What is Simulation: Definition and 879 Discussions

A simulation is the imitation of the operation of a real-world process or system over time. Simulations require the use of models; the model represents the key characteristics or behaviors of the selected system or process, whereas the simulation represents the evolution of the model over time. Often, computers are used to execute the simulation.
Simulation is used in many contexts, such as simulation of technology for performance tuning or optimizing, safety engineering, testing, training, education, and video games. Simulation is also used with scientific modelling of natural systems or human systems to gain insight into their functioning, as in economics. Simulation can be used to show the eventual real effects of alternative conditions and courses of action. Simulation is also used when the real system cannot be engaged, because it may not be accessible, or it may be dangerous or unacceptable to engage, or it is being designed but not yet built, or it may simply not exist.Key issues in modeling and simulation include the acquisition of valid sources of information about the relevant selection of key characteristics and behaviors used to build the model, the use of simplifying approximations and assumptions within the model, and fidelity and validity of the simulation outcomes. Procedures and protocols for model verification and validation are an ongoing field of academic study, refinement, research and development in simulations technology or practice, particularly in the work of computer simulation.

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  1. fargoth

    Speeding up particle simulation

    Hi, I've got a list of particles (where each particle has it's coordinates in space and velocity) these particles can interact with each-other (f=\frac{a}{r^4}-\frac{b}{r^8}) (i'll add 6 - 12 soon too) anyway, as it is now, the program has a complexity of O(\frac{n(n-1)}{2}) because every...
  2. J

    Gradient question for fluid simulation

    Simple gradient question.. I have a kernel function that determines the influence of each water droplet given a radius r: (10/pi*h^5)*(h-r)^3 The gradient of that is: (-30/pi*h^5)*(h-r)^2 But 'r' is not a vector, its a scalar, its just the distance to the point in question. So how do...
  3. I

    Exploring the Einstein Field Equations with a Simulation

    Hello, As with a lot of people, I have been excited and fascinated by the field equations Einstein described, revealing the curvature of spacetime. I would like to create a computer simulation which simulates the effects of the Einstein Field Equations, in other words, the curvature of...
  4. B

    Physics Simulation: Calculating Gravitational Force between Earth and Sun

    I've written a couple of small physics simulations in the past (hey, everyone has to have a hobby) and now I'm trying to write something a little more complex so decided to attempt to write an program that simulates the motion of the planets and moons in our solar-system entirely procedurally -...
  5. P

    3d simulation of special relativity

    Hi My name is Pete and this is my first post. I'm a few months away from finishing a degree in mathematics. I'm planning to program a simulation of near light speed travel (not for school, just for personal interest). I'm looking to understand this topic better. I went to a seminar on...
  6. L

    PSpice Simulation - Bridge Rectifier

    Hi, I'm having a problem while running a simulation of a Bridge Rectifier on PSpice. This is my circuit schematic: http://img521.imageshack.us/img521/276/q1tasks2schematicsxp3.jpg Vs is at 15sin(100*pi*t). And this is the input and output waveforms plotted by PSpice...
  7. marcus

    Are we just a simulation? (Woit's message to the overlords: Dont turn us off)

    http://www.math.columbia.edu/~woit/wordpress/?p=586 Maybe it's well-known that a group in Holland (at the Utrecht Institute for Theoretical Physics) have been running simplicial-model Monte Carlo simulations of the universe. So far they have generated literally millions of different...
  8. J

    News Strategy - simulation north korean - france conflict

    hey i was wondering, if there happened to be a North Korean - French conflict that there would be no economic sanctions on both countries that all other countries stay neutral who would have the advantage ? i know France has a small army, but modern 1 aircraft carrier (2 in 2015), nuclear...
  9. wolram

    Exploring Traffic Flow Simulation: Slowing Motorway Speeds

    Has anyone seen a traffic flow simulator, or used a program similar to this? I would like to simulate the effects of slowing traffic speed limit in a major city, and see what effect it would have on the motorways, maybe the software is all ready in use some where?
  10. M

    Look for a free electron diffraction simulation software

    I am looking for a free Electron diffraction simulation software/program (Windows-based software). Please let me know where to download! Thanks! :!)
  11. A

    Troubleshooting Monte Carlo Simulation Compiler Issues

    Hello, my colleague has a problem. He has a Monte Carlo simulation written in C. But his program gives different outputs in case he compile it using g++ or icc. He has nothing changed in his source. He is using standard random number generator drand() with initialization srand((unsigned) time...
  12. A

    How High Should I Drop My Weapon Sights for a 2.2 M/S Recoil Simulation?

