2. Object modelling

Object modelling can be used to look at many and varied real-life situations. Here are just a few:

• Disease modelling (tries to predict how epidemics spread)
• Weather modelling (for tomorrow (short term model) and also long term modelling)
• Earthquake modelling (likelyhood of one happening and the likely damage caused)
• Bridge building (how it will behave in wind and heavy use)
• Roller coaster design (excite the customer yes! but don't harm them!)
• Car design (predict its performance and how materials such as steel will behave)
• Car crash testing (predict the damage in a crash and help protect people)
• Game Simulation (most games are a kind of object model, but it is just for fun)

Each of these have a very different use. But they all share the same principle - that mathematics is used to predict the outcome.

For instance the 'physics engine' in a car racing game would have been carefully designed to simulate how a real car would skid, accelerate, handle etc.

Over the next few pages we will be looking at these in a little more detail