The Magic of

De Bruijn Sequences
Adam M. Goyt
Minnesota State University Moorhead
web.mnstate.edu/goytadam
goytadam@mnstate.edu
October 1, 2012
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 1 / 41
1
Introduction to de Bruijn sequences
2
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
3
Applications
4
The Mathematician as an Explorer
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 2 / 41
Introduction to de Bruijn sequences
Outline
1
Introduction to de Bruijn sequences
2
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
3
Applications
4
The Mathematician as an Explorer
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 3 / 41
Introduction to de Bruijn sequences
How do you do it?
Denition
A de Bruijn sequence with window length k is a binary sequence of
length 2
k
such that every consecutive sequence of k digits appears
exactly once going around the corner.
Example
0011
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 4 / 41
Introduction to de Bruijn sequences
How do you do it?
Denition
A de Bruijn sequence with window length k is a binary sequence of
length 2
k
such that every consecutive sequence of k digits appears
exactly once going around the corner.
Example
0011
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 4 / 41
Introduction to de Bruijn sequences
How do you do it?
Denition
A de Bruijn sequence with window length k is a binary sequence of
length 2
k
such that every consecutive sequence of k digits appears
exactly once going around the corner.
Example
0011
00
.
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 5 / 41
Introduction to de Bruijn sequences
How do you do it?
Denition
A de Bruijn sequence with window length k is a binary sequence of
length 2
k
such that every consecutive sequence of k digits appears
exactly once going around the corner.
Example
0011
00 01
/
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 6 / 41
Introduction to de Bruijn sequences
How do you do it?
Denition
A de Bruijn sequence with window length k is a binary sequence of
length 2
k
such that every consecutive sequence of k digits appears
exactly once going around the corner.
Example
0011
00 01 11

Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 7 / 41

Introduction to de Bruijn sequences
How do you do it?
Denition
A de Bruijn sequence with window length k is a binary sequence of
length 2
k
such that every consecutive sequence of k digits appears
exactly once going around the corner.
Example
0011
00 01 11 10

Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 8 / 41

Introduction to de Bruijn sequences
How do you do it?
The de Bruijn sequence we use for the trick is
00000100101100111110001101110101
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 9 / 41
Introduction to de Bruijn sequences
How do you do it?
The de Bruijn sequence we use for the trick is
00000100101100111110001101110101

Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 10 / 41

Introduction to de Bruijn sequences
How do you do it?
The de Bruijn sequence we use for the trick is
00000100101100111110001101110101

Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 11 / 41
Introduction to de Bruijn sequences
How do you do it?
The de Bruijn sequence we use for the trick is
0000010010 1100111110001101110101

Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 12 / 41
Introduction to de Bruijn sequences
How do you do it?
The de Bruijn sequence we use for the trick is
1100111110001101110101 0000010010

Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 13 / 41
Introduction to de Bruijn sequences
How do you do it?
The de Bruijn sequence we use for the trick is
11001111100011011101010000010010

Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 14 / 41
Introduction to de Bruijn sequences
How do you do it?
The de Bruijn sequence we use for the trick is
00000100101100111110001101110101
The de Bruijn sequence above has window length 5, and so has
2
5
= 32 digits. Our deck consists of the 32 cards Ace through 8
of each suit.
Each window consists of 5 bits.
The rst 2 bits tell the suit of the card.
00 01 10 11
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 15 / 41
Introduction to de Bruijn sequences
How do you do it?
The de Bruijn sequence we use for the trick is
00000100101100111110001101110101
The de Bruijn sequence above has window length 5, and so has
2
5
= 32 digits. Our deck consists of the 32 cards Ace through 8
of each suit.
Each window consists of 5 bits.
The rst 2 bits tell the suit of the card.
00 01 10 11
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 15 / 41
Introduction to de Bruijn sequences
How do you do it?
The de Bruijn sequence we use for the trick is
00000100101100111110001101110101
The de Bruijn sequence above has window length 5, and so has
2
5
= 32 digits. Our deck consists of the 32 cards Ace through 8
of each suit.
Each window consists of 5 bits.
The rst 2 bits tell the suit of the card.
00 01 10 11
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 15 / 41
Introduction to de Bruijn sequences
How do you do it?
The de Bruijn sequence we use for the trick is
00000100101100111110001101110101
The de Bruijn sequence above has window length 5, and so has
2
5
= 32 digits. Our deck consists of the 32 cards Ace through 8
of each suit.
Each window consists of 5 bits.
The nal 3 bits tell the rank of the card.
000 001 010 011 100 101 110 111
8 A 2 3 4 5 6 7
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 16 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
Outline
1
Introduction to de Bruijn sequences
2
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
3
Applications
4
The Mathematician as an Explorer
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 17 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
Does a de Bruijn sequence with window k exist for each k > 0?
If so how many de Bruijn sequences are there with window k?
How do we nd these de Bruijn sequences?
Finally, are there any uses for de Bruijn sequences other than
just to amaze your friends?
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 18 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
Does a de Bruijn sequence with window k exist for each k > 0?
If so how many de Bruijn sequences are there with window k?
How do we nd these de Bruijn sequences?
Finally, are there any uses for de Bruijn sequences other than
just to amaze your friends?
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 18 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
Does a de Bruijn sequence with window k exist for each k > 0?
If so how many de Bruijn sequences are there with window k?
How do we nd these de Bruijn sequences?
Finally, are there any uses for de Bruijn sequences other than
just to amaze your friends?
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 18 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
Does a de Bruijn sequence with window k exist for each k > 0?
If so how many de Bruijn sequences are there with window k?
How do we nd these de Bruijn sequences?
Finally, are there any uses for de Bruijn sequences other than
just to amaze your friends?
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 18 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
Existence of de Bruijn Sequences?
The answer to this question is yes. We will need a little graph theory
to explain.
Denition
A directed graph, D is a pair of sets (V, E) where
V is a set of elements called vertices, and
E is a set of of ordered pairs from V called directed edges.
Example

v
1

v
2

v
3

v
4

Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 19 / 41

Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
Existence of de Bruijn Sequences?
The answer to this question is yes. We will need a little graph theory
to explain.
Denition
A directed graph, D is a pair of sets (V, E) where
V is a set of elements called vertices, and
E is a set of of ordered pairs from V called directed edges.
Example

v
1

v
2

v
3

v
4

Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 19 / 41

Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
Existence of de Bruijn Sequences?
The answer to this question is yes. We will need a little graph theory
to explain.
Denition
A directed graph, D is a pair of sets (V, E) where
V is a set of elements called vertices, and
E is a set of of ordered pairs from V called directed edges.
Example

