Eos - an evolutionary and ecosystem research platform

The Eos platform supports research and rapid implementation of evolutionary algorithms, ecosystem simulations and hybrid models. It also supports fast prototyping of industrial applications using these technologies. A large a nd rapidly growing library of evolutionary algorithm types and options is p rovided which together with a flexible configuration system allows a 'plug- and-play' construction of novel algorithms. Support for ecosystem models in cludes classes for multiple types of physical space (n-dimensional discrete or continuous Cartesian space, graph space), complex interactions between entities, and movement of individuals between populations. The flexibility of the Eos platform is expected to provide a powerful envir onment for developing new algorithms and architectures. Eos is implemented in Java(TM) for portability and allow easy extension of the core functional ity. It supports transparent distribution of evolutionary and ecosystem imp lementations across multi-processor computer clusters. This paper describes the architecture and functionality of the Eos platform and illustrates its use by way of a number of example applications.