The structural properties of graphs are usually characterized in terms of invariants, which are functions of graphs that do not depend on the labeling of the nodes. In this paper we study convex graph invariants, which are graph invariants that are convex functions of the adjacency matrix of a graph. Some examples include functions of … Read more
We propose a tractable approximation scheme for convex (not necessarily linear) multi-stage robust optimization problems. We approximate the adaptive decisions by finite linear combinations of prescribed basis functions and demonstrate how one can optimize over these decision rules at low computational cost through constraint randomization. We obtain a-priori probabilistic guarantees on the feasibility properties of … Read more
In this exposition the robust counterpart approach by Ben-Tal, El Ghaoui and Nemirovski is investigated with respect to its costs and benefits, with the focus on the costs of robustification. Although robust optimization has gained more and more interest among both academics and practitioners and although this certainly represents a well-established theory, it is to … Read more
We propose an approach to the timing of markdowns over a finite time horizon that does not require the precise knowledge of the underlying probabilities, instead relying on range forecasts for the arrival rates of the demand processes, and that captures the degree of the manager’s risk aversion through intuitive budget-of-uncertainty functions. These budget functions … Read more
To improve the efficiency in power generation and to reduce the greenhouse gas emission, both Demand Response (DR) strategy and intermittent renewable energy have been proposed or applied in electric power systems. However, the uncertainty and the generation pattern in wind farms and the complexity of demand side management pose huge challenges in power system … Read more
Under the deregulated energy market environment, plus the integration of renewable energy generation, both the supply and demand of a power grid system are volatile and under uncertainty. Accordingly, a large amount of spinning reserve is required at each bus to maintain the reliability of the power grid system in the traditional approach. In this … Read more
We present a new approach for portfolio selection when the underlying distribution of asset returns is uncertain or ambiguous to investors. In particular, we consider the case that an investor can formulate some reference financial models based on his/her prior beliefs or information, but is concerned about misspecification of the reference models and the associated … Read more
In this paper we introduce robust and stochastically weighted sum approaches to deterministic and stochastic multi-objective optimization. The robust weighted sum approach minimizes the worst case weighted sum of objectives over a given weight region. We study the reformulations of the robust weighted sum problem under different definitions of deterministic weight regions. We next introduce … Read more
We consider the optimal management of a hydro-thermal power system in the mid and long terms. From the optimization point of view, this amounts to a large-scale multistage stochastic linear program, often solved by combining sampling with decomposition algorithms, like stochastic dual dynamic programming. Such methodologies, however, may entail prohibitive computational time, especially when applied … Read more
In recent years the robust counterpart approach, introduced and made popular by Ben-Tal, Nemirovski and El Ghaoui, gained more and more interest among both academics and practitioners. However, to the best of our knowledge, only very few results on the relationship between the original problem instance and the robust counterpart have been established. This exposition … Read more