David A Bell

The 170 revised full papers presented were carefully reviewed and selected from 557 submissions. The papers are organized in topical sections on learning and information processing, data mining, retrieval and management, bioinformatics and bio-inspired models, agents and hybrid systems, financial engineering, as well as a special session on nature-inspired date technologies.

The mythical phoenix speaks of re-emergence and continual development, flying higher with each rebirth, riding on the winds of creation. So too does the man of this moment. A pianist of vast skill and experience, Dave Kikoski's eminence in serious jazz circles is beyond dispute.

The mythical Phoenix speaks of reemergence and continual development, flying higher with each rebirth, riding on the winds of creation. So too does the man of this moment. A pianist of vast skill and experience, Dave Kikoski's eminence in serious jazz circles is beyond dispute. He's taken deep dives with everybody from Randy Brecker to Roy Haynes, served as the harmonic host for the Mingus Big Band, contributed to expansive cooperative enterprises like Opus 5, and pushed his own music to the limits and beyond. Kikoski has seemingly done it all during his three-plus decades on the scene, yet his playing somehow remains something of an underrated asset. The Phoenix metaphor, hyperbolic though it may be, proves apt in it's embrace of this monumental talent's steady surge. This exciting endeavor makes that case in inarguable fashion.