Simulation Of Complex Systems Research Articles

Efficient learning of accurate surrogates for simulations of complex systems

Efficient learning of accurate surrogates for simulations of complex systems

Neural network approaches for rumor stance detection: Simulating complex rumor propagation systems

SummaryThis research introduces a comprehensive suite of neural network models designed to tackle the challenging task of rumor stance detection within the framework of simulating complex rumor propagation systems. Our objective centers on accurately modeling the intricate structures of rumor dialogues and propagation patterns to identify user stances—whether they are in support, denial, questioning, or commenting on rumors. Unlike conventional methods that rely on simplistic keyword targeting and fail in the nuanced context of social networks, our models delve into the complexities of dialogue and propagation structures, offering a more precise and insightful analysis of rumor dynamics. In addressing the simulation and modeling of complex systems, our approach specifically focuses on the elaborate interaction networks that underpin rumor spread and reception. While our methodology does not directly engage with brain‐like computing paradigms, it reflects a similar level of sophistication in handling layered and complex information flows, analogous to cognitive processes in understanding and interpreting human communications. Employing a hierarchical attention mechanism, our models adeptly parse through multitiered dialogue sequences, effectively distinguishing between various indicators of user stances. This allows for a nuanced and detailed representation of the rumor ecosystem, significantly enhancing the accuracy of stance detection. Through rigorous testing on diverse datasets, our approach has demonstrated superior performance over existing models, thereby establishing a new benchmark in the field.

Thermal measurements of boiling granular films.

This study focused on two familiar items in our daily lives: grains and boiling water. Accurately measuring boiling dense granular beds requires specialized instruments and novel techniques. An annular vertical riser was used to boil granular films. The riser was filled with glass beads and then immersed in liquid water. The water is heated by inducing eddy currents at the base of the riser, which is composed of carbon steel. Beyond the critical electric current, Ic, the Lyapunov exponent of the time series of the measured temperature distributions within the granular films became positive. This indicates the chaotic behavior of the films. Slightly above Ic, patterned instabilities with affine fractal-like structures were observed in the boiling granular films. Chaotic boiling granular films manifested percolation and transition to turbulence. Computer simulations of the above system under the guidance of generative AI (GenAI) successfully reproduced many critical features of the experimental observations, which can be considered a significant breakthrough in the modeling and simulation of complex systems. With this success in utilizing GenAI, more accurate instruments can be developed, resulting in the world of tomorrow rapidly becoming today's world.

Magic NeRF lens: interactive fusion of neural radiance fields for virtual facility inspection

Virtual reality (VR) has become an important interactive visualization tool for various industrial processes including facility inspection and maintenance. The capability of a VR application to present users with realistic simulations of complex systems and immerse them in, for example, inaccessible remote environments is often essential for using VR in real-world industrial domains. While many VR solutions have already been developed to support virtual facility inspection, previous systems provide immersive visualizations only with limited realism, because the real-world conditions of facilities are often difficult to reconstruct with accurate meshes and point clouds or typically too time-consuming to be consistently updated in computer-aided design (CAD) software toolkits. In this work, we present Magic NeRF Lens, a VR framework that supports immersive photorealistic visualizations of complex industrial facilities leveraging the recent advancement of neural radiance fields (NeRF). We introduce a data fusion technique to merge a NeRF model with the polygonal representation of it’s corresponding CAD model, which optimizes VR NeRF rendering through magic-lens-style interactions while introducing a novel industrial visualization design that can support practical tasks such as facility maintenance planning and redesign. We systematically benchmarked the performance of our framework, investigated users’ perceptions of the magic-lens-style visualization design through a visual search experiment to derive design insights, and performed an empirical evaluation of our system through expert reviews. To support further research and development of customized VR NeRF applications, the source code of the toolkit was made openly available.

Multi-Scale Simulation of Complex Systems: A Perspective of Integrating Knowledge and Data

Complex system simulation has been playing an irreplaceable role in understanding, predicting, and controlling diverse complex systems. In the past few decades, the multi-scale simulation technique has drawn increasing attention for its remarkable ability to overcome the challenges of complex system simulation with unknown mechanisms and expensive computational costs. In this survey, we will systematically review the literature on multi-scale simulation of complex systems from the perspective of knowledge and data. Firstly, we will present background knowledge about simulating complex systems and the scales in complex systems. Then, we divide the main objectives of multi-scale modeling and simulation into five categories by considering scenarios with clear scale and scenarios with unclear scale, respectively. After summarizing the general methods for multi-scale simulation based on the clues of knowledge and data, we introduce the adopted methods to achieve different objectives. Finally, we introduce the applications of multi-scale simulation in typical matter systems and social systems.

