top of page
System Analysis and Design
Name
Definition
Interest
Possible Jobs
Models of computation
Classical models of computation in computer science, rooted in Turing-Church theories for non-concurrent systems, and in nondeterministic transition systems and process algebras for concurrent systems, do not handle temporal dynamics well. Extending these theories to embrace metric time, to handle multiform time, and to provide concurrency models that match better the concurrency of the physical world is a central CPS problem. For example, when considering software components, the classical software-engineering notion of objects, which interact with one another through procedure calls, might be replaced or supplemented with an "actor-oriented" component model. Actors interact with one another through input-output stimuli rather than procedure calls.
Computational science is heavily used in the engineering disciplines for design of aircraft, integrated circuits, construction equipment and aerospace structures. However, the need for computing has emerged into more diverse scientific areas such as biology (genetics and gene sequencing, design of new medications, biostatistics), chemistry (nanotechnology), environmental science (long term modeling of the effects of environmental hazards), geology (plate tectonics, sedimentation and erosion), meteorology (weather prediction). In addition, many of these areas need to be examined simultaneously in order to obtain more accurate models. The formation of geologic structures over the millennia requires the use of geology in addition to meteorology, environmental science and biology. Finally, a more recent need for computational science has arisen in areas that might not traditionally be viewed as computing intensive. Some examples include the financial markets (modeling of the options and derivative markets, hedge fund analysis, portfolio optimization), physical education (kinesiology, biological physics), acoustics (modeling of automotive mufflers, movie theaters and auditoriums) and computer graphics (gaming, ray tracing and CGI rendering).
The complexity of computational methods is a threat to the reproducibility of research. Computational science application programs often model real-world changing conditions, such as weather, air flow around a plane, automobile body distortions in a crash, the motion of stars in a galaxy, an explosive device, etc. Such programs might create a 'logical mesh' in computer memory where each item corresponds to an area in space and contains information about that space relevant to the model.
bottom of page