Spanning Trees And Optimization Problems

The design of approximation algorithms for spanning tree problems has become an exciting and important area of theoretical computer science and also plays a significant role in emerging fields such as biological sequence alignments and evolutionary tree construction. While work in this field remains quite active, the time has come to collect under

With the advent of approximation algorithms for NP-hard combinatorial optimization problems, several techniques from exact optimization such as the primal-dual method have proven their staying power and versatility. This book describes a simple and powerful method that is iterative in essence and similarly useful in a variety of settings for exact and approximate optimization. The authors highlight the commonality and uses of this method to prove a variety of classical polyhedral results on matchings, trees, matroids and flows. The presentation style is elementary enough to be accessible to anyone with exposure to basic linear algebra and graph theory, making the book suitable for introductory courses in combinatorial optimization at the upper undergraduate and beginning graduate levels. Discussions of advanced applications illustrate their potential for future application in research in approximation algorithms.

We consider several spanning tree optimization problems all having a measure function which depends only on the degrees of the resulting spanning tree. In addition, all investigated problems are generalizations of the Hamiltonian Path problem and so are NP-hard. As we cannot expect exact polynomial-time solutions, we use the approach of approximation algorithms. We look for a suboptimal solution in polynomial time and prove that it is not farther from the optimal one than a given approximation factor. Beside algorithmic aspects, we also consider the number of spanning tree leaves from a bit more theoretical point of view. We investigate how different graph vulnerability parameters, namely scattering number and cut-asymmetry, are related to the number of spanning tree leaves and that of independent spanning tree leaves. Some of our results are applied for the analysis of the Maximum Internal Spanning Tree problem, while some others give connection to the theory of hamiltonicity. In particular, we give a sufficient condition for the existence of a Hamiltonian path by means of cut-asymmetry.

This comprehensive handbook brings together experts who use optimization to solve problems that arise in telecommunications. It is the first book to cover in detail the field of optimization in telecommunications. Recent optimization developments that are frequently applied to telecommunications are covered. The spectrum of topics covered includes planning and design of telecommunication networks, routing, network protection, grooming, restoration, wireless communications, network location and assignment problems, Internet protocol, World Wide Web, and stochastic issues in telecommunications. The book’s objective is to provide a reference tool for the increasing number of scientists and engineers in telecommunications who depend upon optimization.

"Combinatorial Problems: Minimum Spanning Tree" is a beginner-friendly introduction to the concept of Minimum Spanning Trees (MST), a fundamental tool in computer science and engineering. This book provides clear explanations and practical examples to demystify MST algorithms, which are essential for efficiently connecting nodes in various networks while minimizing costs. Aimed at absolute beginners, it covers the basic principles, step-by-step algorithms, and real-world applications of MST in telecommunications, transportation, and more. Whether you're a student, aspiring engineer, or curious reader, this accessible guide equips you with the foundational knowledge to understand and apply MST effectively in solving connectivity challenges across different fields.

This comprehensive textbook on combinatorial optimization places special emphasis on theoretical results and algorithms with provably good performance, in contrast to heuristics. It is based on numerous courses on combinatorial optimization and specialized topics, mostly at graduate level. This book reviews the fundamentals, covers the classical topics (paths, flows, matching, matroids, NP-completeness, approximation algorithms) in detail, and proceeds to advanced and recent topics, some of which have not appeared in a textbook before. Throughout, it contains complete but concise proofs, and also provides numerous exercises and references. This sixth edition has again been updated, revised, and significantly extended. Among other additions, there are new sections on shallow-light trees, submodular function maximization, smoothed analysis of the knapsack problem, the (ln 4+ɛ)-approximation for Steiner trees, and the VPN theorem. Thus, this book continues to represent the state of the art of combinatorial optimization.

