A brilliant treatment of a knotty problem in computing. This volume contains chapters written by reputable researchers and provides the state of the art in theory and algorithms for the traveling salesman problem (TSP). The book covers all important areas of study on TSP, including polyhedral theory for symmetric and asymmetric TSP, branch and bound, and branch and cut algorithms, probabilistic aspects of TSP, and includes a thorough computational analysis of heuristic and metaheuristic algorithms.

This book presents a large variety of extensions of the methods of inclusion and exclusion. Both methods for generating and methods for proof of such inequalities are discussed. The inequalities are utilized for finding asymptotic values and for limit theorems. Applications vary from classical probability estimates to modern extreme value theory and combinatorial counting to random subset selection. Applications are given in prime number theory, growth of digits in different algorithms, and in statistics such as estimates of confidence levels of simultaneous interval estimation. The prerequisites include the basic concepts of probability theory and familiarity with combinatorial arguments.

In April of 1996 an array of mathematicians converged on Cambridge, Massachusetts, for the Rotafest and Umbral Calculus Workshop, two con ferences celebrating Gian-Carlo Rota's 64th birthday. It seemed appropriate when feting one of the world's great combinatorialists to have the anniversary be a power of 2 rather than the more mundane 65. The over seventy-five par ticipants included Rota's doctoral students, coauthors, and other colleagues from more than a dozen countries. As a further testament to the breadth and depth of his influence, the lectures ranged over a wide variety of topics from invariant theory to algebraic topology. This volume is a collection of articles written in Rota's honor. Some of them were presented at the Rotafest and Umbral Workshop while others were written especially for this Festschrift. We will say a little about each paper and point out how they are connected with the mathematical contributions of Rota himself."

Local search has been applied successfully to a diverse collection of optimization problems. However, results are scattered throughout the literature. This is the first book that presents a large collection of theoretical results in a consistent manner. It provides the reader with a coherent overview of the achievements obtained so far, and serves as a source of inspiration for the development of novel results in the challenging field of local search.

Graph theory is a specific concept that has numerous applications throughout many industries. Despite the advancement of this technique, graph theory can still yield ambiguous and imprecise results. In order to cut down on these indeterminate factors, neutrosophic logic has emerged as an applicable solution that is gaining significant attention in solving many real-life decision-making problems that involve uncertainty, impreciseness, vagueness, incompleteness, inconsistency, and indeterminacy. However, empirical research on this specific graph set is lacking. Neutrosophic Graph Theory and Algorithms is a collection of innovative research on the methods and applications of neutrosophic sets and logic within various fields including systems analysis, economics, and transportation. While highlighting topics including linear programming, decision-making methods, and homomorphism, this book is ideally designed for programmers, researchers, data scientists, mathematicians, designers, educators, researchers, academicians, and students seeking current research on the various methods and applications of graph theory.

This book describes a set of hybrid fuzzy models showing how to use them to deal with incomplete and/or vague information in different kind of decision-making problems. Based on the authors' research, it offers a concise introduction to important models, ranging from rough fuzzy digraphs and intuitionistic fuzzy rough models to bipolar fuzzy soft graphs and neutrosophic graphs, explaining how to construct them. For each method, applications to different multi-attribute, multi-criteria decision-making problems, are presented and discussed. The book, which addresses computer scientists, mathematicians, and social scientists, is intended as concise yet complete guide to basic tools for constructing hybrid intelligent models for dealing with some interesting real-world problems. It is also expected to stimulate readers' creativity thus offering a source of inspiration for future research.

The primary objective of this essential text is to emphasize the deep relations existing between the semiring and dio d structures with graphs and their combinatorial properties. It does so at the same time as demonstrating the modeling and problem-solving flexibility of these structures. In addition the book provides an extensive overview of the mathematical properties employed by "nonclassical" algebraic structures which either extend usual algebra or form a new branch of it.

This is the first book on higher dimensional Hadamard matrices and their applications in telecommunications and information security. It is divided into three parts according to the dimensions of the Hadamard matrices treated.

Numbers, Information and Complexity is a collection of about 50 articles in honour of Rudolf Ahlswede. His main areas of research are represented in the three sections, `Numbers and Combinations', `Information Theory (Channels and Networks, Combinatorial and Algebraic Coding, Cryptology, with the related fields Data Compression, Entropy Theory, Symbolic Dynamics, Probability and Statistics)', and `Complexity'. Special attention was paid to the interplay between the fields. Surveys on topics of current interest are included as well as new research results. The book features surveys on Combinatorics about topics such as intersection theorems, which are not yet covered in textbooks, several contributions by leading experts in data compression, and relations to Natural Sciences are discussed.

