section_path: Techniques/Search and optimization/Local search
section_name: Local search
paragraph_text: Local search
  
  Local search uses mathematical optimization to find a solution to a problem. It begins with some form of guess and refines it incrementally.
  
  Gradient descent is a type of local search that optimizes a set of numerical parameters by incrementally adjusting them to minimize a loss function. Variants of gradient descent are commonly used to train neural networks.
  
  Another type of local search is evolutionary computation, which aims to iteratively improve a set of candidate solutions by "mutating" and "recombining" them, selecting only the fittest to survive each generation.
  
  Distributed search processes can coordinate via swarm intelligence algorithms. Two popular swarm algorithms used in search are particle swarm optimization (inspired by bird flocking) and ant colony optimization (inspired by ant trails).