Coevolving High-Level Representations

Abstract

Several evolutionary simulations allow for a dynamic resizing of the genotype. This is an important alternative to constraining the genotype's maximum size and complexity. In this paper, we add an additional dynamic to simulated evolution with the description of a genetic algorithm that coevolves its representation language with the genotypes. We introduce two mutation operators that permit the acquisition of modules from the genotypes during evolution. These modules form an increasingly high-level representation language specific to the developmental environment. Experimental results illustrating interesting properties of the acquired modules and the evolved languages are provided.