This volume comprises 17 contributions that present advanced topics in graph domination, featuring open problems, modern techniques, and recent results. The book is divided into 3 parts. The first part focuses on several domination-related concepts: broadcast domination, alliances, domatic numbers, dominator colorings, irredundance in graphs, private neighbor concepts, game domination, varieties of Roman domination and spectral graph theory. The second part covers domination in hypergraphs, chessboards, and digraphs and tournaments. The third part focuses on the development of algorithms and complexity of signed, minus and majority domination, power domination, and alliances in graphs. The third part also includes a chapter on self-stabilizing algorithms. Of extra benefit to the reader, the first chapter includes a glossary of commonly used terms. The book is intended to provide a reference for established researchers in the fields of domination and graph theory and graduate students who wish to gain knowledge of the topics covered as well as an overview of the major accomplishments and proof techniques used in the field.

On March 28~31, 1994 (Farvardin 8~11, 1373 by Iranian calendar), the Twenty fifth Annual Iranian Mathematics Conference (AIMC25) was held at Sharif University of Technology in Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran. Its sponsors in~ eluded the Iranian Mathematical Society, and the Department of Mathematical Sciences at Sharif University of Technology. Among the keynote speakers were Professor Dr. Andreas Dress and Professor Richard K. Guy. Their plenary lec~ tures on combinatorial themes were complemented by invited and contributed lectures in a Combinatorics Session. This book is a collection of refereed papers, submitted primarily by the participants after the conference. The topics covered are diverse, spanning a wide range of combinatorics and al~ lied areas in discrete mathematics. Perhaps the strength and variety of the pa~ pers here serve as the best indications that combinatorics is advancing quickly, and that the Iranian mathematics community contains very active contributors. We hope that you find the papers mathematically stimulating, and look forward to a long and productive growth of combinatorial mathematics in Iran.

This is the first book on the subject since its introduction more than fifty years ago, and it can be used as a graduate text or as a reference work. It features all of the key results, many very useful tables, and a large number of research problems. The book will be of interest to those interested in one of the most fascinating areas of discrete mathematics, connected to statistics and coding theory, with applications to computer science and cryptography. It will be useful for anyone who is running experiments, whether in a chemistry lab or a manufacturing plant (trying to make those alloys stronger), or in agricultural or medical research. Sam Hedayat is Professor of Statistics and Senior Scholar in the Department of Mathematics, Statistics, and Computer Science, University of Illinois, Chicago. Neil J.A. Sloane is with AT&T Bell Labs (now AT&T Labs). John Stufken is Professor Statistics at Iowa State University.

A gentle introduction to the highly sophisticated world of discrete mathematics, Mathematical Problems and Proofs presents topics ranging from elementary definitions and theorems to advanced topics -- such as cardinal numbers, generating functions, properties of Fibonacci numbers, and Euclidean algorithm. This excellent primer illustrates more than 150 solutions and proofs, thoroughly explained in clear language. The generous historical references and anecdotes interspersed throughout the text create interesting intermissions that will fuel readers' eagerness to inquire further about the topics and some of our greatest mathematicians. The author guides readers through the process of solving enigmatic proofs and problems, and assists them in making the transition from problem solving to theorem proving. At once a requisite text and an enjoyable read, Mathematical Problems and Proofs is an excellent entrA(c)e to discrete mathematics for advanced students interested in mathematics, engineering, and science.

One of the major concerns of theoretical computer science is the classifi cation of problems in terms of how hard they are. The natural measure of difficulty of a function is the amount of time needed to compute it (as a function of the length of the input). Other resources, such as space, have also been considered. In recursion theory, by contrast, a function is considered to be easy to compute if there exists some algorithm that computes it. We wish to classify functions that are hard, i.e., not computable, in a quantitative way. We cannot use time or space, since the functions are not even computable. We cannot use Turing degree, since this notion is not quantitative. Hence we need a new notion of complexity-much like time or spac that is quantitative and yet in some way captures the level of difficulty (such as the Turing degree) of a function."

