings of staggered lengths, which can be decomposed into a sum of integers, such that each integer is a multiple of the denominator of the Fibonomial coeffcient. By colorizing this argument, we can extend this result from Fibonacci numbers to arbitrary Lucas sequences.


Recounting Determinants For A Class Of Hessenberg Matrices, Arthur T. Benjamin, Mark A. Shattuck Dec 2007

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.


Fibonacci Deteminants - A Combinatorial Approach, Arthur T. Benjamin, Naiomi T. Cameron, Jennifer J. Quinn Feb 2007

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 Feb 2007

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 an = pbn-1 + qan-2, bn = ran-1 + sbn-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.


Fibonacci Determinants — A Combinatorial Approach, Arthur T. Benjamin, Naiomi T. Cameron, Jennifer J. Quinn Nov 2005

Fibonacci Determinants — 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 Probabilistic View Of Certain Weighted Fibonacci Sums, Arthur T. Benjamin, Judson D. Neer, Daniel T. Otero, James A. Sellers Aug 2003

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 an and develop an exponential generating function for an in Section 3. In Section 4, we present a method for finding an exact, non-recursive, formula for an.


The Fibonacci Numbers -- Exposed More Discretely, Arthur T. Benjamin, Jennifer J. Quinn Jun 2003

The Fibonacci Numbers -- Exposed More Discretely, Arthur T. Benjamin, 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 Jun 2000

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 …


Random Approaches To Fibonacci Identities, Arthur T. Benjamin, Gregory M. Levin, Karl Mahlburg '01, Jennifer J. Quinn Jun 2000

Random Approaches To Fibonacci Identities, Arthur T. Benjamin, Gregory M. Levin, Karl Mahlburg '01, Jennifer J. Quinn

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

No abstract provided in this article.


Recounting Fibonacci And Lucas Identities, Arthur T. Benjamin, Jennifer J. Quinn Nov 1999

Recounting Fibonacci And Lucas Identities, Arthur T. Benjamin, Jennifer J. Quinn

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

No abstract provided in this article.