A remarkable facet of the human brain is its ability to manage multiple tasks with apparent simultaneity. Knowledge learned from one task can then be used to enhance problem-solving in other related tasks. In machine learning, the idea of leveraging relevant information across related tasks as inductive biases to enhance learning performance has attracted significant interest. In contrast, attempts to emulate the human brain's ability to generalize in optimization - particularly in population-based evolutionary algorithms - have received little attention to date. Recently, a novel evolutionary search paradigm, Evolutionary Multi-Task (EMT) optimization, has been proposed in the realm of evolutionary computation. In contrast to traditional evolutionary searches, which solve a single task in a single run, evolutionary multi-tasking algorithm conducts searches concurrently on multiple search spaces corresponding to different tasks or optimization problems, each possessing a unique function landscape. By exploiting the latent synergies among distinct problems, the superior search performance of EMT optimization in terms of solution quality and convergence speed has been demonstrated in a variety of continuous, discrete, and hybrid (mixture of continuous and discrete) tasks. This book discusses the foundations and methodologies of developing evolutionary multi-tasking algorithms for complex optimization, including in domains characterized by factors such as multiple objectives of interest, high-dimensional search spaces and NP-hardness.

This book offers a systematic and rigorous treatment of continuous-time Markov decision processes, covering both theory and possible applications to queueing systems, epidemiology, finance, and other fields. Unlike most books on the subject, much attention is paid to problems with functional constraints and the realizability of strategies. Three major methods of investigations are presented, based on dynamic programming, linear programming, and reduction to discrete-time problems. Although the main focus is on models with total (discounted or undiscounted) cost criteria, models with average cost criteria and with impulsive controls are also discussed in depth. The book is self-contained. A separate chapter is devoted to Markov pure jump processes and the appendices collect the requisite background on real analysis and applied probability. All the statements in the main text are proved in detail. Researchers and graduate students in applied probability, operational research, statistics and engineering will find this monograph interesting, useful and valuable.

This book focuses on distributed and economic Model Predictive Control (MPC) with applications in different fields. MPC is one of the most successful advanced control methodologies due to the simplicity of the basic idea (measure the current state, predict and optimize the future behavior of the plant to determine an input signal, and repeat this procedure ad infinitum) and its capability to deal with constrained nonlinear multi-input multi-output systems. While the basic idea is simple, the rigorous analysis of the MPC closed loop can be quite involved. Here, distributed means that either the computation is distributed to meet real-time requirements for (very) large-scale systems or that distributed agents act autonomously while being coupled via the constraints and/or the control objective. In the latter case, communication is necessary to maintain feasibility or to recover system-wide optimal performance. The term economic refers to general control tasks and, thus, goes beyond the typically predominant control objective of set-point stabilization. Here, recently developed concepts like (strict) dissipativity of optimal control problems or turnpike properties play a crucial role. The book collects research and survey articles on recent ideas and it provides perspectives on current trends in nonlinear model predictive control. Indeed, the book is the outcome of a series of six workshops funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG) involving early-stage career scientists from different countries and from leading European industry stakeholders.

Many applications, including computer vision, computer arithmetic, deep learning, entanglement in quantum information, graph theory and energy networks, can be successfully tackled within the framework of polynomial optimization, an emerging field with growing research efforts in the last two decades. One key advantage of these techniques is their ability to model a wide range of problems using optimization formulations. Polynomial optimization heavily relies on the moment-sums of squares (moment-SOS) approach proposed by Lasserre, which provides certificates for positive polynomials. On the practical side, however, there is 'no free lunch' and such optimization methods usually encompass severe scalability issues. Fortunately, for many applications, including the ones formerly mentioned, we can look at the problem in the eyes and exploit the inherent data structure arising from the cost and constraints describing the problem.This book presents several research efforts to resolve this scientific challenge with important computational implications. It provides the development of alternative optimization schemes that scale well in terms of computational complexity, at least in some identified class of problems. It also features a unified modeling framework to handle a wide range of applications involving both commutative and noncommutative variables, and to solve concretely large-scale instances. Readers will find a practical section dedicated to the use of available open-source software libraries.This interdisciplinary monograph is essential reading for students, researchers and professionals interested in solving optimization problems with polynomial input data.

This book presents recent research on bioinspired heuristics for optimization. Learning- based and black-box optimization exhibit some properties of intrinsic parallelization, and can be used for various optimizations problems. Featuring the most relevant work presented at the 6th International Conference on Metaheuristics and Nature Inspired Computing, held at Marrakech (Morocco) from 27th to 31st October 2016, the book presents solutions, methods, algorithms, case studies, and software. It is a valuable resource for research academics and industrial practitioners.

