Parallel Problem Solving from Nature - PPSN VIII 8th International Conference, Birmingham, UK, September 18-22, 2004, Proceedings

We are very pleased to present this LNCS volume, the proceedings of the 8th InternationalConferenceonParallelProblemSolvingfromNature(PPSNVIII). PPSN is one of the most respected and highly regarded conference series in evolutionary computation and natural computing/computation. This biennial eventwas?rstheldinDortmundin1990,andtheninBrussels(1992),Jerusalem (1994), Berlin (1996), Amsterdam (1998), Paris (2000), and Granada (2002). PPSN VIII continues to be the conference of choice by researchers all over the world who value its high quality. We received a record 358 paper submissions this year. After an extensive peer review process involving more than 1100 reviews, the programme c- mittee selected the top 119 papers for inclusion in this volume and, of course, for presentation at the conference. This represents an acceptance rate of 33%. Please note that review reports with scores only but no textual comments were not considered in the chairs’ ranking decisions. The papers included in this volume cover a wide range of topics, from e- lutionary computation to swarm intelligence and from bio-inspired computing to real-world applications. They represent some of the latest and best research in evolutionary and natural computation. Following the PPSN tradition, all - persatPPSNVIII werepresentedasposters.Therewere7 sessions:eachsession consisting of around 17 papers. For each session, we covered as wide a range of topics as possible so that participants with di?erent interests would ?nd some relevant papers at every session.

Theory.- On the Quality Gain of (1,?)-ES Under Fitness Noise.- Fitness Distributions and GA Hardness.- Experimental Supplements to the Theoretical Analysis of EAs on Problems from Combinatorial Optimization.- The Ising Model: Simple Evolutionary Algorithms as Adaptation Schemes.- Evolutionary Algorithms with On-the-Fly Population Size Adjustment.- Search Space Features Underlying the Performance of Stochastic Local Search Algorithms for MAX-SAT.- Bridging the Gap Between Theory and Practice.- A Reduced Markov Model of GAs Without the Exact Transition Matrix.- Expected Runtimes of a Simple Evolutionary Algorithm for the Multi-objective Minimum Spanning Tree Problem.- On the Importance of Information Speed in Structured Populations.- Estimating the Number of Solutions for SAT Problems.- Behavior of Evolutionary Algorithms in Chaotically Changing Fitness Landscapes.- Expected Rates of Building Block Discovery, Retention and Combination Under 1-Point and Uniform Crossover.- An Analysis of the Effectiveness of Multi-parent Crossover.- On the Use of a Non-redundant Encoding for Learning Bayesian Networks from Data with a GA.- Phase Transition Properties of Clustered Travelling Salesman Problem Instances Generated with Evolutionary Computation.- A Simple Two-Module Problem to Exemplify Building-Block Assembly Under Crossover.- Statistical Racing Techniques for Improved Empirical Evaluation of Evolutionary Algorithms.- New Algorithms.- LS-CMA-ES: A Second-Order Algorithm for Covariance Matrix Adaptation.- Learning Probabilistic Tree Grammars for Genetic Programming.- Sequential Sampling in Noisy Environments.- Evolutionary Continuous Optimization by Distribution Estimation with Variational Bayesian Independent Component Analyzers Mixture Model.- Spread of Vector Borne Diseases in a Population with Spatial Structure.- Hierarchical Genetic Algorithms.- Migration of Probability Models Instead of Individuals: An Alternative When Applying the Island Model to EDAs.- Comparison of Steady-State and Generational Evolution Strategies for Parallel Architectures.- Control of Bloat in Genetic Programming by Means of the Island Model.- Saving Resources with Plagues in Genetic Algorithms.- Evaluating the CMA Evolution Strategy on Multimodal Test Functions.- Exploring the Evolutionary Details of a Feasible-Infeasible Two-Population GA.- An Evolutionary Algorithm for the Maximum Weight Trace Formulation of the Multiple Sequence Alignment Problem.- A Novel Programmable Molecular Computing Method Based on Signaling Pathways Regulated by Rho-GTPases in Living MDCK Epithelial Mammalian Cells.- Empirical Investigations on Parallelized Linkage Identification.- The EAX Algorithm Considering Diversity Loss.- Topology-Oriented Design of Analog Circuits Based on Evolutionary Graph Generation.- A Mixed Bayesian Optimization Algorithm with Variance Adaptation.- A Swarm Intelligence Based VLSI Multiplication-and-Add Scheme.- Distribution Tree-Building Real-Valued Evolutionary Algorithm.- Optimization via Parameter Mapping with Genetic Programming.- Multi-cellular Development: Is There Scalability and Robustness to Gain?.