BusinessSimulation

A library for modeling & simulation of dynamical systems in the social sciences, e.g., business, economics, and ecology using the System Dynamics metaphor

Package Contents

	UsersGuide User's Guide to BusinessSimulation Library
	ModelSettings Setting important global variables within a model
	Examples Example models showing basic and advanced functionality
	CausalLoop Agile system dynamics modeling with quantitative causal loop diagrams (CLD+)
	Stocks Containers ("reservoirs") used to represent entities that have been stored in a specific state
	Flows Processes that move entities from one stock to another at a specific rate
	SourcesOrSinks Flows into or out of a stock with infinite capacity at a system's boundary
	Converters Information processing (blocks)
	InformationSources External information input
	MoleculesOfStructure Pre-built components to model decision making, information processing, and subsystems in general
	Sensors Package with sensor components
	Interfaces Connectors and partial models for Business Simulations
	Functions Functions used within the library
	Constants Mathematical and other constants
	Types Package of Types
	Units Typical quantities used in models
	Icons Partial classes for icons

Information

This information is part of the Business Simulation Library (BSL).

The BUSINESS SIMULATION LIBRARY (BSL) supports modeling & simulation in the social sciences and ecology. Following John Sterman [3] the name "Busines Simulation" was chosen in a rather broad sense since ultimately modeling in these domains is concerned with "control", "decision making", and "management".

The BSL follows the widespread System Dynamics metaphor and modeling approach introduced by Jay W. Forrester [1], [2]. System Dynamics offers a very general, low-level modeling paradigm, that lends itself perfectly to model, simulate, and analyze strategic business or public policy issues.

Unlike existing aproaches the BSL makes use of Modelica's acausal connectors to better distinguish material/mass flows from instantaneous information signal flows (causal connections). The approach has the additional benefit of allowing the modeler to build rather compact models in a fast and reliable fashion. A recent paper [28] by the main author provides a more thorough introduction to the BSL and cyber-physical modeling in general.

To get started with the library, it is recommended to have a look at:

UsersGuide
Examples

Corresponding Author

Releases

You may not use this work except in compliance with the License. You may obtain a copy of the License at:
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dec_impl/2017/863/oj (the English text for EUPL-1.2 is included in the UsersGuide)

Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" basis, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either expressed or implied. See the License for the specific language governing permissions and limitations under the License.

The freely available Lato fonts family is used by library classes; for the best visual experience it is highly recommended to install this font on your computer, which is available for download from its official site or—in an earlier version—from the Google Fonts website.