One major branch of enhancing the performance of evolutionary algorithms is the exploitation of linkage learning. This monograph aims to capture the recent progress of linkage learning, by compiling a series of focused technical chapters to keep abreast of the developments and trends in the area of linkage. In evolutionary algorithms, linkage models the relation between decision variables with the genetic linkage observed in biological systems, and linkage learning connects computational optimization methodologies and natural evolution mechanisms. Exploitation of linkage learning can enable us to design better evolutionary algorithms as well as to potentially gain insight into biological systems. Linkage learning has the potential to become one of the dominant aspects of evolutionary algorithms; research in this area can potentially yield promising results in addressing the scalability issues.

Genetic algorithms (GAs) are powerful search techniques based on principles of evolution and widely applied to solve problems in many disciplines. However, most GAs employed in practice nowadays are unable to learn genetic linkage and suffer from the linkage problem. The linkage learning genetic algorithm (LLGA) was proposed to tackle the linkage problem with several specially designed mechanisms. While the LLGA performs much better on badly scaled problems than simple GAs, it does not work well on uniformly scaled problems as other competent GAs. Therefore, we need to understand why it is so and need to know how to design a better LLGA or whether there are certain limits of such a linkage learning process. This book aims to gain better understanding of the LLGA in theory and to improve the LLGA's performance in practice. It starts with a survey of the existing genetic linkage learning techniques and describes the steps and approaches taken to tackle the research topics, including using promoters, developing the convergence time model, and adopting subchromosomes.

In recent years, the issue of linkage in GEAs has garnered greater attention and recognition from researchers. Conventional approaches that rely much on ad hoc tweaking of parameters to control the search by balancing the level of exploitation and exploration are grossly inadequate. As shown in the work reported here, such parameters tweaking based approaches have their limits; they can be easily fooled by cases of triviality or peculiarity of the class of problems that the algorithms are designed to handle. Furthermore, these approaches are usually blind to the interactions between the decision variables, thereby disrupting the partial solutions that are being built up along the way.

One major branch of enhancing the performance of evolutionary algorithms is the exploitation of linkage learning. This monograph aims to capture the recent progress of linkage learning, by compiling a series of focused technical chapters to keep abreast of the developments and trends in the area of linkage. In evolutionary algorithms, linkage models the relation between decision variables with the genetic linkage observed in biological systems, and linkage learning connects computational optimization methodologies and natural evolution mechanisms. Exploitation of linkage learning can enable us to design better evolutionary algorithms as well as to potentially gain insight into biological systems. Linkage learning has the potential to become one of the dominant aspects of evolutionary algorithms; research in this area can potentially yield promising results in addressing the scalability issues.

In recent years, the issue of linkage in GEAs has garnered greater attention and recognition from researchers. Conventional approaches that rely much on ad hoc tweaking of parameters to control the search by balancing the level of exploitation and exploration are grossly inadequate. As shown in the work reported here, such parameters tweaking based approaches have their limits; they can be easily fooled by cases of triviality or peculiarity of the class of problems that the algorithms are designed to handle. Furthermore, these approaches are usually blind to the interactions between the decision variables, thereby disrupting the partial solutions that are being built up along the way.

Genetic algorithms (GAs) are powerful search techniques based on principles of evolution and widely applied to solve problems in many disciplines. However, most GAs employed in practice nowadays are unable to learn genetic linkage and suffer from the linkage problem. The linkage learning genetic algorithm (LLGA) was proposed to tackle the linkage problem with several specially designed mechanisms. While the LLGA performs much better on badly scaled problems than simple GAs, it does not work well on uniformly scaled problems as other competent GAs. Therefore, we need to understand why it is so and need to know how to design a better LLGA or whether there are certain limits of such a linkage learning process. This book aims to gain better understanding of the LLGA in theory and to improve the LLGA's performance in practice. It starts with a survey of the existing genetic linkage learning techniques and describes the steps and approaches taken to tackle the research topics, including using promoters, developing the convergence time model, and adopting subchromosomes.