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Title: Efficient Computation of a Semi-Algebraic Basis of the First Homology Group of a Semi-Algebraic Set
Let $$\R$$ be a real closed field and $$\C$$ the algebraic closure of $$\R$$. We give an algorithm for computing a semi-algebraic basis for the first homology group, $$\HH_1(S,\mathbb{F})$$, with coefficients in a field $$\FF$$, of any given semi-algebraic set $$S \subset \R^k$$ defined by a closed formula. The complexity of the algorithm is bounded singly exponentially. More precisely, if the given quantifier-free formula involves $$s$$ polynomials whose degrees are bounded by $$d$$, the complexity of the algorithm is bounded by $$(s d)^{k^{O(1)}}$$. This algorithm generalizes well known algorithms having singly exponential complexity for computing a semi-algebraic basis of the zero-th homology group of semi-algebraic sets, which is equivalent to the problem of computing a set of points meeting every semi-algebraically connected component of the given semi-algebraic set at a unique point. It is not known how to compute such a basis for the higher homology groups with singly exponential complexity. As an intermediate step in our algorithm we construct a semi-algebraic subset $$\Gamma$$ of the given semi-algebraic set $$S$$, such that $$\HH_q(S,\Gamma) = 0$$ for $q=0,1$. We relate this construction to a basic theorem in complex algebraic geometry stating that for any affine variety $$X$$ of dimension $$n$$, there exists Zariski closed subsets \[ Z^{(n-1)} \supset \cdots \supset Z^{(1)} \supset Z^{(0)} \] with $$\dim_\C Z^{(i)} \leq i$, and $$\HH_q(X,Z^{(i)}) = 0$$ for $$0 \leq q \leq i$$. We conjecture a quantitative version of this result in the semi-algebraic category, with $$X$$ and $$Z^{(i)}$$ replaced by closed semi-algebraic sets. We make initial progress on this conjecture by proving the existence of $$Z^{(0)}$$ and $$Z^{(1)}$$ with complexity bounded singly exponentially (previously, such an algorithm was known only for constructing $$Z^{(0)}$$).  more » « less
Award ID(s):
1910441
PAR ID:
10568500
Author(s) / Creator(s):
;
Publisher / Repository:
Springer
Date Published:
Journal Name:
Discrete & Computational Geometry
Volume:
72
Issue:
2
ISSN:
0179-5376
Page Range / eLocation ID:
622 to 664
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
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