The question of whether every multi-tape Turing machine has an equivalent single-tape Turing machine is important one in the field of computational complexity theory and the theory of computation.
The answer is affirmative: every multi-tape Turing machine can indeed be simulated by a single-tape Turing machine. This equivalence is crucial for understanding the computational power of Turing machines and the classes of problems they can solve.
A Turing machine, as originally conceived by Alan Turing, is a theoretical model of computation that consists of an infinite tape, a tape head that reads and writes symbols on the tape, and a finite set of states that dictate the machine's actions based on the current state and the symbol being read. A multi-tape Turing machine extends this model by incorporating multiple tapes, each with its own head. This extension can make certain computations more efficient by allowing simultaneous access to different parts of the input and intermediate results.
To understand the equivalence between multi-tape and single-tape Turing machines, it is essential to delve into the simulation process. The key idea is that a single-tape Turing machine can simulate the behavior of a multi-tape Turing machine by encoding the contents of all tapes and the positions of all tape heads on a single tape.
Consider a multi-tape Turing machine with ( k ) tapes. Each tape can be thought of as an infinite sequence of cells, each containing a symbol from a finite alphabet. The machine has ( k ) tape heads, one for each tape, and a finite set of states. The transition function determines the machine's actions based on the current state and the symbols under each tape head.
To simulate this multi-tape machine with a single-tape machine, we need to represent the contents of all ( k ) tapes and the positions of the ( k ) tape heads on a single tape. One common approach is to use a special encoding scheme. For example, we can use a delimiter symbol to separate the contents of different tapes and additional markers to indicate the positions of the tape heads.
Let's denote the alphabet of the multi-tape Turing machine by ( Sigma ) and introduce a special delimiter symbol ( # ) that is not in ( Sigma ). We can then represent the contents of the ( k ) tapes on a single tape as follows:
[ # w_1 # w_2 # cdots # w_k # ]Here, ( w_i ) represents the contents of the ( i )-th tape. To indicate the positions of the tape heads, we can use a pair of symbols to mark each head's position. For example, if the head on the ( i )-th tape is reading the ( j )-th symbol of ( w_i ), we can represent this by inserting a special marker symbol, say ( uparrow ), before the ( j )-th symbol of ( w_i ).
Thus, the single tape might look like this:
[ # a_1 cdots a_{j-1} uparrow a_j cdots a_m # b_1 cdots b_n # cdots # c_1 cdots c_p # ]In this representation, ( a_1 cdots a_m ) are the contents of the first tape, with the head positioned before ( a_j ); ( b_1 cdots b_n ) are the contents of the second tape, and so on.
The single-tape Turing machine's transition function must be designed to simulate the multi-tape machine's behavior. This involves several steps:
1. Reading the Symbols: The single-tape machine must read the symbols under each simulated tape head. It does this by scanning the tape from the beginning and noting the symbols following each ( uparrow ) marker.
2. Updating the State: Based on the current state and the symbols read, the single-tape machine updates its state according to the transition function of the multi-tape machine.
3. Writing Symbols: The single-tape machine writes the new symbols on the simulated tapes. It does this by scanning the tape again and replacing the symbols following each ( uparrow ) marker with the new symbols.
4. Moving the Heads: The single-tape machine moves the simulated tape heads. This involves shifting the ( uparrow ) markers to the left or right, as specified by the multi-tape machine's transition function.
5. Repeating the Process: The single-tape machine repeats this process for each transition of the multi-tape machine.
This simulation can be made precise by defining a formal transition function for the single-tape machine that mimics the behavior of the multi-tape machine. The key insight is that while the single-tape machine may require more steps to perform the same computation (due to the need to scan the tape and update the markers), it can simulate the multi-tape machine's behavior exactly.
To illustrate this with a concrete example, consider a 2-tape Turing machine that performs the following task: given an input string ( w ) on the first tape, it copies ( w ) to the second tape. The transition function for the 2-tape machine might look like this:
1. Read the first symbol of the first tape.
2. Write the same symbol on the second tape.
3. Move the head on the first tape to the right.
4. Move the head on the second tape to the right.
5. Repeat until the end of the input string is reached.
To simulate this with a single-tape Turing machine, we represent the two tapes on a single tape with a delimiter ( # ) and markers ( uparrow ):
[ # w uparrow # uparrow ]The single-tape machine's transition function would involve scanning the tape to find the ( uparrow ) markers, reading the symbol under the first marker, writing it after the second marker, and then updating the positions of the markers. The single-tape machine would need to scan back and forth, but it would ultimately perform the same task.
This simulation demonstrates that any computation performed by a multi-tape Turing machine can be carried out by a single-tape Turing machine, albeit with a potential increase in the number of steps required. This increase is typically polynomial in the number of steps of the multi-tape machine, meaning that the single-tape machine is at most polynomially slower.
The equivalence of multi-tape and single-tape Turing machines has significant implications for computational complexity theory. It shows that the class of languages decidable by Turing machines (the class of recursive languages) and the class of languages recognizable by Turing machines (the class of recursively enumerable languages) are not affected by the number of tapes. This equivalence also supports the Church-Turing thesis, which posits that any effectively computable function can be computed by a Turing machine.
Furthermore, this equivalence is foundational for understanding complexity classes such as P (polynomial time) and NP (nondeterministic polynomial time). The simulation of multi-tape Turing machines by single-tape Turing machines ensures that these complexity classes remain well-defined and robust, regardless of the specific model of computation used.
Every multi-tape Turing machine can be simulated by an equivalent single-tape Turing machine. This equivalence underscores the robustness of the Turing machine model and its central role in the theory of computation. The simulation process, while potentially increasing the number of steps required, preserves the fundamental computational capabilities of the machine.
Other recent questions and answers regarding EITC/IS/CCTF Computational Complexity Theory Fundamentals:
- Are regular languages equivalent with Finite State Machines?
- Is PSPACE class not equal to the EXPSPACE class?
- Is algorithmically computable problem a problem computable by a Turing Machine accordingly to the Church-Turing Thesis?
- What is the closure property of regular languages under concatenation? How are finite state machines combined to represent the union of languages recognized by two machines?
- Can every arbitrary problem be expressed as a language?
- Is P complexity class a subset of PSPACE class?
- What are the outputs of predicates?
- Are lambda calculus and turing machines computable models that answers the question on what does computable mean?
- Can we can prove that Np and P class are the same by finding an efficient polynomial solution for any NP complete problem on a deterministic TM?
- Can there exist a turing machine that would be unchanged by the transformation?
View more questions and answers in EITC/IS/CCTF Computational Complexity Theory Fundamentals