A Note on the Horton-Strahler Number for Random Binary Search Trees

Abstract We show that for a random binary search tree with n nodes and Horton-Strahler number Sn, lim n → ∞ P {S n ⩾ ( 1 log 3 + e) log n} = 0 , for all e >0. This result is confirmed by the experimental results of natural scientists and explains why the random binary search tree model is a poor choice for modeling the combinatorial structure of the human lung.

[1]  Luc Devroye,et al.  A Note on the Horton-Strahler Number for Random Trees , 1995, Inf. Process. Lett..

[2]  Luc Devroye,et al.  On the Horton-Strahler Number for Random Tries , 1996, RAIRO Theor. Informatics Appl..

[3]  M. Berry,et al.  The application of network analysis to the study of branching patterns of large dendritic fields , 1976, Brain Research.

[4]  J. van Pelt,et al.  The exact probabilities of branching patterns under terminal and segmental growth hypotheses. , 1983, Bulletin of mathematical biology.

[6]  Donald E. Knuth,et al.  The Art of Computer Programming: Volume 3: Sorting and Searching , 1998 .

[7]  J. Pelt,et al.  Cut trees in the topological analysis of branching patterns , 1984 .

[8]  Donald Ervin Knuth,et al.  The Art of Computer Programming , 1968 .

[9]  M. Woldenberg,et al.  Branching ratio and growth of tree-like structures. , 1986, Respiration physiology.

[10]  N. MacDonald,et al.  Trees and networks in biological models , 1983 .

[11]  Luc Devroye,et al.  A note on the height of binary search trees , 1986, JACM.

[12]  Xavier Gérard Viennot,et al.  Combinatorial analysis of ramified patterns and computer imagery of trees , 1989, SIGGRAPH.

[13]  J. Vannimenus,et al.  Combinatorial tools for the analysis of ramified patterns , 1989 .

[14]  R. Horton EROSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OF STREAMS AND THEIR DRAINAGE BASINS; HYDROPHYSICAL APPROACH TO QUANTITATIVE MORPHOLOGY , 1945 .

[15]  K. Horsfield Are diameter, length and branching ratios meaningful in the lung? , 1980, Journal of theoretical biology.

[16]  Donald E. Knuth,et al.  Sorting and Searching , 1973 .