Evolutionary Computation

Arching over all the theory, the detail and the mathematics, M366 has one clear
theme. It is this: in every age, scientific theory and technological discovery combine
to yield new understandings of humanity and our place in the world, and new ways
of tackling age-old problems. In particular, you have seen how, in the late twentieth
and early twenty-first centuries, biological theories and ever-increasing computing
power have united to bring about new approaches to the problems of artificial
intelligence (AI) and computational problem solving, along with new insights into the
nature of intelligence and problem solving themselves.
A long time ago, back in Block 1, I asked to you to identify some of the dominant
technologies of the twentieth century. At that point, I singled out the digital computer
for discussion, but of course many others must have suggested themselves.