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Example of scientific modelling.

A schematic of
chemical and transport processes related to atmospheric
composition.
Scientific modelling
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Scientific modelling is a scientific activity, the aim of
which is to make a particular part or feature of the
world easier to understand, define, quantify, visualize,
or simulate. It requires selecting and identifying
relevant aspects of a situation in the real world and
then using different types of models for different
aims, such as conceptual models to better understand,
operational models to operationalize, mathematical
models to quantify, and graphical models to visualize
the subject. Modelling is an essential and inseparable
part of scientific activity, and many scientific
disciplines have their own ideas about specific types
of modelling.
[1][2]
There is also an increasing attention to scientific
modelling
[3]
in fields such as philosophy of science,
systems theory, and knowledge visualization. There is
growing collection of methods, techniques and
meta-theory about all kinds of specialized scientific
modelling.
Contents
1 Overview
2 Scientific modelling basics
2.1 Modelling as a substitute for direct measurement and experimentation
2.2 Simulation
2.3 Structure
2.4 Systems
2.5 The process of generating a model
2.6 The process of evaluating a model
2.7 Visualization
3 Types of scientific modelling
3.1 Business process modelling
3.2 Other types
4 Applications
4.1 Modelling and Simulation
5 See also
6 References
7 Further reading
8 External links
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Overview
A scientific model seeks to represent empirical
objects, phenomena, and physical processes in a
logical and objective way. All models are in
simulacra, that is, simplified reflections of reality,
but, despite their inherent falsity, they are
nevertheless extremely useful.
[4]
Building and
disputing models is fundamental to the scientific enterprise. Complete and true representation may be
impossible (see non-representational theory), but scientific debate often concerns which is the better model
for a given task, e.g., which is the more accurate climate model for seasonal forecasting.
[5]
Attempts to formalize the principles of the empirical sciences use an interpretation to model reality, in the
same way logicians axiomatize the principles of logic. The aim of these attempts is to construct a formal
system that will not produce theoretical consequences that are contrary to what is found in reality.
Predictions or other statements drawn from such a formal system mirror or map the real world only insofar
as these scientific models are true.
[6] [7]
For the scientist, a model is also a way in which the human thought processes can be amplified.
[8]
For
instance, models that are rendered in software allow scientists to leverage computational power to simulate,
visualize, manipulate and gain intuition about the entity, phenomenon, or process being represented. Such
computer models are in silico. Other types of scientific model are in vivo (living models, such as laboratory
rats) and in vitro (in glassware, such as tissue culture).
[9]
Scientific modelling basics
Modelling as a substitute for direct measurement and experimentation
Models are typically used when it is either impossible or impractical to create experimental conditions in
which scientists can directly measure outcomes. Direct measurement of outcomes under controlled
conditions (see Scientific Method) will always be more reliable than modelled estimates of outcomes.
Simulation
A simulation is the implementation of a model. A steady state simulation provides information about the
system at a specific instant in time (usually at equilibrium, if such a state exists). A dynamic simulation
provides information over time. A simulation brings a model to life and shows how a particular object or
phenomenon will behave. Such a simulation can be useful for testing, analysis, or training in those cases
where real-world systems or concepts can be represented by models.
[10]
Structure
Structure is a fundamental and sometimes intangible notion covering the recognition, observation, nature,
and stability of patterns and relationships of entities. From a childs verbal description of a snowflake, to the
detailed scientific analysis of the properties of magnetic fields, the concept of structure is an essential
foundation of nearly every mode of inquiry and discovery in science, philosophy, and art.
[11]
Systems
A system is a set of interacting or interdependent entities, real or abstract, forming an integrated whole. In
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general, a system is a construct or collection of different elements that together can produce results not
obtainable by the elements alone.
[12]
The concept of an integrated whole can also be stated in terms of a
system embodying a set of relationships which are differentiated from relationships of the set to other
elements, and from relationships between an element of the set and elements not a part of the relational
regime. There are two types of system models: 1) discrete in which the variables change instantaneously at
separate points in time and, 2) continuous where the state variables change continuously with respect to
time.
[13]
The process of generating a model
Modelling refers to the process of generating a model as a conceptual representation of some phenomenon.
Typically a model will refer only to some aspects of the phenomenon in question, and two models of the
same phenomenon may be essentially different, that is to say that the difference or differences between them
is more than just a simple renaming of components.
Such differences may be due to differing requirements of the models end users, or to conceptual or aesthetic
differences among the modellers and to contingent decisions made during the modelling process. Aesthetic
considerations that may influence the structure of a model might be the modellers preference for a reduced
ontology, preferences regarding probabilistic models vis-a-vis deterministic ones, discrete vs continuous
time, etc. For this reason, users of a model need to understand the models original purpose and the
assumptions made that are pertinent to its validity.
Building a model requires abstraction. Assumptions are used in modeling in order to specify the domain of
application of the model. For example, the special theory of relativity assumes an inertial frame of reference.
This assumption was contextualized and further explained by the general theory of relativity. A model makes
accurate predictions when its assumptions are valid, and does not make accurate predictions when its
assumptions do not hold. Such assumptions are often the point with which older theories are succeeded by
new ones (the general theory of relativity works in non-inertial reference frames as well).
