Problems / theoretical-computer-science
theoretical-computer-science / Boolean function complexity; sensitivity
Is block sensitivity at most quadratic in sensitivity? (Nisan-Szegedy)
Theorem 1.1: for every integer d≥1 an explicit recursive construction gives a nonconstant total Boolean function with bs(f)/s(f)2≥2d/(4(d+2)2), so no bound bs≤Cs2 holds; the abstract also claims a fixed α>2 with bs(f)≥s(f)α along an unbounded family. This does not close the gap to Huang's upper bound bs≤s4; the true exponent remains open. Because λ(f)≤s(f), it also implies a negative answer to the spectral-sensitivity question bs=O(λ2), which Meiburg had already disproved (see block-sensitivity-spectral-sensitivity-squared).