The Profession of Modeling and Simulation

Discipline, Ethics, Education, Vocation, Societies, and Economics

Andreas Tolk, Tuncer Ören, Andreas Tolk, Tuncer Ören

• Publisher: Wiley
• Year: 2017
• Print ISBN:
  9781119288084
• Edition: 1
• eBook ISBN:
  9781119288220
• Topic: Technology & Engineering
• Subtopic: Electrical Engineering & Telecommunications
• Index: Technology & Engineering

The definite guide to the theory, knowledge, technical expertise, and ethical considerations that define the M&S profession

From traffic control to disaster management, supply chain analysis to military logistics, healthcare management to new drug discovery, modeling and simulation (M&S) has become an essential tool for solving countless real-world problems. M&S professionals are now indispensable to how things get done across virtually every aspect of modern life. This makes it all the more surprising that, until now, no effort has been made to systematically codify the core theory, knowledge, and technical expertise needed to succeed as an M&S professional.

This book brings together contributions from experts at the leading edge of the modeling and simulation profession, worldwide, who share their priceless insights into issues which are fundamental to professional success and career development in this critically important field. Running as a common thread throughout the book is an emphasis on several key aspects of the profession, including the essential body of knowledge underlying the M&S profession; the technical discipline of M&S; the ethical standards that should guide professional conduct; and the economic and commercial challenges today's M&S professionals face.

• Demonstrates applications of M&S tools and techniques in a variety of fields—such as engineering, operations research, and cyber environments—with over 500 types of simulations

• Highlights professional and academic aspects of the field, including preferred programming languages, professional academic and certification programs, and key international societies

• Shows why M&S professionals must be fully versed in the theory, concepts, and tools needed to address the challenges of cyber environments

The Profession of Modeling and Simulation is a valuable resource for M&S practitioners, developers, and researchers working in industry and government. Simulation professionals, including administrators, managers, technologists, faculty members, and scholars within the physical sciences, life sciences, and engineering fields will find it highly useful, as will students planning to pursue a career in the M&S profession.

" …nearly three dozen experts in Modeling and Simulation (M&S) come together to make a compelling case for the recognition of M&S as a profession… Important reading for anyone seeking to elevate the standing of this vital field."

Alfred (Al) Grasso, President & CEO, The MITRE Corporation

Andreas Tolk, PhD, is Technology Integrator for the Modeling, Simulation, Experimentation, and Analytics Division of The MITRE Corporation, an adjunct professor in the Department of Engineering Management and Systems Engineering and the Department for Modeling, Simulation, and Visualization Engineering at Old Dominion University, and an SCS fellow.

Tuncer Ören, PhD, is Professor Emeritus of Computer Science at the University of Ottawa. He is an SCS fellow and an inductee to SCS Modeling and Simulation Hall of Fame. His research interests include advancing methodologies, ethics, body of knowledge, and terminology of modeling and simulation.

Part I
Foundation

1
An Introduction to the Facets of the Profession of Modeling and Simulation

Andreas Tolk

The MITRE Corporation, Hampton, VA, USA

1.1 Profession, Professionals, and Professionalism

Modeling and simulation (M&S) seems to be applied everywhere. Within the M&S community, we are currently celebrating many 50 years' anniversaries; so M&S seems to be often applied and has a large group of supporters, researchers, and practitioners. Within the academic realm, the annually conducted Winter Simulation Conference, organized by a group of simulation organization and societies, started as the “Conference on the Applications of Simulation Using GPSS” in November 1967 in New York, NY, and evolved into one of the biggest simulation conferences worldwide. It celebrates its 50th anniversary in December 2017. The Annual Simulation Symposium is the oldest international symposium continuously operating conference dedicated to simulation under the lead of the Society of M&S, it celebrated its 50th anniversary in April 2017. Practitioners in the field have also celebrated their 50th anniversary of the Interservice/Industry Training, Simulation and Education Conference (I/ITSEC) in November 2016. These conferences are all well attended and address a variety of application domains, covering all simulation paradigms and methods. In addition, many specialty conferences feature simulation track, in particular in the medical and healthcare community, but also in not so well-known fields, such as religion. Undoubtedly, simulation is ubiquitous, and many people apply simulation. But is M&S a profession, and if not, should it be?