This book presents the theory and methods of flexible and generalized uncertainty optimization. Particularly, it describes the theory of generalized uncertainty in the context of optimization modeling. The book starts with an overview of flexible and generalized uncertainty optimization. It covers uncertainties that are both associated with lack of information and are more general than stochastic theory, where well-defined distributions are assumed. Starting from families of distributions that are enclosed by upper and lower functions, the book presents construction methods for obtaining flexible and generalized uncertainty input data that can be used in a flexible and generalized uncertainty optimization model. It then describes the development of the associated optimization model in detail. Written for graduate students and professionals in the broad field of optimization and operations research, this second edition has been revised and extended to include more worked examples and a section on interval multi-objective mini-max regret theory along with its solution method.

Deep connections exist between harmonic and applied analysis and the diverse yet connected topics of machine learning, data analysis, and imaging science. This volume explores these rapidly growing areas and features contributions presented at the second and third editions of the Summer Schools on Applied Harmonic Analysis, held at the University of Genova in 2017 and 2019. Each chapter offers an introduction to essential material and then demonstrates connections to more advanced research, with the aim of providing an accessible entrance for students and researchers. Topics covered include ill-posed problems; concentration inequalities; regularization and large-scale machine learning; unitarization of the radon transform on symmetric spaces; and proximal gradient methods for machine learning and imaging.

This book is the first comprehensive tutorial on matheuristics. Matheuristics are based on mathematical extensions of previously known heuristics, mainly metaheuristics, and on original, area-specific approaches. This tutorial provides a detailed discussion of both contributions, presenting the pseudocodes of over 40 algorithms, abundant literature references, and for each case a step-by-step description of a sample run on a common Generalized Assignment Problem example. C++ source codes of all algorithms are available in an associated SW repository.

This volume collects papers, based on invited talks given at the IMA workshop in Modeling, Stochastic Control, Optimization, and Related Applications, held at the Institute for Mathematics and Its Applications, University of Minnesota, during May and June, 2018. There were four week-long workshops during the conference. They are (1) stochastic control, computation methods, and applications, (2) queueing theory and networked systems, (3) ecological and biological applications, and (4) finance and economics applications. For broader impacts, researchers from different fields covering both theoretically oriented and application intensive areas were invited to participate in the conference. It brought together researchers from multi-disciplinary communities in applied mathematics, applied probability, engineering, biology, ecology, and networked science, to review, and substantially update most recent progress. As an archive, this volume presents some of the highlights of the workshops, and collect papers covering a broad range of topics.

This book discusses one of the major applications of artificial intelligence: the use of machine learning to extract useful information from multimodal data. It discusses the optimization methods that help minimize the error in developing patterns and classifications, which further helps improve prediction and decision-making. The book also presents formulations of real-world machine learning problems, and discusses AI solution methodologies as standalone or hybrid approaches. Lastly, it proposes novel metaheuristic methods to solve complex machine learning problems. Featuring valuable insights, the book helps readers explore new avenues leading toward multidisciplinary research discussions.

This volume offers a wealth of interdisciplinary approaches to artificial intelligence, machine learning and optimization tools, which contribute to the optimization of urban features towards forming smart, sustainable, and livable future cities. Special features include: New research on the design of city elements and smart systems with respect to new technologies and scientific thinking Discussions on the theoretical background that lead to smart cities for the future New technologies and principles of research that can promote ideas of artificial intelligence and machine learning in optimized urban environments The book engages students and researchers in the subjects of artificial intelligence, machine learning, and optimization tools in smart sustainable cities as eminent international experts contribute their research results and thinking in its chapters. Overall, its audience can benefit from a variety of disciplines including, architecture, engineering, physics, mathematics, computer science, and related fields.

This book engages in an ongoing topic, such as the implementation of nature-inspired metaheuristic algorithms, with a main concentration on optimization problems in different fields of engineering optimization applications. The chapters of the book provide concise overviews of various nature-inspired metaheuristic algorithms, defining their profits in obtaining the optimal solutions of tiresome engineering design problems that cannot be efficiently resolved via conventional mathematical-based techniques. Thus, the chapters report on advanced studies on the applications of not only the traditional, but also the contemporary certain nature-inspired metaheuristic algorithms to specific engineering optimization problems with single and multi-objectives. Harmony search, artificial bee colony, teaching learning-based optimization, electrostatic discharge, grasshopper, backtracking search, and interactive search are just some of the methods exhibited and consulted step by step in application contexts. The book is a perfect guide for graduate students, researchers, academicians, and professionals willing to use metaheuristic algorithms in engineering optimization applications.

