Approximation Algorithms and Semidefinite Programming

Semidefinite programs constitute one of the largest classes of optimization problems that can be solved with reasonable efficiency - both in theory and practice. They play a key role in a variety of r

Semidefinite programs constitute one of the largest classes of optimization problems that can be solved with reasonable efficiency - both in theory and practice. They play a key role in a variety of r

Discrete optimization problems are everywhere, from traditional operations research planning (scheduling, facility location and network design); to computer science databases; to advertising issues in viral marketing. Yet most such problems are NP-hard; unless P = NP, there are no efficient algorithms to find optimal solutions. This book shows how to design approximation algorithms: efficient algorithms that find provably near-optimal solutions. The book is organized around central algorithmic techniques for designing approximation algorithms, including greedy and local search algorithms, dynamic programming, linear and semidefinite programming, and randomization. Each chapter in the first section is devoted to a single algorithmic technique applied to several different problems, with more sophisticated treatment in the second section. The book also covers methods for proving that optimization problems are hard to approximate. Designed as a textbook for graduate-level algorithm courses

Semidefinite programming (SDP) is one of the most exciting and active research areas in optimization. It has and continues to attract researchers with very diverse backgrounds, including experts in

Here is a book devoted to well-structured and thus efficiently solvable convex optimization problems, with emphasis on conic quadratic and semidefinite programming. The authors present the basic theor

Polyhedral functions provide a model for an important class of problems that includes both linear programming and applications in data analysis. General methods for minimizing such functions using the polyhedral geometry explicitly are developed. Such methods approach a minimum by moving from extreme point to extreme point along descending edges and are described generically as simplicial. The best-known member of this class is the simplex method of linear programming, but simplicial methods have found important applications in discrete approximation and statistics. The general approach considered in this text, first published in 2001, has permitted the development of finite algorithms for the rank regression problem. The key ideas are those of developing a general format for specifying the polyhedral function and the application of this to derive multiplier conditions to characterize optimality. Also considered is the application of the general approach to the development of active se

Over the past two decades there have been significant advances in the field of optimization. In particular, convex optimization has emerged as a powerful signal processing tool, and the variety of applications continues to grow rapidly. This book, written by a team of leading experts, sets out the theoretical underpinnings of the subject and provides tutorials on a wide range of convex optimization applications. Emphasis throughout is on cutting-edge research and on formulating problems in convex form, making this an ideal textbook for advanced graduate courses and a useful self-study guide. Topics covered range from automatic code generation, graphical models, and gradient-based algorithms for signal recovery, to semidefinite programming (SDP) relaxation and radar waveform design via SDP. It also includes blind source separation for image processing, robust broadband beamforming, distributed multi-agent optimization for networked systems, cognitive radio systems via game theory, and t

This is a textbook on graph theory, especially suitable for computer scientists but also suitable for mathematicians with an interest in computational complexity. Although it introduces most of the classical concepts of pure and applied graph theory (spanning trees, connectivity, genus, colourability, flows in networks, matchings and traversals) and covers many of the major classical theorems, the emphasis is on algorithms and thier complexity: which graph problems have known efficient solutions and which are intractable. For the intractable problems a number of efficient approximation algorithms are included with known performance bounds. Informal use is made of a PASCAL-like programming language to describe the algorithms. A number of exercises and outlines of solutions are included to extend and motivate the material of the text.