This book is an authoritative collection of contributions in the field of soft-computing. Based on selected works presented at the 6th World Conference on Soft Computing, held on May 22-25, 2016, in Berkeley, USA, it describes new theoretical advances, as well as cutting-edge methods and applications. Theories cover a wealth of topics, such as fuzzy logic, cognitive modeling, Bayesian and probabilistic methods, multi-criteria decision making, utility theory, approximate reasoning, human-centric computing and many others. Applications concerns a number of fields, such as internet and semantic web, social networks and trust, control and robotics, computer vision, medicine and bioinformatics, as well as finance, security and e-Commerce, among others. Dedicated to the 50th Anniversary of Fuzzy Logic and to the 95th Birthday Anniversary of Lotfi A. Zadeh, the book not only offers a timely view on the field, yet it also discusses thought-provoking developments and challenges, thus fostering new research directions in the diverse areas of soft computing.

This book is an authoritative collection of contributions in the field of soft-computing. Based on selected works presented at the 6th World Conference on Soft Computing, held on May 22-25, 2016, in Berkeley, USA, it describes new theoretical advances, as well as cutting-edge methods and applications. Theories cover a wealth of topics, such as fuzzy logic, cognitive modeling, Bayesian and probabilistic methods, multi-criteria decision making, utility theory, approximate reasoning, human-centric computing and many others. Applications concerns a number of fields, such as internet and semantic web, social networks and trust, control and robotics, computer vision, medicine and bioinformatics, as well as finance, security and e-Commerce, among others. Dedicated to the 50th Anniversary of Fuzzy Logic and to the 95th Birthday Anniversary of Lotfi A. Zadeh, the book not only offers a timely view on the field, yet it also discusses thought-provoking developments and challenges, thus fostering new research directions in the diverse areas of soft computing.

This book reports on advanced theories and cutting-edge applications in the field of soft computing. The individual chapters, written by leading researchers, are based on contributions presented during the 4th World Conference on Soft Computing, held May 25-27, 2014, in Berkeley. The book covers a wealth of key topics in soft computing, focusing on both fundamental aspects and applications. The former include fuzzy mathematics, type-2 fuzzy sets, evolutionary-based optimization, aggregation and neural networks, while the latter include soft computing in data analysis, image processing, decision-making, classification, series prediction, economics, control, and modeling. By providing readers with a timely, authoritative view on the field, and by discussing thought-provoking developments and challenges, the book will foster new research directions in the diverse areas of soft computing.

The book reports on the latest advances and challenges of soft computing. It gathers original scientific contributions written by top scientists in the field and covering theories, methods and applications in a number of research areas related to soft-computing, such as decision-making, probabilistic reasoning, image processing, control, neural networks and data analysis.

This book reports on advanced theories and cutting-edge applications in the field of soft computing. The individual chapters, written by leading researchers, are based on contributions presented during the 4th World Conference on Soft Computing, held May 25-27, 2014, in Berkeley. The book covers a wealth of key topics in soft computing, focusing on both fundamental aspects and applications. The former include fuzzy mathematics, type-2 fuzzy sets, evolutionary-based optimization, aggregation and neural networks, while the latter include soft computing in data analysis, image processing, decision-making, classification, series prediction, economics, control, and modeling. By providing readers with a timely, authoritative view on the field, and by discussing thought-provoking developments and challenges, the book will foster new research directions in the diverse areas of soft computing.

In essence, Computing with Words (CWW) is a system of computation in which the objects of computation are predominantly words, phrases and propositions drawn from a natural language. CWW is based on fuzzy logic. In science there is a deep-seated tradition of according much more respect to numbers than to words. In a fundamental way, CWW is a challenge to this tradition. What is not widely recognized is that, today, words are used in place of numbers in a wide variety of applications ranging from digital cameras and household appliances to fraud detection systems, biomedical instrumentation and subway trains. CWW offers a unique capability-the capability to precisiate natural language. Unprecisiated (raw) natural language cannot be computed with. A key concept which underlies precisiation of meaning is that of the meaning postulate: A proposition, p, is a restriction on the values which a variable, X-a variable which is implicit in p-is allowed to take. CWW has an important ramification for mathematics. Addition of the formalism of CWW to mathematics empowers mathematics to construct mathematical solutions of computational problems which are stated in a natural language. Traditional mathematics does not have this capability.

