Introduction to evolutionary computing techniques

There is a tremendous interest in the development of the theory and applications of evolutionary computing techniques both in industry and universities. Evolutionary computation is the name given to collection of algorithms based on the evolution of a population towards a solution of a certain problem. These algorithms are used successfully in many applications requiring the optimization of a certain multidimensional function. The population of possible solutions evolves from one generation to the next, ultimately arriving at a satisfactory solution to the problem. These algorithms differ in the way a new population is generated from the present one and in the way the members are represented within the algorithm. Three types of evolutionary computing techniques are widely reported recently. These are genetic algorithms (GAs), genetic programming (GP) and evolutionary algorithms (EAs). The EAs can be divided into evolutionary strategies (ES) and evolutionary programming (EP). All three of these algorithms in some way are modelled after the evolutionary processes occurring in nature.<>