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Shortest circuit

Shortest circuit a salesman needs to visit a dozen odd cities to sell his wares. What is the most efficient route for him to take? The problem may seem a trivial one. But if the cities he has to visit are increased to, say, a hundred? Even for the most powerful computers it becomes a challenging task. And lest it seem just a mathematical problem of little value, it demands the same logical structuring that is needed for planning telecommunication networks or airline flight routes. Now, a network of wells and channels with a fluid running through them might be able to provide a solution.

The travelling salesman problem is called the

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