Problems

Boolean Expressions and Boolean Functions

Let B = {0, 1}. Then Bn = {(x1,x2,... ,xn ) / xi B for 1 < i < n} is the set of
all possible n-tuples of 0s and 1s. The variable x is called a Boolean
variable if it assumes values only from B, that is, if its only possible
values are 0 and 1. A function from Bn to B is called a Boolean function
of degree n.
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Q1 Find the values of the Boolean function represented by F(x, y, z) = xy

+ z (Use Truth Table)?
Q2 How many different Boolean functions of degree n are there?
Q3 Translate the distributive law x + yz = (x + y)(x + z) into a logical
equivalence.
Q4 Find the duals of
(a) x(y + 0)
(b) x . 1 + (y + z)
(c) x + y
(d) x y z+ x y z
(e) x z+x.0+ x .1
Q5 How many different Boolean functions F(x, y, z) are
there such that F( x , y , z) = F(x, y, z) for all values of
the Boolean variables x, y, and z?
Q6 How many different Boolean functions F(x, y, z) are
there such that F ( x , y, z) = F (x, y , z) = F (x, y, z)
for all values of the Boolean variables x, y, and z ?
Q7 Show that F(x, y, z) = xy + xz + yz has the value 1 if
and only if at least two of the variables x, y, and z have the
value 1.
Q8 Show that x y + y z + x z = x y + y z + x z.

Q9 Show that in a Boolean algebra, the modular properties

hold. That is, show that
x /\ (y V (x /\ z)) = (x /\ y) v (x /\ z) and x v (y /\ (x V z))= (x V y) /\ (x V z).
Q10 Find a minterm that equals 1 if x1 = x3 = 0 and x2 = x4 = x5 = 1, and
equals 0 otherwise.
Q11 Find the sum-of-products expansion for the function
F(x, y, z) = (x + y)z. <<Ans x y z+x y z+ x y z.
Q12 Find the sum-of-products expansions of these Boolean
Functions
a) F(x,y,z)=x+y+z
b) F(x,y,z) = (x +z)y
c) F(x,y,z)=x
d) F (x , y, z) = x y
Q13 Find the sum-of-products expansions of the Boolean function F (x, y, z) that equals 1 if and only if
a) x = 0. b) xy = 0.
c) x + y = 0. d) xyz = 0.
Q14 Find the sum-of-products expansion of the Boolean function F(x1, x2, x3, x4, x5) that has the value 1 if and only
if three or more of the variables x1, x2, x3, x4, and x5 have
the value 1.
Q15 Find the product-of-sums expansion of each of the
Boolean functions
a) F(x,y,z)=x+y+z
b) F(x,y,z) = (x +z)y
c) F(x,y,z)=x
d) F (x , y, z) = x y
Q16 Express each of these Boolean functions using the operators . and --- .
a) x + y + z
b) x + y ( x + z)
c) (x + y)

d) x (x + y + z)
Q17 Show that
a) x = x | x .
b) x y = (x | y) | (x | y).
c) x + y = (x | x) | (y | y).
Q18 Find the K-maps for (a) xy + x y , (b) x y + x y , and (c) x y + x y
+ x y .
Q19 Use K-maps to minimize these sum-of-products expansions.
(a) x y z+x y z+ x y z+ x y z
(b) x y z + x y z + x y z + x y z + x y z
Q20 Use K-maps to simplify these sum-of-products expansions.
(a) w x y z + w x y z + w x y z + w x y z + w x y z + w x y z +
w x y z + w x y z + w x y z
(b) w x y z + w x y z + w x y z + w x y z + w x y z + w x y z +
w x y z
Q 21

Q22

Q23

c)

d)

Q24

Q25

Q26
Q27

Q28

Q29

Q30

Partial Orderings
Q32 Show that the "greater than or equal" relation ( ) is a partial
ordering on the set of integers.
Q33 Show that the inclusion relation is a partial ordering on the
power set of a set S.
Q34 Let R be the relation on the set of people such that x R y if x and
yare people and x is older than y. Show that R is not a partial ordering.
NOTE : The poset (Z, < ) is totally ordered, because a < b or b < a
whenever a and b are integers.
NOTE : The set of ordered pairs of positive integers, Z+ X Z+, with
(a1, a2) (b1 , b2 ) if al < b1 , or if a1 = b1 and a2 < b2 (the lexicographic
ordering), is a well-ordered set.
NOTE: The set Z, with the usual < ordering, is not well-ordered because
the set of negative integers, which is a subset of Z, has no least
element.

Q 35 Is the poset (Z+, |) a lattice?

