As genetic and evolutionary algorithms (GEAs) have been employed to handle
complex optimization problems in recent years, the demand for improving
the performance and applicability of GEAs has become a crucial and urgent
issue. The exploitation of linkage is one of many mechanisms that have been
integrated into GEAs. This concept draws an analogy between the genetic
linkage in biological systems and the variable relationships in optimization
problems. Most of the papers on the subjects of detecting, understanding,
and exploiting linkage in GEAs are scattered throughout various journals
and conference proceedings. This edited volume serves as an archive of the
theoretical viewpoints, insightful studies, and the state-of-art development of
linkage in GEAs.
This book consists of papers written by leading researchers who have investigated
linkage in GEAs from different points of view. The 11 chapters in
this volume can be divided into 3 parts: (I) Linkage & Problem Structures;
(II) Model Building & Exploiting; and (III) Applications. Part I consists of
4 chapters that deal primarily with the nature and properties of linkage and
problem structures. Thorough understanding of linkage, which composes the
target problem, on the fundamental level is a must to devise GEAs better
than what are available today. The next 4 chapters in Part II discuss issues
regarding depicting linkage structures by establishing probabilistic models or
presenting insights into relationship networks. These chapters develop adequate
techniques for processing linkage, facilitating the analysis of problem
structures and optimization tasks. Part III consists of 3 chapters that present
applications that incorporate intermediate analysis solutions, allowing linkage
to be exploited by, and incorporated into, practical problem-solving.More
work on applying linkage to real-world problems should be encouraged, and
this edited volume represents a significant step in that direction.