Optimization is a common form of decision making, and is ubiquitous in our society. Its applications range from solving Sudoku puzzles to arranging seating in a wedding banquet. The same technology can schedule planes and their crews, coordinate the production of steel, and organize the transportation of iron ore from the mines to the ports. Good decisions in manpower and material resources management also allow corporations to improve profit by millions of dollars. Similar problems also underpin much of our daily lives and are part of determining daily delivery routes for packages, making school timetables, and delivering power to our homes. Despite their fundamental importance, all of these problems are a nightmare to solve using traditional undergraduate computer science methods.
Advanced Modeling for Discrete Optimization
Instructors: Prof. Peter James Stuckey
Top Instructor
19,247 already enrolled
Included with 
(138 reviews)
Details to know
Add to your LinkedIn profile
See how employees at top companies are mastering in-demand skills
Earn a career certificate
Add this credential to your LinkedIn profile, resume, or CV
Share it on social media and in your performance review
There are 5 modules in this course
Similar to computer programs, models can have bugs. In this module, you will see the symptoms (unsatisfiability, too many solutions, too few solutions) of different bugs, and learn methods to discover what is going wrong with your model and how to fix it. Equipped with these tools, you will be able to develop and debug complex models.
What's included
22 videos6 readings1 programming assignment
In this module, you will learn how to encapsulate a complex constraint definition in a predicate definition to enable its reuse. This will enable the construction of far more complex models with improved readability in a modular manner. You will also encounter for the first time a problem with multiple objectives and learn how to compress them into one single objective. In addition to this, you will learn how to model the banquet seating problem, which will assist you in many occasions in life.
What's included
6 videos1 reading1 programming assignment
Learn how to tackle complex project scheduling problems of various forms, progressively from ones with only basic precedence requirements to ones with unary resources and even cumulative resources. You will see how to model some of the complex constraints that arise in these applications.
What's included
7 videos1 reading1 programming assignment
In this module, you will learn the important application of packing, from the packing of squares to rectilinear shapes with and without rotation. Again, you will see how to model some of the complex constraints that arise in these applications.
What's included
3 videos
This final module looks at the various forms of symmetries that can appear in discrete optimization problems. You will learn various methods and special constraints to break such symmetries so as to increase solving efficiency. You will also learn the notion of dominance, which is a generalization of symmetries, and also dominance breaking techniques.
What's included
6 videos3 readings1 programming assignment
Instructors
Recommended if you're interested in Software Development
The University of Melbourne
The University of Melbourne
The University of Melbourne
University of Minnesota
Why people choose Coursera for their career
Learner reviews
138 reviews
- 5 stars
93.52%
- 4 stars
6.47%
- 3 stars
0%
- 2 stars
0%
- 1 star
0%
Showing 3 of 138
Reviewed on Feb 20, 2018
Great course! Good presentation and lectures, challenging assignments. Learned a lot
Reviewed on Nov 15, 2019
Thank you so much! This course wasn't easy, but the material and assignments are very well thought out. Kept me motivated all the way through.
Reviewed on Jun 10, 2018
Fantastic course that really makes you think long and hard.
New to Software Development? Start here.
Open new doors with Coursera Plus
Unlimited access to 10,000+ world-class courses, hands-on projects, and job-ready certificate programs - all included in your subscription
Advance your career with an online degree
Earn a degree from world-class universities - 100% online
Join over 3,400 global companies that choose Coursera for Business
Upskill your employees to excel in the digital economy
Frequently asked questions
Access to lectures and assignments depends on your type of enrollment. If you take a course in audit mode, you will be able to see most course materials for free. To access graded assignments and to earn a Certificate, you will need to purchase the Certificate experience, during or after your audit. If you don't see the audit option:
The course may not offer an audit option. You can try a Free Trial instead, or apply for Financial Aid.
The course may offer 'Full Course, No Certificate' instead. This option lets you see all course materials, submit required assessments, and get a final grade. This also means that you will not be able to purchase a Certificate experience.
When you enroll in the course, you get access to all of the courses in the Specialization, and you earn a certificate when you complete the work. Your electronic Certificate will be added to your Accomplishments page - from there, you can print your Certificate or add it to your LinkedIn profile. If you only want to read and view the course content, you can audit the course for free.
If you subscribed, you get a 7-day free trial during which you can cancel at no penalty. After that, we don’t give refunds, but you can cancel your subscription at any time. See our full refund policy.
More questions
Financial aid available,