A genetic algorithm with a multi-layered genotype-phenotype mapping

Abstract

In this paper we investigate the introduction of a multiple-layer genotype-phenotype mapping to a Genetic Algorithm (GA) which attempts to mimic more closely, the effects of nature. The motivation for introducing multiple-layers into the genotype-phenotype mapping is to create a many-to-one genotype-phenotype mapping. The paper compares a traditional GA with a GA containing a multi-layered genotype-phenotype mapping using a number of well understood problems in an attempt to illustrate the potential benefits of including the multilayered mapping. Initial findings suggest that the multi-layered mapping between the genotype-phenotype used in conjunction with a binary representation outperforms existing traditional GA approaches on well known problems, while still allowing the use well understood genetic operators.