Pre-EC Day 2025
29 May 2025
University of Stirling
Date
29 May 2025, 10:00-16:30 GMT
Location
Hybrid / Seminar Room 3.04, Andrew Miller Building, University of Stirling
Parking & Transportation at University of Stirling
About
The SICSA Pre-EC Day allows colleagues in the field of evolutionary computation the opportunity to showcase their most recent work. The conference’s primary focus is on researchers who have papers/posters accepted at upcoming 2025 conferences, giving them the chance to present their work to an expert, supportive community of EC researchers from across Scottish institutions. The event also allows colleagues who cannot attend conferences such as GECCO, CEC, Evo* the opportunity to hear about the latest research being developed in Scotland.
We will welcome speakers who have accepted papers across the summer 2025 conferences, as well as speakers who have field-specific or field-adjacent research that would be of interest to the EC research community.
The event will be hybrid, and virtual attendance and virtual presentation will both be supported.
Attendance is free for students and academics based in Scotland.
Programme
The programme will consist of in-person talks, online talks, and poster presentations of EC work from authors at Scottish institutions. If you are based in Scotland and would like to present your work, please submit a proposal. The deadline for abstract submission is Monday, 19 May 2025, 23:59 BST.
Organisers
This event is being organised by Dr Paul McMenemy at University of Stirling with support from SICSA. Please email admin@sicsa.ac.uk if you have any questions.
10:00 – 10:30
10:30 – 10:35
Registration & Coffee
Welcome & Opening remarks
Paul McMenemy, University of Stirling
10:35-12:30
Session 1
Search Trajectory Networks in Complex Search Spaces
Gabriela Ochoa, University of Stirling
Efficient Online Automated Algorithm Selection in the Face of Data-Drift in Optimisation Problem Instances
Quentin Renau, Edinburgh Napier University
A Dominance-Based Surrogate Classifier for Multi-objective Evolutionary Algorithms
Tiwonge Banda, Robert Gordon University
Optimizing the logistics operations of distribution network operators from a multinational electric utility company
Leonardo Bezerra, University of Stirling
Into the Black Box: Mining Variable Importance with XAI
Kelly Hunter, Edinburgh Napier University
12:30 – 13:15
Lunch & Networking
13:15 – 14:40
Session 2
Generating Realistic Benchmarks for Dynamic Truck and Trailer Scheduling using Gaussian Copulas
Joan Alza Santos, Robert Gordon University
Optimising multi-crop vertical farms
Jakub Konopka, University of Stirling
Automated Design of Heuristics with Genetic Programming for the Electric Vehicle Routing Problem with Partial Recharging
Magda Smolić-Ročak, University of Zagreb
Beyond the Hype: Benchmarking LLM-Evolved Heuristics for Bin Packing
Emma Hart, Edinburgh Napier University
On the Importance of Reward Design in Reinforcement Learning-based Dynamic Algorithm Configuration
Tai Nguyen, University of St Andrews
14:40 – 15:00
Coffee Break
15:00 – 16:20
Session 3
Subfunction Structure Matters: A New Perspective on Local Optima Networks
Sarah Thomson, Edinburgh Napier University
Evolving altruism between neural networks
Max Taylor-Davies, University of Edinburgh
Explaining solutions obtained from EC
Giancarlo Catalano, University of Stirling
Genetic Algorithms for Service Function Chain Deployment
Theviyanthan Krishnamohan, University of Glasgow