This volume contains a selection of papers presented at the conference on Modelling and Optimization of Distributed Parameter Systems with Applications to Engineering, held in Warsaw on July 17-21, 1995. This conference was a consecutive one in the series of conferences sponsored by the IFIP Working Group WG 7.2 "Computational Techniques in Distributed Systems", chaired by Irena Lasiecka. It was organized by the Systems Research Institute of the Polish Academy of Sciences and supported financially by the following institutions: -European Community on Computational Methods in Applied Sciences, -Fundacja Stefana Batorego, -International Mathematical Union, - Telekomunikacja Polska S.A. The following scientists took an active part in preparation of the scientific program of the conference, organizing or helping to organize special sessions: - E. Casas and I.Lasiecka (Optimization and Optimal ControQ, Z.Mr6z (Mechanical Applications), - M.Niezg6dka (Properties of Solutions to P.D.E.s), - L.Pandolfi (Hamilton and Riccati Equation Approaches to Optimization), - K.Sobczyk and J.Zabczyk (Stochastic Systems), - J.Sokolowski and J.-P.Zolesio (Shape Optimization), - J.Wa8niewski (Scientific Computation). In the conference participated 133 scientists from 22 countries. Ten invited plenary lectures and 103 contributed papers have been presented. This volume contains a part of the presented material. The core of it is constituted by papers devoted to control and optimization of distributed parameter systems. Other selection will be included in a special issue of the quarterly Control & Cybernetics to be published in 1996.
