COLT2003 Call for open problems

COLT2003 will include a session devoted to the presentation of open problems.
A two page description of the accepted problems will also appear in the COLT proceedings.
The idea is to facilitate collaborations and to encourage new people to get into the field.

The writeup of an open problem should include:
  1. A clear and self contained description of a single open problem.
  2. Motivation for the study of this problem.
  3. The current state of understanding for this problem, including known partial solutions and citations of published work.
The deadline for submission of open problems is May 10, 2003.

This description should be written in the COLT proceedings format (LLNCS format).

Please submit the problem electronically to (my-last-name) at merl dot com
On the subject line please include: open problem for colt2003.
The submissions themselves should be in postscript (letter size page) and should be included as attachments to the email.

Characteristics of a good open problem

There is no requirement to satisfy all of these characterizations, but the more the better.
  1. A well defined mathematical question.
  2. A simple enough problem that minimal background is required to understand it.
  3. A hard problem that you have struggled with in the past.
  4. A problem whose solution is likely to interest more than on person. Ideally many people in diverse fields.
  5. A problem whose solution is likely to yield a new practical algorithm.
I reserve the right to accept or reject any submission.

Associating a monetary prize with the solution of a problem is optional (but, from personal experience, it is a pretty effective way to motivate people!)


Yours truly
COLT2003 chair for open problems
Yoav Freund