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.

In the past three decades, local search has grown from a simple heuristic idea into a mature field of research in combinatorial optimization that is attracting ever-increasing attention. Local search is still the method of choice for NP-hard problems as it provides a robust approach for obtaining high-quality solutions to problems of a realistic size in reasonable time. Local Search in Combinatorial Optimization covers local search and its variants from both a theoretical and practical point of view, each topic discussed by a leading authority. This book is an important reference and invaluable source of inspiration for students and researchers in discrete mathematics, computer science, operations research, industrial engineering, and management science. In addition to the editors, the contributors are Mihalis Yannakakis, Craig A. Tovey, Jan H. M. Korst, Peter J. M. van Laarhoven, Alain Hertz, Eric Taillard, Dominique de Werra, Heinz Mühlenbein, Carsten Peterson, Bo Söderberg, David S. Johnson, Lyle A. McGeoch, Michel Gendreau, Gilbert Laporte, Jean-Yves Potvin, Gerard A. P. Kindervater, Martin W. P. Savelsbergh, Edward J. Anderson, Celia A. Glass, Chris N. Potts, C. L. Liu, Peichen Pan, Iiro Honkala, and Patric R. J. Östergård.

Wiley-Interscience Series in Discrete Mathematics and Optimization Advisory Editors Ronald L. Graham Jan Karel Lenstra Robert E. Tarjan Discrete Mathematics and Optimization involves the study of finite structures and is one of the fastest growing areas in mathematics today. The level and depth of recent advances in the area and the wide applicability of its evolving techniques point to the rapidity with which the field is moving and presage the ever-increasing interaction between it and computer science. The Series provides a broad coverage of discrete mathematics and optimization, ranging over such fields as combinatorics, graph theory, enumeration, mathematical programming and the analysis of algorithms, and including such topics as Ramsey theory, transversal theory, block designs, finite geometries, Polya theory, graph and matroid algorithms, network flows, polyhedral combinatorics and computational complexity. The Wiley-Interscience Series in Discrete Mathematics and Optimization will be a substantial part of the record in this extraordinary development. Recent title in the Series: Theory and Algorithms for Linear Optimization: An Interior Point Approach C. Roos, T. Terlaky Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands and J.-Ph. Vial University of Geneva, Switzerland Linear Optimization (LO) is one of the most widely taught and fast developing techniques in mathematics, with applications in many areas of science, commerce and industry. The dramatically increased interest in the subject is due mainly to advances in computer technology and to the development of Interior Point Methods (IPM) for LO. This book provides a unified presentation of the field by way of an interior point approach to both the theory of LO and algorithms for LO (design, covergence, complexity and asymptotic behaviour). A common thread throughout the book is the role of strictly complementary solutions, which play a crucial role in the interior point approach and distinguishes the new approach from the classical Simplex-based approach. The approach to LO in this book is new in many aspects. In particular the IPM based development of duality theory is surprisingly elegant. The algorithmic parts of the book contain a complete discussion of many algorithmic variants, including predictor-corrector methods, partial updating, higher order methods and sensitivity and parametric analysis. The comprehensive and up-to-date coverage of the subject, together with the clarity of presentation, ensures that this book will be an invaluable resource for researchers and professionals who wish to develop their understanding of LOs and IPMs . Numerous exercises are provided to help consolidate understanding of the material and more than 45 figures are included to illustrate the characteristics of the algorithms. A general understanding of linear algebra and calculus is assumed and the preliminary chapters provide a self-contained introduction for readers who are unfamiliar with LO methods. These chapters will also be of interest for readers who wish to take a fresh look at the topics. 1997

The quadratic assignment problem (QAP) was introduced in 1957 by Koopmans and Beckmann to model a plant location problem. Since then the QAP has been object of numerous investigations by mathematicians, computers scientists, ope- tions researchers and practitioners. Nowadays the QAP is widely considered as a classical combinatorial optimization problem which is (still) attractive from many points of view. In our opinion there are at last three main reasons which make the QAP a popular problem in combinatorial optimization. First, the number of re- life problems which are mathematically modeled by QAPs has been continuously increasing and the variety of the fields they belong to is astonishing. To recall just a restricted number among the applications of the QAP let us mention placement problems, scheduling, manufacturing, VLSI design, statistical data analysis, and parallel and distributed computing. Secondly, a number of other well known c- binatorial optimization problems can be formulated as QAPs. Typical examples are the traveling salesman problem and a large number of optimization problems in graphs such as the maximum clique problem, the graph partitioning problem and the minimum feedback arc set problem. Finally, from a computational point of view the QAP is a very difficult problem. The QAP is not only NP-hard and - hard to approximate, but it is also practically intractable: it is generally considered as impossible to solve (to optimality) QAP instances of size larger than 20 within reasonable time limits.

The satisfiability (SAT) problem is central in mathematical logic, computing theory, and many industrial applications. There has been a strong relationship between the theory, the algorithms and the applications of the SAT problem. This book aims to bring together work by the best theorists, algorithmists, and practitioners working on the sat problem and on industrial applications, as well as to enhance the interaction between the three research groups. The book features the applications of theoretical/algorithmic results to practical problems and presents practical examples for theoretical/algorithmic study. Major topics covered in the book include practical and industial SAT problems and benchmarks, significant case studies and applications of the SAT problem and SAT algorithms, new algorithms and improved techniques for satisfiability testing, specific data structures and implementation details of the SAT algorithms, and the theoretical study of the SAT problem and SAT algorithms.

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 7th International Symposium on Algorithmic Game Theory, SAGT 2014, held in Haifa, Israel, in October 2014. The 24 full papers and 5 short papers presented were carefully reviewed and selected from 65 submissions. They cover various important aspects of algorithmic game theory, such as matching theory, game dynamics, games of coordination, networks and social choice, markets and auctions, price of anarchy, computational aspects of games, mechanism design and auctions.

This book deals with different modern topics in probability, statistics and operations research. It has been written lucidly in a novel way. Wherever necessary, the theory is explained in great detail, with suitable illustrations. Numerous references are given, so that young researchers who want to start their work in a particular area will benefit immensely from the book.The contributors are distinguished statisticians and operations research experts from all over the world.