SUMMARYThe genetic algorithm sounds like terminology from a B-rated science fiction movie. What is a genetic algorithm? Is it human? Is it a computer? Is it alive? Is it the mutant offspring of a defunct government experiment? All these questions, and many more, will be answered in the pages of this article. The adventure will begin with a journey back in time to the roots of genetic algorithms. From there, the journey will continue to the inventor, or father of genetic algorithms, Dr. John H. Holland of the University of Michigan. Finally, moving forward in time, covering a period of more than twenty years from the creation of the genetic algorithm to its current representations and applications, the terminology and concepts behind these algorithms will be explored. INTRODUCTION “God… created a number of possibilities in case some of his prototypes failed – this is the meaning of evolution. " Graham Greene (1904-91), British novelist. M. Visconti, in Travels with My Aunt, pt. 2, ch. 7 (1969). Nature - it is all around us. We see it every day and we are even part of it. It is so simple, yet so complex and over thousands of years it has changed to adapt to its environment. This process of change is called evolution. a process that we are openly aware of, but we are the product of it. The process of evolution can be said to be a process of adaptation. Adaptation is the part of evolution that has captivated computer scientists since the beginning of time. In the 1960s, the process of adaptation intrigued John Holland. This intrigue led him to study it formally. This process, could be captured by a computer. It is interesting to see where genetic algorithms appear next, and how they were applied to this application.BIBLIOGRAPHY1 . Chambers, Lance, "Practical Handbook of Genetic Algorithms, Applications Vol. 1" (New York, NY: Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1991), preface.2. Davis, Lawrence, "Handbook of Genetic Algorithms", (New York, New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1991), pp. 1 - 101.3. Everett, JE, "Model Building, Model Testing, and Model Tuning", Practical Handbook of Genetic Algorithms, Applications Vol. 1, (Boca Raton New York: CRC Press, 1995), pp. 6-30.4. Mitchell, Melanie, “An Introduction to Genetic Algorithms” (Cambridge, Mass.: The MIT Press, 1996).5. Michalewicz, Zbigniew, "Genetic algorithms + data structures = evolutionary programs, second extended edition" (Berlin Heidelberg New York: Springer-Verlag, 1994), pp.. 1 - 91.