A dynamic exploratory hybrid modelling framework for simulating complex and uncertain system

Complex disaster systems involve various components and mechanisms that could interact in complex ways and change over time, leading to significant deep uncertainty. Due to deep uncertainty, decision-makers have severe inadequacy of knowledge and often encounter unpredictable surprises that may emerge in the future, thus making it difficult to specify appropriate models and parameters to describe the system of interest. In this paper, we propose a dynamic exploratory hybrid modeling framework that fits data, models, and computational experiments together to simulate complex systems with deep uncertainty. In the framework, one needs to develop multiple plausible models from a hybrid modeling perspective and perform enormous computational experiments to explore the diversity of future scenarios. Real-time data is then incorporated into diverse forecasts to dynamically adjust the simulation system. This ultimately enables an ongoing modeling and analysis process in which deep uncertainty would be gradually mitigated. Our approach has been applied to a human-involved car-following system simulation under complex traffic conditions. The results show that the proposed approach can improve the prediction accuracy while enhancing the sensitivity of the simulation system to uncertain changes in the system of interest.

Estimating the carbon footprint of computational fluid dynamics

Computational resources have grown exponentially in the past few decades. These machines make possible research and design in fields as diverse as medicine, astronomy, and engineering. Despite ever-increasing computational capabilities, direct simulation of complex systems has remained challenging owing to the degrees of freedom involved. At the cusp of exascale computing, high-resolution simulation of practical problems with minimal model assumptions may soon experience a renaissance. However, growing reliance on modern computers comes at the cost of a growing carbon footprint. To illustrate this, we examine historic computations in fluid dynamics where larger computers have afforded the opportunity to simulate flows at increasingly relevant Reynolds numbers. Under a variety of flow configurations, the carbon footprint of such simulations is found to scale roughly with the fourth power of Reynolds number. This is primarily explained by the computation cost in core-hours, which is also described by similar scaling, though regional differences in renewable energy use also play a role. Using the established correlation, we examine a large database of simulations to develop estimates for the carbon footprint of computational fluid dynamics in a given year. Collectively, the analysis provides an additional benchmark for new computations where, in addition to balancing considerations of model fidelity, carbon footprint should also be considered.

A hybrid modeling approach to simulate complex systems and classify behaviors

Many important systems, both natural and artificial, are complex in nature, and models and simulations are one of the main instruments to study them. In this paper, we present an approach where a complex social system is represented at a high level of abstraction as a network, thereby addressing several challenges such as quantification, intervention, adaptation and validation. The network represents the factors that influence the mental health and wellbeing in children and young people. In this article, we present an approach that links a system dynamics simulation to simulate the network and ranking algorithms to measure the vertices’ behaviors. The network is enhanced by adding edge strengths in the form of correlations between vertices (established through literature). Such an approach allows us to exploit the network structure to qualify and quantify the vertices of the network, to overlay different processes over the network topology, to add and remove new vertices, and therefore interact dynamically. This in turn allows for the qualification of vertices’ importance and network resilience. System dynamics simulation allows for policy analysis, where different scenarios are analyzed by stimulating a set of vertices and the effect over the network is observed. This approach allows for an abstract, flexible, yet comprehensive way of analyzing a complex social network at any scale.

Comparing the Complexity and Efficiency of Composable Modeling Techniques for Multi-Scale and Multi-Domain Complex System Modeling and Simulation Applications: A Probabilistic Analysis

Modeling and simulation of complex systems frequently requires capturing probabilistic dynamics across multiple scales and/or multiple domains. Cyber–physical, cyber–social, socio–technical, and cyber–physical–social systems are common examples. Modeling and simulating such systems via a single, all-encompassing model is often infeasible, and thus composable modeling techniques are sought. Co-simulation and closure modeling are two prevalent composable modeling techniques that divide a multi-scale/multi-domain system into sub-systems, use smaller component models to capture each sub-system, and coordinate data transfer between component models. While the two techniques have similar goals, differences in their methods lead to differences in the complexity and computational efficiency of a simulation model built using one technique or the other. This paper presents a probabilistic analysis of the complexity and computational efficiency of these two composable modeling techniques for multi-scale/multi-domain complex system modeling and simulation applications. The aim is twofold: to promote awareness of these two composable modeling approaches and to facilitate complex system model design by identifying circumstances that are amenable to either approach.

