NK Fitness Landscape

Kauffman NK model — epistasis, ruggedness, and adaptive walks

Generate a landscape first
Kauffman's NK model: N genes, each contributing a fitness component f_i that depends on K epistatic interactions. K=0: smooth landscape with one global peak. K=N-1: maximally rugged (random landscape). Adaptive walks: hill-climb from random start, always move to highest-fitness neighbor. Local optima proliferate with K — populations get "stuck" more easily on rugged landscapes.