In this volume, the authors demonstrate under some assumptions on $f $, $f $ that a solution to the classical Monge-Kantorovich problem of optimally rearranging the measure $\mu{ }=f dx$ onto $\mu =f dy$ can be constructed by studying the $p$-Laplacian equation $- \roman{div}(\vert DU_p\vert p-2}Du_p)=f -f $ in the limit as $p\rightarrow\infty$. The idea is to show $u_p\rightarrow u$, where $u$ satisfies $\vert Du\vert\leq 1, -\roman{div}(aDu)=f -f $ for some density $a\geq0$, and then to build a flow by solving a nonautonomous ODE involving $a, Du, f $ and $f $

This book on canonical duality theory provides a comprehensive review of its philosophical origin, physics foundation, and mathematical statements in both finite- and infinite-dimensional spaces. A ground-breaking methodological theory, canonical duality theory can be used for modeling complex systems within a unified framework and for solving a large class of challenging problems in multidisciplinary fields in engineering, mathematics, and the sciences. This volume places a particular emphasis on canonical duality theory’s role in bridging the gap between non-convex analysis/mechanics and global optimization. With 18 total chapters written by experts in their fields, this volume provides a nonconventional theory for unified understanding of the fundamental difficulties in large deformation mechanics, bifurcation/chaos in nonlinear science, and the NP-hard problems in global optimization. Additionally, readers will find a unified methodology and powerful algorithms for solving challenging problems in complex systems with real-world applications in non-convex analysis, non-monotone variational inequalities, integer programming, topology optimization, post-buckling of large deformed structures, etc. Researchers and graduate students will find explanation and potential applications in multidisciplinary fields.

This book covers the method of metric distances and its application in probability theory and other fields. The method is fundamental in the study of limit theorems and generally in assessing the quality of approximations to a given probabilistic model. The method of metric distances is developed to study stability problems and reduces to the selection of an ideal or the most appropriate metric for the problem under consideration and a comparison of probability metrics. After describing the basic structure of probability metrics and providing an analysis of the topologies in the space of probability measures generated by different types of probability metrics, the authors study stability problems by providing a characterization of the ideal metrics for a given problem and investigating the main relationships between different types of probability metrics. The presentation is provided in a general form, although specific cases are considered as they arise in the process of finding supplementary bounds or in applications to important special cases. Svetlozar T. Rachev is the Frey Family Foundation Chair of Quantitative Finance, Department of Applied Mathematics and Statistics, SUNY-Stony Brook and Chief Scientist of Finanlytica, USA. Lev B. Klebanov is a Professor in the Department of Probability and Mathematical Statistics, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic. Stoyan V. Stoyanov is a Professor at EDHEC Business School and Head of Research, EDHEC-Risk Institute—Asia (Singapore). Frank J. Fabozzi is a Professor at EDHEC Business School. (USA)

Recently much attention has been devoted to the optimization of transportation networks in a given geographic area. One assumes the distributions of population and of services/workplaces (i.e. the network's sources and sinks) are known, as well as the costs of movement with/without the network, and the cost of constructing/maintaining it. Both the long-term optimization and the short-term, "who goes where," optimization are considered. These models can also be adapted for the optimization of other types of networks, such as telecommunications, pipeline or drainage networks. In the monograph we study the most general problem settings, namely, when neither the shape nor even the topology of the network to be constructed is known a priori.

Interfaces are geometrical objects modelling free or moving boundaries and arise in a wide range of phase change problems in physical and biological sciences, particularly in material technology and in dynamics of patterns. Especially in the end of last century, the study of evolving interfaces in a number of applied fields becomes increasingly important, so that the possibility of describing their dynamics through suitable mathematical models became one of the most challenging and interdisciplinary problems in applied mathematics. The 2000 Madeira school reported on mathematical advances in some theoretical, modelling and numerical issues concerned with dynamics of interfaces and free boundaries. Specifically, the five courses dealt with an assessment of recent results on the optimal transportation problem, the numerical approximation of moving fronts evolving by mean curvature, the dynamics of patterns and interfaces in some reaction-diffusion systems with chemical-biological applications, evolutionary free boundary problems of parabolic type or for Navier-Stokes equations, and a variational approach to evolution problems for the Ginzburg-Landau functional.

This book’s title, Nonsmooth Mechanics and Analysis, refers to a major domain of mechanics, particularly those initiated by the works of Jean Jacques Moreau. Nonsmooth mechanics concerns mechanical situations with possible nondifferentiable relationships, eventually discontinuous, as unilateral contact, dry friction, collisions, plasticity, damage, and phase transition. The basis of the approach consists in dealing with such problems without resorting to any regularization process. Indeed, the nonsmoothness is due to simplified mechanical modeling; a more sophisticated model would require too large a number of variables, and sometimes the mechanical information is not available via experimental investigations. Therefore, the mathematical formulation becomes nonsmooth; regularizing would only be a trick of arithmetic without any physical justification. Nonsmooth analysis was developed, especially in Montpellier, to provide specific theoretical and numerical tools to deal with nonsmoothness. It is important not only in mechanics but also in physics, robotics, and economics. Audience This book is intended for researchers in mathematics and mechanics.

Extending the well-known connection between classical linear potential theory and probability theory (through the interplay between harmonic functions and martingales) to the nonlinear case of tug-of-war games and their related partial differential equations, this unique book collects several results in this direction and puts them in an elementary perspective in a lucid and self-contained fashion.

In recent years, the Monge Ampère Equation has received attention for its role in several new areas of applied mathematics: as a new method of discretization for evolution equations of classical mechanics, such as the Euler equation, flow in porous media, Hele-Shaw flow, etc.; as a simple model for optimal transportation and a div-curl decomposition with affine invariance; and as a model for front formation in meteorology and optimal antenna design. These applications were addressed and important theoretical advances presented at a NSF-CBMS conference held at Florida Atlantic University (Boca Raton). L. Cafarelli and other distinguished specialists contributed high-quality research results and up-to-date developments in the field. This is a comprehensive volume outlining current directions in nonlinear analysis and its applications.

This volume contains papers on semi-linear and quasi-linear elliptic equations from the workshop on Nonlinear Elliptic Partial Differential Equations, in honor of Jean-Pierre Gossez's 65th birthday, held September 2-4, 2009 at the Universite Libre de Bruxelles, Belgium. The workshop reflected Gossez's contributions in nonlinear elliptic PDEs and provided an opening to new directions in this very active research area. Presentations covered recent progress in Gossez's favorite topics, namely various problems related to the $p$-Laplacian operator, the antimaximum principle, the Fucik Spectrum, and other related subjects. This volume will be of principle interest to researchers in nonlinear analysis, especially in partial differential equations of elliptic type.

Shape optimization problems are treated from the classical and modern perspectives Targets a broad audience of graduate students in pure and applied mathematics, as well as engineers requiring a solid mathematical basis for the solution of practical problems Requires only a standard knowledge in the calculus of variations, differential equations, and functional analysis Driven by several good examples and illustrations Poses some open questions.