1. Digital modeling for design and forecasting

1.1 Digital simulation, a widespread technique

Over the last twenty years or so, digital simulation has experienced a remarkable boom: the fruit of the development of applied mathematics and computer science, it has become an increasingly widespread technique in industry. Simulation means exploiting the mathematical modeling of the real world as contained in the equations that account for physical phenomena, and coupling it with the computing power offered by modern computers, in order to understand, design, predict and optimize:

• understanding, because digital simulation enables many physical, chemical, biological – or social and human (as in economics or demography) phenomena to be represented with a high degree of accuracy. Computer...