A collection of articles summarizing the state of knowledge in a large portion of modern homotopy theory. This welcome reference for many new results and recent methods is addressed to all mathematicians interested in homotopy theory and in geometric aspects of group theory.

This special volume focuses on optimization and control of processes governed by partial differential equations. The contributors are mostly participants of the DFG-priority program 1253: Optimization with PDE-constraints which is active since 2006. The book is organized in sections which cover almost the entire spectrum of modern research in this emerging field. Indeed, even though the field of optimal control and optimization for PDE-constrained problems has undergone a dramatic increase of interest during the last four decades, a full theory for nonlinear problems is still lacking. The contributions of this volume, some of which have the character of survey articles, therefore, aim at creating and developing further new ideas for optimization, control and corresponding numerical simulations of systems of possibly coupled nonlinear partial differential equations. The research conducted within this unique network of groups in more than fifteen German universities focuses on novel methods of optimization, control and identification for problems in infinite-dimensional spaces, shape and topology problems, model reduction and adaptivity, discretization concepts and important applications. Besides the theoretical interest, the most prominent question is about the effectiveness of model-based numerical optimization methods for PDEs versus a black-box approach that uses existing codes, often heuristic-based, for optimization.

Iterative methods use successive approximations to obtain more accurate solutions. This book gives an introduction to iterative methods and preconditioning for solving discretized elliptic partial differential equations and optimal control problems governed by the Laplace equation, for which the use of matrix-free procedures is crucial. All methods are explained and analyzed starting from the historical ideas of the inventors, which are often quoted from their seminal works. Iterative Methods and Preconditioners for Systems of Linear Equations grew out of a set of lecture notes that were improved and enriched over time, resulting in a clear focus for the teaching methodology, which derives complete convergence estimates for all methods, illustrates and provides MATLAB codes for all methods, and studies and tests all preconditioners first as stationary iterative solvers. This textbook is appropriate for undergraduate and graduate students who want an overview or deeper understanding of iterative methods. Its focus on both analysis and numerical experiments allows the material to be taught with very little preparation, since all the arguments are self-contained, and makes it appropriate for self-study as well. It can be used in courses on iterative methods, Krylov methods and preconditioners, and numerical optimal control. Scientists and engineers interested in new topics and applications will also find the text useful.

In its thousands of years of history, mathematics has made an extraordinary ca reer. It started from rules for bookkeeping and computation of areas to become the language of science. Its potential for decision support was fully recognized in the twentieth century only, vitally aided by the evolution of computing and communi cation technology. Mathematical optimization, in particular, has developed into a powerful machinery to help planners. Whether costs are to be reduced, profits to be maximized, or scarce resources to be used wisely, optimization methods are available to guide decision making. Opti mization is particularly strong if precise models of real phenomena and data of high quality are at hand - often yielding reliable automated control and decision proce dures. But what, if the models are soft and not all data are around? Can mathematics help as well? This book addresses such issues, e. g. , problems of the following type: - An elevator cannot know all transportation requests in advance. In which order should it serve the passengers? - Wing profiles of aircrafts influence the fuel consumption. Is it possible to con tinuously adapt the shape of a wing during the flight under rapidly changing conditions? - Robots are designed to accomplish specific tasks as efficiently as possible. But what if a robot navigates in an unknown environment? - Energy demand changes quickly and is not easily predictable over time. Some types of power plants can only react slowly.

Lagrange multiplier theory provides a tool for the analysis of a general class of nonlinear variational problems and is the basis for developing efficient and powerful iterative methods for solving these problems. This comprehensive monograph analyzes Lagrange multiplier theory and shows its impact on the development of numerical algorithms for problems posed in a function space setting. The authors develop and analyze efficient algorithms for constrained optimization and convex optimization problems based on the augumented Lagrangian concept and cover such topics as sensitivity analysis, convex optimization, second order methods, and shape sensitivity calculus. General theory is applied to challenging problems in optimal control of partial differential equations, image analysis, mechanical contact and friction problems, and American options for the Black-Scholes model.

This book provides a bridge between continuous optimization and PDE modelling and focuses on the numerical solution of the corresponding problems. Intended for graduate students in PDE-constrained optimization, it is also suitable as an introduction for researchers in scientific computing or optimization.

Many phenomena of interest for applications are represented by differential equations which are defined in a domain whose boundary is a priori unknown, and is accordingly named a "free boundary". A further quantitative condition is then provided in order to exclude indeterminacy. Free boundary problems thus encompass a broad spectrum which is represented in this state-of-the-art volume by a variety of contributions of researchers in mathematics and applied fields like physics, biology and material sciences. Special emphasis has been reserved for mathematical modelling and for the formulation of new problems.

Many engineering and scientific problems in design, control, and parameter estimation can be formulated as optimization problems that are governed by partial differential equations (PDEs). The complexities of the PDEs--and the requirement for rapid solution--pose significant difficulties. A particularly challenging class of PDE-constrained optimization problems is characterized by the need for real-time solution, i.e., in time scales that are sufficiently rapid to support simulation-based decision making. Real-Time PDE-Constrained Optimization, the first book devoted to real-time optimization for systems governed by PDEs, focuses on new formulations, methods, and algorithms needed to facilitate real-time, PDE-constrained optimization. In addition to presenting state-of-the-art algorithms and formulations, the text illustrates these algorithms with a diverse set of applications that includes problems in the areas of aerodynamics, biology, fluid dynamics, medicine, chemical processes, homeland security, and structural dynamics. Audience: readers who have expertise in simulation and are interested in incorporating optimization into their simulations, who have expertise in numerical optimization and are interested in adapting optimization methods to the class of infinite-dimensional simulation problems, or who have worked in "offline" optimization contexts and are interested in moving to "online" optimization.