The book reports on the latest advances and challenges of soft computing. Itgathers original scientific contributions written by top scientists in the fieldand covering theories, methods and applications in a number of research areas related to soft-computing, such as decision-making, probabilistic reasoning, image processing, control, neural networks and data analysis."

The two-volume set LNAI 8467 and LNAI 8468 constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 13th International Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Soft Computing, ICAISC 2014, held in Zakopane, Poland in June 2014. The 139 revised full papers presented in the volumes, were carefully reviewed and selected from 331 submissions. The 69 papers included in the first volume are focused on the following topical sections: Neural Networks and Their Applications, Fuzzy Systems and Their Applications, Evolutionary Algorithms and Their Applications, Classification and Estimation, Computer Vision, Image and Speech Analysis and Special Session 3: Intelligent Methods in Databases. The 71 papers in the second volume are organized in the following subjects: Data Mining, Bioinformatics, Biometrics and Medical Applications, Agent Systems, Robotics and Control, Artificial Intelligence in Modeling and Simulation, Various Problems of Artificial Intelligence, Special Session 2: Machine Learning for Visual Information Analysis and Security, Special Session 1: Applications and Properties of Fuzzy Reasoning and Calculus and Clustering.

The two-volume set LNAI 8467 and LNAI 8468 constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 13th International Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Soft Computing, ICAISC 2014, held in Zakopane, Poland in June 2014. The 139 revised full papers presented in the volumes, were carefully reviewed and selected from 331 submissions. The 69 papers included in the first volume are focused on the following topical sections: Neural Networks and Their Applications, Fuzzy Systems and Their Applications, Evolutionary Algorithms and Their Applications, Classification and Estimation, Computer Vision, Image and Speech Analysis and Special Session 3: Intelligent Methods in Databases. The 71 papers in the second volume are organized in the following subjects: Data Mining, Bioinformatics, Biometrics and Medical Applications, Agent Systems, Robotics and Control, Artificial Intelligence in Modeling and Simulation, Various Problems of Artificial Intelligence, Special Session 2: Machine Learning for Visual Information Analysis and Security, Special Session 1: Applications and Properties of Fuzzy Reasoning and Calculus and Clustering.

These two volumes consIstmg of Foundations and Applications provide the current status of theoretical and empirical developments in "computing with words." In philosophy, the twentieth century is said to be the century of language. This is mainly due to Wittgenstein who said: "The meaning of a word is its use in the language game." "The concept game is a concept with blurred edges." In the first phrase, "the language game" implies the everyday human activity with language, and in the latter, "game" simply implies an ordinary word. Thus, Wittgenstein precisely stated that a word is fuzzy in real life. Unfortunately this idea about a word was not accepted in the conventional science. We had to wait for Zadeh's fuzzy sets theory. Remembering Wittgenstein's statement, we should consider, on the one hand, the concept of "computing with words" from a philosophical point of view. It deeply relates to the everyday use of a word in which the meaning of a word is fuzzy in its nature.

The two-volume set LNAI 7894 and LNCS 7895 constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 12th International Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Soft Computing, ICAISC 2013, held in Zakopane, Poland in June 2013. The 112 revised full papers presented together with one invited paper were carefully reviewed and selected from 274 submissions. The 57 papers included in the first volume are organized in the following topical sections: neural networks and their applications; fuzzy systems and their applications; pattern classification; and computer vision, image and speech analysis.

The two-volume set LNAI 7894 and LNCS 7895 constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 12th International Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Soft Computing, ICAISC 2013, held in Zakopane, Poland in June 2013. The 112 revised full papers presented together with one invited paper were carefully reviewed and selected from 274 submissions. The 56 papers included in the second volume are organized in the following topical sections: evolutionary algorithms and their applications; data mining; bioinformatics and medical applications; agent systems, robotics and control; artificial intelligence in modeling and simulation; and various problems of artificial intelligence.

