I.

Introduction and definition

+) The four color theorem: Every planar graph(a graph that can be drawn in the
plane with no crossings) can be colored using no more than four colors.

--> Extension : the four color theorem, states that no more than four colors are
required to color the regions of any map so that no two adjacent regions(adjacent
means that two regions share a common boundary curve segment) have the same color.
The theorem is notorious for being one of the first major theorems to be proved
with the assistance of computers.

II. The history of the four color theorem

The origins of the theorem go back to 1852 when Francis Guthrie, a student of
Augustus De Morgan, noticed that a map of counties of England could be colored with
just four colors. He conjectured that any map could be colored with four colors so
that adjacent regions had different colors.

This problem gained significant interest in the mathematics community and many
attempted to find a proof, but it resisted solution for over 120 years. In 1879,
Alfred Kempe published a proof which was widely acclaimed. However, in 1890 it was
discovered to have a flaw by Percy Heawood and various false proofs appeared in
subsequent decades.

The intense difficulty in proving the theorem stemmed in part from the large number
of possible maps and colorings to check. An exhaustive proof was well beyond human
capabilities. This made the four color theorem an early candidate for computer
verification when computers became available.

In 1976, Kenneth Appel and Wolfgang Haken published a proof making extensive use of
computer calculations. They reduced the infinite number of possible maps to 1936
reducible configurations (later reduced to 1476) and checked each with computer
verification to show four colors sufficed. The proof was controversial since it was
infeasible for a human to check by hand, causing some mathematicians to question if
it qualified as proof. However, over time as people found no flaws, it gained
general mathematical acceptance.

So in summary, the four color theorem has origins dating back to 1852 but evaded
human solution until the development of computers allowed a computational brute
force verification in 1976. It marked a shift to computer-assisted proofs for
certain types of complex or extensive problems.

**) Problem : control traffic signals

+) Suppose we need to set up a signal control procedure at a complex intersection

with multiple crossing roads, such that within a set period of time, some routes
will have green lights allowing movement while others will have red lights
prohibiting movement. This is moved to avoid traffic accidents.

+) The problem is to partition the routes into a minimum number of

groups so that routes in each group do not intersect. Then the maximum waiting time
to get a green light allowing movement on the route will be minimized.

**) Solution

+) Suppose the intersection has n routes: T1, T2,...Tn.

+) Routes that intersect and can lead to traffic collisions are called conflicting
routes.

+) Therefore, the traffic signal must cycle so that conflicting routes are not
given a green light to move at the same time, while non-conflicting routes can be
allowed to move simultaneously.

+) We can model this problem using graphs. Introduce the graph coloring problem as
follows:

+) The graph vertices represent routes, and two routes are connected by an edge if
and only if they conflict and cannot have simultaneous movement.

+) We color the graph vertices so that adjacent vertices do not have the same
color. We consider each color to represent one phase of the traffic signal cycle:
routes with the same color will have green lights at the same time. So, the
original problem reduces to coloring the graph with the minimum number of colors.

Ex: Consider the following intersection

Ask how many phases are needed to control traffic intersections on all routes. Here
C and E are one-way roads, and the other roads are two-way roads

**) Problem : schedule the exam

Suppose each student has to take some of the n subjects. Schedule the exam so that
no student has two exams at the same time and the number of exam sessions is
minimal

**) Solution :

To solve the problem of math, we graph the vertices that are the exam subjects and
two adjacent exam subjects if there is a student taking both of these subjects. The
exam time for each subject is indicated by different colors. Thus, the exam
scheduling problem is reduced to the problem of coloring graphs with the least
number of colors to optimize students' time.

Ex: There are 5 exam subjects that need to be scheduled. The subjects are numbered
from 1 to 5. The following pairs of exam subjects have the same students:
(1,2); (2,3); (2,4); (3.5)
Please arrange the exam schedule so that all students can participate in the above
subjects