v
1

v
2

v
3

v
4

Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 19 / 41

Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
The de Bruijn Graph
The de Bruijn Graph for window length k can be constructed as
follows:
The vertices are the 2
k1
binary sequences of length k 1.
Place a directed edge from vertex a
1
a
2
. . . a
k1
to b
1
b
2
. . . b
k1
if
a
2
a
3
. . . a
k1
= b
1
b
2
. . . b
k2
.
Label the edge from a
1
a
2
. . . a
k1
to b
1
b
2
. . . b
k1
by
a
1
a
2
. . . a
k1
b
k1
Example
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 20 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
The de Bruijn Graph
The de Bruijn Graph for window length k can be constructed as
follows:
The vertices are the 2
k1
binary sequences of length k 1.
Place a directed edge from vertex a
1
a
2
. . . a
k1
to b
1
b
2
. . . b
k1
if
a
2
a
3
. . . a
k1
= b
1
b
2
. . . b
k2
.
Label the edge from a
1
a
2
. . . a
k1
to b
1
b
2
. . . b
k1
by
a
1
a
2
. . . a
k1
b
k1
Example
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 20 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
The de Bruijn Graph
The de Bruijn Graph for window length k can be constructed as
follows:
The vertices are the 2
k1
binary sequences of length k 1.
Place a directed edge from vertex a
1
a
2
. . . a
k1
to b
1
b
2
. . . b
k1
if
a
2
a
3
. . . a
k1
= b
1
b
2
. . . b
k2
.
Label the edge from a
1
a
2
. . . a
k1
to b
1
b
2
. . . b
k1
by
a
1
a
2
. . . a
k1
b
k1
Example
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 20 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
The de Bruijn Graph
The de Bruijn Graph for window length k can be constructed as
follows:
The vertices are the 2
k1
binary sequences of length k 1.
Place a directed edge from vertex a
1
a
2
. . . a
k1
to b
1
b
2
. . . b
k1
if
a
2
a
3
. . . a
k1
= b
1
b
2
. . . b
k2
.
Label the edge from a
1
a
2
. . . a
k1
to b
1
b
2
. . . b
k1
by
a
1
a
2
. . . a
k1
b
k1
Example
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 20 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
The de Bruijn Graph
The de Bruijn Graph for window length k can be constructed as
follows:
The vertices are the 2
k1
binary sequences of length k 1.
Place a directed edge from vertex a
1
a
2
. . . a
k1
to b
1
b
2
. . . b
k1
if
a
2
a
3
. . . a
k1
= b
1
b
2
. . . b
k2
.
Label the edge from a
1
a
2
. . . a
k1
to b
1
b
2
. . . b
k1
by
a
1
a
2
. . . a
k1
b
k1
Example
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 20 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
The de Bruijn Graph
Use the de Bruijn Graph to construct a de Bruijn sequence as follows:
Choose a starting vertex and write down its label.
Walk along an edge from that vertex to another vertex and
record the last digit of the label on the new vertex.
Continue in this manor until you have traversed every edge
exactly once and are back where you started.
Erase the digits that overlap with the beginning of the sequence.
Congratulations, you have a de Bruijn sequence!
Example
00 00 01 10 01 11 11 10 00
collapses to
00010111
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 21 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
The de Bruijn Graph
Use the de Bruijn Graph to construct a de Bruijn sequence as follows:
Choose a starting vertex and write down its label.
Walk along an edge from that vertex to another vertex and
record the last digit of the label on the new vertex.
Continue in this manor until you have traversed every edge
exactly once and are back where you started.
Erase the digits that overlap with the beginning of the sequence.
Congratulations, you have a de Bruijn sequence!
Example
00 00 01 10 01 11 11 10 00
collapses to
00010111
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 21 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
The de Bruijn Graph
Use the de Bruijn Graph to construct a de Bruijn sequence as follows:
Choose a starting vertex and write down its label.
Walk along an edge from that vertex to another vertex and
record the last digit of the label on the new vertex.
Continue in this manor until you have traversed every edge
exactly once and are back where you started.
Erase the digits that overlap with the beginning of the sequence.
Congratulations, you have a de Bruijn sequence!
Example
00 00 01 10 01 11 11 10 00
collapses to
00010111
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 21 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
The de Bruijn Graph
Use the de Bruijn Graph to construct a de Bruijn sequence as follows:
Choose a starting vertex and write down its label.
Walk along an edge from that vertex to another vertex and
record the last digit of the label on the new vertex.
Continue in this manor until you have traversed every edge
exactly once and are back where you started.
Erase the digits that overlap with the beginning of the sequence.
Congratulations, you have a de Bruijn sequence!
Example
00 00 01 10 01 11 11 10 00
collapses to
00010111
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 21 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
The de Bruijn Graph
Use the de Bruijn Graph to construct a de Bruijn sequence as follows:
Choose a starting vertex and write down its label.
Walk along an edge from that vertex to another vertex and
record the last digit of the label on the new vertex.
Continue in this manor until you have traversed every edge
exactly once and are back where you started.
Erase the digits that overlap with the beginning of the sequence.
Congratulations, you have a de Bruijn sequence!
Example
00 00 01 10 01 11 11 10 00
collapses to
00010111
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 21 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
The de Bruijn Graph