Soft computing is a consortium of computing methodologies that provide a foundation for the conception, design, and deployment of intelligent systems and aims to formalize the human ability to make rational decisions in an environment of uncertainty and imprecision. This book is based on a NATO Advanced Study Institute held in 1996 on soft computing and its applications. The distinguished contributors consider the principal constituents of soft computing, namely fuzzy logic, neurocomputing, genetic computing, and probabilistic reasoning, the relations between them, and their fusion in industrial applications. Two areas emphasized in the book are how to achieve a synergistic combination of the main constituents of soft computing and how the combination can be used to achieve a high Machine Intelligence Quotient.

An Introduction to Fuzzy Logic Applications in Intelligent Systems consists of a collection of chapters written by leading experts in the field of fuzzy sets. Each chapter addresses an area where fuzzy sets have been applied to situations broadly related to intelligent systems. The volume provides an introduction to and an overview of recent applications of fuzzy sets to various areas of intelligent systems. Its purpose is to provide information and easy access for people new to the field. The book also serves as an excellent reference for researchers in the field and those working in the specifics of systems development. People in computer science, especially those in artificial intelligence, knowledge-based systems, and intelligent systems will find this to be a valuable sourcebook. Engineers, particularly control engineers, will also have a strong interest in this book. Finally, the book will be of interest to researchers working in decision support systems, operations research, decision theory, management science and applied mathematics. An Introduction to Fuzzy Logic Applications in Intelligent Systems may also be used as an introductory text and, as such, it is tutorial in nature.

The Web is the nervous system of information society. As such, it has a pervasive influence on our daily lives. And yet, in some ways the Web does not have a high MIQ (Machine IQ). What can be done to enhance it? This is the leitmotif of "Intelligent Exploration of the Web," (lEW)--a collection of articles co-edited by Drs. Szczepaniak, Segovia, Kacprzyk and, to a small degree, myself. The articles that comprise lEW address many basic problems ranging from structure analysis of Internet documents and Web dialogue management to intelligent Web agents for extraction of information, and bootstrapping an ontology-based information extraction system. Among the basic problems, one that stands out in importance is the problem of search. Existing search engines have many remarkable capabilities. But what is not among them is the deduction capability--the capability to answer a query by drawing on information which resides in various parts of the knowledge base. An example of a query might be "How many Ph.D. degrees in computer science were granted by European universities in 1996?" No existing search engine is capable of dealing with queries of comparable or even much lower complexity. Basically, what we would like to do is to add deduction capability to a search engine, with the aim of transforming it into a question-answering system, or a QI A system, for short. This is a problem that is of major importance and a challenge that is hard to meet.

During the past few years, data mining has grown rapidly in visibility and importance within information processing and decision analysis. This is par ticularly true in the realm of e-commerce, where data mining is moving from a "nice-to-have" to a "must-have" status. In a different though related context, a new computing methodology called granular computing is emerging as a powerful tool for the conception, analysis and design of information/intelligent systems. In essence, data mining deals with summarization of information which is resident in large data sets, while granular computing plays a key role in the summarization process by draw ing together points (objects) which are related through similarity, proximity or functionality. In this perspective, granular computing has a position of centrality in data mining. Another methodology which has high relevance to data mining and plays a central role in this volume is that of rough set theory. Basically, rough set theory may be viewed as a branch of granular computing. However, its applications to data mining have predated that of granular computing."

This volume constitutes the proceedings of the 10th International Conference on Arti?cial Intelligence and Soft Computing, ICAISC 2010, held in Zakopane, PolandduringJune13-17,2010. TheconferencewasorganizedbythePolishN- ral Network Society in cooperation with the Academy of Management in L od z (SWSPiZ), the Department of Computer Engineering at the Czestochowa U- versity of Technology, and the IEEE Computational Intelligence Society, Poland Chapter. The previous conferences took place in Kule (1994), Szczyrk (1996), Kule (1997) and Zakopane (1999, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008) and attracted a large number of papers and internationally recognized speakers: Lot? A. Zadeh, Shun-ichi Amari, Daniel Amit, Piero P. Bonissone, Zdzislaw Bubnicki, Andrzej Cichocki, WlodzislawDuch, PabloA. Est evez, JerzyGrzymala-Busse, Kaoru- rota, Janusz Kacprzyk, Laszlo T. Koczy, Soo-Young Lee, Robert Marks, Ev- gelia Micheli-Tzanakou, Erkki Oja, Witold Pedrycz, Sarunas Raudys, Enrique Ruspini, Jorg Siekman, Roman Slowinski, Ryszard Tadeusiewicz, Shiro Usui, Ronald Y. Yager, Syozo Yasui and Jacek Zurada. The aim of this conference is to build a bridge between traditional arti?cial intelligence techniques and recently developed soft computing techniques. It was pointed out by Lot? A. Zadeh that"Soft Computing (SC) is a coalition of methodologies which are o- ented toward the conception and design of information/intelligent systems. The principal members of the coalition are: fuzzy logic (FL), neurocomputing (NC), evolutionary computing (EC), probabilistic computing (PC), chaotic computing (CC), and machine learning (ML). The constituent methodologies of SC are, for themostpart, complementaryandsynergisticratherthancompetitive. "Thisv- ume presents both traditional arti?cial intelligence methods and soft computing techniques."

