Artificial Life and Evolutionary Systems

Schedule

1. Introduction
• Defining life (it's not so easy)
• Survey of the field
• Emergence in nature
• Models of computation
2. Emergent Complexity
• One-dimensional cellular automata
• Elementary CA
• Langton's parameter
• Classifying density
• Langton's ant
• Game of Life
• Lifeforms: blinkers, gliders, eaters, etc.
• Unlimited growth: glider guns and puffer trains
• Random debris and the evolution of complex forms
• Self-replicating structures
• An amusing warm-up: quines
• From Langton's loop to evoloops
3. Evolutionary Systems
• Genetic algorithms
• Searching for optimal sorting networks
• Evolving strategies for the Prisoner's Dilemma
• Avida: evolution of self-replicating programs
• Framsticks: experiments in digital evolution
4. Philosophy of ALife

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