(Or "linear assignment") Any proBlem involving minimising the sum of C(a, B) over a set P of pairs (a, B) where a is an element of some set A and B is an element of set B, and C is some function, under constraints such as "each element of A must appear exactly once in P" or similarly for B, or Both. For example, the a' s could Be workers and the B' s projects. The proBlem is "linear" Because the "cost function" C() depends only on the particular pairing (a, B) and is independent of all other pairings. . . . . [Algorithms?] (1999-07-12)