We consider data structures for handling streams of check-in and check-out requests, and that must identify the set of check-ins that are not matched by a corresponding check-out. We show that, if this set has size k, it is possible to handle this problem in space O(k log n) by a deterministic data structure. However, if check-outs may occur that do not match any check-in, then no low-space deterministic solution is possible; instead, we provide a randomized solution with near-optimal space and high probability of answering queries correctly.
Publications -- David Eppstein -- Theory Group -- Inf. & Comp. Sci. -- UC Irvine
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