Research on simultaneous switch and multiple switch processing methods

In the simulation of complex power electronic equipment containing multiple power electronic switches, it is often encountered that the same switch occurs several times in one step, or there are multiple switch actions in one step, that is, multiple switches. When the switching event occurs between two moments, because the voltage value can only be updated at the end of the simulation step, there is a cumulative error in the current obtained by the integration. In traditional electromagnetic transient simulation, the interpolation algorithm and its deformation are commonly used to solve this problem. However, due to the complexity of the conventional interpolation algorithm, it will seriously affect the efficiency in large-scale power grid simulation, and can only be applied to offline simulation, which cannot meet the needs of real-time simulation. In this paper, a method is presented to deal with synchronous switches and multiple switches, which can reliably solve the problem of synchronous switches and multiple switches encountered in real-time simulation of complex power electronic systems.

Bright solitons in a spin-orbit-coupled dipolar Bose-Einstein condensate trapped within a double-lattice.

By effectively controlling the dipole-dipole interaction, we investigate the characteristics of the ground state of bright solitons in a spin-orbit coupled dipolar Bose-Einstein condensate. The dipolar atoms are trapped within a double-lattice which consists of a linear and a nonlinear lattice. We derive the motion equations of the different spin components, taking the controlling mechanisms of the dipole-dipole interaction into account. An analytical expression of dipole-dipole interaction is derived. By adjusting the dipole polarization angle, the dipole interaction can be adjusted from attraction to repulsion. On this basis, we study the generation and manipulation of the bright solitons using both the analytical variational method and numerical imaginary time evolution. The stability of the bright solitons is also analyzed and we map out the stability phase diagram. By adjusting the long-range dipole-dipole interaction, one can achieve manipulation of bright solitons in all aspects, including the existence, width, nodes, and stability. Considering the complexity of our system, our results will have enormous potential applications in quantum simulation of complex systems.

Mechanistic population models for ecological risk assessment and decision support: The importance of good conceptual model diagrams.

The use of mechanistic population models as research and decision-support tools in ecology and ecological risk assessment (ERA) is increasing. This growth has been facilitated by advances in technology, allowing the simulation of more complex systems, as well as by standardized approaches for model development, documentation, and evaluation. Mechanistic population models are particularly useful for simulating complex systems, but the required model complexity can make them challenging to communicate. Conceptual diagrams that summarize key model elements, as well as elements that were considered but not included, can facilitate communication and understanding of models and increase their acceptance as decision-support tools. Currently, however, there are no consistent standards for creating or presenting conceptual model diagrams (CMDs), and both terminology and content vary widely. Here, we argue that greater consistency in CMD development and presentation is an important component of good modeling practice, and we provide recommendations, examples, and a free web app (pop-cmd.com) for achieving this for population models used for decision support in ERAs. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2024;20:1566-1574. © 2023 SETAC.

Equations of Motion of Mechanical Systems with Switchable Constraints

The article deals with a numerical and analytical approach to solving the equations of motion, which enables to treat the considered problems with the change of system structure or number of degrees of freedom without interrupting the numerical integration process. The described methodology allows effectively incorporate switchable constraints in the systems in accordance with their flexible structures. The crucial idea is based on the formulation of the resulting differentialalgebraic equations into a saddle point system, where the switchable constraints are represented by a sign matrix with variable rank. In connection with this property, a pseudoinversion is applied to eliminate algebraic variables and transform the problem to the first order system of ordinary differential equations. Moreover, the time independent case leads to linear autonomous systems with non-diagonalizable matrices, as is proved. The relevant numerical scheme is based on Runge-Kutta methods, that correspond to the power series of the resulting matrix exponential for time independent problems. The methodology presented is illustrated on the idealized two-mass oscillator with a switchable constraint. The numerical experiments performed range from initial stages, through simple transient cases to damped intentional control. The advanced applications can be found in robotics, active and controlled systems, and in the simulations of complex systems in biology and related areas. Moreover, the methodology can also be applied in the simulation of transport systems, especially in relation to vehicle technology, a quarter car suspension system, a vibration control mechanism, a torsion system with a clutch, and machine balancing and storage should to be highlighted.

