Evolutionary Computation 2: Advanced Algorithms and Operators expands upon the basic ideas underlying evolutionary algorithms. The focus is on fitness evaluation, constraint-handling techniques, population structures, advanced techniques in evolutionary computation, and the implementation of evolutionary algorithms. It is intended to be used by individual researchers and students in the expanding field of evolutionary computation.

The science of biomedical measurements is experiencing a period of rapid development. Biomedical measuring systems are becoming increasingly accurate on the one hand and complex on the other. In order to make progress in this field, metrological problems must be solved using a systemic and formal approach. To this end, it is necessary to define the components of the system and the rules for their interaction, which allows the creation of a mathematical model. In this way, any technology or object can be presented in the form of a structure on which the necessary estimates can be formulated and synthesis, including metrological one, can be made. The authors have observed that despite the significance of the problem, few scientific centres deal with this issue in a generalised manner. Hence the idea of bringing together the achievements of the centres from Russia, Poland and Kazakhstan in one joint publication. The first and second volumes of Information Technology in Medical Diagnostics found readers not only in Poland, Ukraine, and Kazakhstan but also Spain, Russia and the Czech Republic. Following the readers' suggestions, in the third volume of ITMD we returned to the formula of closed chapters known from volume one. Due to its limited volume, the book deals with the aforementioned issues in only selected areas of biomedical engineering. The book will be of interest not only for academics and engineers but also for professionals involved in biomedical engineering, seeking solutions for the problems that cannot be solved using "traditional" technologies or trying to improve existing measurement systems.

The text comprehensively discusses the essentials of the Internet of Things (IoT), machine learning algorithms, industrial and medical IoT, robotics, data analytics tools, and technologies for smart cities. It further covers fundamental concepts, advanced tools, and techniques, along with the concept of energy-efficient systems. It also highlights software and hardware interfacing into the IoT platforms and systems for better understanding. It will serve as an ideal reference text for senior undergraduate, graduate students, and academic researchers in the fields of electrical engineering, electronics and communication engineering, and computer engineering. Features: Covers cognitive Internet of Things and emerging network, IoT in robotics, smart cities, and health care Discusses major issues in the field of the IoTsuch as scalable and secure issues, energy-efficient, and actuator devices Highlights the importance of industrial and medical IoT Illustrates applications of the IoT in robotics, smart grid, and smart cities Presents real-time examples for better understanding The text comprehensively discusses design principles, modernization techniques, advanced developments in artificial intelligence.This will be helpful for senior undergraduates, graduate students, and academic researchers in diverse engineering fields including electrical, electronics and communication, and computer science.

Designed for introductory parallel computing courses at the advanced undergraduate or beginning graduate level, Elements of Parallel Computing presents the fundamental concepts of parallel computing not from the point of view of hardware, but from a more abstract view of algorithmic and implementation patterns. The aim is to facilitate the teaching of parallel programming by surveying some key algorithmic structures and programming models, together with an abstract representation of the underlying hardware. The presentation is friendly and informal. The content of the book is language neutral, using pseudocode that represents common programming language models. The first five chapters present core concepts in parallel computing. SIMD, shared memory, and distributed memory machine models are covered, along with a brief discussion of what their execution models look like. The book also discusses decomposition as a fundamental activity in parallel algorithmic design, starting with a naive example, and continuing with a discussion of some key algorithmic structures. Important programming models are presented in depth, as well as important concepts of performance analysis, including work-depth analysis of task graphs, communication analysis of distributed memory algorithms, key performance metrics, and a discussion of barriers to obtaining good performance. The second part of the book presents three case studies that reinforce the concepts of the earlier chapters. One feature of these chapters is to contrast different solutions to the same problem, using select problems that aren't discussed frequently in parallel computing textbooks. They include the Single Source Shortest Path Problem, the Eikonal equation, and a classical computational geometry problem: computation of the two-dimensional convex hull. After presenting the problem and sequential algorithms, each chapter first discusses the sources of parallelism then surveys parallel algorithms.

