From theory to modelling : urban systems as complex systems

From theory to modelling : urban systems as complex systems

[SHS:GEO] Humanities and Social Sciences/Geography

complexity

emerging structures

self-organisation

urban systems

space-time convergence

multi-agents systems

The question of complexity and its increasing application to social sciences is challenging the modelling of spatial systems. New concepts and new methods have been proposed and invite to reformulate classical modelling frames. This approach is demanding to open a better informed dialogue between the disciplines which supply models and tools and those where the existing knowledge is reformulated inside this new frame. Actually, creating an « artificial geography » is not straightforward. It is rather easy to translate urban theories within the paradigm of complex systems, but their modelling, for instance by using multi-agents systems, still raises many conceptual and practical difficulties. We underline here some problems in defining significant urban entities and exploring the evolution of their spatial relationships over time. We briefly present which options have been selected for developing the SIMPOP2 model which is conceived for simulating the evolution of systems of cities over long periods of time.

Bretagnolle, Anne

Daudet, Eric

Pumain, Denise

CyberGeo: European Journal of Geography

2006

ENG

article in peer-reviewed journal

http://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-00156778

http://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/docs/00/15/67/78/PDF/cybergeofinal.pdf