This volume provides a survey of the subject in the form of a collection of articles written by experts, that together provides a comprehensive guide to research. The editors'aim has been to provide an accessible description of the current stae of complexity theory, and to demonstrate the breadth of techniques and results that make this subject so exciting. Thus, papers run the gamut from sublogarithmic space to exponential time, and from new combinatorial techniques to interactive proof systems.

The Complexity Theory Companion is an accessible, algorithmically oriented, research-centered, up-to-date guide to some of the most interesting techniques of complexity theory. The book's thesis is that simple algorithms are at the heart of complexity theory. From the tree-pruning and interval-pruning algorithms that shape the first chapter to the query simulation procedures that dominate the last chapter, the central proof methods of the book are algorithmic. And to more clearly highlight the role of algorithmic techniques in complexity theory, the book is - unlike other texts on complexity - organized by technique rather than by topic. Each chapter of this book focuses on one technique: what it is, and what results and applications it yields. This textbook was developed at the University of Rochester in courses given to graduate students and advanced undergraduates. Researchers also will find this book a valuable source of reference due to the comprehensive bibliography of close to five hundred entries, the thirty-five page subject index, and the appendices giving overviews of complexity classes and reductions.

This book presents a consolidated survey of the vibrant field of research known as the theory of semi-feasible algorithms. This research stream perfectly showcases the richness of, and contrasts between, the central notions of complexity: running time, nonuniform complexity, lowness, and NP-hardness. Research into semi-feasible computation has already developed a rich set of tools, yet is young enough to have an abundance of fresh, open issues. Being essentially self-contained, the book requires neither great mathematical maturity nor an extensive background in computational complexity theory or in computer science in general. Newcomers are introduced to the field systematically and guided to the frontiers of current research. Researchers already active in the field will appreciate the book as a valuable source of reference.  

This volume provides a survey of the subject in the form of a collection of articles written by experts, that together provides a comprehensive guide to research. The editors'aim has been to provide an accessible description of the current stae of complexity theory, and to demonstrate the breadth of techniques and results that make this subject so exciting. Thus, papers run the gamut from sublogarithmic space to exponential time, and from new combinatorial techniques to interactive proof systems.

Here is an accessible, algorithmically oriented guide to some of the most interesting techniques of complexity theory. The book shows that simple algorithms are at the heart of complexity theory. The book is organized by technique rather than by topic. Each chapter focuses on one technique: what it is, and what results and applications it yields.

The primary goal of this book is unifying and making more widely accessible the vibrant stream of research - spanning more than two decades - on the theory of semi-feasible algorithms. In doing so it demonstrates the richness inherent in central notions of complexity: running time, nonuniform complexity, lowness, and NP-hardness. The book requires neither great mathematical maturity nor an extensive background in computational complexity theory or in computer science. Another aim of this book is to lay out a path along which the reader can quickly reach the frontiers of current research, and meet and engage the many exciting open problems in this area.