Let M be the encoding of a Turing machine as a string over = {0,1}. Let L = { M M is a Turing machine that accepts a string of length 2014}. Then, L is
Topic-wise GATE CS PYQs with verified steps
GATE CSE 2014 Set 2 · Q35
Time
Select one answerSingle correct
Solution
Official answer: B) undecidable but recursively enumerable
Turing Machines and UndecidabilityUndecidability (Rice's Theorem): The property " accepts at least one string of length 2014" is a non-trivial property of the language recognized by , :
There exists a Turing machine that accepts , so .
There exists a Turing machine with , so .
By Rice's Theorem, testing non-trivial semantic properties of Turing machine languages is undecidable.
Turing Recognizability / Recursive Enumerability: We can construct a Turing machine that recognizes using dovetailed simulation:
The set of strings of length 2014 is finite: there are such strings, say .
For , simulate on each string for steps.
If accepts any string , halts and accepts .
If never accepts any string of length 2014, runs forever.
Thus, is semi-decidable (recursively enumerable).
Hence, is undecidable but recursively enumerable, corresponding to option (B).
Try the question first, then check your work.
Examiner trap
Since the set of strings of length 2014 is finite, can a Turing machine simulate all of them in parallel and halt if any one is accepted? Is this property non-trivial?
This Turing Machines and Undecidability previous year question is Q35 of the GATE CSE 2014 Set 2 paper. Find more GATE CSE PYQs on Turing Machines and Undecidability in Theory of Computation, or browse all GATE CSE PYQs.
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Turing Machines and Undecidability has 30 GATE CSE PYQs across 20 papers from 2012 to 2026. 13 of them are 2-mark MCQs like this one, and GATE CSE 2014 Set 2 has 2.
How GATE tests Turing Machines and UndecidabilityIndependent practice explanation verified by the GateAI team. GATE is conducted by the IITs; question text follows the official paper.