Scholarships for EASy MSc at Sussex, U.K.

[Dave Cliff]

The University of Sussex at Brighton

                  School of Cognitive and Computing Sciences

                   MSc in Evolutionary and Adaptive Systems

                          CYBERLIFE(tm) SCHOLARSHIPS

The University of Sussex School of Cognitive and Computing Sciences is pleased
to announce the availability of up to three scholarships for the Master of
Science in Evolutionary and Adaptive Systems (EASy MSc). The scholarships are
funded by CyberLife Ltd, Cambridge, UK. CyberLife Ltd is a subsidiary of
Millennium Interactive Ltd, a leading producer of games and entertainment
software. CyberLife Ltd conducts research and development of software based on
technologies from Artificial Life and Evolutionary and Adaptive Systems.

Each scholarship will provide funding for fees and maintenance for the
one-year full-time course at a level equivalent to the standard EPSRC
postgraduate studentship rate (approx 4800pounds).

Candidates wishing to apply for a CyberLife Scholarship should already hold an
offer of a place on the EASy MSc. Candidates who have not yet applied for
admission to the EASy MSc should request an application from by contacting
either the Postgraduate Office of the University of Sussex, or tehe COGS
Graduate secretary Linda Thompson. Contact addresses are given at the end of
this e-mail.

Scholarship candidates will be shortlisted and interviewed at CyberLife's
offices in Cambridge UK. Successful applicants awarded a CyberLife Scholarship
will study in Brighton at the University of Sussex from October until April,
attending the EASy MSc taught courses. After successful completion of the
taught courses, CyberLife scholars will transfer to Cambridge, working on
their summer research project at CyberLife's offices until the completion of
their Master's thesis at the end of August. The scholars remain students of
the University throughout this period, and a member of Sussex faculty will
make visits to Cambridge for supervisory meetings in addition to maintaining
contact via the internet.

The Master's thesis should address a topic of interest to CyberLife Ltd's
current research directions. Sample topic areas are listed below.

A copy of this e-mail, with a bibliography of relevant papers,
is available on the world wide web at:
http://www.cogs.susx.ac.uk/lab/adapt/msc_schol.html

RESEARCH TOPICS

(1) Group Behaviour
Application of Evolutionary and Adaptive Systems techniques to the genre of
games and entertainment software where groups of agents react or interact with
other agents, possibly adapting over time. Including cooperative and
communicative behavior.

(2) Artificial Biochemistry
CyberLife Ltd have developed techniques for sensory-motor control in
autonomous software agents based on neural networks which are affected by
diffuse "hormones" in the agent's "biochemistry". Research projects exploring
artificial biochemistry (e.g. autocatalytic sets) or diffuse modulation of
activity in neural networks, or both, are possible.

(3) Adaptive Architectures for Real-Time Control
In many real-time games and entertainment software systems there is a
significant need for control architectures which respond, react, and adapt to
the environment (including the playing style of any human users) in real-time.
Such architectures could be applied to most game software with real-time
interactive elements. Entertainment examples include artificial motor-racing
drivers, aeroplane pilots, etc. However, such systems could also possibly be
applied to industrial tasks such as traffic-light scheduling for optimal
flow-control on roads.

(4) Speculator Agents
CyberLife Ltd have an interest in developing autonomous software agents that
profitably speculate on movements in the prices of stocks and shares, or
financial derivatives such as warrants, options, and futures. There is
particular interest in the development of agents with adaptive risk/reward
profiles.

(5) Navigation in Arbitrary Domains
The task of providing software agents with robust, efficient, and plausible
navigation mechanisms for negotiating virtual environments of two or more
dimensions remains an open research issue. Research in robot guidance and
studies of navigation in animals could be adapted and extended to deliver
techniques appropriate for interactive software applications.

(6) Strategic Planning
Research in reactive planning has been applied to simple video game
environments. Further work could be undertaken to extend such techniques to
provide advanced techniques for adaptively generating strategies and tactics
in a variety of entertainment software applications. The techniques would not
necessarily apply to in-game player agents; rather, to the provision of an
overall intelligence in strategy games.

(7) Procedural Learning Mechanisms for Motor Control
The development of techniques for adaptive motor control in software agents
which interact with a simulated physical environment, e.g. learning to walk.
Possibly adapting existing research on walking robots.

(8) Genetic Encoding and Morphogenesis
Using genetic algorithms to develop artificial neural networks requires that
the multi-dimensional network architecture is encoded as a linear string of
characters (the "genome"). The process which maps from a genome to a network
architecture is often referred to as "morphogenesis". Recently, a number of
researchers have addressed the problem of developing encodings and associated
morphogenesis techniques which are robust with respect to genetic operators
such as mutation and crossover, and expressive (e.g. allowing for repeated
structures and modular designs).

CONTACTS
--------

Application forms for entry to the EASy MSc in October 1996 are available
from:

Postgraduate Admissions Office
Sussex House
University of Sussex
Brighton BN1 9RH
England, U.K.

Tel: +44 (0)1273 678412
Email: PG.Admissions at admin.susx.ac.uk

Applicants for the CyberLife Scholarships should register their interest in
writing (letter or email) to:

Linda Thompson (COGS Graduate Admissions Secretary)
Cognitive and Computing Sciences
University of Sussex
Brighton BN1 9QH
England, U.K.

Tel: +44 (0)1273 678754
Fax: +44 (0)1273 671320
E-mail: lindat at cogs.susx.ac.uk


CyberLife is a trademark of CyberLife Ltd, Quern House, Mill Court, Great
Shelford, Cambridge, UK.