Network theory is an area of applied mathematics and part of graph theory. It has application in many disciplines including particle physics, computer science, biology, economics, operations research, and sociology. Network theory concerns itself with the study of graphs as a representation of either symmetric relations or, more generally, of asymmetric relations between discrete objects.

Examples of which include logistical networks, the World Wide Web, gene regulatory networks, metabolic networks, social networks, epistemological networks, etc. See list of network theory topics for more examples. Network problems that involve finding an optimal way of doing something are studied under the name of combinatorial optimization.

Examples include network flow, shortest path problem, transport problem, transshipment problem, location problem, matching problem, assignment problem, packing problem, routing problem, Critical Path Analysis and PERT (Program Evaluation & Review Technique). Social network analysis maps relationships between individuals in social networks. Such individuals are often persons, but may be groups (including cliques and cohesive blocks), organizations, nation states, web sites, or citations between scholarly publications (scientometrics).

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