Ontology, a mediator for agent-based modeling in social science
Agent-Based Models are useful for describing and understanding social, economic and spatial systems' dynamics. But, beside the facilities this methodology offers, evaluation and comparison of simulation models lead to some problems. A rigorous conceptual frame needs to be developed in order to ensure the coherence in the chain linking at one extreme the scientist's hypotheses about the modeled phenomenon and at the other the structure of rules in the computer program. The aim is to reflect upon the role that a well defined ontology, based on the crossing of the philosophical and the computer science insights, can play for solving such questions and helping the model building. We analyze different conceptions of ontology, introduce the "ontological test" and show its usefulness to compare models. Then we focus on the model building and show the place of a systematic ABM ontology. At last the relation between emergence and ontology is developed.
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | conference_item biblioteca |
| Language: | eng |
| Published: |
s.n.
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| Subjects: | U10 - Informatique, mathématiques et statistiques, E50 - Sociologie rurale, |
| Online Access: | http://agritrop.cirad.fr/547184/ |
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| Summary: | Agent-Based Models are useful for describing and understanding social, economic and spatial systems' dynamics. But, beside the facilities this methodology offers, evaluation and comparison of simulation models lead to some problems. A rigorous conceptual frame needs to be developed in order to ensure the coherence in the chain linking at one extreme the scientist's hypotheses about the modeled phenomenon and at the other the structure of rules in the computer program. The aim is to reflect upon the role that a well defined ontology, based on the crossing of the philosophical and the computer science insights, can play for solving such questions and helping the model building. We analyze different conceptions of ontology, introduce the "ontological test" and show its usefulness to compare models. Then we focus on the model building and show the place of a systematic ABM ontology. At last the relation between emergence and ontology is developed. |
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