This is the only book available in English language to consider inverse and optimization problems in which phase field distributions are used as optimizing functions. The mathematical technique used relates to nonlinear integral equations, with numerical methods developed and applied to concrete problems. Written by a team of outstanding and renowned experts in the field, this monograph will appeal to all those dealing with the investigation, design, and optimization of electromagnetic and acoustic radiating and transmitting devices and systems, while also being of interest to mathematicians working on the theory of nonlinear integral equations.

A concise, comprehensive introduction to the topic of statistical physics of combinatorial optimization, bringing together theoretical concepts and algorithms from computer science with analytical methods from physics. The result bridges the gap between statistical physics and combinatorial optimization, investigating problems taken from theoretical computing, such as the vertex-cover problem, with the concepts and methods of theoretical physics. The authors cover rapid developments and analytical methods that are both extremely complex and spread by word-of-mouth, providing all the necessary basics in required detail. Throughout, the algorithms are shown with examples and calculations, while the proofs are given in a way suitable for graduate students, post-docs, and researchers. Ideal for newcomers to this young, multidisciplinary field.

This book presents a framework for development, optimization, and evaluation of behavioral, biobehavioral, and biomedical interventions. Behavioral, biobehavioral, and biomedical interventions are programs with the objective of improving and maintaining human health and well-being, broadly defined, in individuals, families, schools, organizations, or communities. These interventions may be aimed at, for example, preventing or treating disease, promoting physical and mental health, preventing violence, or improving academic achievement. This volume introduces the multiphase optimization strategy (MOST), pioneered at The Methodology Center at the Pennsylvania State University, as an alternative to the classical approach of relying solely on the randomized controlled trial (RCT). MOST borrows heavily from perspectives taken and approaches used in engineering, and also integrates concepts from statistics and behavioral science, including the RCT. As described in detail in this book, MOST consists of three phases: preparation, in which the conceptual model underlying the intervention is articulated; optimization, in which experimentation is used to gather the information necessary to identify the optimized intervention; and evaluation, in which the optimized intervention is evaluated in a standard RCT. Through numerous examples, the book demonstrates that MOST can be used to develop interventions that are more effective, efficient, economical, and scalable. Optimization of Behavioral, Biobehavioral, and Biomedical Interventions: The Multiphase Optimization Strategy is the first book to present a comprehensive introduction to MOST. It will be an essential resource for behavioral, biobehavioral, and biomedical scientists; statisticians, biostatisticians, and analysts working in epidemiology and public health; and graduate-level courses in development and evaluation of interventions.

The focus of the present volume is stochastic optimization of dynamical systems in discrete time where - by concentrating on the role of information regarding optimization problems - it discusses the related discretization issues. There is a growing need to tackle uncertainty in applications of optimization. For example the massive introduction of renewable energies in power systems challenges traditional ways to manage them. This book lays out basic and advanced tools to handle and numerically solve such problems and thereby is building a bridge between Stochastic Programming and Stochastic Control. It is intended for graduates readers and scholars in optimization or stochastic control, as well as engineers with a background in applied mathematics.

The adiabatic quantum computation (AQC) is based on the adiabatic theorem to approximate solutions of the Schrödinger equation. The design of an AQC algorithm involves the construction of a Hamiltonian that describes the behavior of the quantum system. This Hamiltonian is expressed as a linear interpolation of an initial Hamiltonian whose ground state is easy to compute, and a final Hamiltonian whose ground state corresponds to the solution of a given combinatorial optimization problem. The adiabatic theorem asserts that if the time evolution of a quantum system described by a Hamiltonian is large enough, then the system remains close to its ground state. An AQC algorithm uses the adiabatic theorem to approximate the ground state of the final Hamiltonian that corresponds to the solution of the given optimization problem. In this book, we investigate the computational simulation of AQC algorithms applied to the MAX-SAT problem. A symbolic analysis of the AQC solution is given in order to understand the involved computational complexity of AQC algorithms. This approach can be extended to other combinatorial optimization problems and can be used for the classical simulation of an AQC algorithm where a Hamiltonian problem is constructed. This construction requires the computation of a sparse matrix of dimension 2n × 2n, by means of tensor products, where n is the dimension of the quantum system. Also, a general scheme to design AQC algorithms is proposed, based on a natural correspondence between optimization Boolean variables and quantum bits. Combinatorial graph problems are in correspondence with pseudo-Boolean maps that are reduced in polynomial time to quadratic maps. Finally, the relation among NP-hard problems is investigated, as well as its logical representability, and is applied to the design of AQC algorithms. It is shown that every monadic second-order logic (MSOL) expression has associated pseudo-Boolean maps that can be obtained by expanding the given expression, and also can be reduced to quadratic forms. Table of Contents: Preface / Acknowledgments / Introduction / Approximability of NP-hard Problems / Adiabatic Quantum Computing / Efficient Hamiltonian Construction / AQC for Pseudo-Boolean Optimization / A General Strategy to Solve NP-Hard Problems / Conclusions / Bibliography / Authors' Biographies

This collection of challenging and well-designed test problems arising in literature studies also contains a wide spectrum of applications, including pooling/blending operations, heat exchanger network synthesis, homogeneous azeotropic separation, and dynamic optimization and optimal control problems.

Optimization Algorithms - Classics and Last Advances is devoted to developing algorithm theory and exploring the use of different optimization algorithms for solving various problems in pure science, applied physics, and information technology. The book consists of two sections. The first focuses on developing abstract algorithms with subsequent applications to real-world optimization problems. It discusses optimization problems based on partial differential equations, canonical polyadic decomposition, variational approach, and ant colony optimization, which are discussed here. The second section presents problems related to optimization in information technologies. Chapters in this section address the utilization of optimization algorithms to solve problems of reducing computation time and computer memory, reducing kernel mechanism processing time in multimedia authoring tools, arranging access optimization for special applications, and minimizing resources for solving vehicle routing problems.

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the Second International Conference on Evolutionary Multi-Criterion Optimization, EMO 2003, held in Faro, Portugal, in April 2003. The 56 revised full papers presented were carefully reviewed and selected from a total of 100 submissions. The papers are organized in topical sections on objective handling and problem decomposition, algorithm improvements, online adaptation, problem construction, performance analysis and comparison, alternative methods, implementation, and applications.

In this volume, the authors present their 1972 proof of the celebrated Four Color Theorem in a detailed but self-contained exposition accessible to a general mathematical audience. An emended version of the authors' proof of the theorem, the book contains the full text of the supplements and checklists, which originally appeared on microfiche. The thiry-page introduction, intended for nonspecialists, provides some historical background of the theorem and details of the authors' proof. In addition, the authors have added an appendix which treats in much greater detail the argument for situations in which reducible configurations are immersed rather than embedded in triangulations. This result leads to a proof that four coloring can be accomplished in polynomial time.

The authors stress the relative simplicity, efficiency, flexibility of use, and suitability of various approaches used to solve difficult optimization problems. The authors are experienced, interdisciplinary lecturers and researchers and in their explanations they demonstrate many shared foundational concepts among the key methodologies. This textbook is a suitable introduction for undergraduate and graduate students, researchers, and professionals in computer science, engineering, and logistics.