Clustering by analytic functions

Data clustering is a combinatorial optimization problem. This article shows that clustering is also an optimization problem for an analytic function. The mean squared error, or in this case, the squared error can expressed as an analytic function. With an analytic function we benefit from the existence of standard optimization methods: the gradient of this function is calculated and the descent method is used to minimize the function. 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.