In this paper, we prove that every graph contains a cycle intersecting all maximum independent sets. Using this, we further prove that every graph with stability number α is spanned by α disjoint cycles. Here, the empty set, the graph of order 1 and the path of order 2 are all considered as degenerate cycles.

Let and be sets of functions from domain X to ℝ. We say that validly generalises from approximate interpolation if and only if for each η > 0 and ∈, δ ∈ (0,1) there is m0(η, ∈, δ) such that for any function t ∈ and any probability distribution on X, if m > m0 then with m-probability at least 1 – δ, a sample X = (x1, X2,…,xm) ∈ Xm satisfies

We find conditions that are necessary and sufficient for to validly generalise from approximate interpolation, and we obtain bounds on the sample length m0{η,∈,δ) in terms of various parameters describing the expressive power of .

Let ℱn be the set of random mappings ϕ : {1,…,n} → {1,…,n} (such that every mapping is equally likely). For x ε {l,…,n} the elements are called the predecessors of x. Let Nr denote the random variable which counts the number of points x ε {l,…,n} with exactly r predecessors. In this paper we identify the limiting distribution of Nr as n → ∞. If r = r(n) = o(n⅔) then the limiting distribution is Gaussian, if r ˜ Cn⅔ then it is Poisson, and in the remaining case rn−⅔ → ∞ it is degenerate. Furthermore, it is shown that Nr is a Poisson approximation if r → ∞.

We show that r-regular, s-uniform hypergraphs contain a perfect matching with high probability (whp), provided The Proof is based on the application of a technique of Robinson and Wormald [7, 8]. The space of hypergraphs is partitioned into subsets according to the number of small cycles in the hypergraph. The difference in the expected number of perfect matchings between these subsets explains most of the variance of the number of perfect matchings in the space of hypergraphs, and is sufficient to prove existence (whp), using the Chebychev Inequality.

A harmonious colouring of a simple graph G is a proper vertex colouring such that each pair of colours appears together on at most one edge. The harmonious chromatic number h(G) is the least number of colours in such a colouring. Let d be a fixed positive integer. We show that there is a natural number N(d) such that if T is any tree with m ≥ N(d) edges and maximum degree at most d, then the harmonious chromatic number h(T) is k or k + 1, where k is the least positive integer such that . We also give a polynomial time algorithm for determining the harmonious chromatic number of a tree with maximum degree at most d.

We consider the problem of broadcasting in an n–node hypercube whose links and nodes fail independently with given probabilities p < 1 and q < 1, respectively. Information held in a fault-free node, called the source, has to reach all other fault-free nodes. Messages may be directly transmitted to adjacent nodes only, and every node may communicate with at most one neighbour in a unit of time. A message can be transmitted only if both communicating neighbours and the link joining them are fault-free. For parameters p and q satisfying (1 – p)(1 – q) ≽ 0.99 (e.g. p = q = 0.5%), we give an algorithm working in time O(log n) and broadcasting source information to all fault-free nodes with probability exceeding 1 – cn-e for some positive constant ε, c depending on p and q but not depending on n.

We consider unlabelled flowgraphs for a model of binary logic without the constraints of structured programming. The number of such flowgraphs is asymptotic to (3.4n)n/2, where n is the number of nodes in the flowgraph. This is to be compared with bounds of between (8.8)n/2 and of (9.8)n/2 for unlabelled structured flowgraphs of the Böhm and Jacopini type. Of the space of flowgraphs we study, 41% are prime, that is contain no proper sub-flowgraphs. The main obstructions to primality being the Dijkstra-structures, which are based on If_Then_Else and Do_While constructs.

We show that the total chromatic number of a simple k-chromatic graph exceeds the chromatic index by at most 18k ⅓ log ½ 3k.

A k×n array with entries from the q-letter alphabet {0, 1, …, q − 1} is said to be t-covering if each k × t submatrix has (at least one set of) qt distinct rows. We use the Lovász local lemma to obtain a general upper bound on the minimal number K = K(n, t, q) of rows for which a t-covering array exists; for t = 3 and q = 2, we are able to match the best-known such bound. Let Kλ = Kλ(n, t, q), (λ ≥ 2), denote the minimum number of rows that guarantees the existence of an array for which each set of t columns contains, amongst its rows, each of the qt possible ‘words’ of length t at least λ times. The Lovász lemma yields an upper bound on Kλ that reveals how substantially fewer rows are needed to accomplish subsequent t-coverings (beyond the first). Finally, given a random k × n array, the Stein–Chen method is employed to obtain a Poisson approximation for the number of sets of t columns that are deficient, i.e. missing at least one word.

