The Arkansas model of southern pine beetle spot growth, originally written in FORTRAN, was rewritten in Java. The new model uses parameters and computations from the FORTRAN model, but now has an object-oriented, flexible structure. The new model was used to test the feasibility of using genetic algorithms (computerized problem-solving methods) to develop a parasitoid submodel. In the genetic algorithm (GA) experiment, populations of alternative submodels competed and evolved through mutation, cross-combination, and differential survival. This experiment was initiated to demonstrate that a computer-generated parasitoid submodel can perform at least as well as a human-generated submodel. The Java model will be described and demonstrated through a web interface, and preliminary results from the GA experiment will be presented.
The ESA 2001 Annual Meeting - 2001: An Entomological Odyssey of ESA