CSC 456    Spring 2008        

Assignment 5 – Genetic Algorithms

Due: 11:59pm  on 04/30/08 (but finish it in class on 04/23/08!!!)

                There wasn’t suitable public domain software for Genetic Algorithms. So I wrote some – the cost is that the program is for a specific application rather than a general shell. I have made the program available two ways:

• What I think is a downloadable executable – under Assignments, download SGAjar.zip file, unzip and double click on SGA.jar file.
• The whole set of projects with source code that can run in the IDE – under Review, download SGAzip.zip, unzip and open in NetBeans.

The instructions for running the program via either method are available in the following page which is also linked via my Review page: www.lasalle.edu/~redmond/teach/456/GeneticAlgInstructions.htm . This is an optimization problem introduced in the Negnevitsky book; maintenance of power producing units is to be scheduled so as to maximize the lowest quarterly power surplus. 

 Task:

• Tuning Experiment

· Run the genetic algorithm program on the data: PowerUnitMaintHard.txt; try  a variety of parameters if necessary until a successful solution is found.  Note that a successful solution of the problem requires a solution to have a rating (strength) of at least zero (anything less and there is a period in which not enough power will be generated).  I made this problem “hard” – you may not get a successful solution right away.

a. Save all output (trace) files that you generate. Turn in soft (electronic) copies of the files.

b. Use Excel to graph the best and average solution strength by generation for the run that finds a solution. (you should be able to load the generation by generation results into Excel pretty easily). Turn in soft copy.

c. Copy a (highest rated) solution from the output panel. Turn in hard or soft copy.

d. Q1a: Explain the successful solution in a way a manager could understand.

e. Q1b: How many solutions were rated along the way? (NOT how many unique solutions; that would be VERY tedious to determine)

• “On Paper” Exercise
• Suppose the program chose the following parents and a crossover point of 3

 Parents:

      solution: S476 {  last2  first2  fourthQtr  firstQtr  fourthQtr  secondQtr  fourthQtr  last3  last2  first3  secondQtr  }  (strength: -30.00)

      solution: S491 {  middle2  first2  firstQtr  fourthQtr  thirdQtr  firstQtr  thirdQtr  first3  first2  last3  thirdQtr  }  (strength: -15.00)

• Question 2: What children are produced (assuming no mutations)?

Turn In:

• Softcopy of all traces
• Softcopy of Excel file with graph
• Answers to all three questions above (either hard or soft copy)

Softcopies should be zipped together and submitted to Blackboard. Any hardcopies need to be turned in in person.

NOTE:

• I expect that this should be able to be completed in class, presuming that you are here on 4/23. In order to run this outside of class, you would need either the zipped jar file (and Java on the machine) or the zipped project and NetBeans.  It shouldn’t take too much time – try to do this in the lab!