This book is the first easy-to-read text on nonsmooth optimization (NSO, not necessarily differentiable optimization). Solving these kinds of problems plays a critical role in many industrial applications and real-world modeling systems, for example in the context of image denoising, optimal control, neural network training, data mining, economics and computational chemistry and physics. The book covers both the theory and the numerical methods used in NSO and provide an overview of different problems arising in the field. It is organized into three parts: 1. convex and nonconvex analysis and the theory of NSO; 2. test problems and practical applications; 3. a guide to NSO software. The book is ideal for anyone teaching or attending NSO courses. As an accessible introduction to the field, it is also well suited as an independent learning guide for practitioners already familiar with the basics of optimization.

Nonsmooth optimization covers the minimization or maximization of functions which do not have the differentiability properties required by classical methods. The field of nonsmooth optimization is significant, not only because of the existence of nondifferentiable functions arising directly in applications, but also because several important methods for solving difficult smooth problems lead directly to the need to solve nonsmooth problems, which are either smaller in dimension or simpler in structure.This book contains twenty five papers written by forty six authors from twenty countries in five continents. It includes papers on theory, algorithms and applications for problems with first-order nondifferentiability (the usual sense of nonsmooth optimization) second-order nondifferentiability, nonsmooth equations, nonsmooth variational inequalities and other problems related to nonsmooth optimization.

Since nonsmooth optimization problems arise in a diverse range of real-world applications, the potential impact of efficient methods for solving such problems is undeniable. Even solving difficult smooth problems sometimes requires the use of nonsmooth optimization methods, in order to either reduce the problem’s scale or simplify its structure. Accordingly, the field of nonsmooth optimization is an important area of mathematical programming that is based on by now classical concepts of variational analysis and generalized derivatives, and has developed a rich and sophisticated set of mathematical tools at the intersection of theory and practice. This volume of ISNM is an outcome of the workshop "Nonsmooth Optimization and its Applications," which was held from May 15 to 19, 2017 at the Hausdorff Center for Mathematics, University of Bonn. The six research articles gathered here focus on recent results that highlight different aspects of nonsmooth and variational analysis, optimization methods, their convergence theory and applications.

This book is a self-contained elementary study for nonsmooth analysis and optimization, and their use in solution of nonsmooth optimal control problems. The first part of the book is concerned with nonsmooth differential calculus containing necessary tools for nonsmooth optimization. The second part is devoted to the methods of nonsmooth optimization and their development. A proximal bundle method for nonsmooth nonconvex optimization subject to nonsmooth constraints is constructed. In the last part nonsmooth optimization is applied to problems arising from optimal control of systems covered by partial differential equations. Several practical problems, like process control and optimal shape design problems are considered.

This book deals with nonsmooth structures arising within the optimization setting. It considers four optimization problems, namely, mathematical programs with complementarity constraints, general semi-infinite programming problems, mathematical programs with vanishing constraints and bilevel optimization. The author uses the topological approach and topological invariants of corresponding feasible sets are investigated. Moreover, the critical point theory in the sense of Morse is presented and parametric and stability issues are considered. The material progresses systematically and establishes a comprehensive theory for a rather broad class of optimization problems tailored to their particular type of nonsmoothness. Topological Aspects of Nonsmooth Optimization will benefit researchers and graduate students in applied mathematics, especially those working in optimization theory, nonsmooth analysis, algebraic topology and singularity theory. ​ ​

Solving nonsmooth optimization (NSO) problems is critical in many practical applications and real-world modeling systems. The aim of this book is to survey various numerical methods for solving NSO problems and to provide an overview of the latest developments in the field. Experts from around the world share their perspectives on specific aspects of numerical NSO. The book is divided into four parts, the first of which considers general methods including subgradient, bundle and gradient sampling methods. In turn, the second focuses on methods that exploit the problem’s special structure, e.g. algorithms for nonsmooth DC programming, VU decomposition techniques, and algorithms for minimax and piecewise differentiable problems. The third part considers methods for special problems like multiobjective and mixed integer NSO, and problems involving inexact data, while the last part highlights the latest advancements in derivative-free NSO. Given its scope, the book is ideal for students attending courses on numerical nonsmooth optimization, for lecturers who teach optimization courses, and for practitioners who apply nonsmooth optimization methods in engineering, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and business. Furthermore, it can serve as a reference text for experts dealing with nonsmooth optimization.

The aim of this book was to collect the most recent methods developed for NSO and its practical applications. The book contains seven papers: The first is the foreword by the Guest Editors giving a brief review of NSO and its real-life applications and acknowledging the outstanding contributions of Professor Adil Bagirov to both the theoretical and practical aspects of NSO. The second paper introduces a new and very efficient algorithm for solving uncertain unit-commitment (UC) problems. The third paper proposes a new nonsmooth version of the generalized damped Gauss–Newton method for solving nonlinear complementarity problems. In the fourth paper, the abs-linear representation of piecewise linear functions is extended to yield simultaneously their DC decomposition as well as the pair of generalized gradients. The fifth paper presents the use of biased-randomized algorithms as an effective methodology to cope with NP-hard and nonsmooth optimization problems in many practical applications. In the sixth paper, a problem concerning the scheduling of nuclear waste disposal is modeled as a nonsmooth multiobjective mixed-integer nonlinear optimization problem, and a novel method using the two-slope parameterized achievement scalarizing functions is introduced. Finally, the last paper considers binary classification of a multiple instance learning problem and formulates the learning problem as a nonconvex nonsmooth unconstrained optimization problem with a DC objective function.

Optimization Theory and Methods can be used as a textbook for an optimization course for graduates and senior undergraduates. It is the result of the author's teaching and research over the past decade. It describes optimization theory and several powerful methods. For most methods, the book discusses an idea’s motivation, studies the derivation, establishes the global and local convergence, describes algorithmic steps, and discusses the numerical performance.

Topology optimization is a relatively new and rapidly expanding field of structural mechanics. It deals with some of the most difficult problems of mechanical sciences but it is also of considerable practical interest, because it can achieve much greater savings than mere cross-section or shape optimization.

The goal of the Encyclopedia of Optimization is to introduce the reader to a complete set of topics that show the spectrum of research, the richness of ideas, and the breadth of applications that has come from this field. The second edition builds on the success of the former edition with more than 150 completely new entries, designed to ensure that the reference addresses recent areas where optimization theories and techniques have advanced. Particularly heavy attention resulted in health science and transportation, with entries such as "Algorithms for Genomics", "Optimization and Radiotherapy Treatment Design", and "Crew Scheduling".