friend bool operator==(const ConservedPath& a, const ConservedPath &b);
friend bool operator!=(const ConservedPath& a, const ConservedPath &b);
+ friend bool operator<(const ConservedPath& a, const ConservedPath &b);
friend std::ostream& operator<<(std::ostream&, const ConservedPath&);
//! return true if all elements of the path are "next to" our current path.