Promise And Limits Of Computer Modeling, The

Many books deal with the techniques of designing, building and testing computer models and simulations, but few have seriously examined what models are based on, their inherent limitations, and their essential role in extending human knowledge. This book fills this need.It focuses on computer models throughout, yet its exposition of the nature and limits of modeling is entirely general. A chapter on the development of celestial mechanics models illustrates how models progress and are essential t