What is simulation modelling?
The use of a program to predict the behaviour of a real life system
Advantages of simulation modelling for car crash analysis
- Cheaper as real cars do not need to be physically destroyed
- Safer as nobody is really hurt
- Can explore different scenarios more easily
Disadvantages of simulation modelling for car crash analysis
- Model could over simplify the situation
- Bad data errors in formulas will spoil accuracy
- No model is 100% accurate
How are weather forecast models created?
Collect data- Collect different measurements from satellites, weather balloons, weather stations, etc. such as humidity, temperature, pressure and wind speed
Derive Model- A model provides a set of mathematical equations fro. the laws of physics which are solved to predict the weather twice a day
Test/Compare- Create what if scenarios to test the model in different situations, compare actual with observed
Advantages of simulation modelling for weather forecasting
- Can generate a 6 day weather forecast in an hour
- Predict the path of hurricanes and other severe weather
- Can help farmers and local councils to plan work
Disadvantages of simulation modelling for weather forecasting
- 160 million calculations need to be processed so a supercomputer is needed (expensive investment)
- Freak storms and unusual patterns are difficult to predict
- No model is ever 100% accurate
