Symmetry and Asymmetry in Optimization and Algorithmic Paradigms: Smart Systems, Sustainable Development, and Real-World Applications

Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to announce a forthcoming Special Issue, entitled “Symmetry and Asymmetry in Optimization and Algorithmic Paradigms: Smart Systems, Sustainable Development, and Real-World Applications”, in the journal Symmetry. This Special Issue will explore the interplay between symmetry/asymmetry, optimization, and algorithmic paradigms, highlighting their role in smart systems, renewable energy, healthcare, and other real-world challenges aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). We invite contributions that advance both theoretical foundations and practical applications, aiming to bridge mathematical insights with pressing global needs.

The study of algorithms, optimization, and symmetry has long been central to advances in mathematics, computer science, and engineering. Symmetry and asymmetry provide not only elegant mathematical structures but also practical tools to simplify computations, reduce complexity, and guide the development of optimal solutions to problems that are otherwise intractable.

In recent decades, these concepts have gained renewed importance in real-world applications. The emergence of smart systems—including smart cities, smart grids, intelligent transportation, and Industry 4.0—requires algorithmic paradigms that are capable of addressing large-scale, dynamic, and complex problems. At the same time, the global agenda defined by the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) demands innovative solutions in areas such as energy efficiency, sustainable logistics, climate change mitigation, and healthcare optimization.

By bridging symmetry and asymmetry with optimization and algorithmic paradigms, researchers can contribute to both theoretical foundations and impactful applications, ensuring that computational advances are aligned with pressing societal and environmental challenges.

Aim of the Special Issue

This Special Issue aims to bring together cutting-edge research on the interplay between symmetry/asymmetry, optimization, and algorithmic paradigms, with a particular emphasis on their application to smart systems and sustainable development challenges. The focus is twofold, as follows:

• Theoretical contributions, highlighting novel mathematical frameworks, optimization techniques, and algorithmic strategies exploiting symmetry and asymmetry are welcome.
• Practical applications, demonstrating how these approaches can address real-world problems in energy systems, transportation, healthcare, logistics, and other domains aligned with the SDGs are also encouraged.

Suggested Themes and Article Types

In this Special Issue, both original research articles and reviews are welcome. Submissions may include, but are not limited to, the following themes:

• Symmetry and asymmetry in algorithmic complexity and optimization.
•  Exact, heuristic, and metaheuristic methods exploiting symmetry/asymmetry.
• Symmetry breaking and invariants in combinatorial optimization.
• Optimization and symmetry in smart grids, renewable energy, and energy storage.
• Algorithmic paradigms for smart cities: transportation, mobility, and urban planning.
• Sustainable logistics and supply chain optimization with symmetry-based methods.
• AI and machine learning algorithms leveraging symmetry for sustainable development.
• Symmetry/asymmetry in climate change modeling and mitigation strategies.
• Algorithms for healthcare systems, telemedicine, and epidemiological modeling.
• Optimization in Industry 4.0, robotics, and intelligent manufacturing.
• Symmetry and asymmetry in imbalanced data learning: SMOTE, SMOTEE, and advanced oversampling strategies.
• Integration of evolutionary algorithms (genetic algorithms, PSO, differential evolution, etc.) with oversampling methods for improved classification performance.
• Multi-objective optimization considering symmetry/asymmetry in data distributions.
• Real-world case studies in fraud detection, bioinformatics, healthcare, and smart systems where imbalanced learning is critical.

Prof. Dr. Jorge A. Ruiz-Vanoye
Prof. Dr. Ocotlan Diaz-Parra
Prof. Dr. Marco Antonio Márquez-Vera
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Symmetry is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• symmetry and asymmetry
• optimization
• algorithmic paradigms
• smart systems
• sustainable development
• real-world applications