Kuratowski's Theorem, perhaps the most famous result in graph theory, states that K5 and K3,3 are the only non-planar graphs for which both G\e, the deletion of the edge e, and G/e, the contraction of the edge e, are planar for all edges e of G. We characterize the almost-planar graphs, those non-planar graphs for which G\e or G/e is planar for all edges e of G. This paper gives two characterizations of the almost-planar graphs: an explicit description of the structure of almost-planar graphs; and an excluded minor criterion. We also give a best possible bound on the number of edges of an almost-planar graph.

Multiway trees, also known as m–ary search trees, are data structures generalising binary search trees. A common probability model for analysing the behaviour of these structures is the random permutation model. The probability mass function Q on the set of m–ary search trees under the random permutation model is the distribution induced by sequentially inserting the records of a uniformly random permutation into an initially empty m–ary search tree. We study some basic properties of the functional Q, which serves as a measure of the ‘shape’ of the tree. In particular, we determine exact and asymptotic expressions for the maximum and minimum values of Q and identify and count the trees achieving those values.

Let ex(n, K3,3) denote the maximum number of edges of a K3,3-free graph on n vertices. Improving earlier results of Kővári, T. Sós and Turán on Zarankiewicz' problem, we obtain that Brown's example for a maximal K3,3-free graph is asymptotically optimal. Hence .

Let be the hypergraph whose points are the subsets X of [n] := {1,…,n} with l≤ |X| ≤ u, l < u, and whose edges are intervals in the Boolean lattice of the form I = {C ⊆[n] : X⊆C⊆Y} where |X| = l, |Y| = u, X ⊆ Y.We study the matching number i.e. the the maximum number of pairwise disjoint edges, and the covering number i.e. the minimum number of points which cover all edges. We prove that max and that for every ε > 0 the inequalities hold, where for the lower bounds we suppose that n is not too small. The corresponding fractional numbers can be determined exactly. Moreover, we show by construction that

Thinking of a deterministic function s: ℤ → ℕ as ‘scenery’ on the integers, a simple random walk on ℤ generates a random record of scenery ‘observed’ along the walk. We address this question: If t:ℤ → ℕ is another scenery on the integers and we are handed a random scenery record obtained from either s or t, under what circumstances can the source be distinguished? We allow ourselves to use information about s and t together with information contained in the scenery record. It has been conjectured that it is sufficient for t to be neither a translate of s nor a translate of the reflection of s. We show that this condition is sufficient to ensure distinguishability if s−1(δ) is finite and non-empty for some δ ∈ℕ.

We continue the study of the following general problem on the vertex colourings of graphs. Suppose that some vertices of a graph G are assigned to some colours. Can this ‘precolouring’ be extended to a proper colouring of G with at most k colours (for some given k)? Here we investigate the complexity status of precolouring extendibility on some classes of perfect graphs, giving good characterizations (necessary and sufficient conditions) that lead to algorithms with linear or polynomial running time. It is also shown how a larger subclass of perfect graphs can be derived from graphs containing no induced path on four vertices.

We describe a very simple method of randomly permuting the cube {0, 1}n such that the sample space is very small, but, given any m distinct points in {0, 1}n, the images of those points under the random permutation are approximately uniformly distributed over all sequences of m distinct points.

Let P10\e be the graph obtained by deleting an edge from the Petersen graph. We give a decomposition theorem for cubic graphs with no minor isomorphic to P10\e. The decomposition is used to show that graphs in this class are 3-edge-colourable. We also consider an application to a conjecture due to Grötzsch which states that a planar graph is 3-edge-colourable if and only if it is fractionally 3-edge-colourable.

Let M be a matroid and let Xr count copies of M in a random matroid of rank r. The Poisson and normal convergence of Xr are investigated under some restriction.

Suppose each vertex of a bipartite multigraph (with partition (X, Y)) is assigned a set of colours; we say this colour scheme is feasible if the edges of the graph can be properly coloured so that each receives a colour in both of its endpoints' sets. We prove various results showing that certain types of colour scheme are always feasible. For instance, we prove that if the colour scheme obtained by assigning the set {1,…, d(x)} of colours to each vertex x of X and the set T = {1,…, t} (t < Δ(X)) to each vertex of Y is feasible, then so is every colour scheme where each vertex x of X gets d(x) colours from T and each vertex of Y gets the set T.

In this paper, asymptotical estimates of the form Rn(1+o(1)) for various classes of planar valency-restricted Eulerian maps are established. It follows, in particular, that ‘almost all’ (as n → ∞) n-edged planar Eulerian maps have n/3 (1+o(1)) vertices. A brief survey of known asymptotical results (a table of values of R) for various classes of planar maps is also presented.