Varieties of simulations
from the analogue to the digital
pp. 175-192
in: Michael M. Resch, Andreas Kaminski, Petra Gehring (eds), The science and art of simulation I, Berlin, Springer, 2017Abstract
The article analyzes the notions of analogue and digital simulation as found in scientific and philosophical literature. The purpose is to distinguish computer simulations from laboratory experimentation on several grounds, including ontological, epistemological, pragmatic/intentional, and methodological. To this end, it argues that analogue simulations are best understood as part of the laboratory instrumentarium, whereas digital simulations are computational methods for solving a simulation model. The article ends by showing how the analogue-digital distinction is at the heart of contemporary debates on the epistemological and methodological power of computer simulations.