The defining length of a schemata is based on the distance
between the first and last bits in the schema with value
either 0 or 1 (i.e. not a * symbol). Given that each position
in a schema can be 0, 1 or *, then scanning left to right, if Ix
is the index of the position of the rightmost occurrence of
either a 0 or 1 and Iy is the index of the leftmost occurrence
of either a 0 or 1, then the defining length is merely Ix - Iy.
Thus, the defining length of ****1"*0"*10"* is 12 - 5 = 7.
The defining length of a schema representing a hyperplane
H is denoted here by A(H). The defining length is a direct
measure of how many possible crossover points fall within
the significant portion of a schemata. If 1-point crossover is
used, then A(H)/L- 1 is also a direct measure of how
likely crossover is to fall within the significant portion of
a schemata during crossover.