Q 36 Determine whether the posets ({ 1, 2, 3, 4, 5}, |) and ({ 1, 2, 4, 8,
16}, |) are lattices.
Q 37 Determine whether (P(S), ) is a lattice where S is a set.
Application of Lattice
The Lattice Model of Information Flow In many settings the flow of
information from one person or computer program to another is
restricted via security clearances. y.le can use a lattice model to
represent different information flow policies. For example, one common
information flow policy is the multilevel security policy used in
government and military systems. Each piece of information is assigned
to a security class, and each security class is represented by a pair
(A, C) where A is an authority level and C is a category. People and
computer programs are then allowed access to information from a

specific restricted set of security classes. The typical authority levels

used in the U. S. government are unclassified (0), confidential (1),
secret (2), and top secret (3). Categories used in security classes are the
subsets of a set of all compartments relevant to a particular area of
interest. Each compartment represents a particular subject area. For
example, if the set of compartments is {spies, moles, double agents},
then there are eight different categories, one for each of the eight
subsets of the set of compartments, such as {spies, moles}.
We can order security classes by specifying that (A1, C1 ) (A2, C 2) if and
only if Al < A2 and C1 C2. Information is permitted to flow from
security class (A1, C1 ) into security class (A2 , C2 ) if and only if (A1, C1)
(A2 , C2 ). For example, information is permitted to flow from the
security class (secret, {spies, moles}) into the security class (top secret,
{spies, moles, double agents}), whereas information is not allowed to
flow from the security class (top secret, {spies, moles}) into either of the
security classes (secret, {spies, moles, double agents}) or (top secret,
{spies}).

Q 38
Which of these relations on to {0, 1, 2, 3} are partial orderings? Determine the properties of a partial ordering that
the others lack.
a) {(0, 0), (1,1), (2, 2), (3, 3)}
b) {(0, 0), (1, 1), (2, 0), (2, 2), (2, 3), (3, 2), (3, 3)}
c) {(0, 0), (1,1), (1, 2), (2, 2), (3, 3)}
d) {(0, 0), (1, 1), (1, 2), (1, 3), (2, 2), (2, 3), (3, 3)}
e) {(0, 0), (0,1), (0, 2), (1, 0), (1,1), (1, 2), (2, 0),
(2,2), (3, 3)}
Q 39
Which of these relations on {0,1, 2, 3} are partial orderings? Determine the properties of a partial ordering that
the others lack.
a) {(0, 0), (2, 2), (3, 3)}
b) {(0, 0), (1, 1), (2, 0), (2, 2), (2, 3), (3, 3)}
c) {(0,0),(1, 1),(1,2),(2,2),(3, 1),(3,3)}
d) {(0, 0), (1,1), (1, 2), (1, 3), (2, 0), (2, 2), (2, 3), (3, 0), (3,3)}

e) {(0, 0), (0,1), (0, 2), (0, 3), (1, 0), (1,1), (1, 2), (1, 3),
(2, 0), (2, 2), (3, 3)}
Q40
Is (S, R) a poset if S is the set of all people in the world
and (a, b) R, where a and b are people, if
a) a is no shorter than b?
b) a weighs more than b?
c) a = b or a is a descendant of b?
d) a and b do not have a common friend?
Q 41
Which of these are posets?
a) (Z, =) b) (Z, ) c) (Z , ) d)(Z, not divisible by)
Q 42
Which of these are posets?
a) (R, =) b) (R, <) c) (R, ) d) (R, )
Q43
Determine whether the relations represented by these
zero-one matrices are partial orders.
a)
1 1 1
1 1 0
0 0 1
b) 1 1 1
0 1 0
0 0 1
c) 1 1 1 0
0110
001 1
1101

Q 44
Let (S, R) be a poset. Show that (S, R-1 ) is also a poset,
where R-1 is the inverse of R. The po set (S, R-1 ) is called
the dual of (S, R).
Q45
Find the duals of these posets.
a) ({0, 1, 2}, < ) (b) (Z , ) (c) (P(Z), ) (d) (Z+, |)
Q 46
Find the lexicographic ordering of the bit strings 0, 01,
11, 001, 010, 011, 0001, and 0101 based on the ordering
0 < 1.
Q 47
Draw the Hasse diagram for the "greater than or equal to"
relation on to {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5}.
Q 48
Draw the Hasse diagram for the "less than or equal to"
relation on to {0, 2, 5, 10, 11, 15}.
Q 49
Let (S, ) be a poset. We say that an element y S covers
an element x S if x y and there is no element z S such
that x z y. The set of pairs (x, y) such that y covers x is
called the covering relation of (S, ).
Q 50 What is the covering relation of the partial ordering
{(a, b) / a divides b} on {1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 12}?
Q 51 What is the covering relation of the partial ordering
{(A, B) / A B} on the power set of S, where S = {a, b, c}?

Q 52 Show that the pair (x, y) belongs to the covering relation

of the finite poset (S, ) if and only if x is lower than y and there is an
edge joining x and y in the Hasse diagram of this poset.
Q 53
Answer these questions for the poset ({ { 1 }, {2}, {4 }, {1, 2},
{1,4}, {2,4}, {3,41, {1,3,4}, {2,3,4}} | ).
a) Find the maximal elements.
b) Find the minimal elements.
c) Is there a greatest element?
d) Is there a least element?
e) Find all upper bounds of {{2}, {4}}.
I) Find the least upper bound of {{2 }, {4 }} if it exists.
g) Find all lower bounds of {{1, 3,4}, {2, 3, 4}}.
h) Find the greatest lower bound of {{ 1, 3, 4}, {2, 3, 4}}
if it exists.