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Lahore Garrison University

CSC 353- Simulation and Modeling
Week-1 Lecture-2
Semester-# Fall 2022

Prepared by:
Salah u din Ayubi
 Simulation is the
(1) designingprocess
a of
(2) conducting
model of a real experiments with
system, and this model.
WHAT IS
SIMULATION?

In this course, we are going to

focus on Discrete-Event system
simulation.
(more about this later)
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WHY SIMULATE?

estimation of some
quantity or measure of
The objective of a simulation
effectiveness
experimentation may be: to gain an
understanding of the
behavior of the system

evaluation of various
alternative strategies
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WHAT IS A MODEL?

What is a model? Perhaps

the best (or, at least, the
most parsimonious)
definition of a model is that
Now, let’s put simulation it is a representation of a
models in context. real-world entity but not the
“real thing” itself. This
definition, necessarily
vague, encompasses just
about any type of model.
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INTRO TO MODELING & SIMULATION 5
SOME MODELS

Blueprint Model of a molecule

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SOME MODELS

Virtual Worlds Role Playing Games

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SOME MODELS

A 3D model of a planned
Mathematical Model community

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 9

TYPES OF
MODELS

 There are a lot of

different types of models
out there. Simulation is
just one of them. Let’s
try to classify models to
understand more about
them

INTRO TO MODELING & SIMULATION

CLASSIFYING MODELS – CONCRETE TO ABSTRACT

 Physical models resemble the system being studied, e.g., full-scale mockup for training
pilots.
 Scaled models also resemble the system under study, but at a different size. e.g., scaled
up model of an atom.
 Analog models. A property of the real (studied) object is represented by a substituted
property that often behaves in a similar manner. e.g., voltage through an electronic analog
computer network may represent flow of goods through a system. A graph is an analog
model: distance represents time, temperature, sales, etc. Another example is an
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organizational chart.
CLASSIFYING MODELS – CONCRETE TO ABSTRACT

 Schematic model is a pictorial representation of a system, e.g., blueprint, graph.

 Games, or man-machine models, include management games, war games, planning,
competition
 Simulation models, such as discrete-event system simulation models, have no human
interaction. an abstract model, e.g., an algorithm or a step-by-step computation or
computer program.
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CLASSIFYING MODELS – CONCRETE TO ABSTRACT

 Mathematical models. Symbols represent entities. These are the most generalized models,
with the risk of oversimplification.
 Heuristic model is a collection of descriptors or decision rules, usually computer-based,
which is not limited by physical, diagrammatic or mathematical bounds.

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CLASSIFYING MODELS – A CROSS-DISCIPLINARY TREE
Concrete, or physical, models can be two-
dimensional, e.g., the blueprints used by
architects, or three-dimensional, such as the
architect’s miniaturized rendering of a large
building complex, a model of an atom or a
molecule, or a clothing model in a
department store window.
Abstract models can be analytical formulas
of, e.g., those of statistics, queuing or
econometrics; the numerical models used in
simulation; or theoretical models such as
those of quantum physics, chaos theory, the
technology acceptance model (TAM) of
information systems, or Kuhn’s paradigms of
scientific research.
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CLASSIFYING MODELS – A CROSS-DISCIPLINARY TREE

Mimetic models are those that involve imitation of

life or the creation of alternative universes. They
include man-machine models such as venture
capital games – indeed, most gaming models –
and virtual reality environments. Man-man
models can include those used in psychology and
education, for example: role playing, role models,
and the what-if scenarios used in the military, law
enforcement, and intelligence communities. Also
included in the mimetic models branch are the
models of culture or society used in art, fiction,
film, and theater. These models may represent a
version of the world as it really is or, often, an
alternative version of the world as the author or
artist imagines it to be, such as a utopian or
dystopian view of the world.
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 WHAT MAKES A MODEL?

What do all these models have in common? An examination of the various models
represented in the classification tree reveals that there is indeed some commonality in the
way these verydifferent fields process information. Each model:
is a view of reality
 has a purpose
 employs abstraction, structure, and
information hiding
In addition, each model alters reality to some degree. Even physical models, which we
may expect to be fairly good representations, may be faster, slower, flatter, larger, or
smaller than the reality they purport to represent.
Abstraction models reality or, at the very least, a chosen view of reality in which irrelevant
objects or properties are ignored … making the model simpler conceptually and easier to
study, manipulate, and implement.
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FURTHER CHARACTERISTICS OF MODELS

 Static vs. Dynamic. Does the model have a time element, does it “move” over time? An
example of Static-Numerical model is Monte Carlo Sampling; An example of Dynamic-
Analytical model is Time Series regression (a linear model).
 Deterministic vs. stochastic. Does the model mimic probabilistic phenomena? Dynami
c
 Discrete vs. Continuous.
DES Stochast
 Discrete. Variables change at distinct points in time Simulation ic
 Continuous. Variables change continuously. Discret
e
 System Simulation: Experimenting with an abstract model over time, this experimentation
involving sampling from probability distributions.

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TYPES OF SIMULATIONS

 Analog simulation. Physical simulation models, e.g., analog cockpit simulator for pilot
training.
 Digital simulation – Continuous
Discret
or
e events are expressed as mathematical models using difference and
 Continuous simulation. Physical
differential equations to express relationships. Deals with continuously changing variables, e.g.,
fluid dynamics (dams, waste disposal), monetary flow models.
 Discrete-event Simulation (DES or DEVS). Models discrete entities.
 Hybrid. Some discrete, some continuous elements.

 System simulation models are (usually) large, complex computer programsDynami

that represent
aProbabilist and …………… system composed of people, cmachinery,
computers,
ic processes, etc.

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DIFFERENT KIND OF SIMULATIONS

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CONCLUSION

 All models are a simplified representation of reality, an abstraction.

 Simulation is just one type of model, a numerical model which presumes experimentation.
 A DES simulation model is discrete, stochastic and dynamic.
 Since it moves over time it must, therefore, include facilities for the collection of output
measures that change over time.

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