21st Century Strands & Strategies
Chapter: Strands & Strategies: Deep Dive
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CREATE
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Follow your plan and create it.
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Test it out!
IMPROVE
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Talk about what works, what doesn't, and what could work better.
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Modify your design to make it better.
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Test it out!
Source: Engineering is Elementary. Museum of Science, Boston. Available
at
What are Simulations?
Simulations (and models, too) are abstractions of reality. Often they
deliberately emphasize one part of reality at the expense of other parts. Sometimes this
is necessary due to computer power limitations. Sometimes it's done to focus your
attention on an important aspect of the simulation. Simulations generally come in three
styles: live, virtual and constructive. A simulation also may be a combination of two or
more styles. Within these styles, simulations can be science-based (where, for example,
interactions of things are observed or measured), or involve interactions with humans.
Three main types of simulations include:
1.
Live Simulations: Typically involve humans and/or equipment and activity in a
setting where they would operate for real. Think war games with soldiers out in
the field or manning command posts. Time is continuous, as in the real world.
Another example of live simulation is testing a car battery using an electrical
tester.
2.
Virtual Simulations: Typically involve humans and/or equipment in a computer-
controlled setting. Time is in discrete steps, allowing users to concentrate on the
important stuff, so to speak. A flight simulator falls into this category.
3.
Constructive Simulations: Typically do not involve humans or equipment as
participants. Rather than by time, they are driven more by the proper
sequencing of events. The anticipated path of a hurricane might be
"constructed" through application of temperatures, pressures, wind currents and
other weather factors. Science-based simulations are typically constructive in
nature.
What is modeling?
A computer model, as used in modeling and simulating science, is a
mathematical representation of something—a person, a building, a vehicle, a tree—
any object or variable. A model also can be a representation of a process—a weather