The term "assumption" is actually broader than its standard use, etymologically speaking. The Oxford
English Dictionary (OED) and online Wiktionary indicate its Latin source as assumere ("accept, to take to
oneself, adopt, usurp"), which is a conjunction of ad- ("to, towards, at") and sumere (to take). The root
survives, with shifted meanings, in the Italian sumere and Spanish sumir. In the OED, "assume" has the
senses of (i) investing oneself with (an attribute), (ii) to undertake (especially in Law), (iii) to take to
oneself in appearance only, to pretend to possess, and (iv) to suppose a thing to be. Thus, "assumption"
connotes other associations than the contemporary standard sense of that which is assumed or taken for
granted; a supposition, postulate, and deserves a broader analysis in the philosophy of science.
The process of evaluating a model
A model is evaluated first and foremost by its consistency to empirical data; any model inconsistent with
reproducible observations must be modified or rejected. One way to modify the model is by restricting the
domain over which it is credited with having high validity. A case in point is Newtonian physics, which is
highly useful except for the very small, the very fast, and the very massive phenomena of the universe.
However, a fit to empirical data alone is not sufficient for a model to be accepted as valid. Other factors
important in evaluating a model include:
Ability to explain past observations
Ability to predict future observations
Cost of use, especially in combination with other models
Refutability, enabling estimation of the degree of confidence in the model
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Abstraction for Business process modelling
[14]
Simplicity, or even aesthetic appeal
People may attempt to quantify the evaluation of a model using a utility function.
Visualization
Visualization is any technique for creating images, diagrams, or animations to communicate a message.
Visualization through visual imagery has been an effective way to communicate both abstract and concrete
ideas since the dawn of man. Examples from history include cave paintings, Egyptian hieroglyphs, Greek
geometry, and Leonardo da Vincis revolutionary methods of technical drawing for engineering and scientific
purposes.
Types of scientific modelling
Business process modelling
In business process modelling the enterprise process
model is often referred to as the business process model.
Process models are core concepts in the discipline of
process engineering. Process models are:
Processes of the same nature that are classified
together into a model.
A description of a process at the type level.
Since the process model is at the type level, a
process is an instantiation of it.
The same process model is used repeatedly for the development of many applications and thus, has many
instantiations.
One possible use of a process model is to prescribe how things must/should/could be done in contrast to the
process itself which is really what happens. A process model is roughly an anticipation of what the process
will look like. What the process shall be will be determined during actual system development.
[15]
Other types
Analogical
modelling
Assembly
modelling
Catastrophe
modelling
Choice
Modelling
Climate model
Continuous
Enterprise
modelling
Futures studies
Geologic
modelling
Goal Modelling
Homology
modelling
Hydrogeology
Hydrography
Metabolic
network
modelling
Microscale
modelling
Modelling in
Epidemiology
Molecular
modelling
Modelling
Software
modelling
Solid modelling
Statistics
Stochastic
modelling
System
architecture
System dynamics
Systems
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modelling
Data modelling
Document
modelling
Discrete
modelling
Economic model
Ecosystem
model
Empirical
modelling
Hydrologic
modelling
Informative
Modelling
Macroscale
modelling
Mathematical
modelling
biological
systems
Multiscale
modelling
NLP modelling
Predictive intake
modelling
Predictive
modelling
Simulation
modeling
Applications
Modelling and Simulation
One application of scientific modelling is the field of "Modelling and Simulation", generally referred to as
"M&S". M&S has a spectrum of applications which range from concept development and analysis, through
experimentation, measurement and verification, to disposal analysis. Projects and programs may use
hundreds of different simulations, simulators and model analysis tools.
Example of the integrated use of Modelling and Simulation in Defence life cycle management. The
modelling and simulation in this image is represented in the center of the image with the three
containers.
[10]
Scientific modelling - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_modelling
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The figure shows how Modelling and Simulation is used as a central part of an integrated program in a
Defence capability development process.
[10]
See also
Heuristic
List of computer graphics and descriptive geometry topics
List of graphical methods
Modelling language
Scientific visualization
Seven Management and Planning Tools
Simulation
Systems Engineering
Toy model
References
^ Cartwright, Nancy. 1983. How the Laws of Physics Lie. Oxford University Press 1.
^ Hacking, Ian. 1983. Representing and Intervening. Introductory Topics in the Philosophy of Natural Science.
Cambridge University Press
2.
^ Frigg and Hartmann (2009) state: "Philosophers are acknowledging the importance of models with increasing
attention and are probing the assorted roles that models play in scientific practice". Source: Frigg, Roman and
Hartmann, Stephan, "Models in Science", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Summer 2009 Edition),
Edward N. Zalta (ed.), (source (http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/sum2009/entries/models-science/))
3.
^ Box, George E.P. & Draper, N.R. (1987). [Empirical Model-Building and Response Surfaces.] Wiley. p. 424 4.
^ Hagedorn, R. et al. (2005) http://www.ecmwf.int/staff/paco_doblas/abstr/tellus05_1.pdf (http://www.ecmwf.int
/staff/paco_doblas/abstr/tellus05_1.pdf,) Tellus 57A:219-233
5.
