This textbook provides an introduction to the use and understanding of optimization and modeling for upper-level undergraduate students in engineering and mathematics. The formulation of optimization problems is founded through concepts and techniques from operations research: Combinatorial Optimization, Linear Programming, and Integer and Nonlinear Programming (COLIN). Computer Science (CS) is also relevant and important given the applications of algorithms and Apps/algorithms (A) in solving optimization problems. Each chapter provides an overview of the main concepts of optimization according to COLINA, providing examples through App Inventor and AMPL software applications. All apps developed through the text are available for download. Additionally, the text includes links to the University of Wisconsin NEOS server, designed to handle more computing-intensive problems in complex optimization. Readers are encouraged to have some background in calculus, linear algebra, and related mathematics.

Graduate students and researchers in applied mathematics, optimization, engineering, computer science, and management science will find this book a useful reference which provides an introduction to applications and fundamental theories in nonlinear combinatorial optimization. Nonlinear combinatorial optimization is a new research area within combinatorial optimization and includes numerous applications to technological developments, such as wireless communication, cloud computing, data science, and social networks. Theoretical developments including discrete Newton methods, primal-dual methods with convex relaxation, submodular optimization, discrete DC program, along with several applications are discussed and explored in this book through articles by leading experts.

Many engineering, operations, and scientific applications include a mixture of discrete and continuous decision variables and nonlinear relationships involving the decision variables that have a pronounced effect on the set of feasible and optimal solutions. Mixed-integer nonlinear programming (MINLP) problems combine the numerical difficulties of handling nonlinear functions with the challenge of optimizing in the context of nonconvex functions and discrete variables. MINLP is one of the most flexible modeling paradigms available for optimization; but because its scope is so broad, in the most general cases it is hopelessly intractable. Nonetheless, an expanding body of researchers and practitioners — including chemical engineers, operations researchers, industrial engineers, mechanical engineers, economists, statisticians, computer scientists, operations managers, and mathematical programmers — are interested in solving large-scale MINLP instances.

Combinatorial (or discrete) optimization is one of the most active fields in the interface of operations research, computer science, and applied math ematics. Combinatorial optimization problems arise in various applications, including communications network design, VLSI design, machine vision, air line crew scheduling, corporate planning, computer-aided design and man ufacturing, database query design, cellular telephone frequency assignment, constraint directed reasoning, and computational biology. Furthermore, combinatorial optimization problems occur in many diverse areas such as linear and integer programming, graph theory, artificial intelligence, and number theory. All these problems, when formulated mathematically as the minimization or maximization of a certain function defined on some domain, have a commonality of discreteness. Historically, combinatorial optimization starts with linear programming. Linear programming has an entire range of important applications including production planning and distribution, personnel assignment, finance, alloca tion of economic resources, circuit simulation, and control systems. Leonid Kantorovich and Tjalling Koopmans received the Nobel Prize (1975) for their work on the optimal allocation of resources. Two important discover ies, the ellipsoid method (1979) and interior point approaches (1984) both provide polynomial time algorithms for linear programming. These algo rithms have had a profound effect in combinatorial optimization. Many polynomial-time solvable combinatorial optimization problems are special cases of linear programming (e.g. matching and maximum flow). In addi tion, linear programming relaxations are often the basis for many approxi mation algorithms for solving NP-hard problems (e.g. dual heuristics).

The first of a multi-volume set, which deals with several algorithmic approaches for discrete problems as well as many combinatorial problems. It is addressed to researchers in discrete optimization, and to all scientists who use combinatorial optimization methods to model and solve problems.

Martin Grötschel is one of the most influential mathematicians of our time. He has received numerous honors and holds a number of key positions in the international mathematical community. He celebrated his 65th birthday on September 10, 2013. Martin Grötschel’s doctoral descendant tree 1983–2012, i.e., the first 30 years, features 39 children, 74 grandchildren, 24 great-grandchildren and 2 great-great-grandchildren, a total of 139 doctoral descendants. This book starts with a personal tribute to Martin Grötschel by the editors (Part I), a contribution by his very special “predecessor” Manfred Padberg on “Facets and Rank of Integer Polyhedra” (Part II), and the doctoral descendant tree 1983–2012 (Part III). The core of this book (Part IV) contains 16 contributions, each of which is coauthored by at least one doctoral descendant. The sequence of the articles starts with contributions to the theory of mathematical optimization, including polyhedral combinatorics, extended formulations, mixed-integer convex optimization, super classes of perfect graphs, efficient algorithms for subtree-telecenters, junctions in acyclic graphs and preemptive restricted strip covering, as well as efficient approximation of non-preemptive restricted strip covering. Combinations of new theoretical insights with algorithms and experiments deal with network design problems, combinatorial optimization problems with submodular objective functions and more general mixed-integer nonlinear optimization problems. Applications include VLSI layout design, systems biology, wireless network design, mean-risk optimization and gas network optimization. Computational studies include a semidefinite branch and cut approach for the max k-cut problem, mixed-integer nonlinear optimal control, and mixed-integer linear optimization for scheduling and routing of fly-in safari planes. The two closing articles are devoted to computational advances in general mixed integer linear optimization, the first by scientists working in industry, the second by scientists working in academia. These articles reflect the “scientific facets” of Martin Grötschel who has set standards in theory, computation and applications.

Rave reviews for INTEGER AND COMBINATORIAL OPTIMIZATION "This book provides an excellent introduction and survey of traditional fields of combinatorial optimization . . . It is indeed one of the best and most complete texts on combinatorial optimization . . . available. [And] with more than 700 entries, [it] has quite an exhaustive reference list."-Optima "A unifying approach to optimization problems is to formulate them like linear programming problems, while restricting some or all of the variables to the integers. This book is an encyclopedic resource for such formulations, as well as for understanding the structure of and solving the resulting integer programming problems."-Computing Reviews "[This book] can serve as a basis for various graduate courses on discrete optimization as well as a reference book for researchers and practitioners."-Mathematical Reviews "This comprehensive and wide-ranging book will undoubtedly become a standard reference book for all those in the field of combinatorial optimization."-Bulletin of the London Mathematical Society "This text should be required reading for anybody who intends to do research in this area or even just to keep abreast of developments."-Times Higher Education Supplement, London Also of interest . . . INTEGER PROGRAMMING Laurence A. Wolsey Comprehensive and self-contained, this intermediate-level guide to integer programming provides readers with clear, up-to-date explanations on why some problems are difficult to solve, how techniques can be reformulated to give better results, and how mixed integer programming systems can be used more effectively. 1998 (0-471-28366-5) 260 pp.