    I need to do a rifle recoil simulation to some weapon sights. I have two of them. One weighs 2.2 lbs and the other 2.6 lbs. I need them to be going 2.2 meters a second when the hit the ground. How high do I have to drop each one?
  13. B

    Could computer simulations lead to discovering new laws of the universe?

    Of all our learning of the natural world we have come up with many universal constants. How things interact and such. Whos to say we couldn't make a computer program with these laws in a space and let it go. Disregarding the fact that the memory and computation speed of the computer would be...
  14. B

    EGINNERS GUIDE: Simulation with Pspice RCL Circuit

    Hi, It is my first encouter with Pspice program. I want to simulate a RCL circuit to see how it react at different frequencies. I made the circuit and create a netlist. The circuit has no errors( when I look at the output file) but I don't know what to do to produce a curve. please can...
  15. S

    C++ / Win32 / Physics Simulation

    Homework Statement Simple Pendulum using Forces (Computer Simulation) Max theata = PI / 6 Force Of Gravity is { 0, 10 } Force_Tension.x = - 10 * sin(balls.theata); Force_Tension.y = - 10 * cos(balls.theata); Homework Equations accelleration = Force_Tension -...
  16. T

    MATLAB Vehilce simulation, matlab simulink

    hi there, i am currently developing a vehilce simulation model using MATLAB simulink. The simulation requires a vehilce to be simulated traveling around a simple race track. the vehilce model itslef has already been created and have all necessary vehicle input data for the simulation. the...
  17. S

    Magnetic Simulation: Simulating Permanent Magnet Separator

    I want to simulate a permanet magnets separator. I need to know the attraction force betwen the magnets and some materials like iron. I don´t know what software i have to use. Thank you for any help.
  18. C

    Astro simulation program problem - program bugs?

    Hello all, for the past few weeks my friend and me have been working on a project involving simulation of orbital objects interaction. For example, one could see how everything looks if he/she entered all the details about the objects (that is: mass, position and velocity vector). The...
  19. K

    Car Crash Simulation: Calculating Damage & Enhancement Effects

    Hi.. I am trying to create a car crash simulation. what i want to do is to simulate two cars crashing and calculate the damage that was induced on both cars with the given speed, mass etc. part 2 of that simulation is an enhancement on car A. I would put beams on the doors of the cars to lessen...
  20. R

    Nuclear Simulation- Beta Decay ?

    Nuclear Simulation- Beta Decay ?? Hi, I'm a high school sophomore, I'm having trouble finding a suitable trigger for beta decay in my nuclear simulation (for fun) :confused: :cry: :confused: . I have the strong force and electromagnetic forces all set but I've run into the problem of atoms...
  21. Fredrik

    Simulation of the growth of a poker player's bankroll

    I need some help with some statistics stuff. Right now I need it to understand one particular discussion in a poker forum, but I also think that this is a good opportunity for me to learn these things better. That's why I'm posting my questions here instead of in the poker forum. Someone...
  22. W

    Probability related to an Appointment Scheduling Simulation

    I am trying to simulate the performance of a web booking/scheduling system and although there are many features of this problem that intrigue me the one currently giving me fits is demonstrated below. Assume that a dentist has 8 appointments per day and that each appointment time is equally...
  23. Shahil

    Simulate a Working Model with Sodaplay Software

    [PLAIN]www.sodaplay.com[/URL] www.strandbeest.com Sure u guys saw these .. my question .. is there any software available to simulate stuff like this with the view to make a real, working model? Thanks guys ..
  24. J