There has been a great deal of excitement over the last few years concerning the emergence of new mathematical techniques for the analysis and control of nonlinear systems: witness the emergence of a set of simplified tools for the analysis of bifurcations, chaos and other simplified tools for the analysis of bifurcations, chaos and other complicated dynamical behaviour and the development of a comprehensive theory of nonlinear control. Coupled with this set of analytic advances has been the vast increase in computational power available both for the simulation of nonlinear systems as well as for the implementation in real time of sophisticated, real-time nonlinear control laws. Thus, technological advances have bolstered the impact of analytic advances and produced a tremendous variety of new problems and applications which are nonlinear in an essential way. This book lays out in a concise mathematical framework the tools and methods of analysis which underlie this diversity of applications. The material presented in this book is culled from different 1st year graduate courses that the author has taught at MIT and at Berkeley.

This book presents the stream-tube method (STM), a method offering computational means of dealing with the two- and three-dimensional properties of numerous incompressible materials in static and dynamic conditions. The authors show that the kinematics and stresses associated with the flow and deformation in such materials can be treated by breaking the system down into simple computational sub-domains in which streamlines are straight and parallel and using one or two mapping functions in steady-state and non-steady-state conditions. The STM is considered for various problems in non-Newtonian fluid mechanics with different geometries. The book makes use of examples and applications to illustrate the use of the STM. It explores the possibilities of computation on simple mapped rectangular domains and three-dimensional parallel-piped domains under different conditions. Complex materials with memory are considered simply without particle tracking problems. Readers, including researchers, engineers and graduate students, with a foundational knowledge of calculus, linear algebra, differential equations and fluid mechanics will benefit most greatly from this book.

This book presents the results of a European-Chinese collaborative research project, Manipulation of Reynolds Stress for Separation Control and Drag Reduction (MARS), including an analysis and discussion of the effects of a number of active flow control devices on the discrete dynamic components of the turbulent shear layers and Reynolds stress. From an application point of view, it provides a positive and necessary step to control individual structures that are larger in scale and lower in frequency compared to the richness of the temporal and spatial scales in turbulent separated flows.

This book addresses remaining life prediction and predictive maintenance of equipment. It systematically summarizes the key research findings made by the author and his team and focuses on how to create equipment performance degradation and residual life prediction models based on the performance monitoring data produced by currently used and historical equipment. Some of the theoretical results covered here have been used to make remaining life predictions and maintenance-related decisions for aerospace products such as gyros and platforms. Given its scope, the book offers a valuable reference guide for those pursuing theoretical or applied research in the areas of fault diagnosis and fault-tolerant control, remaining life prediction, and maintenance decision-making.

This book provides novel concepts and techniques for air traffic management (ATM) and communications, navigation, and surveillance (CNS) systems. The book consists of selected papers from the 6th ENRI International Workshop on ATM/CNS (EIWAC2019) held in Tokyo in October 2019, the theme of which was "Exploring Ideas for World Aviation Challenges". Included are key topics to realize safer and more efficient skies in the future, linked to the integrated conference theme consisting of long-term visions based on presentations from various fields. The book is dedicated not only to researchers, academicians, and university students, but also to engineers in the industry, air navigation service providers (ANSPs), and regulators of aviation.

This proceedings volume contains a selection of papers presented at the Fourth International Conference on High Performance Scientific Computing held at the Hanoi Institute of Mathematics, Vietnamese Academy of Science and Technology (VAST), March 2-6, 2009. The conference was organized by the Hanoi Institute of Mathematics, the Interdisciplinary Center for Scientific Computing (IWR), Heidelberg, and its Heidelberg Graduate School of Mathematical and Computational Methods for the Sciences, and Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology. The contributions cover the broad interdisciplinary spectrum of scientific computing and present recent advances in theory, development of methods, and applications in practice. Subjects covered are mathematical modelling, numerical simulation, methods for optimization and control, parallel computing, software development, applications of scientific computing in physics, mechanics, biology and medicine, engineering, hydrology problems, transport, communication networks, production scheduling, industrial and commercial problems.

This monograph explores the motion of incompressible fluids by presenting and incorporating various boundary conditions possible for real phenomena. The authors' approach carefully walks readers through the development of fluid equations at the cutting edge of research, and the applications of a variety of boundary conditions to real-world problems. Special attention is paid to the equivalence between partial differential equations with a mixture of various boundary conditions and their corresponding variational problems, especially variational inequalities with one unknown. A self-contained approach is maintained throughout by first covering introductory topics, and then moving on to mixtures of boundary conditions, a thorough outline of the Navier-Stokes equations, an analysis of both the steady and non-steady Boussinesq system, and more. Equations of Motion for Incompressible Viscous Fluids is ideal for postgraduate students and researchers in the fields of fluid equations, numerical analysis, and mathematical modelling.

General Fractional Derivatives with Applications in Viscoelasticity introduces the newly established fractional-order calculus operators involving singular and non-singular kernels with applications to fractional-order viscoelastic models from the calculus operator viewpoint. Fractional calculus and its applications have gained considerable popularity and importance because of their applicability to many seemingly diverse and widespread fields in science and engineering. Many operations in physics and engineering can be defined accurately by using fractional derivatives to model complex phenomena. Viscoelasticity is chief among them, as the general fractional calculus approach to viscoelasticity has evolved as an empirical method of describing the properties of viscoelastic materials. General Fractional Derivatives with Applications in Viscoelasticity makes a concise presentation of general fractional calculus.