This volume constitutes the proceedings of the 10th International Conference on Arti?cial Intelligence and Soft Computing, ICAISC 2010, held in Zakopane, PolandduringJune13-17,2010. TheconferencewasorganizedbythePolishN- ral Network Society in cooperation with the Academy of Management in L od z (SWSPiZ), the Department of Computer Engineering at the Czestochowa U- versity of Technology, and the IEEE Computational Intelligence Society, Poland Chapter. The previous conferences took place in Kule (1994), Szczyrk (1996), Kule (1997) and Zakopane (1999, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008) and attracted a large number of papers and internationally recognized speakers: Lot? A. Zadeh, Shun-ichi Amari, Daniel Amit, Piero P. Bonissone, Zdzislaw Bubnicki, Andrzej Cichocki, WlodzislawDuch, PabloA. Est evez, JerzyGrzymala-Busse, Kaoru- rota, Janusz Kacprzyk, Laszlo T. Koczy, Soo-Young Lee, Robert Marks, Ev- gelia Micheli-Tzanakou, Erkki Oja, Witold Pedrycz, Sarunas Raudys, Enrique Ruspini, Jorg Siekman, Roman Slowinski, Ryszard Tadeusiewicz, Shiro Usui, Ronald Y. Yager, Syozo Yasui and Jacek Zurada. The aim of this conference is to build a bridge between traditional arti?cial intelligence techniques and recently developed soft computing techniques. It was pointed out by Lot? A. Zadeh that"Soft Computing (SC) is a coalition of methodologies which are o- ented toward the conception and design of information/intelligent systems. The principal members of the coalition are: fuzzy logic (FL), neurocomputing (NC), evolutionary computing (EC), probabilistic computing (PC), chaotic computing (CC), and machine learning (ML). The constituent methodologies of SC are, for themostpart, complementaryandsynergisticratherthancompetitive. "Thisv- ume presents both traditional arti?cial intelligence methods and soft computing techniques."

The Web is the nervous system of information society. As such, it has a pervasive influence on our daily lives. And yet, in some ways the Web does not have a high MIQ (Machine IQ). What can be done to enhance it? This is the leitmotif of "Intelligent Exploration of the Web," (lEW)--a collection of articles co-edited by Drs. Szczepaniak, Segovia, Kacprzyk and, to a small degree, myself. The articles that comprise lEW address many basic problems ranging from structure analysis of Internet documents and Web dialogue management to intelligent Web agents for extraction of information, and bootstrapping an ontology-based information extraction system. Among the basic problems, one that stands out in importance is the problem of search. Existing search engines have many remarkable capabilities. But what is not among them is the deduction capability--the capability to answer a query by drawing on information which resides in various parts of the knowledge base. An example of a query might be "How many Ph.D. degrees in computer science were granted by European universities in 1996?" No existing search engine is capable of dealing with queries of comparable or even much lower complexity. Basically, what we would like to do is to add deduction capability to a search engine, with the aim of transforming it into a question-answering system, or a QI A system, for short. This is a problem that is of major importance and a challenge that is hard to meet.

