The problem of finding a spanning tree in an undirected graph with a maximum number of leaves is known to be NP-hard. We present an algorithm which finds a spanning tree with at least k leaves in time O*(3.4575k) which improves the currently best algorithm. The estimation of the running time is done by using a non-standard measure. The present paper is one of the still few examples that employ the Measure & Conquer paradigm of algorithm analysis in the area of Parameterized Algorithmics.
Pablo Moscato;Luke Mathieson;Mohammad Nazmul Haque, 2021, Augmented intuition: a bridge between theory and practice, Journal of Heuristics, 27, 4, pp. 497-547, 10.1007/s10732-020-09465-7.