Rule-Based Evolutionary Online Learning Systems [electronic resource] : A Principled Approach to LCS Analysis and Design / by Martin V. Butz.

Prerequisites -- Simple Learning Classifier Systems -- The XCS Classifier System -- How XCS Works: Ensuring Effective Evolutionary Pressures -- When XCS Works: Towards Computational Complexity -- Effective XCS Search: Building Block Processing -- XCS in Binary Classification Problems -- XCS in Multi-Valued Problems -- XCS in Reinforcement Learning Problems -- Facetwise LCS Design -- Towards Cognitive Learning Classifier Systems -- Summary and Conclusions.

This book offers a comprehensive introduction to learning classifier systems (LCS) – or more generally, rule-based evolutionary online learning systems. LCSs learn interactively – much like a neural network – but with an increased adaptivity and flexibility. This book provides the necessary background knowledge on problem types, genetic algorithms, and reinforcement learning as well as a principled, modular analysis approach to understand, analyze, and design LCSs. The analysis is exemplarily carried through on the XCS classifier system – the currently most prominent system in LCS research. Several enhancements are introduced to XCS and evaluated. An application suite is provided including classification, reinforcement learning and data-mining problems. Reconsidering John Holland’s original vision, the book finally discusses the current potentials of LCSs for successful applications in cognitive science and related areas.