    Single Degree of Freedom System-Video Simulation

    Can anyone help me with some video simulations on vibrations in single degree of freedom system like the one in the link below...
  25. S

    Exploring Alternatives to HSPICE for Circuit Simulation

    I am using hspice right now and I have to say that it is not the most intuitive thing in the world. What other softwares like spice are out there? Which ones do you guys use for simulating a circuit that you made?
  26. S

    Help Designing Digital Elevator Simulation

    I need some help designing a Digital elevator simulation using multi media logics. I need some help and guidelines as to how I should get the thruth diagrams, kmaps and the circuit going. I am required to design a digital circuit which has applications in elevator style controls. My circuit...
  27. berkeman

    Magnetic Field Simulation Software ? - Updated

    Magnetic Field Simulation Software ? -- Updated I'd like to run some simulations of AC magnetic fields and several ferrite geometries. I can write the simulations myself, but would much prefer to save the time and just use a canned program if it will let me do what I want. Has anybody had...
  28. E

    Differential amplifier simulation

    I'm trying to simulate this ciruit on microsim schematics: http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i281/esmeco/amplifier.jpg This's what I've got so far: http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i281/esmeco/Microsimcircuit.jpg What I want to see is the final graph with the values of V0,V1,V2.V1...
  29. K

    How to Solve Tolman-Oppenheimer-Volkov Equations for Neutron Stars?

    Does anyone know of a good reference regarding solving the Tolman-Oppenheimer-Volkov equations for neutron stars? Most things I find are either too elementary and others skip multiple steps. I think the EoS to use should be that of a Fermi gas model, but I am not sure.
  30. M

    Juggling Simulation: Investigating the Relationship Between X & Y Velocity

    Hi, I am working with a juggling simulation to better my understanding of projectile motion. However, I encountered a slight problem. To my understanding, an initial y velocity and an initial x velocity are independent of each other. A y-velocity affects the height of how high the ball...
  31. V

    LHV simulation for bell setup based on photon bunching

    hi all, I return to post after about a year. one of the acknowledged loopholes in the bell experiments is how the coincidence circuitry behaves under what might be called "simultaneous H/V measurements" where H/V represent horizontal/vertical polarized photons at one arm. basically, if you...
  32. marcus

    Wet planets common (new simulation study by Raymond et al)

    current issue of SCIENCE http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/short/313/5792/1413 Exotic Earths: Forming Habitable Worlds with Giant Planet Migration Sean N. Raymond, Avi M. Mandell, Steinn Sigurdsson "Close-in giant planets (e.g., "hot Jupiters") are thought to form far from their...
  33. H

    Electrowetting simulation problem

    Hi, I'm trying to solve an electrowetting problem, by using the finite element Galerkin method. The problem is to find simultaneously the shape of the liquid drop and the distribution of potential in electrode and air. I've calculated the residuals for the potential u (Ru), in both air (Ru2)...
  34. CarlB

    Simulation for Newton's gravity, GR to be added later.

    May as well announce my Java applet that simulates Newton's law of gravitation. The initial conditions are set to give a demonstration of conservation of angular momentum. That is, 8 test masses are launched, all with the same angular momentum, and their orbits cross on the other side of the...
  35. M

    PSpice simulation vs temperature

    I am trying to define the sensitivity of a piezoresistance as a function of temperature using PARAMETERS. The equation is: {S=S0(1-TCS(temp-25))}. The problem is that "temp" doesn't change during a Temperature Sweep, but I don't have any error either. Could you help me?
  36. Astronuc

    NASA NASA Achieves Breakthrough In Black Hole Simulation

    http://www.nasa.gov/vision/universe/starsgalaxies/gwave.html
  37. A

    Are we living in a computer simulation?