This book gives an overview of research on graphs associated with commutative rings. The study of the connections between algebraic structures and certain graphs, especially finite groups and their Cayley graphs, is a classical subject which has attracted a lot of interest. More recently, attention has focused on graphs constructed from commutative rings, a field of study which has generated an extensive amount of research over the last three decades. The aim of this text is to consolidate this large body of work into a single volume, with the intention of encouraging interdisciplinary research between algebraists and graph theorists, using the tools of one subject to solve the problems of the other. The topics covered include the graphical and topological properties of zero-divisor graphs, total graphs and their transformations, and other graphs associated with rings. The book will be of interest to researchers in commutative algebra and graph theory and anyone interested in learning about the connections between these two subjects.

The last decade has seen parallel developments in computer science and combinatorics, both dealing with networks having strong symmetry properties. Both developments are centred on Cayley graphs: in the design of large interconnection networks, Cayley graphs arise as one of the most frequently used models; on the mathematical side, they play a central role as the prototypes of vertex-transitive graphs. The surveys published here provide an account of these developments, with a strong emphasis on the fruitful interplay of methods from group theory and graph theory that characterises the subject. Topics covered include: combinatorial properties of various hierarchical families of Cayley graphs (fault tolerance, diameter, routing, forwarding indices, etc.); Laplace eigenvalues of graphs and their relations to forwarding problems, isoperimetric properties, partition problems, and random walks on graphs; vertex-transitive graphs of small orders and of orders having few prime factors; distance transitive graphs; isomorphism problems for Cayley graphs of cyclic groups; infinite vertex-transitive graphs (the random graph and generalisations, actions of the automorphisms on ray ends, relations to the growth rate of the graph).

Finite Geometries stands out from recent textbooks about the subject of finite geometries by having a broader scope. The authors thoroughly explain how the subject of finite geometries is a central part of discrete mathematics. The text is suitable for undergraduate and graduate courses. Additionally, it can be used as reference material on recent works. The authors examine how finite geometries' applicable nature led to solutions of open problems in different fields, such as design theory, cryptography and extremal combinatorics. Other areas covered include proof techniques using polynomials in case of Desarguesian planes, and applications in extremal combinatorics, plus, recent material and developments. Features: Includes exercise sets for possible use in a graduate course Discusses applications to graph theory and extremal combinatorics Covers coding theory and cryptography Translated and revised text from the Hungarian published version

This volume develops the depth and breadth of the mathematics underlying the construction and analysis of Hadamard matrices, and their use in the construction of combinatorial designs. At the same time, it pursues current research in their numerous applications in security and cryptography, quantum information, and communications. Bridges among diverse mathematical threads and extensive applications make this an invaluable source for understanding both the current state of the art and future directions. The existence of Hadamard matrices remains one of the most challenging open questions in combinatorics. Substantial progress on their existence has resulted from advances in algebraic design theory using deep connections with linear algebra, abstract algebra, finite geometry, number theory, and combinatorics. Hadamard matrices arise in a very diverse set of applications. Starting with applications in experimental design theory and the theory of error-correcting codes, they have found unexpected and important applications in cryptography, quantum information theory, communications, and networking.

This book features 13 papers presented at the Fifth International Symposium on Recurrence Plots, held August 2013 in Chicago, IL. It examines recent applications and developments in recurrence plots and recurrence quantification analysis (RQA) with special emphasis on biological and cognitive systems and the analysis of coupled systems using cross-recurrence methods. Readers will discover new applications and insights into a range of systems provided by recurrence plot analysis and new theoretical and mathematical developments in recurrence plots. Recurrence plot based analysis is a powerful tool that operates on real-world complex systems that are nonlinear, non-stationary, noisy, of any statistical distribution, free of any particular model type and not particularly long. Quantitative analyses promote the detection of system state changes, synchronized dynamical regimes or classification of system states. The book will be of interest to an interdisciplinary audience of recurrence plot users and researchers interested in time series analysis of complex systems in general.

This book highlights recent developments in multidimensional data visualization, presenting both new methods and modifications on classic techniques. Throughout the book, various applications of multidimensional data visualization are presented including its uses in social sciences (economy, education, politics, psychology), environmetrics, and medicine (ophthalmology, sport medicine, pharmacology, sleep medicine).

