ABSTRACT
In the first chapter, the concepts of systems modeling and simulation (M&S) were introduced. Various types of systems at their fundamental level were briefly described at the computational level. Generally, a system is a collection of components working together to achieve a result not achievable by any single component constituting a system. There are many implicit questions within this statement, such as
• How many components? • How are components organized? • Is the organization flat or hierarchical? • What are the interactions between the components? • Do the interactions define the system or vice versa? • Are the interactions local or displaced in space and time? • What is the system’s boundary? • Is it a natural system or an artificial system? • What result is being achieved? • Is an objective necessary for a system to exit? • How does a system come into being in the first place?
