A Random Walk Approach to Broadcasting on Random Recursive Trees

Abstract: In the broadcasting problem on trees, a ${0,1}$-message originating in an unknown node is passed along the tree with a certain error probability $q$. The goal is to estimate the original message without knowing the order in which the nodes were informed. A variation of the problem is considering this broadcasting process on a randomly growing tree, which Addario-Berry et al. have investigated for uniform and linear preferential attachment recursive trees. We extend their studies of the majority estimator to the entire group of very simple increasing trees as well as shape exchangeable trees using the connection to inhomogeneous random walks and other stochastic processes with memory effects such as P\'olya Urns.