computer science

Ran Raz

Ran Raz is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Ran Raz rather than just read about it. In short: Ran Raz (Hebrew: רָן רָז) is an Israeli computer scientist who works in the area of computational complexity theory. He was a professor in the Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science at the Weizmann Institute before becoming a professor of computer science at Princeton University.

Key takeaways

Ran Raz belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Ran Raz to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Ran Raz from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Ran Raz (Hebrew: רָן רָז) is an Israeli computer scientist who works in the area of computational complexity theory. He was a professor in the Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science at the Weizmann Institute before becoming a professor of computer science at Princeton University. Raz received his Ph.D. at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in 1992 under Avi Wigderson and Michael Ben-Or. Raz is well known for his work on interactive proof systems. His two most-cited papers are Raz (1998) on multi-prover interactive proofs and Raz & Safra (1997) on probabilistically checkable proofs. Raz received the Erdős Prize in 2002. In 2004, he received the Best Paper Award at ACM Symposium on Theory of Computing for Raz (2004), and the best paper award in IEEE Conference on Computational Complexity for Raz & Shpilka (2004). In 2008, the work Moshkovitz & Raz (2008) received the Best Paper Award at IEEE Symposium on Foundations of Computer Science (FOCS).

Selected publications Raz, Ran; Safra, Shmuel (1997), "A sub-constant error-probability low-degree test, and a sub-constant error-probability PCP characterization of NP", Proc. STOC 1997, pp. 475–484, CiteSeerX 10.1.1.34.6957, doi:10.1145/258533.258641, ISBN 978-0-89791-888-6, S2CID 15457604 {{citation}}: Cite uses deprecated parameter |citeseerx= (help). Raz, Ran (1998), "A parallel repetition theorem", SIAM Journal on Computing, 27 (3): 763–803, CiteSeerX 10.1.1.35.6859, doi:10.1137/S0097539795280895 {{citation}}: Cite uses deprecated parameter |citeseerx= (help). Raz, Ran (2004), "Multi-linear formulas for permanent and determinant are of super-polynomial size", Proc. STOC 2004, pp. 633–641, CiteSeerX 10.1.1.2.9694, doi:10.1145/1007352.1007353, ISBN 978-1-58113-852-8, S2CID 1297877 {{citation}}: Cite uses deprecated parameter |citeseerx= (help). Raz, Ran; Shpilka, Amir (2004), "Deterministic polynomial identity testing in non commutative models", Proc. CCC 2004, pp. 215–222, CiteSeerX 10.1.1.104.293, doi:10.1109/CCC.2004.1313845, ISBN 978-0-7695-2120-6 {{citation}}: Cite uses deprecated parameter |citeseerx= (help). Moshkovitz, Dana; Raz, Ran (2008), "Two query PCP with sub-constant error", Proc. FOCS 2008, pp. 314–323, CiteSeerX 10.1.1.140.2111, doi:10.1109/FOCS.2008.60, ISBN 978-0-7695-3436-7 {{citation}}: Cite uses deprecated parameter |citeseerx= (help).

References

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Ran Raz

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Ran Raz claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Ran Raz before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Ran Raz ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Ran Raz

In research: Ran Raz appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Ran Raz in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Ran Raz is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Academic staff of Weizmann Institute of Science, Computer scientist stubs, Erdős Prize recipients, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Ran Raz outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

Affiliate

Preply — study more efficiently by working with a personal tutor. 50% off.

How to study Ran Raz in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Ran Raz means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Ran Raz out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Ran Raz in simple terms?

Why does Ran Raz matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Ran Raz?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Ran Raz.