Seeking sparse solutions of underdetermined linear systems is required in many areas of engineering and science such as signal and image processing. The efficient sparse representation becomes central in various big or high-dimensional data processing, yielding fruitful theoretical and realistic results in these fields. The mathematical optimization plays a fundamentally important role in the development of these results and acts as the mainstream numerical algorithms for the sparsity-seeking problems arising from big-data processing, compressed sensing, statistical learning, computer vision, and so on. This has attracted the interest of many researchers at the interface of engineering, mathematics and computer science. Sparse Optimization Theory and Methods presents the state of the art in theory and algorithms for signal recovery under the sparsity assumption. The up-to-date uniqueness conditions for the sparsest solution of underdertemined linear systems are described. The results for sparse signal recovery under the matrix property called range space property (RSP) are introduced, which is a deep and mild condition for the sparse signal to be recovered by convex optimization methods. This framework is generalized to 1-bit compressed sensing, leading to a novel sign recovery theory in this area. Two efficient sparsity-seeking algorithms, reweighted l1-minimization in primal space and the algorithm based on complementary slackness property, are presented. The theoretical efficiency of these algorithms is rigorously analysed in this book. Under the RSP assumption, the author also provides a novel and unified stability analysis for several popular optimization methods for sparse signal recovery, including l1-mininization, Dantzig selector and LASSO. This book incorporates recent development and the author's latest research in the field that have not appeared in other books.

Applicable to any problem that requires a finite number of solutions, finite state-based models (also called finite state machines or finite state automata) have found wide use in various areas of computer science and engineering. Handbook of Finite State Based Models and Applications provides a complete collection of introductory materials on finite state theories, algorithms, and the latest domain applications. For beginners, the book is a handy reference for quickly looking up model details. For more experienced researchers, it is suitable as a source of in-depth study in this area. The book first introduces the fundamentals of automata theory, including regular expressions, as well as widely used automata, such as transducers, tree automata, quantum automata, and timed automata. It then presents algorithms for the minimization and incremental construction of finite automata and describes Esterel, an automata-based synchronous programming language for embedded system software development. Moving on to applications, the book explores regular path queries on graph-structured data, timed automata in model checking security protocols, pattern matching, compiler design, and XML processing. It also covers other finite state-based modeling approaches and applications, including Petri nets, statecharts, temporal logic, and UML state machine diagrams.

Edited by professionals with years of experience, this book provides an introduction to the theory of evolutionary algorithms and single- and multi-objective optimization, and then goes on to discuss to explore applications of evolutionary algorithms for many uses with real-world applications. Covering both the theory and applications of evolutionary computation, the book offers exhaustive coverage of several topics on nontraditional evolutionary techniques, details working principles of new and popular evolutionary algorithms, and discusses case studies on both scientific and real-world applications of optimization

In recent years, popular media have inundated audiences with sensationalised headlines recounting data breaches, new forms of surveillance and other dangers of our digital age. Despite their regularity, such accounts treat each case as unprecedented and unique. This book proposes a radical rethinking of the history, present and future of our relations with the digital, spatial technologies that increasingly mediate our everyday lives. From smartphones to surveillance cameras, to navigational satellites, these new technologies offer visions of integrated, smooth and efficient societies, even as they directly conflict with the ways users experience them. Recognising the potential for both control and liberation, the authors argue against both acquiescence to and rejection of these technologies. Through intentional use of the very systems that monitor them, activists from Charlottesville to Hong Kong are subverting, resisting and repurposing geographic technologies. Using examples as varied as writings on the first telephones to the experiences of a feminist collective for migrant women in Spain, the authors present a revolution of everyday technologies. In the face of the seemingly inevitable dominance of corporate interests, these technologies allow us to create new spaces of affinity, and a new politics of change.

This book provides in-depth and wide-ranging analyses of the emergence, and subsequent ubiquity, of algorithms in diverse realms of social life. The plurality of Algorithmic Cultures emphasizes: 1) algorithms' increasing importance in the formation of new epistemic and organizational paradigms; and 2) the multifaceted analyses of algorithms across an increasing number of research fields. The authors in this volume address the complex interrelations between social groups and algorithms in the construction of meaning and social interaction. The contributors highlight the performative dimensions of algorithms by exposing the dynamic processes through which algorithms - themselves the product of a specific approach to the world - frame reality, while at the same time organizing how people think about society. With contributions from leading experts from Media Studies, Social Studies of Science and Technology, Cultural and Media Sociology from Canada, France, Germany, UK and the USA, this volume presents cutting edge empirical and conceptual research that includes case studies on social media platforms, gaming, financial trading and mobile security infrastructures.