To answer this question, some definitions are needed first. The Professional Standards Councils of Australia (http://www.psc.gov.au (accessed December 2016)) compiled a set of key definitions based on international literature research. Furthermore, they provided some different views on professions and professionals from various perspectives of academia, regulators, and more. Their recommended definitions are as follows:

• A profession is a disciplined group of individuals who adhere to ethical standards. This group positions itself as possessing special knowledge and skills in a widely recognized body of learning derived from research, education, and training at a high level, and is recognized by the public as such. A profession is also prepared to apply this knowledge and exercise these skills in the interest of others.
• A professional is a member of a profession. Professionals are governed by codes of ethics, and profess commitment to competence, integrity and morality, altruism, and the promotion of the public good within their expert domain. Professionals are accountable to those served and to society.
• Professionalism comprises the personally held beliefs about one's own conduct as a professional. It is often linked to the upholding of the principles, laws, ethics, and conventions of a profession as a way of practice.
• Professionalization is the pattern of how a profession develops, as well as the process of how becoming a profession.

A practical definition often referenced is that professionals use their special skills to make money. These skills may require certain characteristics by an individual or a group of individuals, such as professional athletes, but in any case they involve prolonged training and a formal qualification, such as for teachers or engineers.

In his groundbreaking work on the attributes of profession, Greenwood (1957) identified the following topics to be pivotal for any profession, independent of its specialty:

• Each profession needs systematic body of theory or body of knowledge that codifies the skills and expertise needed.
• A profession provides authority and credibility in the field. This includes examinations and certifications documenting the expertise of professionals.
• A profession is guided by ethical behavior. A professional code of ethics usually builds a moral contract and the foundation for a professional culture, or a culture of values, norms, and symbols. It also provides the basis for sanctions or regulation and control of its members, ensuring that ethics, authority, and credibility are sustained.

Ethical behavior of professionals is a common factor in the various definitions: professionals behave professionally, and this excludes lying, cheating, or deceiving. As important as general ethics, education in the special domain to master the skill sets plays an outstanding role for professions. A profession shall clearly communicate what the entry-level qualifications are, what the supported curriculums of academia need to cover, and how professional continuous education needs to look like.

Related disciplines are often described regarding their theoretical contributions (science), their derived methods that make the research results applicable to solve daily life problems (engineering), and often a practical branch that mainly focuses on the application of such methods (practice). Examinations to formally test the knowledge of professionals do belong to this category as well, and are often referenced as unique certificates testifying the professionalism of those who pass it.

Professional societies are another important pillar for each profession. Societies publish journals, raise public awareness, and bestow awards on outstanding members. Through their work, they help to define, publish, and archive the continuously growing body of knowledge. They set the standards for their professional fields, and they promote high standards of quality and ethics. Societies also provide access to the experts to support work with subject matter expertise, or to conduct peer reviews for research and applications.

Finally, the economics of the profession are an important factor. Professions allow for improved access of the community to their special services and skills, provided by the professional organizations in the best form possible. But does it matter? Are there enough people in the community requiring a professional level of such services? What is the return of investment? Only if there are solid economic foundations, a profession will survive over time.

Sarjoughian and Zeigler (2001) summarized and proposed similar concepts for M&S as a discipline while contributing to the development of simulation curriculums at academic institutions.

Figure 1.1 visualizes the main concepts and their relations that make up a profession and may guide research as well as contributions to future discussions. This figure is neither attempting to be complete nor exclusive, but provides a framework that can be used to be populated with additional concepts and structures over time.

Figure 1.1 Main concepts and relations describing a profession.

1.2 Contributions of the Chapters

Based on these definitions, experiences, and observations, we can ask again: Is there a profession of M&S? We asked the chapter authors, all of them being experts in M&S, to help address the various facets identified in this introduction. We could use many activities of the late Bill Waite, who can truly be recognized as one of the first t...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Wiley Series in Modeling and Simulation
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Foreword: In memoriam Bill Waite
• Preface
• List of Contributors
• Notes on Contributors
• Part I: Foundation
• Part II: Education
• Part III: Society
• Part IV: Application
• Part V: Economics
• Part VI: Policy
• Index
• End User License Agreement