Use the de Bruijn Graph to construct a de Bruijn sequence as follows:
Choose a starting vertex and write down its label.
Walk along an edge from that vertex to another vertex and
record the last digit of the label on the new vertex.
Continue in this manor until you have traversed every edge
exactly once and are back where you started.
Erase the digits that overlap with the beginning of the sequence.
Congratulations, you have a de Bruijn sequence!
Example
00 00 01 10 01 11 11 10 00
collapses to
00010111
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 21 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
The de Bruijn Graph
Use the de Bruijn Graph to construct a de Bruijn sequence as follows:
Choose a starting vertex and write down its label.
Walk along an edge from that vertex to another vertex and
record the last digit of the label on the new vertex.
Continue in this manor until you have traversed every edge
exactly once and are back where you started.
Erase the digits that overlap with the beginning of the sequence.
Congratulations, you have a de Bruijn sequence!
Example
00 00 01 10 01 11 11 10 00
collapses to
00010111
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 21 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
Existence of de Bruijn Sequences
The key to nding a de Bruijn sequence is to nd a way to walk
through the de Bruijn graph so that each edge is traversed exactly
once and we nish where we began.
Denition
A path through a graph that traverses every edge exactly once and
ends where it began is called an Eulerian circuit.
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 22 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
Existence of de Bruijn Sequences
The key to nding a de Bruijn sequence is to nd a way to walk
through the de Bruijn graph so that each edge is traversed exactly
once and we nish where we began.
Denition
A path through a graph that traverses every edge exactly once and
ends where it began is called an Eulerian circuit.
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 22 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
Existence of de Bruijn Sequences
Question
How can we tell if a directed graph has an Eulerian circuit?
Theorem (Euler, 1736)
A directed graph without isolated vertices has an Eulerian circuit if
and only if
1
The graph is connected, i.e. you can get from any vertex to any
other vertex by following the arrows.
2
The number of edges coming into any vertex is the same as the
number of edges leaving that vertex.
Thus, the de Bruijn graph always has an Eulerian circuit, and hence
de Bruijn sequences exist for any window length k.
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 23 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
Existence of de Bruijn Sequences
Question
How can we tell if a directed graph has an Eulerian circuit?
Theorem (Euler, 1736)
A directed graph without isolated vertices has an Eulerian circuit if
and only if
1
The graph is connected, i.e. you can get from any vertex to any
other vertex by following the arrows.
2
The number of edges coming into any vertex is the same as the
number of edges leaving that vertex.
Thus, the de Bruijn graph always has an Eulerian circuit, and hence
de Bruijn sequences exist for any window length k.
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 23 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
Existence of de Bruijn Sequences
Question
How can we tell if a directed graph has an Eulerian circuit?
Theorem (Euler, 1736)
A directed graph without isolated vertices has an Eulerian circuit if
and only if
1
The graph is connected, i.e. you can get from any vertex to any
other vertex by following the arrows.
2
The number of edges coming into any vertex is the same as the
number of edges leaving that vertex.
Thus, the de Bruijn graph always has an Eulerian circuit, and hence
de Bruijn sequences exist for any window length k.
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 23 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
Existence of de Bruijn Sequences
Question
How can we tell if a directed graph has an Eulerian circuit?
Theorem (Euler, 1736)
A directed graph without isolated vertices has an Eulerian circuit if
and only if
1
The graph is connected, i.e. you can get from any vertex to any
other vertex by following the arrows.
2
The number of edges coming into any vertex is the same as the
number of edges leaving that vertex.
Thus, the de Bruijn graph always has an Eulerian circuit, and hence
de Bruijn sequences exist for any window length k.
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 23 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
Existence of de Bruijn Sequences
Question
How can we tell if a directed graph has an Eulerian circuit?
Theorem (Euler, 1736)
A directed graph without isolated vertices has an Eulerian circuit if
and only if
1
The graph is connected, i.e. you can get from any vertex to any
other vertex by following the arrows.
2
The number of edges coming into any vertex is the same as the
number of edges leaving that vertex.
Thus, the de Bruijn graph always has an Eulerian circuit, and hence
de Bruijn sequences exist for any window length k.
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 23 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
How many de Bruijn Sequences are there?
We need to be able to count the number of Eulerian circuits in a
directed graph.
Theorem (de Bruijn, 1946)
There are
2
2
k1
k
de Bruijn sequences of window length k.
For k = 5 there are 2048 de Bruijn sequences.
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 24 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
How many de Bruijn Sequences are there?