Numerical Analysis with Algorithms and Programming is the first comprehensive textbook to provide detailed coverage of numerical methods, their algorithms, and corresponding computer programs. It presents many techniques for the efficient numerical solution of problems in science and engineering. Along with numerous worked-out examples, end-of-chapter exercises, and Mathematica (R) programs, the book includes the standard algorithms for numerical computation: Root finding for nonlinear equations Interpolation and approximation of functions by simpler computational building blocks, such as polynomials and splines The solution of systems of linear equations and triangularization Approximation of functions and least square approximation Numerical differentiation and divided differences Numerical quadrature and integration Numerical solutions of ordinary differential equations (ODEs) and boundary value problems Numerical solution of partial differential equations (PDEs) The text develops students' understanding of the construction of numerical algorithms and the applicability of the methods. By thoroughly studying the algorithms, students will discover how various methods provide accuracy, efficiency, scalability, and stability for large-scale systems.

As a software engineer, you'll encounter countless programming challenges that initially seem confusing, difficult, or even impossible. Don't despair! Many of these "new" problems already have well-established solutions. Advanced Algorithms and Data Structures teaches you powerful approaches to a wide range of tricky coding challenges that you can adapt and apply to your own applications. Providing a balanced blend of classic, advanced, and new algorithms, this practical guide upgrades your programming toolbox with new perspectives and hands-on techniques. about the technology Data structures and algorithms are the foundations for how programs store and process information. Choosing the optimal algorithms ensures that your programs are fast, efficient, and reliable. about the book Algorithms and Data Structures in Action expands on the basic algorithms you already know to give you a better selection of solutions to different programming problems. In it, you'll discover techniques for improving priority queues, efficient caching, clustering data, and more. Each example is fully illustrated with graphics, language agnostic pseudo-code, and code samples in various languages. When you're done, you will be able to implement advanced and little-known algorithms to deliver better performance from your code. what's inside Improving on basic data structures Efficient caching Nearest neighbour search, including k-d trees and S-trees Full 'pseudo-code' and samples in multiple languages about the readerFor programmers with basic or intermediate skills. Written in a language-agnostic manner, no specific language knowledge is required. about the author Marcello La Rocca is a research scientist and a full-stack engineer focused on optimization algorithms, genetic algorithms, machine learning and quantum computing. He has contributed to large-scale web applications at companies like Twitter and Microsoft, has undertaken applied research in both academia and industry, and authored the Neatsort adaptive sorting algorithm.

This book reviews ways to improve statistical machine speech translation between Polish and English. Research has been conducted mostly on dictionary-based, rule-based, and syntax-based, machine translation techniques. Most popular methodologies and tools are not well-suited for the Polish language and therefore require adaptation, and language resources are lacking in parallel and monolingual data. The main objective of this volume to develop an automatic and robust Polish-to-English translation system to meet specific translation requirements and to develop bilingual textual resources by mining comparable corpora.

This book covers theory and practical knowledge of Probabilistic data structures (PDS) and Blockchain (BC) concepts. It introduces the applicability of PDS in BC to technology practitioners and explains each PDS through code snippets and illustrative examples. Further, it provides references for the applications of PDS to BC along with implementation codes in python language for various PDS so that the readers can gain confidence using hands on experience. Organized into five sections, the book covers IoT technology, fundamental concepts of BC, PDS and algorithms used to estimate membership query, cardinality, similarity and frequency, usage of PDS in BC based IoT and so forth.

Swarm Intelligence: Principles, Advances, and Applications delivers in-depth coverage of bat, artificial fish swarm, firefly, cuckoo search, flower pollination, artificial bee colony, wolf search, and gray wolf optimization algorithms. The book begins with a brief introduction to mathematical optimization, addressing basic concepts related to swarm intelligence, such as randomness, random walks, and chaos theory. The text then: Describes the various swarm intelligence optimization methods, standardizing the variants, hybridizations, and algorithms whenever possible Discusses variants that focus more on binary, discrete, constrained, adaptive, and chaotic versions of the swarm optimizers Depicts real-world applications of the individual optimizers, emphasizing variable selection and fitness function design Details the similarities, differences, weaknesses, and strengths of each swarm optimization method Draws parallels between the operators and searching manners of the different algorithms Swarm Intelligence: Principles, Advances, and Applications presents a comprehensive treatment of modern swarm intelligence optimization methods, complete with illustrative examples and an extendable MATLAB (R) package for feature selection in wrapper mode applied on different data sets with benchmarking using different evaluation criteria. The book provides beginners with a solid foundation of swarm intelligence fundamentals, and offers experts valuable insight into new directions and hybridizations.

