Re: A whiff of reality...

[M. Lang & S. Railsback]

Doug Donalson wrote:
> 
> Steve, at least from looking at the quote, you got an idiot, don't take it

I'm willing to accept that verdict, without question. What is really sad
is that the editor wasn't responsible enough to recognize and reject the
comments of an idiot.

However, I'm experienced enough to know that this kind of stuff happens
all the time with all kinds of issues. The basic problem is how to you
point out that a modeling practice is bad when it is followed by 99% of
the so-called modelers out there?

In fact, this seems like a basic issue of agent-based modeling- how do
we get the 99% of other modelers to see the problems with what they have
been doing for decades?

However, to stick with computer issues, who has scholarly citations on
software engineering aspects of ABMs? A real help might even be a
software engineering text that discusses testing and reliability of
object-oriented models.

The only two papers I normally cite are:

Minar, N., R. Burkhart, C. Langton and M. Askenazi. 1996. The Swarm
simulation system: A toolkit for building multi-agent simulations. Santa
Fe Institute, Santa Fe, NM. Available at:
www.santafe.edu/projects/swarm.
(Covers briefly a wide range of computer implementation issues.)

Lorek, H. and M. Sonnenschein. 1999. Modelling and simulation software
to support individual-based ecological modelling. Ecol. Model. 115:
199-216.
(Identifies problems with home-made codes. Discusses 3 options:
libraries or frameworks like Swarm, modeling tools for classes of IBMs,
simulators for 1 model.)


> BTW:  You also had a paper into Ecology, any word?

Been watching the mailbox closely...

Thanks

Steve
-- 
address@hidden
Lang, Railsback & Assoc.
250 California Ave., Arcata CA 95521
707-822-0453; Fax 822-1868


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