INQ-241 | Running the World Efficiently

Full Title: Mathematical Reasoning: Running the World Efficiently

Topic Description:

What is the best way to deliver the mail? Deliver packages? Assign jobs to employees? Predict stable marriages? A variety of real world optimization problems will be analyzed using the methodology of graph theory and mathematics, especially in terms of how well the “solution” algorithms perform. We will discuss techniques for framing these and other questions in terms of graph structures and the algorithms used to find solutions. Special attention will be paid to efficient routes for goods and people, assigning tasks based on qualifications, and networks designed to reduce cost. Prerequisite: INQ 240 or a Mathematics or Statistics course

Counts as Global? No

Topic Approved: December 2009