Is everything Information? This is a tantalizing question which emerges in modern physics, life sciences, astronomy and in today's information and technology-driven society. In Powers of Two expert authors undertake a unique expedition - in words and images - throughout the world (and scales) of information. The story resembles, in a way, the classic Powers of Ten journeys through space: from us to the macro and the micro worlds . However, by following Powers of Two through the world of information, a completely different and timely paradigm unfolds. Every power of two, 1, 2, 4, 8.... tells us a different story: starting from the creation of the very first bit at the Big Bang and the evolution of life, through 50 years of computational science, and finally into deep space, describing the information in black holes and even in the entire universe and beyond.... All this to address one question: Is our universe made of information? In this book, we experience the Information Universe in nature and in our society and how information lies at the very foundation of our understanding of the Universe. From the Foreword by Robbert Dijkgraaf: This book is in many ways a vastly extended version of Shannon's one-page blueprint. It carries us all the way to the total information content of the Universe. And it bears testimony of how widespread the use of data has become in all aspects of life. Information is the connective tissue of the modern sciences. [...] Undoubtedly, future generations will look back at this time, so much enthralled by Big Data and quantum computers, as beholden to the information metaphor. But that is exactly the value of this book. With its crisp descriptions and evocative illustrations, it brings the reader into the here and now, at the very frontier of scientific research, including the excitement and promise of all the outstanding questions and future discoveries. Message for the e-reader of the book Powers of Two The book has been designed to be read in two-page spreads in full screen mode. For optimal reader experience in a downloaded .pdf file we strongly recommend you use the following settings in Adobe Acrobat Reader: - Taskbar: View > Page Display > two page view - Taskbar: View > Page Display > Show Cover Page in Two Page View - Taskbar: ^ Preferences > Full Screen > deselect " Fill screen with one page at a time" - Taskbar: View > Full screen mode or ctrl L (cmd L on a Mac) ***** Note: for reading the previews on Spinger link (and on-line reading in a browser), the full screen two-page view only works with these browsers: Firefox - Taskbar: on top of the text, at the uppermost right you will see then >> (which is a drop-down menu) >> even double pages - Fullscreen: F11 or Control+Cmd+F with Mac Edge - Taskbar middle: Two-page view and select show cover page separately

From finance to artificial intelligence, genetic algorithms are a powerful tool with a wide array of applications. But you don't need an exotic new language or framework to get started; you can learn about genetic algorithms in a language you're already familiar with. Join us for an in-depth look at the algorithms, techniques, and methods that go into writing a genetic algorithm. From introductory problems to real-world applications, you'll learn the underlying principles of problem solving using genetic algorithms. Evolutionary algorithms are a unique and often overlooked subset of machine learning and artificial intelligence. Because of this, most of the available resources are outdated or too academic in nature, and none of them are made with Elixir programmers in mind. Start from the ground up with genetic algorithms in a language you are familiar with. Discover the power of genetic algorithms through simple solutions to challenging problems. Use Elixir features to write genetic algorithms that are concise and idiomatic. Learn the complete life cycle of solving a problem using genetic algorithms. Understand the different techniques and fine-tuning required to solve a wide array of problems. Plan, test, analyze, and visualize your genetic algorithms with real-world applications. Open your eyes to a unique and powerful field - without having to learn a new language or framework. What You Need: You'll need a macOS, Windows, or Linux distribution with an up-to-date Elixir installation.

The notion of swarm intelligence was introduced for describing decentralized and self-organized behaviors of groups of animals. Then this idea was extrapolated to design groups of robots which interact locally to cumulate a collective reaction. Some natural examples of swarms are as follows: ant colonies, bee colonies, fish schooling, bird flocking, horse herding, bacterial colonies, multinucleated giant amoebae Physarum polycephalum, etc. In all these examples, individual agents behave locally with an emergence of their common effect. An intelligent behavior of swarm individuals is explained by the following biological reactions to attractants and repellents. Attractants are biologically active things, such as food pieces or sex pheromones, which attract individuals of swarm. Repellents are biologically active things, such as predators, which repel individuals of swarm. As a consequence, attractants and repellents stimulate the directed movement of swarms towards and away from the stimulus, respectively. It is worth noting that a group of people, such as pedestrians, follow some swarm patterns of flocking or schooling. For instance, humans prefer to avoid a person considered by them as a possible predator and if a substantial part of the group in the situation of escape panic (not less than 5%) changes the direction, then the rest follows the new direction, too. Some swarm patterns are observed among human beings under the conditions of their addictive behavior such as the behavior of alcoholics or gamers. The methodological framework of studying swarm intelligence is represented by unconventional computing, robotics, and cognitive science. In this book we aim to analyze new methodologies involved in studying swarm intelligence. We are going to bring together computer scientists and cognitive scientists dealing with swarm patterns from social bacteria to human beings. This book considers different models of simulating, controlling, and predicting the swarm behavior of different species from social bacteria to humans.

