Turing Machines

Chapter 8

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Turing Machines are…
• Very powerful (abstract) machines that could
simulate any modern-day computer.

For every input,

answer YES or NO
• Why design such a machine?
• If a problem cannot be “solved” even using a TM,
then it implies that the problem is undecidable

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The Church-Turing Thesis
Anything that can be computed by algorithm (in
our intuitive sense of the term “algorithm”)
can be computed by a Turing Machine.

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A Turing Machine (TM)

Finite
control
Tape is the
memory
Tape head
Infinite tape with tape symbols

… B B B X1 X2 X3 … Xi … Xn B B …

Input & output tape symbols

B: blank symbol (special symbol reserved to indicate data boundary)

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Definition: M = (Q, ∑, , , q0,B,F)
Q: set of states
∑: input alphabet
: Tape symbols
δ: transition function (q,X) = (p,Y,D)
q0: start state
B: Blank symbol
F: Final/accepting states

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 You can also use:

Transition function  for R

 for L

• One move (denoted by |---) in a TM does the

following:
• (q,X) = (p,Y,D) q
X / Y,D
p
• q is the current state
• X is the current tape symbol pointed by tape head
• State changes from q to p
• After the move:
• X is replaced with the symbol Y
• If D=“L”, the tape head moves “left” by one position.
Alternatively, if D=“R” the tape head moves “right” by one
position.

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ID of a TM
• Instantaneous Description or ID :
• X1X2…Xi-1qXiXi+1…Xn
means:
• q is the current state
• Tape head is pointing to X i
• X1X2…Xi-1XiXi+1…Xn are the current tape symbols

• (q,Xi) = (p,Y,R) is same as:

X1…Xi-1qXi…Xn |---- X1…Xi-1YpXi+1…Xn
• (q,Xi) = (p,Y,L) is same as:
X1…Xi-1qXi…Xn |---- X1…pXi-1YXi+1…Xn
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Way to check for Membership
• Is a string w accepted by a TM?

• Initial condition:
• The (whole) input string w is present in TM, preceded and
followed by infinite blank symbols
• Final acceptance:
• Accept w if TM enters final state and halts
• If TM halts and not final state, then reject

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 Example: L = {0n1n | n≥1}

• Strategy: w = 000111
…
B B 0 0 0 1 1 1 B B … B B X X 0 Y Y 1 B B …
… …
…
… B B X 0 0 1 1 1 B B … B B X X X Y Y 1 B B …
… …
… B B X 0 0 Y 1 1 B B … B B X X X Y Y Y B B …
…
… B B X X 0 Y 1 1 B B …
B B X X X Y Y Y B B …

Accept 9
 TM for {0n1n | n≥1}

Y / Y,R 1. Mark next unread 0 with X and

0 / 0,R move right
2. Move to the right all the way to
0 / X,R the first unread 1, and mark it
q0 q1 with Y
3. Move back (to the left) all the
Y / Y,R 1 / Y,L way to the last marked X, and
X / X,R then move one position to the
q2 right
Y / Y,R q3 4. If the next position is 0, then
goto step 1.
B / B,R Y / Y,L Else move all the way to the right
0 / 0,L to ensure there are no excess 1s.
q4 If not move right to the next
blank symbol and stop & accept.

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 *state diagram representation preferred

TM for {0n1n | n≥1}

Next Tape Symbol

Curr. 0 1 X Y B
State
q0 (q1,X,R) - - (q3,Y,R) -

q1 (q1,0,R) (q2,Y,L) - (q1,Y,R) -

q2 (q2,0,L) - (q0,X,R) (q2,Y,L) -

q3 - - - (q3,Y,R) (q4,B,R)

*q4 - -- - - -

Table representation of the state diagram 11

TMs for calculations
• TMs can also be used for calculating values
• Like arithmetic computations
• Eg., addition, subtraction, multiplication, etc.

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Example 2: monus subtraction
“m -- n” = max{m-n,0}
0m10n  ...B 0m-n B.. (if m>n)
...BB…B.. (otherwise)

1. For every 0 on the left (mark X), mark off a 0 on the right (mark Y)
2. Repeat process, until one of the following happens:
1. // No more 0s remaining on the left of 1
Answer is 0, so flip all excess 0s on the right of 1 to Bs (and the 1
itself) and halt
2. //No more 0s remaining on the right of 1
Answer is m-n, so simply halt after making 1 to B

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Example: (4-2)=2
B 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 B

B B 0 0 0 1 0 0 B

B B 0 0 0 1 1 0 B

B B B 0 0 1 1 0 B

B B B 0 0 1 1 1 B

B B B B 0 1 1 1 B

B B B B 0 B B B B

B B B 0 0 B B B B

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Example 3: Multiplication

0m10n1 (input)  10mn (output)

Pseudocode:
1. Move tape head back & forth such that for every 0
seen in 0m, write n 0s to the right of the last
delimiting 1
2. Once written, that zero is changed to B to get marked
as finished
3. After completing on all m 0s, make the remaining n
0s and 1s also as Bs

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Variations of Turing
Machines

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 Generic description
TMs with storage Will work for both a=0 and a=1

• E.g., TM for 01* + 10*

Current Tape Next

Storage symbol state
Current symbol
state New
Storage
symbol
q Transition function :
storage
• ([q0,B],a) = ([q1,a], a, R)

Tape head • ([q1,a],a) = ([q1,a], a, R)

B B 0 1 1 1 1 1 B B … • ([q1,a],B) = ([q2,B], B, R)

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Standard TMs are equivalent to TMs
with storage
Every TM w/ storage can be simulated by a TM w/o
storage as follows:
• For every [state, symbol] combination in the TM
w/ storage:
• Create a new state in the TM w/o storage
• Define transitions induced by TM w/ storage

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Multi-track Turing Machines
• TM with multiple tracks,
but just one unified tape head

control
One tape head to read
k symbols from the k tracks
at one step.

Track 1 … …

… …
Track 2
…
…

Track k … …
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 Multi-Track TMs
• TM with multiple “tracks” but just one head

E.g., TM for {wcw | w {0,1}* }

but w/o modifying original input string

BEFORE AFTER
control control

Tape head Tape head

… B B 0 1 0 c 0 1 0 B … Track 1 … B B 0 1 0 c 0 1 0 B … Track 1

… B B B B B B B B B B … Track 2 … B B X X X c Y Y Y B … Track 2

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Second track mainly used as a scratch space for marking
Multi-Tape Turing Machines
• TM with multiple tapes, each tape with a separate head
• Each head can move independently of the others

control

k separate heads

Tape 1 … …

… …
Tape 2
…

Tape k … … 24
Non-deterministic TMs

• A TM can have non-deterministic moves:

• (q,X) = { (q1,Y1,D1), (q2,Y2,D2), … }
• Simulation using a multi-tape deterministic TM:
Control

Input tape
Marker tape ID1 * ID2
* ID3 * ID4 *
Scratch tape

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End

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