Bioinspired computation methods such as evolutionary algorithms and ant colony optimization are being applied successfully to complex engineering problems and to problems from combinatorial optimization, and with this comes the requirement to more fully understand the computational complexity of these search heuristics. This is the first textbook covering the most important results achieved in this area. The authors study the computational complexity of bioinspired computation and show how runtime behavior can be analyzed in a rigorous way using some of the best-known combinatorial optimization problems -- minimum spanning trees, shortest paths, maximum matching, covering and scheduling problems. A feature of the book is the separate treatment of single- and multiobjective problems, the latter a domain where the development of the underlying theory seems to be lagging practical successes. This book will be very valuable for teaching courses on bioinspired computation and combinatorial optimization. Researchers will also benefit as the presentation of the theory covers the most important developments in the field over the last 10 years. Finally, with a focus on well-studied combinatorial optimization problems rather than toy problems, the book will also be very valuable for practitioners in this field.

The last few years have seen important advances in the use ofgenetic algorithms to address challenging optimization problems inindustrial engineering. Genetic Algorithms and Engineering Designis the only book to cover the most recent technologies and theirapplication to manufacturing, presenting a comprehensive and fullyup-to-date treatment of genetic algorithms in industrialengineering and operations research. Beginning with a tutorial on genetic algorithm fundamentals andtheir use in solving constrained and combinatorial optimizationproblems, the book applies these techniques to problems in specificareas--sequencing, scheduling and production plans, transportationand vehicle routing, facility layout, location-allocation, andmore. Each topic features a clearly written problem description,mathematical model, and summary of conventional heuristicalgorithms. All algorithms are explained in intuitive, rather thanhighly-technical, language and are reinforced with illustrativefigures and numerical examples. Written by two internationally acknowledged experts in the field,Genetic Algorithms and Engineering Design features originalmaterial on the foundation and application of genetic algorithms,and also standardizes the terms and symbols used in othersources--making this complex subject truly accessible to thebeginner as well as to the more advanced reader. Ideal for both self-study and classroom use, this self-containedreference provides indispensable state-of-the-art guidance toprofessionals and students working in industrial engineering,management science, operations research, computer science, andartificial intelligence. The only comprehensive, state-of-the-arttreatment available on the use of genetic algorithms in industrialengineering and operations research . . . Written by internationally recognized experts in the field ofgenetic algorithms and artificial intelligence, Genetic Algorithmsand Engineering Design provides total coverage of currenttechnologies and their application to manufacturing systems.Incorporating original material on the foundation and applicationof genetic algorithms, this unique resource also standardizes theterms and symbols used in other sources--making this complexsubject truly accessible to students as well as experiencedprofessionals. Designed for clarity and ease of use, thisself-contained reference: * Provides a comprehensive survey of selection strategies, penaltytechniques, and genetic operators used for constrained andcombinatorial optimization problems * Shows how to use genetic algorithms to make production schedules,solve facility/location problems, make transportation/vehiclerouting plans, enhance system reliability, and much more * Contains detailed numerical examples, plus more than 160auxiliary figures to make solution procedures transparent andunderstandable

This paper combines social choice theory with discrete optimization. We assume that individuals have preferences over edges of a graph that need to be aggregated. The goal is to find a socially "best" spanning tree in the graph. As ranking all spanning trees is becoming infeasible even for small numbers of vertices and/or edges of a graph, our interest lies in finding algorithms that determine a socially "best" spanning tree in a simple manner. This problem is closely related to the minimum (or maximum) spanning tree problem in combinatorial optimization. Our main result shows that for the various underlying ranking rules on the set of spanning trees discussed in this paper the sets of "best" spanning trees coincide. Moreover, a greedy algorithm based on a transitive group ranking on the set of edges will always provide such a best spanning tree.

In the past few decades, there has been a large amount of work on algorithms for linear network flow problems, special classes of network problems such as assignment problems (linear and quadratic), Steiner tree problem, topology network design and nonconvex cost network flow problems.Network optimization problems find numerous applications in transportation, in communication network design, in production and inventory planning, in facilities location and allocation, and in VLSI design.The purpose of this book is to cover a spectrum of recent developments in network optimization problems, from linear networks to general nonconvex network flow problems./a