Title: On the Passage From Local to Global in Optimization – New Challenges in Theory and Practice
Speaker: Prof. Panos M. Pardalos
Affiliation: Departments of Industrial and Systems and Biomedical Engineering – University of Florida
Location: Room 145 Huxley Building
Time: 4:30pm (1 hour)
Abstract. Large scale problems in the design of networks, energy systems, medicine and drug design, in finance, and engineering are modeled as optimization problems. Humans and nature are constantly optimizing to minimize costs or maximize profits, to maximize the flow in a network, or to minimize the probability of a blackout in the smart grid. Due to new algorithmic developments and the computational power of machines, optimization algorithms have been used to solve problems in a wide spectrum of applications in science and engineering. In this talk we are going to address new challenges in the theory and practice of optimization. First, we have to reflect back a few decades and see what has been achieved and then address the new research challenges and new directions.
About the speaker. Panos Pardalos is a Distinguished Professor in the Departments of Industrial and Systems and Biomedical Engineering at the University of Florida, and a world renowned leader in Global Optimization, Mathematical Modeling, and Data Sciences. He is currently a Fellow of AAAS, AIMBE, and INFORMS and was awarded the 2013 Constantin Caratheodory Prize of the International Society of Global Optimization. In addition, Dr. Pardalos has been awarded the 2013 EURO Gold Medal prize bestowed by the Association for European Operational Research Societies. This medal is the preeminent European award given to Operations Research (OR) professionals for “scientific contributions that stand the test of time.” Prof. Pardalos is also an elected Member of the New York Academy of Sciences, the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences, the Royal Academy of Spain, and the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine. He is the Founding Editor of Optimization Letters, Energy Systems, and Co-Founder of the International Journal of Global Optimization. He has published over 500 papers, edited/authored over 200 books and organized over 80 conferences. He has about 34,000 citations on his work, an H-index of 81, an I10-index of 472 (Google Scholar) and has graduated 60 PhD students so far.