Building accurate numerical models

Numerical modeling has emerged as a crucial tool across various scientific and engineering disciplines, enabling the simulation and prediction of complex systems. This paper explores the comprehensive process of numerical model development, encompassing problem definition, mathematical formulation, discretization, implementation, and validation. High-performance computing (HPC) technologies, including supercomputers and parallel processing, play a pivotal role in managing large-scale simulations and enhancing computational efficiency. Key strategies such as algorithm optimization, parallel computing, and efficient data management are essential for maximizing computational resources. The integration of emerging technologies like machine learning, artificial intelligence, and quantum computing holds significant promise for advancing numerical modeling capabilities. Additionally, cloud computing offers scalable and flexible resources, making high-performance computing more accessible. The paper underscores the importance of continual refinement and validation of numerical models to maintain their accuracy and reliability, ultimately highlighting the dynamic and evolving nature of this critical scientific methodology.

Structure and dynamics of liquid water from ab initio simulations: adding Minnesota density functionals to Jacob's ladder.

The accurate representation of the structural and dynamical properties of water is essential for simulating the unique behavior of this ubiquitous solvent. Here we assess the current status of describing liquid water using ab initio molecular dynamics, with a special focus on the performance of all the later generation Minnesota functionals. Findings are contextualized within the current knowledge on DFT for describing bulk water under ambient conditions and compared to experimental data. We find that, contrary to the prevalent idea that local and semilocal functionals overstructure water and underestimate dynamical properties, M06-L, revM06-L, and M11-L understructure water, while MN12-L and MN15-L overdistance water molecules due to weak cohesive effects. This can be attributed to a weakening of the hydrogen bond network, which leads to dynamical fingerprints that are over fast. While most of the hybrid Minnesota functionals (M06, M08-HX, M08-SO, M11, MN12-SX, and MN15) also yield understructured water, their dynamical properties generally improve over their semilocal counterparts. It emerges that exact exchange is a crucial component for accurately describing hydrogen bonds, which ultimately leads to corrections in both the dynamical and structural properties. However, an excessive amount of exact exchange strengthens hydrogen bonds and causes overstructuring and slow dynamics (M06-HF). As a compromise, M06-2X is the best performing Minnesota functional for water, and its D3 corrected variant shows very good structural agreement. From previous studies considering nuclear quantum effects (NQEs), the hybrid revPBE0-D3, and the rung-5 RPA (RPA@PBE) have been identified as the only two approximations that closely agree with experiments. Our results suggest that the M06-2X(-D3) functionals have the potential to further improve the reproduction of experimental properties when incorporating NQEs through path integral approaches. This work provides further proof that accurate modeling of water interactions requires the inclusion of both exact exchange and balanced (non-local) correlation, highlighting the need for higher rungs on Jacob's ladder to achieve predictive simulations of complex biological systems in aqueous environments.

Special issue: Distributed and real-time simulation of next-generation complex systems

Special issue: Distributed and real-time simulation of next-generation complex systems

Effective one‐dimensional dynamic modelling of latent heat thermal energy storage units for heating applications

AbstractEffective use of the energy stored within thermal energy storage systems requires mathematical models that faithfully represent the dynamics of interest. Although three‐dimensional or two‐dimensional models may provide an accurate representation of the thermal store, these are computationally intensive and may not be suitable for control system design or to simulate complex networks. Following this line, a low‐order one‐dimensional model of a latent heat thermal store is presented. The model is based on energy balance, the specific heat–temperature curve of the storage medium, and the dynamic calculation of the heat transfer coefficient. The simplicity afforded by the model facilitates its implementation in any programming language, guaranteeing its compatibility with commercial software to simulate complex systems. The model was implemented in MATLAB/Simulink and verified against experimental data of the real unit and simulation results obtained with a two‐dimensional model. Simulation results for charging and discharging operations obtained with the one‐dimensional model exhibit a root mean square error of ≤0.53 °C and a mean square error of ≤0.32 °C when compared with experimental results of the output temperature of the heat transfer fluid. These outcomes are deemed acceptable considering the low order of the one‐dimensional model.