- Constrained Evolutionary Optimization by Approximate Ranking and Surrogate Models.- Robust Parallel Genetic Algorithms with Re-initialisation.- Improving Evolutionary Algorithms with Multi-representation Island Models.- A Powerful New Encoding for Tree-Based Combinatorial Optimisation Problems.- Partially Evaluated Genetic Algorithm Based on Fuzzy c-Means Algorithm.- Applications.- Metaheuristics for the Vehicle Routing Problem with Stochastic Demands.- AntHocNet: An Ant-Based Hybrid Routing Algorithm for Mobile Ad Hoc Networks.- A Scatter Search Algorithm for the 3D Image Registration Problem.- A Hybrid GRASP – Evolutionary Algorithm Approach to Golomb Ruler Search.- Design of an Efficient Search Algorithm for P2P Networks Using Concepts from Natural Immune Systems.- A Novel Ant Algorithm for Solving the Minimum Broadcast Time Problem.- Designing Multiple-Use Primer Set for Multiplex PCR by Using Compact GAs.- Robust Inferential Sensors Based on Ensemble of Predictors Generated by Genetic Programming.- Searching Transcriptional Modules Using Evolutionary Algorithms.- Evolution of Voronoi-Based Fuzzy Controllers.- Analyzing Sensor States and Internal States in the Tartarus Problem with Tree State Machines.- Evolving Genetic Regulatory Networks for Hardware Fault Tolerance.- Evolving Dynamics in an Artificial Regulatory Network Model.- The Application of Bayesian Optimization and Classifier Systems in Nurse Scheduling.- An Evolutionary Approach to Modeling Radial Brightness Distributions in Elliptical Galaxies.- Conference Paper Assignment Using a Combined Greedy/Evolutionary Algorithm.- A Primer on the Evolution of Equivalence Classes of Bayesian-Network Structures.- The Infection Algorithm: An Artificial Epidemic Approach for Dense Stereo Matching.- Optimising Cancer Chemotherapy Using Particle Swarm Optimisation and Genetic Algorithms.- An Evolutionary Algorithm for Column Generation in Integer Programming: An Effective Approach for 2D Bin Packing.- An Improved Evaluation Function for the Bandwidth Minimization Problem.- Coupling of Evolution and Learning to Optimize a Hierarchical Object Recognition Model.- Evolution of Small-World Networks of Automata for Computation.- Recognizing Speed Limit Sign Numbers by Evolvable Hardware.- Dynamic Routing Problems with Fruitful Regions: Models and Evolutionary Computation.- Optimising the Performance of a Formula One Car Using a Genetic Algorithm.- Multi-objective Optimisation.- An Inexpensive Cognitive Approach for Bi-objective Optimization Using Bliss Points and Interaction.- Finding Knees in Multi-objective Optimization.- Multi-objective Parallel Tabu Search.- SPEA2+: Improving the Performance of the Strength Pareto Evolutionary Algorithm 2.- An Extension of Generalized Differential Evolution for Multi-objective Optimization with Constraints.- Adaptive Weighted Particle Swarm Optimisation for Multi-objective Optimal Design of Alloy Steels.- Multi-objective Optimisation by Co-operative Co-evolution.- Sequential Process Optimisation Using Genetic Algorithms.- On Test Functions for Evolutionary Multi-objective Optimization.- Multi-objective Optimization of a Composite Material Spring Design Using an Evolutionary Algorithm.- Dominance Based Crossover Operator for Evolutionary Multi-objective Algorithms.- Evolutionary Bi-objective Controlled Elevator Group Regulates Passenger Service Level and Minimises Energy Consumption.- Indicator-Based Selection in Multiobjective Search.- Co-evolution.- Intransitivity in Coevolution.- Group Transport of an Object to a Target That Only Some Group Members May Sense.- Hawks, Doves and Lifetime Reproductive Success.- Evolutionary Multi-agent Systems.- Credit Assignment Among Neurons in Co-evolving Populations.- A Visual Demonstration of Convergence Properties of Cooperative Coevolution.- Cooperative Coevolution of Image Feature Construction and Object Detection.- Spatial Embedding and Loss of Gradient in Cooperative Coevolutionary Algorithms.- A High Performance Multi-objective Evolutionary Algorithm Based on the Principles of Thermodynamics.- Robotics and Multi-agent Systems.- Robustness in the Long Run: Auto-teaching vs Anticipation in Evolutionary Robotics.- A Self-adaptive Neural Learning Classifier System with Constructivism for Mobile Robot Control.- An Approach to Evolutionary Robotics Using a Genetic Algorithm with a Variable Mutation Rate Strategy.- Translating the Dances of Honeybees into Resource Location.- Natural Policy Gradient Reinforcement Learning for a CPG Control of a Biped Robot.- Evaluation of Adaptive Nature Inspired Task Allocation Against Alternate Decentralised Multiagent Strategies.- A Neuroevolutionary Approach to Emergent Task Decomposition.- Evolving the “Feeling” of Time Through Sensory-Motor Coordination: A Robot Based Model.- Learning Classifier Systems and Data