Abstract

The so-called weak form of Hilbert's Nullstellensatz says that a system of algebraic equations over a field, Qj(x) = 0, does not have a solution in the algebraic closure if and only if 1 is in the ideal generated by the polynomials (?,(*) • We shall prove a lower bound on the degrees of polynomials P,(x) such that £, P,(x)Qt(x) = 1. This result has the following application. The modular counting principle states that no finite set whose cardinality is not divisible by q can be partitioned into ^-element classes. For each fixed cardinality N, this principle can be expressed as a propositional formula Count^fo,...) with underlying variables xe, where e ranges over <7-element subsets of N. Ajtai [4] proved recently that, whenever p,q are two different primes, the propositional formulas Count $ n+I do not have polynomial size, constant-depth Frege proofs from substitution instances of Count/?, where m^O (modp). We give a new proof of this theorem based on the lower bound for Hilbert's Nullstellensatz. Furthermore our technique enables us to extend the independence results for counting principles to composite numbers p and q. This improved lower bound together with new upper bounds yield an exact characterization of when Count, can be proved efficiently from Countp, for all values of p and q.

Citations