An Improved Model of Wavelet Leader Covariance for Estimating Multifractal Properties

Complex systems often produce multifractal signals defined by stationary increments that exhibit power-law scaling properties. The Legendre transform of the domain-dependent scaling function that defines the power law is known as the multifractal spectrum. The multifractal spectrum can also be defined by a power-series expansion of the scaling function and in practice the first two leading coefficients of that series are estimated from the discrete wavelet transform of the signal. To quantify, validate, and compare simulations of complex systems with data collected empirically from the actual system, practitioners require methods for approximating the variance associated with estimates of these coefficients. In this work, we generalize a previously developed semi-parametric statistical model for the values extracted from a discrete multi-scale wavelet transform to include both within-scale and between-scale covariance dependencies. We employ multiplicative cascades to simulate multifractals with known parameters to illustrate the necessity for this generalization and to test the precision of our improved model. The combined within- and between-scale model of covariance results in a more accurate estimate of the expected variance of the coefficients extracted from an empirical data set.

A simulation and risk assessment framework for water-energy-environment nexus: A case study in the city cluster along the middle reach of the Yangtze River, China

In the Anthropocene, there is a strong interlinkage among water, energy, and the environment. The water-energy-environment nexus (WEEN) has been vigorously advocated as an emerging development paradigm and a global research agenda. Based on the nexus concept, a framework for the WEEN complex system simulation and risk assessment is developed. The three metropolitan areas of the city cluster along the middle reaches of the Yangtze River (CCMRYR) are taken as the objects. Regional policies are combined with generic shared socio-economic pathways (SSPs) to form a localized SSPs suitable for the research region. The dynamic simulation of the WEEN complex system and the risk analysis are carried out with the combination of system dynamics models and copula functions. Results show that: There are obvious differences in water utilization, energy consumption, air pollutant emissions, and water pollutant emissions among the three metropolitan areas. The issue of high carbon intensity in the Wuhan Metropolitan Coordinating Region needs to be emphasized and solved from the perspective of optimizing the industrial structure. Adhering to current development patterns, there will be successive peaks in water utilization, energy consumption, and carbon emissions in Wuhan, Dongting Lake, and Poyang Lake Metropolitan Coordinating Region by 2030, leading to high synergy risks at the systemic level, with maximum values of 0.84, 0.85, 0.62, respectively. A development path based on conservation priorities indicates that future policymaking needs to prioritize a resource-saving and pollution-control development pattern directed by technological upgrading against the backdrop of scarce natural resource endowments. The localized SSPs are a beneficial extension that enriches the narrative of regional-scale SSPs. The evolutionary trajectories and risk assessments of WEEN complex systems under different localized SSPs provide a sweeping insight into the consequences of policy decisions, thus enabling policymakers to appraise policy rationality and implement appropriate corrective measures.

An executable domain-specific modeling language for simulating organizational auction-based coordination strategies for crisis response

Emergency response environments in which the crisis occurs include many homogenous and heterogeneous entities, e.g., organizations and persons. These entities need to collaborate to address a crisis. However, most of the time, the organizations that are involved in a crisis suffer from communication and coordination problems. This may cause unfair resource distribution. To mitigate the problem, there is a pressing need to construct models of emergency response environments and simulate the coordination strategies proactively, before the onset of any crisis. This paper highlights the complexity of the system formed by interacting organizations during a crisis and the difficulty in programming for the simulation of such complex systems. To cope with this issue, this paper presents an executable domain-specific modeling language called CoorERE. The language facilitates modeling emergency response environments for the simulation of one of the most common coordination strategies, i.e., auction-based coordination strategies in crisis response. CoorERE is used for the graphical modeling of emergency response environments and simulation of both inter and intra-organizational auction-based coordination strategies. The paper presents two case studies with different complexities to show the applicability of CoorERE. An empirical study is conducted to compare CoorERE with MDD4ABMS, which is one of the most recent tools for modeling and simulation of multi-agent systems. The evaluation includes both objective and subjective assessments. The objective assessment considers the development effort required for modeling a complete case study, while the subjective assessment compares the tools in terms of satisfying modeling method requirements and quality metrics such as usability, productivity, and expressiveness. The results of the evaluation indicate that CoorERE reduces the development effort by about 47%. In terms of quality metrics, CoorERE obtained higher scores than MDD4ABMS for all the measurements considered, indicating its superior usability, productivity, and expressiveness.