We need to be able to count the number of Eulerian circuits in a
directed graph.
Theorem (de Bruijn, 1946)
There are
2
2
k1
k
de Bruijn sequences of window length k.
For k = 5 there are 2048 de Bruijn sequences.
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 24 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
History of de Bruijn sequences
The existence question was rst proposed by A de Rivi`ere in the
french problem journal lIntermediaire des Mathematiciens in
1894.
The rst solution was published the same year by C Flye de
Sainte-Marie [5] using graph theory.
Many others contributed between 1894 and 1946. De Bruijn
later acknowledged Sainte-Maries proof being the rst, but his
name stuck.
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 25 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
How do we nd de Bruijn sequences?
We could spend all day tracing our nger around the de Bruijn graph
and write down de Bruijn sequences. However, as k gets large the de
Bruijn graph becomes very messy and hard to use.
Donald Knuths Art of Computer Programming Volume 4 [3] has an
entire section on algorithms for nding de Bruijn sequences. If you
are interested this is good place to get information.
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 26 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
How do we nd de Bruijn sequences?
We could spend all day tracing our nger around the de Bruijn graph
and write down de Bruijn sequences. However, as k gets large the de
Bruijn graph becomes very messy and hard to use.
Donald Knuths Art of Computer Programming Volume 4 [3] has an
entire section on algorithms for nding de Bruijn sequences. If you
are interested this is good place to get information.
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 26 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
Our Special de Bruijn Sequence
Recall that the de Bruijn sequence for our trick is
00000100101100111110001101110101.
Question
Once we know the rst card how do we determine the next four?
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 27 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
Our Special de Bruijn Sequence
Recall that the de Bruijn sequence for our trick is
00000100101100111110001101110101.
Question
Once we know the rst card how do we determine the next four?
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 27 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
a + c to the end
If the current window is abcde, where a, b, c, d, and e are all binary
digits in the sequence then the next sequence is bcde(a + c).
The Ace of Hearts corresponds to 11001, so the next card is 10011,
which is the 3 of Diamonds.
Note: This method of working through the sequence does not include
00000, which is the 8 of Clubs.
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 28 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
a + c to the end
If the current window is abcde, where a, b, c, d, and e are all binary
digits in the sequence then the next sequence is bcde(a + c).
The Ace of Hearts corresponds to 11001, so the next card is 10011,
which is the 3 of Diamonds.
Note: This method of working through the sequence does not include
00000, which is the 8 of Clubs.
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 28 / 41
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
a + c to the end
If the current window is abcde, where a, b, c, d, and e are all binary
digits in the sequence then the next sequence is bcde(a + c).
The Ace of Hearts corresponds to 11001, so the next card is 10011,
which is the 3 of Diamonds.
Note: This method of working through the sequence does not include
00000, which is the 8 of Clubs.
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 28 / 41
Applications
Outline
1
Introduction to de Bruijn sequences
2
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
3
Applications
4
The Mathematician as an Explorer
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 29 / 41
Applications
de Bruijn Sequences, not just for magic anymore
Some uses of de Bruijn sequences:
Robotics
Data Encryption
DNA fragment assembly
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 30 / 41
Applications
Where Am I?
00000100101100111110001101110101
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 31 / 41
Applications
de Bruijn Arrays
Denition
A de Bruijn array with window size u v is an array of zeros and
ones such that every u v window of zeros and ones appears exactly
once going around the edges.
Example
A de Bruijn array with window size 2 2.
1 0 1 1
1 0 0 0
0 0 0 1
1 1 0 1
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 32 / 41
Applications
de Bruijn Arrays
Denition
A de Bruijn array with window size u v is an array of zeros and
ones such that every u v window of zeros and ones appears exactly
once going around the edges.
Example
A de Bruijn array with window size 2 2.
1 0 1 1
1 0 0 0
0 0 0 1
1 1 0 1
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 32 / 41
Applications
de Bruijn Arrays
Denition
A de Bruijn array with window size u v is an array of zeros and
ones such that every u v window of zeros and ones appears exactly
once going around the edges.
Example
A de Bruijn array with window size 2 2.
1 0 1 1
1 0 0 0
0 0 0 1
1 1 0 1
0 0
0 0
The window for:
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 33 / 41
Applications
de Bruijn Arrays
Denition
A de Bruijn array with window size u v is an array of zeros and
ones such that every u v window of zeros and ones appears exactly
once going around the edges.
Example
A de Bruijn array with window size 2 2.
1 0 1 1
1 0 0 0
0 0 0 1
1 1 0 1
1 1
0 1
The window for:
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 34 / 41
Applications
de Bruijn Arrays
Denition
