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Host: University of Kentucky
Homepage: http://www.ms.uky.edu/~jlee/cbms.html
Organizers: Kristina Vuskovic (Chair, University of Kentucky), Michael Jacobson (University of Louisville), André Kézdy (University of Louisville), Carl Lee (University of Kentucky), Jon Lee (University of Kentucky), Jenö Lehel (University of Louisville)
Description:
Combinatorial optimization involves the efficient choice of an optimal element from a large, implicitly-described set. Such problems can often be modeled as integer
linear programs. For example, set packing and set covering are two such models with a wide range of applications, from pattern recognition to airline crew
scheduling. Sometimes, due to the special structure of the constraint matrix, the natural linear programming relaxation yields an optimal solution which is integer, thus
solving the problem. Sometimes, both the linear-programming relaxation and its dual have integer optimal solutions. Under which conditions do such integrality
properties holdNULL Min-max theorems, polyhedral combinatorics and graph theory all come together in this rich area of discrete mathematics. In addition to min-max
and polyhedral results, some of the deepest results in this area come in two flavors: ``excluded minor'' and ``decomposition'' theorems.
This five-day conference, held at the University of Kentucky, is devoted to the topic of packing and covering in combinatorial optimization. The main activity of this conference is a series of ten lectures by Dr. Gérard Cornuéjols of Carnegie Mellon University. The lectures will serve to introduce mathematicians (established researchers in discrete mathematics and in other areas, postdoctoral fellows and graduate students) to current research in packing and covering. Three lectures will cover min-max and polyhedral theorems. Another three will cover excluded minor results. In the last four, decomposition theorems will be covered. We hope that these lectures will encourage research on the many intriguing open questions that still remain.
Speakers: Gérard P. Cornuéjols
Mail Address:
Kristina Vuskovic 715 Patterson Office Tower Discrete Mathematics Group Department of Mathematics Lexington, Kentucky 40506-0027 U.S.A.
Date received: March 10, 1999
© 2008 Atlas Conferences Inc.