# Optimization ¶

We know in a graph how to find the shortest path (graph=circles and lines linking them, for instance cities=circles and lines=roads). Now we want to do the same thing with a function (ex: a pricing function), and we want to know the highest (maximum) or the lowest (minimum) value that this function would take (they are called extremum).

So here you will have

• optimization without constraints (unconstrained)
• optimization under constraints (constrained)
• optimization in R

## the problem ¶

We got a function f and will try to minimize it. If you want to maximize a function g then that's the same as minimizing f = -g (trace some function then reverse it with - and you will see it). We will minimize instead of maximizing, as a lot of algorithms are made for minimizing rather than maximizing.

Before starting, you need to check that the function got a minimum! That's the case

• if $f$ is continuous on X (a compact space)
• if $f$ is a coercive function
• if the limit in +infinite of $f$ tends to a value, a.k.a. we got a lower bound

If you draw the curve for $x^2$, and you will see that the minimum is when $x=0$. We usually have more parameters like $f(x,y)$, or $f(x,y,z)$, so we are writing $x^*$ the minimum (ex: for $f(X)=x^2,\ x^* = (0)$, or $f(X)=|x+y|,\ x^* = \begin{pmatrix}0\\0\end{pmatrix}$). $X$ is the vector of parameters of the function, sometimes used instead of writing $f(x)$ or $f(x,y)$ etc. Since $x^*$ is also a vector, you may also write $X^*$.

## unconstrained optimization ¶

Here are some methods used in unconstrained optimization, please note that some constrained optimization problems may be solved using unconstrained optimization methods, and if you got more than one result, then check the conditions, or you will have to do a constrained optimization method.

Other methods

## constrained optimization ¶

Here are some constrained optimization methods.

## optimization: examples in R ¶

Here may not be the language that you would use to do optimization. Still, here you have some examples.

function_to_optimize <- function(param) {
x <- param[1]
y <- param[2]
# evaluates
return(
2*x^2 + y^2 - 2 * x * y + 4 * x
)
}

# first value ("random")
first <- c(0, 0)

# optimize
r <- optim(fn = function_to_optimize, par = first, hessian = TRUE)

if (r$convergence > 0){ stop("can't optimize this function") } else { cat("minimum:", r$value, "\n");
cat("hessian:", r$hessian, "\n"); cat("par:", r$par, "\n");
}

minimum: -4
hessian: (4, -2; -2, 2)
par: -2 -2

Note that this is the values we found a while back.

We can do some verifications

library('numDeriv')
# check the result, (-2,-2) is a critical point