This book includes over 500 most challenging exercises and problems in calculus. Topical problems and exercises are discussed on set theory, numbers, functions, limits and continuity, derivative, integral calculus, Rolle's theorem, mean value theorem, optimization problems, sequences and series. All the seven chapters recall important definitions, theorems and concepts, making this book immensely valuable to undergraduate students of engineering, mathematics, statistics, computer science and basic sciences.

This book focuses on a large class of multi-valued variational differential inequalities and inclusions of stationary and evolutionary types with constraints reflected by subdifferentials of convex functionals. Its main goal is to provide a systematic, unified, and relatively self-contained exposition of existence, comparison and enclosure principles, together with other qualitative properties of multi-valued variational inequalities and inclusions. The problems under consideration are studied in different function spaces such as Sobolev spaces, Orlicz-Sobolev spaces, Sobolev spaces with variable exponents, and Beppo-Levi spaces. A general and comprehensive sub-supersolution method (lattice method) is developed for both stationary and evolutionary multi-valued variational inequalities, which preserves the characteristic features of the commonly known sub-supersolution method for single-valued, quasilinear elliptic and parabolic problems. This method provides a powerful tool for studying existence and enclosure properties of solutions when the coercivity of the problems under consideration fails. It can also be used to investigate qualitative properties such as the multiplicity and location of solutions or the existence of extremal solutions. This is the first in-depth treatise on the sub-supersolution (lattice) method for multi-valued variational inequalities without any variational structures, together with related topics. The choice of the included materials and their organization in the book also makes it useful and accessible to a large audience consisting of graduate students and researchers in various areas of Mathematical Analysis and Theoretical Physics.

This book addresses the principles and applications of metaheuristic approaches in engineering and related fields. The first part covers metaheuristics tools and techniques such as ant colony optimization and Tabu search, and their applications to several classes of optimization problems. In turn, the book's second part focuses on a wide variety of metaheuristics applications in engineering and/or the applied sciences, e.g. in smart grids and renewable energy. In addition, the simulation codes for the problems discussed are included in an appendix for ready reference. Intended for researchers aspiring to learn and apply metaheuristic techniques, and gathering contributions by prominent experts in the field, the book offers readers an essential introduction to metaheuristics, its theoretical aspects and applications.

Curated by the Fields Institute for Research in Mathematical Sciences from their COVID-19 Math Modelling Seminars, this first in a series of volumes on the mathematics of public health allows readers to access the dominant ideas and techniques being used in this area, while indicating problems for further research. This work brings together experts in mathematical modelling from across Canada and the world, presenting the latest modelling methods as they relate to the COVID-19 pandemic. A primary aim of this book is to make the content accessible so that researchers share the core methods that may be applied elsewhere. The mathematical theories and technologies in this book can be used to support decision makers on critical issues such as projecting outbreak trajectories, evaluating public health interventions for infection prevention and control, developing optimal strategies to return to a new normal, and designing vaccine candidates and informing mass immunization program. Topical coverage includes: basic susceptible-exposed-infectious-recovered (SEIR) modelling framework modified and applied to COVID-19 disease transmission dynamics; nearcasting and forecasting for needs of critical medical resources including personal protective equipment (PPE); predicting COVID-19 mortality; evaluating effectiveness of convalescent plasma treatment and the logistic implementation challenges; estimating impact of delays in contact tracing; quantifying heterogeneity in contact mixing and its evaluation with social distancing; modelling point of care diagnostics of COVID-19; and understanding non-reporting and underestimation. Further, readers will have the opportunity to learn about current modelling methodologies and technologies for emerging infectious disease outbreaks, pandemic mitigation rapid response, and the mathematics behind them. The volume will help the general audience and experts to better understand the important role that mathematics has been playing during this on-going crisis in supporting critical decision-making by governments and public health agencies.

In an expanding world with limited resources, optimization and uncertainty quantification have become a necessity when handling complex systems and processes. This book provides the foundational material necessary for those who wish to embark on advanced research at the limits of computability, collecting together lecture material from leading experts across the topics of optimization, uncertainty quantification and aerospace engineering. The aerospace sector in particular has stringent performance requirements on highly complex systems, for which solutions are expected to be optimal and reliable at the same time. The text covers a wide range of techniques and methods, from polynomial chaos expansions for uncertainty quantification to Bayesian and Imprecise Probability theories, and from Markov chains to surrogate models based on Gaussian processes. The book will serve as a valuable tool for practitioners, researchers and PhD students.