Heuristics are strategies using readily accessible, loosely applicable information to control problem solving. Algorithms, for example, are a type of heuristic. By contrast, Metaheuristics are methods used to design Heuristics and may coordinate the usage of several Heuristics toward the formulation of a single method. GRASP (Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedures) is an example of a Metaheuristic. To the layman, heuristics may be thought of as rules of thumb but despite its imprecision, heuristics is a very rich field that refers to experience-based techniques for problem-solving,...

GRASP (Greedy Randomized Adaptive Search Procedures) is a metaheuristic applied to real-world combinatorial optimization problems. This book introduces GRASP and combinatorial optimization, greedy algorithms, local search and path-relinking, with a focus on algorithmic and computational aspects. It includes a substantial bibliography.