    Came upon the following article: http://www.simulation-argument.com/simulation.html Granted, there are some other approaches to the these metaphysical questions (string theory for instance) but... will it actually reveal the meaning of life or maybe finally discover GOD or refute his...
  38. K

    Gunshot simulation with FEMLAB

    Hi! I'm about to start an acoustic analysis of the local shooting range. The range is (as every other range in sweden) about to be forced to shut down since it's not PC to practice shooting in sweden. However, the official reason is that the sound pollution is to great. Im interested...
  39. DaveC426913

    Orbital Simulation: Estimating Mass from Orbit & Visual Observations

    (unrelated to my other post about an asteroid) 1] I would like to check a postulation with someone who has an orbital simulator, or a good head for orbital mechanics. Given an object such as a comet with orbital period of about 150 years, could it have a perihelion at a distance between...
  40. K

    Discovering the Origin of Life through reverse-time physics simulation.

    If we understand the possible origin of life very well, we could model it on a supercomputer using known physical laws. Physical laws can be used to trace a pathway forwards and backwards in time as astronomers do when predicting the motions of the planets, or tracing back previous postions...
  41. A

    Inter-Planetary Modeling: Our Solar System Simulation

    We had a project in PHYC 2050 to write an applet simulating a scientific model. Me and my partner chose the solar system, which was a step up from the other projects (ideal gas law, refraction :biggrin: ). We took into account inter-planetary actions and used a simple "assume force is contant...
  42. D

    AC vs DC Simulation: Understanding the Difference

    I have a simple question about AC/DC. I expected a circuit with a given DC voltage to be equivalent to one with an AC voltage whose value (peak-to-peak) is the same (at least theoretically). For 10 V DC, I get a load voltage of 1.6667 V, whereas 10 Vp-p AC gives 1.6602 V (simulation). Are there...
  43. ranger

    Solve Spice Simulation Error: " .END Card Missing

    I'm currently learning spice. I need help with a very simple circuit. http://www.ibiblio.org/obp/electricCircuits/Ref/01004.png Here is the netlist: Example netlist v1 1 0 dc 15 r1 1 0 2.2k r2 1 2 3.3k r3 2 0 150 .end When I run it in spice(2g6) I get: ******* 12/04/10 ******** SPICE...
  44. DaveC426913

    Someone want to have fun with asteroid simulation?

    I'm playing matchmaker again. A guy on another board (ADP) is doing research for a story about a near-miss asteroid and he wants to get his physics right. I am strongly suggesting he do a proper simulation so he's got his numbers straight. Would anyone with the right software be willing to...
  45. J

    Spacecraft Attitude Control Simulation

    I'm building a spacecraft attitude control simulation and I'm looking for some references to help me build a realistic mathematical model. Could someone please help me? I'm testing an AI library I built and that is requiring a lot of research in itself. Thanks for your time! Jeff
  46. ranger

    Pneumatic/hydraulic simulation software?

    I'm looking pneumatic/hydraulic simulation software. Anyone know any good ones? It would be nice if they had a trail version also. --thank you.
  47. DaveC426913

    Why Do Different Planetary Simulation Softwares Show Discrepancies?

    I am disappointed and a little alarmed to find big discrepancies between simulator software. Following advice from https://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=84458", I tried simulating the same date: May 5 1975 with three simulators: http://www.fourmilab.ch/cgi-bin/uncgi/Solar"...
  48. B

    Motorcycle/Rider simulation. Problems controlling oscillations.

    Hello, My first post and it's going to be a question =) I hope I can get some replies. Here we go :- I'm constructing a simulation of a motorcycle with rider and I have encountered a problem with oscillation (lack of stability) that I just can't find a solution for. Basically the bike will...
  49. T

    Induction Machine Simulation

    I'm modelling an induction machine used as a fast-response drive that provides on-demand additional power to a manually operated lever. My problem is I have no fixed operating point, the motor operates at high speeds but only for a maximum of 10 seconds at a time. I'm also modelling this out of...
  50. K

    Simulation with Multisim problem

    This is the value after i calculate ,but use multisim to simulate this circuit,i get a answer different completely with the calculate answer.Example the Vout,also is most importent value,the calculate answer is -2.1V,but the answer of simulation is possitive value!y will like this?It i use the...
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