COMPONENT-BASED MODELS AND SIMULATIONS FOR SUPPORTING VALID MULTI-AGENT SYSTEM SIMULATIONS

The more simulation becomes an established tool in the design of multi-agent systems, the more urgent the question becomes how valid the induced properties and behavior patterns are. Answering this question depends on the validity of the models, the correctness of the simulators, and the simulations. In all of these aspects, reuse and a declarative representation plays a crucial role. With James II, we developed a customizable framework for modeling and simulation. Its component-based architecture supports a reuse of models, simulators, and experimental settings. The benefits of this architecture for agent-based modeling and simulation will be illuminated by an excerpt of a simulation study about trading strategies for mobile ad hoc networks.