In the last few years, Algorithms for Convex Optimization have revolutionized algorithm design, both for discrete and continuous optimization problems. For problems like maximum flow, maximum matching, and submodular function minimization, the fastest algorithms involve essential methods such as gradient descent, mirror descent, interior point methods, and ellipsoid methods. The goal of this self-contained book is to enable researchers and professionals in computer science, data science, and machine learning to gain an in-depth understanding of these algorithms. The text emphasizes how to derive key algorithms for convex optimization from first principles and how to establish precise running time bounds. This modern text explains the success of these algorithms in problems of discrete optimization, as well as how these methods have significantly pushed the state of the art of convex optimization itself.

Extremal Optimization: Fundamentals, Algorithms, and Applications introduces state-of-the-art extremal optimization (EO) and modified EO (MEO) solutions from fundamentals, methodologies, and algorithms to applications based on numerous classic publications and the authors' recent original research results. It promotes the movement of EO from academic study to practical applications. The book covers four aspects, beginning with a general review of real-world optimization problems and popular solutions with a focus on computational complexity, such as "NP-hard" and the "phase transitions" occurring on the search landscape. Next, it introduces computational extremal dynamics and its applications in EO from principles, mechanisms, and algorithms to the experiments on some benchmark problems such as TSP, spin glass, Max-SAT (maximum satisfiability), and graph partition. It then presents studies on the fundamental features of search dynamics and mechanisms in EO with a focus on self-organized optimization, evolutionary probability distribution, and structure features (e.g., backbones), which are based on the authors' recent research results. Finally, it discusses applications of EO and MEO in multiobjective optimization, systems modeling, intelligent control, and production scheduling. The authors present the advanced features of EO in solving NP-hard problems through problem formulation, algorithms, and simulation studies on popular benchmarks and industrial applications. They also focus on the development of MEO and its applications. This book can be used as a reference for graduate students, research developers, and practical engineers who work on developing optimization solutions for those complex systems with hardness that cannot be solved with mathematical optimization or other computational intelligence, such as evolutionary computations.

Winner of a 2015 Alpha Sigma Nu Book Award, Software Essentials: Design and Construction explicitly defines and illustrates the basic elements of software design and construction, providing a solid understanding of control flow, abstract data types (ADTs), memory, type relationships, and dynamic behavior. This text evaluates the benefits and overhead of object-oriented design (OOD) and analyzes software design options. With a structured but hands-on approach, the book: Delineates malleable and stable characteristics of software design Explains how to evaluate the short- and long-term costs and benefits of design decisions Compares and contrasts design solutions, such as composition versus inheritance Includes supportive appendices and a glossary of over 200 common terms Covers key topics such as polymorphism, overloading, and more While extensive examples are given in C# and/or C++, often demonstrating alternative solutions, design-not syntax-remains the focal point of Software Essentials: Design and Construction. About the Cover: Although capacity may be a problem for a doghouse, other requirements are usually minimal. Unlike skyscrapers, doghouses are simple units. They do not require plumbing, electricity, fire alarms, elevators, or ventilation systems, and they do not need to be built to code or pass inspections. The range of complexity in software design is similar. Given available software tools and libraries-many of which are free-hobbyists can build small or short-lived computer apps. Yet, design for software longevity, security, and efficiency can be intricate-as is the design of large-scale systems. How can a software developer prepare to manage such complexity? By understanding the essential building blocks of software design and construction.

