ABSTRACT
Network models provide a convenient starting point for two main reasons: first, the underlying mathematics are fairly straightforward and, indeed, provide a useful base for the more complicated material to follow ; second, the range of actual and potential applications can be seen and appreciated fairly readily. A characteristic of both the maximally connected and minimal spanning tree problems is that each may be expressed easily and solved rapidly to yield what is known to be the optimal solution. In terms of applications however, their use is limited for it is unlikely that a planner would pursue either of the two objectives underlying the network models on the ground. While the facility to create additional nodes can obviously yield superior solutions to network design problems, the underlying solution processes increase once more in complexity.