A de Bruijn array with window size u v is an array of zeros and
ones such that every u v window of zeros and ones appears exactly
once going around the edges.
Example
A de Bruijn array with window size 2 2.
1 0 1 1
1 0 0 0
0 0 0 1
1 1 0 1
1 1
1 1
The window for:
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 35 / 41
Applications
de Bruijn Arrays
Do de Bruijn Arrays always exist?
If so, is there a nice way to produce them?
How many are there?
Are there always de Bruijn Arrays that allow for easy
determination of location?
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 36 / 41
Applications
de Bruijn Arrays
Do de Bruijn Arrays always exist? In special cases yes, but in
general we dont know.
If so, is there a nice way to produce them? Not sure.
How many are there? Not sure.
Are there always de Bruijn Arrays that allow for easy
determination of location? Not sure.
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 37 / 41
Applications
Digital Pens and Paper
Livescribe [2] Dot Paper that uses the Anoto Pattern
The paper is covered with a dot pattern that is relatively
invisible and is printed on the paper at a resolution of 600 dots
per inch (dpi).
The pens infared camera can read the dots and knows its exact
location. It can tell the location because the dot pattern is
unique in each window of the pens camera.
If one thinks of a dot as being a 1 and a blank space as being a
0. This is a sort of de Bruijn array of dots.
There are other such digital papers out there.
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 38 / 41
Applications
Digital Pens and Paper
Livescribe [2] Dot Paper that uses the Anoto Pattern
The paper is covered with a dot pattern that is relatively
invisible and is printed on the paper at a resolution of 600 dots
per inch (dpi).
The pens infared camera can read the dots and knows its exact
location. It can tell the location because the dot pattern is
unique in each window of the pens camera.
If one thinks of a dot as being a 1 and a blank space as being a
0. This is a sort of de Bruijn array of dots.
There are other such digital papers out there.
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 38 / 41
Applications
Digital Pens and Paper
Livescribe [2] Dot Paper that uses the Anoto Pattern
The paper is covered with a dot pattern that is relatively
invisible and is printed on the paper at a resolution of 600 dots
per inch (dpi).
The pens infared camera can read the dots and knows its exact
location. It can tell the location because the dot pattern is
unique in each window of the pens camera.
If one thinks of a dot as being a 1 and a blank space as being a
0. This is a sort of de Bruijn array of dots.
There are other such digital papers out there.
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 38 / 41
Applications
Digital Pens and Paper
Livescribe [2] Dot Paper that uses the Anoto Pattern
The paper is covered with a dot pattern that is relatively
invisible and is printed on the paper at a resolution of 600 dots
per inch (dpi).
The pens infared camera can read the dots and knows its exact
location. It can tell the location because the dot pattern is
unique in each window of the pens camera.
If one thinks of a dot as being a 1 and a blank space as being a
0. This is a sort of de Bruijn array of dots.
There are other such digital papers out there.
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 38 / 41
Applications
Digital Pens and Paper
Livescribe [2] Dot Paper that uses the Anoto Pattern
The paper is covered with a dot pattern that is relatively
invisible and is printed on the paper at a resolution of 600 dots
per inch (dpi).
The pens infared camera can read the dots and knows its exact
location. It can tell the location because the dot pattern is
unique in each window of the pens camera.
If one thinks of a dot as being a 1 and a blank space as being a
0. This is a sort of de Bruijn array of dots.
There are other such digital papers out there.
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 38 / 41
The Mathematician as an Explorer
Outline
1
Introduction to de Bruijn sequences
2
Questions about de Bruijn Sequences
3
Applications
4
The Mathematician as an Explorer
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 39 / 41
The Mathematician as an Explorer
The Mathematician as an Explorer
yamatarajabhanasalagam [6]
0111010001
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 40 / 41
The Mathematician as an Explorer
The Mathematician as an Explorer
yamatarajabhanasalagam [6]
0111010001
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 40 / 41
The Mathematician as an Explorer
Thank You
Thank You
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 41 / 41
The Mathematician as an Explorer
P. Diaconis, R. Graham, Magical mathematics, Princeton
University Press, Princeton, NJ, 2012, the mathematical ideas
that animate great magic tricks, With a foreword by Martin
Gardner.
L. Inc., Livescribe::never miss a word (September 2012).
URL http://www.livescribe.com
D. E. Knuth, The art of computer programming. Volume 4A.
Combinatorial Algorithms, Part 1, Addison-Wesley Publishing
Co., Reading, Mass.-London-Don Mills, Ont., 2011.
A. Ralston, de Bruijn sequencesa model example of the
interaction of discrete mathematics and computer science, Math.
Mag. 55 (3) (1982) 131143.
URL http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/2690079
C. F. Sainte-Marie, Solution to problem number 58,
lIntermediaire des Matheematiciens 1 (1894) 107110.
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 41 / 41
The Mathematician as an Explorer
S. K. Stein, The mathematician as an explorer, Sci. Amer.
204 (5) (1961) 148158.
Adam M. Goyt (MSUM) The Magic of De Bruijn Sequences October 1, 2012 41 / 41