^ Leo Apostel (1961). "Formal study of models". In: The Concept and the Role of the Model in Mathematics and
Natural and Social. Edited by Hans Freudenthal. Springer. p. 8-9 (Source (http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&
id=8083fb2EuAMC&
dq=The+Concept+and+the+Role+of+the+Model+in+Mathematics+and+Natural+and+Social+Sciences&
printsec=frontcover&source=web&ots=bF9aEC4e6L&sig=iduhMF0ektNGV87_ZkwuY5thw0U#PPA8,M1))],
6.
^ Ritchey, T. (2012) Outline for a Morphology of Modelling Methods: Contribution to a General Theory of
Modelling (http://www.amg.swemorph.com/pdf/amg-1-1-2012.pdf)
7.
^ C. West Churchman, The Systems Approach, New York: Dell publishing, 1968, p.61 8.
^ Griffiths, E. C. (2010) What is a model? (https://sites.google.com/a/ncsu.edu/emily-griffiths/whatisamodel.pdf) 9.
^
a bc
Systems Engineering Fundamentals. (http://www.dau.mil/pubs/pdf/SEFGuide%2001-01.pdf) Defense
Acquisition University Press, 2003.
10.
^ Pullan, Wendy (2000). Structure. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-78258-9. 11.
^ Fishwick PA. (1995). Simulation Model Design and Execution: Building Digital Worlds. Upper Saddle River,
NJ: Prentice Hall.
12.
^ Sokolowski, J.A.,Banks, C.M.(2009). Principles of Modelling and Simulation. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley and
Sons.
13.
Scientific modelling - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_modelling
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^ Colette Rolland (1993). "Modeling the Requirements Engineering Process." in: 3rd European-Japanese Seminar
on Information Modelling and Knowledge Bases, Budapest, Hungary, June 1993.
14.
^ C. Rolland and C. Thanos Pernici (1998). "A Comprehensive View of Process Engineering". In: Proceedings of
the 10th International Conference CAiSE98, B. Lecture Notes in Computer Science 1413, Pisa, Italy, Springer,
June 1998.
15.
Further reading
Nowadays there are some 40 magazines about scientific modelling which offer all kinds of international
forums. Since the 1960s there is a strong growing amount of books and magazines about specific forms of
scientific modelling. There is also a lot of discussion about scientific modelling in the philosophy-of-science
literature. A selection:
Rainer Hegselmann, Ulrich Mller and Klaus Troitzsch (eds.) (1996). Modelling and Simulation in the
Social Sciences from the Philosophy of Science Point of View. Theory and Decision Library.
Dordrecht: Kluwer.
Paul Humphreys (2004). Extending Ourselves: Computational Science, Empiricism, and Scientific
Method. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Johannes Lenhard, Gnter Kppers and Terry Shinn (Eds.) (2006) "Simulation: Pragmatic
Constructions of Reality", Springer Berlin.
Tom Ritchey (2012). "Outline for a Morphology of Modelling Methods: Contribution to a General
Theory of Modelling". In: Acta Morphologica Generalis, Vol 1. No 1. pp. 1-20.
Fritz Rohrlich (1990). "Computer Simulations in the Physical Sciences". In: Proceedings of the
Philosophy of Science Association, Vol. 2, edited by Arthur Fine et al., 507-518. East Lansing: The
Philosophy of Science Association.
Rainer Schnell (1990). "Computersimulation und Theoriebildung in den Sozialwissenschaften". In:
Klner Zeitschrift fr Soziologie und Sozialpsychologie 1, 109-128.
Sergio Sismondo and Snait Gissis (eds.) (1999). Modeling and Simulation. Special Issue of Science in
Context 12.
Eric Winsberg (2001). "Simulations, Models and Theories: Complex Physical Systems and their
Representations". In: Philosophy of Science 68 (Proceedings): 442-454.
Eric Winsberg (2003). "Simulated Experiments: Methodology for a Virtual World". In: Philosophy of
Science 70: 105125.
External links
Models in Science (http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/models-science/). Entry in the Stanford
Encyclopedia of Philosophy
The World as a Process: Simulations in the Natural and Social Sciences (http://philsci-archive.pitt.edu
/archive/00002412/), in: R. Hegselmann et al. (eds.), Modelling and Simulation in the Social Sciences
from the Philosophy of Science Point of View, Theory and Decision Library. Dordrecht: Kluwer 1996,
77-100.
Scientific modelling - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_modelling
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Research in simulation and modeling of various physical systems (http://www.nsf.gov/cise/kdi/ideas
/algorithms.html)
Modeling (http://www.nal.usda.gov/wqic/modeling.shtml) Water Quality Information Center, U.S.
Department of Agriculture
Ecotoxicology & Models (http://www.ecotoxmodels.org/)
A Morphology of Modelling Methods (http://www.amg.swemorph.com/pdf/amg-1-1-2012.pdf/). Acta
Morphologica Generalis, Vol 1. No 1. pp. 1-20.
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Categories: Scientific modeling Conceptual models Epistemology of science
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