Jano van Hemert, postdoc researcher at CWI, has been granted a TALENT stipendium from NWO for his proposal Application of Evolutionary Computation to Evaluate Algorithms that Solve Constrained Optimization Problems.
Normally, evolutionary algorithms are used to find solutions, but Van Hemert will employ them to generate specific problems. These problems can then be used to test several optimization techniques for tasks such as timetabling, vehicle routing or job shop scheduling. Until now, these optimization techniques were tested on standard and fixed benchmark series. Van Hemert's method will test more elaborately by searching for the specific strong and weak points of each technique.
NWO's TALENT program is directed 'at promising researchers whose academic strengths make it likely that they will eventually achieve eminence in the Dutch research world'. Van Hemert, member of CWI's Evolutionary Systems and Applied Algorithmics group since 2002, will use the stipendium to stay at the Centre for Emergent Computing of Napier University in Edinburgh for twelve months.
More information can be found on SEN4's website, NWO's TALENT list or Centre for Emergent Computing, Napier University