During the past few years, data mining has grown rapidly in visibility and importance within information processing and decision analysis. This is par ticularly true in the realm of e-commerce, where data mining is moving from a "nice-to-have" to a "must-have" status. In a different though related context, a new computing methodology called granular computing is emerging as a powerful tool for the conception, analysis and design of information/intelligent systems. In essence, data mining deals with summarization of information which is resident in large data sets, while granular computing plays a key role in the summarization process by draw ing together points (objects) which are related through similarity, proximity or functionality. In this perspective, granular computing has a position of centrality in data mining. Another methodology which has high relevance to data mining and plays a central role in this volume is that of rough set theory. Basically, rough set theory may be viewed as a branch of granular computing. However, its applications to data mining have predated that of granular computing."

These two volumes consIstmg of Foundations and Applications provide the current status of theoretical and empirical developments in "computing with words." In philosophy, the twentieth century is said to be the century of language. This is mainly due to Wittgenstein who said: "The meaning of a word is its use in the language game." "The concept game is a concept with blurred edges." In the first phrase, "the language game" implies the everyday human activity with language, and in the latter, "game" simply implies an ordinary word. Thus, Wittgenstein precisely stated that a word is fuzzy in real life. Unfortunately this idea about a word was not accepted in the conventional science. We had to wait for Zadeh's fuzzy sets theory. Remembering Wittgenstein's statement, we should consider, on the one hand, the concept of "computing with words" from a philosophical point of view. It deeply relates to the everyday use of a word in which the meaning of a word is fuzzy in its nature.

Soft computing is a consortium of computing methodologies that provide a foundation for the conception, design, and deployment of intelligent systems and aims to formalize the human ability to make rational decisions in an environment of uncertainty and imprecision. This book is based on a NATO Advanced Study Institute held in 1996 on soft computing and its applications. The distinguished contributors consider the principal constituents of soft computing, namely fuzzy logic, neurocomputing, genetic computing, and probabilistic reasoning, the relations between them, and their fusion in industrial applications. Two areas emphasized in the book are how to achieve a synergistic combination of the main constituents of soft computing and how the combination can be used to achieve a high Machine Intelligence Quotient.

This book presents a topical selection of full refereed research papers presented during the 5th International Conference on Information Processing and Management of Uncertainty in Knowledge-Based Systems, IPMU '94, held in Paris, France in July 1994. The topical focus is on the role of uncertainty in the contruction of intelligent computing systems and it is shown how the concepts of AI, neural networks, and fuzzy logic can be utilized for that purpose.
In total, there are presented 63 thoroughly revised papers organized in sections on fundamental issues; theory of evidence; networks, probabilistic, statistical, and informational methods; possibility theory, logics, chaos, reusability, and applications.

An Introduction to Fuzzy Logic Applications in Intelligent Systems consists of a collection of chapters written by leading experts in the field of fuzzy sets. Each chapter addresses an area where fuzzy sets have been applied to situations broadly related to intelligent systems. The volume provides an introduction to and an overview of recent applications of fuzzy sets to various areas of intelligent systems. Its purpose is to provide information and easy access for people new to the field. The book also serves as an excellent reference for researchers in the field and those working in the specifics of systems development. People in computer science, especially those in artificial intelligence, knowledge-based systems, and intelligent systems will find this to be a valuable sourcebook. Engineers, particularly control engineers, will also have a strong interest in this book. Finally, the book will be of interest to researchers working in decision support systems, operations research, decision theory, management science and applied mathematics. An Introduction to Fuzzy Logic Applications in Intelligent Systems may also be used as an introductory text and, as such, it is tutorial in nature.

The management and processing of uncertain information has shown itself to be a crucial issue in the development of intelligent systems, beginning withits appearance in the such systems as Mycin and Prospector. The papers in this volume reflect the current range of interests or researchers in thefield. Currently, the major approaches to uncertainty include fuzzy set theory, probabilistic methods, mathematical theory of evidence, non-standardlogics such as default reasoning, and possibility theory. The initial part of the volume is devoted to papers dealing with the foundations of these approaches, where recent attempts have been made to develop systems combining multiple approaches. A significant part of the book looks at the management of uncertainty in a number of the paradigmatic domainsof intelligent systems such as expert systems, decision making, databases, image processing, and reasoning networks. The papers are extended versions of presentations at the third international conference on information processing and management of uncertainty in knowledge-based systems. The proceedings of the two preceding IPMU conferences appear as LNCS 286 and LNCS 313.