We consider the following general network design problem. The input is an asymmetric metric (V, c), root [Formula: see text], monotone submodular function [Formula: see text], and budget B. The goal is to find an r-rooted arborescence T of cost at most B that maximizes f(T). Our main result is a simple quasi-polynomial time [Formula: see text]-approximation algorithm for this problem, in which [Formula: see text] is the number of vertices in an optimal solution. As a consequence, we obtain an [Formula: see text]-approximation algorithm for directed (polymatroid) Steiner tree in quasi-polynomial time. We also extend our main result to a setting with additional length bounds at vertices, which leads to improved [Formula: see text]-approximation algorithms for the single-source buy-at-bulk and priority Steiner tree problems. For the usual directed Steiner tree problem, our result matches the best previous approximation ratio but improves significantly on the running time. For polymatroid Steiner tree and single-source buy-at-bulk, our result improves prior approximation ratios by a logarithmic factor. For directed priority Steiner tree, our result seems to be the first nontrivial approximation ratio. Under certain complexity assumptions, our approximation ratios are the best possible (up to constant factors).
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Inhomogeneous Diophantine approximation for generic homogeneous functions
This paper is a sequel to [Monatsh. Math. 194 (2021) 523–554] in which results of that paper are generalized so that they hold in the setting of inhomogeneous Diophantine approximation. Given any integers [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text], any [Formula: see text], and any homogeneous function [Formula: see text] that satisfies a certain nonsingularity assumption, we obtain a biconditional criterion on the approximating function [Formula: see text] for a generic element [Formula: see text] in the [Formula: see text]-orbit of [Formula: see text] to be (respectively, not to be) [Formula: see text]-approximable at [Formula: see text]: that is, for there to exist infinitely many (respectively, only finitely many) [Formula: see text] such that [Formula: see text] for each [Formula: see text]. In this setting, we also obtain a sufficient condition for uniform approximation. We also consider some examples of [Formula: see text] that do not satisfy our nonsingularity assumptions and prove similar results for these examples. Moreover, one can replace [Formula: see text] above by any closed subgroup of [Formula: see text] that satisfies certain integrability axioms (being of Siegel and Rogers type) introduced by the authors in the aforementioned previous paper.
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- Award ID(s):
- 2155111
- PAR ID:
- 10426091
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- International Journal of Number Theory
- Volume:
- 19
- Issue:
- 06
- ISSN:
- 1793-0421
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 1269 to 1293
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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