Mathematica, Maple, and similar software packages provide programs that carry out sophisticated mathematical operations. Applying the ideas introduced in Computer Algebra and Symbolic Computation: Elementary Algorithms, this book explores the application of algorithms to such methods as automatic simplification, polynomial decomposition, and polynomial factorization. This book includes complexity analysis of algorithms and other recent developments. It is well-suited for self-study and can be used as the basis for a graduate course. Maintaining the style set by Elementary Algorithms, the author explains mathematical methods as needed while introducing advanced methods to treat complex operations.

This book is an introductory textbook on the design and analysis of algorithms. The author uses a careful selection of a few topics to illustrate the tools for algorithm analysis. Recursive algorithms are illustrated by Quicksort, FFT, fast matrix multiplications, and others. Algorithms associated with the network flow problem are fundamental in many areas of graph connectivity, matching theory, etc. Algorithms in number theory are discussed with some applications to public key encryption. This second edition will differ from the present edition mainly in that solutions to most of the exercises will be included.

In recent years, machine learning has gained a lot of interest. Due to the advances in processor technology and the availability of large amounts of data, machine learning techniques have provided astounding results in areas such as object recognition or natural language processing. New approaches, e.g. deep learning, have provided groundbreaking outcomes in fields such as multimedia mining or voice recognition. Machine learning is now used in virtually every domain and deep learning algorithms are present in many devices such as smartphones, cars, drones, healthcare equipment, or smart home devices. The Internet, cloud computing and the Internet of Things produce a tsunami of data and machine learning provides the methods to effectively analyze the data and discover actionable knowledge. This book describes the most common machine learning techniques such as Bayesian models, support vector machines, decision tree induction, regression analysis, and recurrent and convolutional neural networks. It first gives an introduction into the principles of machine learning. It then covers the basic methods including the mathematical foundations. The biggest part of the book provides common machine learning algorithms and their applications. Finally, the book gives an outlook into some of the future developments and possible new research areas of machine learning and artificial intelligence in general. This book is meant to be an introduction into machine learning. It does not require prior knowledge in this area. It covers some of the basic mathematical principle but intends to be understandable even without a background in mathematics. It can be read chapter wise and intends to be comprehensible, even when not starting in the beginning. Finally, it also intends to be a reference book. Key Features: Describes real world problems that can be solved using Machine Learning Provides methods for directly applying Machine Learning techniques to concrete real world problems Demonstrates how to apply Machine Learning techniques using different frameworks such as TensorFlow, MALLET, R

This book contains a collection of high-quality papers describing the results of relevant investigations and cutting-edge technologies, aimed at improving key aspects of real life, including major challenges such as the development of smart cities, smart buildings, smart grids, and the reduction of the impact of human activities on the environment. Sustainability requires the use of green technologies and techniques and good practices. Artificial intelligence seems to be an appropriate approach to optimize the use of resources. The main focus of this book is the dissemination of novel and innovative technologies, techniques and applications of artificial intelligence, computing and information and communications technologies, and new digital services such as digital marketing, smart tourism, smart agriculture, green and renewable energy sources. Besides, this book focuses on nurturing energy trends including renewable energies, smart grids, human activity impact, communication, behaviour, and social development, and quality of life improvement fields based on the innovative use of sensors, big data and the Internet of things (IoT), telecommunications and machine learning.

Swarm intelligence algorithms are a form of nature-based optimization algorithms. Their main inspiration is the cooperative behavior of animals within specific communities. This can be described as simple behaviors of individuals along with the mechanisms for sharing knowledge between them, resulting in the complex behavior of the entire community. Examples of such behavior can be found in ant colonies, bee swarms, schools of fish or bird flocks. Swarm intelligence algorithms are used to solve difficult optimization problems for which there are no exact solving methods or the use of such methods is impossible, e.g. due to unacceptable computational time. This set comprises two volumes: Swarm Intelligence Algorithms: A Tutorial and Swarm Intelligence Algorithms: Modifications and Applications. The first volume thoroughly presents the basics of 24 algorithms selected from the entire family of swarm intelligence algorithms. It contains a detailed explanation of how each algorithm works, along with relevant program codes in Matlab and the C ++ programming language, as well as numerical examples illustrating step-by-step how individual algorithms work. The second volume describes selected modifications of these algorithms and presents their practical applications. This book presents 24 swarm algorithms together with their modifications and practical applications. Each chapter is devoted to one algorithm. It contains a short description along with a pseudo-code showing the various stages of its operation. In addition, each chapter contains a description of selected modifications of the algorithm and shows how it can be used to solve a selected practical problem.