The book provides recent research results in optimization-based visualization. Evolutionary algorithms and a two-level optimization method, based on combinatorial optimization and quadratic programming, are analyzed in detail. The performance of these algorithms and the development of parallel versions is discussed.

The encorporation of new visualization techniques to improve the capabilies of artificial neural networks (self-organizing maps, feed-forward networks) is also discussed.

The book includes over 100 detailed images presenting examples of the different visualization techniques that are presented.

This book is intended for scientists and researchers in any field of study where complex and multidimensional data must be represented visually.

The present volume contains the proceedings of the workshop on "Minimax Theory and Applications" that was held during the week 30 September - 6 October 1996 at the "G. Stampacchia" International School of Mathematics of the "E. Majorana" Centre for Scientific Cul ture in Erice (Italy) . The main theme of the workshop was minimax theory in its most classical meaning. That is to say, given a real-valued function f on a product space X x Y, one tries to find conditions that ensure the validity of the equality sup inf f(x, y) = inf sup f(x, y). yEY xEX xEX yEY This is not an appropriate place to enter into the technical details of the proofs of minimax theorems, or into the history of the contribu tions to the solution of this basic problem in the last 7 decades. But we do want to stress its intrinsic interest and point out that, in spite of its extremely simple formulation, it conceals a great wealth of ideas. This is clearly shown by the large variety of methods and tools that have been used to study it. The applications of minimax theory are also extremely interesting. In fact, the need for the ability to "switch quantifiers" arises in a seemingly boundless range of different situations. So, the good quality of a minimax theorem can also be judged by its applicability. We hope that this volume will offer a rather complete account of the state of the art of the subject."

The geometry of lines occurs naturally in such different areas as sculptured surface machining, computation of offsets and medial axes, surface reconstruction for reverse engineering, geometrical optics, kinematics and motion design, and modeling of developable surfaces. This book covers line geometry from various viewpoints and aims towards computation and visualization. Besides applications, it contains a tutorial on projective geometry and an introduction into the theory of smooth and algebraic manifolds of lines. It will be useful to researchers, graduate students, and anyone interested either in the theory or in computational aspects in general, or in applications in particular.

The action of a compact Lie group, G, on a compact sympletic manifold gives rise to some remarkable combinatorial invariants. The simplest and most interesting of these is the moment polytopes, a convex polyhedron which sits inside the dual of the Lie algebra of G. One of the main goals of this monograph is to describe what kinds of geometric information are encoded in this polytope. This book is addressed to researchers and can be used as a semester text.

The research and development of pattern recognition have proven to be of importance in science, technology, and human activity. Many useful concepts and tools from different disciplines have been employed in pattern recognition. Among them is string matching, which receives much theoretical and practical attention. String matching is also an important topic in combinatorial optimization. This book is devoted to recent advances in pattern recognition and string matching. It consists of twenty eight chapters written by different authors, addressing a broad range of topics such as those from classifica tion, matching, mining, feature selection, and applications. Each chapter is self-contained, and presents either novel methodological approaches or applications of existing theories and techniques. The aim, intent, and motivation for publishing this book is to pro vide a reference tool for the increasing number of readers who depend upon pattern recognition or string matching in some way. This includes students and professionals in computer science, mathematics, statistics, and electrical engineering. We wish to thank all the authors for their valuable efforts, which made this book a reality. Thanks also go to all reviewers who gave generously of their time and expertise."

This book shows how the Bayesian Approach (BA) improves well known heuristics by randomizing and optimizing their parameters. That is the Bayesian Heuristic Approach (BHA). The ten in-depth examples are designed to teach Operations Research using Internet. Each example is a simple representation of some impor tant family of real-life problems. The accompanying software can be run by remote Internet users. The supporting web-sites include software for Java, C++, and other lan guages. A theoretical setting is described in which one can discuss a Bayesian adaptive choice of heuristics for discrete and global optimization prob lems. The techniques are evaluated in the spirit of the average rather than the worst case analysis. In this context, "heuristics" are understood to be an expert opinion defining how to solve a family of problems of dis crete or global optimization. The term "Bayesian Heuristic Approach" means that one defines a set of heuristics and fixes some prior distribu tion on the results obtained. By applying BHA one is looking for the heuristic that reduces the average deviation from the global optimum. The theoretical discussions serve as an introduction to examples that are the main part of the book. All the examples are interconnected. Dif ferent examples illustrate different points of the general subject. How ever, one can consider each example separately, too."