Computationally Intelligent Hybrid Systems: The Fusion of Soft Computing and Hard Computing (Seppo J. Ovaska, ed.; Wiley-IEEE Press, 2004)

Both sides of the brain

What are soft computing and hard computing? These two ways of using computers can be compared to the two hemispheres of the brain. Humans apply logical and mathematical reasoning to solving problems using the left hemisphere of the brain. However, humans also excel in pattern recognition, creativity, synthesis of ideas using the right hemisphere.

Today, computers can be used for both soft and hard computing. Integrating these capabilities is needed to solve real-world problems. But how to combine genetic algorithms and traditional optimization? What about neural networks and control systems? Or fuzzy logic and Bayesian data mining?

The book edited by Ovaska offers a valuable introduction to the fusion of soft and hard computing. The book consists of eleven chapters written by experts of the respective fields. However, the book is not just a collection of separate articles. The editor has written introductory texts to all chapters of the book, connecting the topics together and providing additional insights about the topics.

Seppo Ovaska, the editor of the book, is a professor in the Department of Electrical and Communications Engineering at TKK (Helsinki University of Technology). The dedicated work by the editor of the book is all too rare nowadays.

The chapters are application-oriented, and thus benefit readers interested in subjects like large-scale planning in a plant, adaptive flight control, intrusion detection in computer security, generating human-computer interfaces, and data mining in www usage.

The book succeeds in providing a link between the two methods of computing, both on the theoretical and practical level. Although the field develops fast, the theoretical background and the focus on systematic thinking about hybrid systems makes the book a valuable reference.