Using genetic algorithms to search large, unstructured databases
Subtitle: the search for Desert Storm Syndrome
By:  David L. Jacobson
Publisher: Naval Postgraduate School; Available from National Technical Information Service
Published: 1996
Place of publication: Monterey, Calif; Springfield, Va
Language: eng
Number of pages: 142
Description: Exploratory data analysis problems have recently grown in importance due to the large      magnitudes of data being collected by everything from satellites to supermarket scanners.      This so-called "data glut" often precludes the effective processing of information for      decision-making. These problems can be seen as search problems over massive      unstructured spaces. A prototypical problem of this type involves the search, by      Department of Defense medical agencies, for a so-called "Desert Storm Syndrome" which      involves large amounts of medical data obtained over several years following the Persian      Gulf conflict. This data ranges over more than 170 attributes, making the search problem      over the attribute space a hard one. We propose the use of genetic algorithms for the      attribute search problem, and intertwine it with search algorithms at the detailed data level.      Computational results so far strongly suggest that our system has succeeded at the given      tasks, requiring relatively few resources. They also have found no indication that a single      syndrome or other medical entity is responsible for wide-spread adverse health      ramifications among a significant cross-section of Persian Gulf War participants in the      CCEP program. There are, however, numerous correlations of exposure/demographic      information and associated symptoms/diagnoses which suggest that smaller groups may      share common health conditions based on shared exposure to common health risk factors.
Notes: "September 1996."

Thesis advisor(s): H.K. Bhargave.

Thesis (M.S. in Information Technology Management) Naval Postgraduate School, September 1996.

Includes bibliographical references (p. 139).

Approved for public release; distribution unlimited.

Also available online.

Mode of access: World Wide Web.

System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader.

US Navy (USN) author.

dk/dk cc:9996 2/27/96