Read-Once Functions Revisited and the Readability Number of a Boolean Function

In this paper, we present the first polynomial time algorithm for recognizing and factoring read-once functions. The algorithm is based on algorithms for cograph recognition and a new efficient method for checking normality. Its correctness is based on a classical characterization theorem of Gurvich which states that a positive Boolean function is read-once if and only if it is normal and its co-occurrance graph is P₄-free. We also investigate the problem of factoring certain non-read-once functions. In particular, we show that if the co-occurrence graph of a positive Boolean function f is a tree, then the function is read-twice. We then extend this further proving that if f is normal and its corresponding graph is a partial k-tree, then f is a read 2^k function and a read 2^k formula for F for f can be obtained in polynomial time.