On-line covering the unit cube by cubes (Q1338463)

The authors use two methods to realize on-line coverings of the unit cube by cubes, i.e., the next cube of the covering sequence is given only after the preceding one has been put in place without the possibility of changing the placement. Improving a result of W. Kuperberg, they show that the unit \(d\)-cube can be on-line covered by an arbitrary sequence of cubes whose total volume is at least \(3\cdot 2^ d-4\) (first method) and \(2^ d+ ({4\over 3} \sqrt{2}+ {2\over 3}) ({3\over 2})^ d\) (second method), respectively. Thus, asymptotically this is as good as the best possible non-on-line method of covering the unit \(d\)-cube by \(d\)-cubes.