The purpose of this book is to serve as a text for developing mathematical modeling, computational, and algorithmic skills of optimization, and some of their elementary application at the junior level following a linear algebra course.
Chapter 1 introduces mathematical modeling using a simple one variable example. This chapter also explains the classification of decision making problem into Category 1, and Category 2.
Chapter 2 discusses MCDM (multi-characteristic decision making) problems. It explains the commonly used Scoring Methods for solving Category 1 decision making problems when there are several important characteristics that need to be optimized simultaneously, with many simple examples.
Chapter 3 deals with elementary modeling techniques for modeling continuous variable decision making problems in which linearity assumptions hold to a reasonable degree of approximation, as linear programs (LPs), in a variety of applications. The geometric method for solving two variable LP models is discussed along with the concept of marginal values and their planning uses.
Chapter 4 discusses the simplest version of the primal simplex method for solving LPs using full canonical tableaus, which students at this level can follow easily; and explains it with many worked out examples.
Chapter 5 gives the derivation of the dual problem of an LP using economic arguments, and the marginal value interpretation of the dual variables. It discusses the optimality conditions (primal and dual feasibility, and complementary slackness) for an LP, and the role they play in the simplex method. Marginal analysis and a few important coefficient ranging and sensitivity analysis techniques are also discussed.
Chapter 6 treats the simplified version of the primal simplex algorithm for the transportation model using transportation arrays.
Chapter 7 presents techniques for modeling integer and combinatorial optimization problems. It shows that many different combinatorial constraints that appear frequently in applications can be modeled using linear constraints in binary variables. The importance of 0-1 integer programming models is highlighted with interesting examples drawn from puzzle literature and the classics, which students at this age and very engaging.
Chapter 8 discusses the branch and bound approach for solving integer and combinatorial optimization problems, and its advantages and limitations. The amount of computer time needed for solving discrete and combinatorial optimization problems with branch and bound or other exact methods available today grows rapidly as problem size increases. So, at present it is practical to solve only moderate sized problems of this type exactly. Consequently, when faced with large scale versions of these problems, most practitioners use heuristic approaches to obtain the best possible approximate solution within a reasonable time. Surprisingly, well designed heuristic methods seem to produce satisfactory solutions to many hard and complex problems. So, heuristic methods are now mainstream for decision making, and the exact methods developed in theory have become tools for designing good heuristics.
Chapter 9 discusses the principles for designing good heuristic methods (greedy methods, local search methods, simulated annealing, and genetic algorithms) for different problems with many examples.
Chapter 10 explains the recursive technique for solving deterministic dynamic programming problems.
Chapter 11 deals with the very important critical path methods for project scheduling and management, using the dynamic programming algorithm for optimal chains in networks. There is a wide gulf between the mathematical models for solving which we have efficient algorithms, and real world decision making problems.
The brief Chapter 12 explains how heuristic approaches, approximations, substitute objective function techniques, and intelligent modeling techniques are helping to bridge this wide gap.
Finally the last chapter, Chapter 13, contains additional end of the chapter exercises for earlier chapters.
