Talagrand’s “Convolution with a Biased Coin” Conjecture

Prove that for every function f: {−1,1}^n → R≥0 with E[f] = 1 and every 0 < ρ < 1, the noise operator satisfies Pr[Tρ f ≥ t] = o(1/t) as t → ∞.

Background

Talagrand suggested a stronger bound O(1/(t√log t)) and offered a monetary prize for a proof. The conjecture remains challenging even in Gaussian space.

In the Gaussian setting, known results establish O(1/(t√log t)) for dimension 1 and O((log log t)/(t√log t)) in fixed constant dimensions, but the general case is still unresolved.

References

Even the “special case” when f’s domain is Rn with Gaussian measure is open.

Open Problems in Analysis of Boolean Functions  (1204.6447 - O'Donnell, 2012) in Main matter, problem “Talagrand’s ‘Convolution with a Biased Coin’ Conjecture,” remarks, third bullet