This model shows the structure and operation of a simple economy. It can represent economic systems at different levels of abstraction (e.g. a single good, a group of goods, multiple groups, & an "economy.")  In summary, lower rates of consumption (based on production) result in higher rates of
This model shows the structure and operation of a simple economy. It can represent economic systems at different levels of abstraction (e.g. a single good, a group of goods, multiple groups, & an "economy.")

In summary, lower rates of consumption (based on production) result in higher rates of production and consumption in the long-run. Rates of consumption over 100% of production will diminish the savings stock and eventually cause rates of production and consumption to fall.
Jay Forrester's "Market Growth as Influenced by Capital Investment" model as rebuilt by Eric Stiens
Jay Forrester's "Market Growth as Influenced by Capital Investment" model as rebuilt by Eric Stiens
WIP Launchpad (TufteA3) of Bogdanov's Tektology general theory of organization linked to the modern (or historical?) organization of biology and political economy. Should also address the specialised organisation of the pursuit of knowledge and learning in the fullness of time
WIP Launchpad (TufteA3) of Bogdanov's Tektology general theory of organization linked to the modern (or historical?) organization of biology and political economy. Should also address the specialised organisation of the pursuit of knowledge and learning in the fullness of time
HANDY Model of Societal Collapse from Ecological Economics  Paper   see also D Cunha's model at  IM-15085
HANDY Model of Societal Collapse from Ecological Economics Paper 
see also D Cunha's model at IM-15085
This model shows the structure and operation of a simple economy. It can represent economic systems at different levels of abstraction (e.g. a single good, a group of goods, multiple groups, & an "economy.")  In summary, lower rates of consumption (based on production) result in higher rates of
This model shows the structure and operation of a simple economy. It can represent economic systems at different levels of abstraction (e.g. a single good, a group of goods, multiple groups, & an "economy.")

In summary, lower rates of consumption (based on production) result in higher rates of production and consumption in the long-run. Rates of consumption over 100% of production will diminish the savings stock and eventually cause rates of production and consumption to fall.
This model shows the structure and operation of a simple economy. It can represent economic systems at different levels of abstraction (e.g. a single good, a group of goods, multiple groups, & an "economy.")  In summary, lower rates of consumption (based on production) result in higher rates of
This model shows the structure and operation of a simple economy. It can represent economic systems at different levels of abstraction (e.g. a single good, a group of goods, multiple groups, & an "economy.")

In summary, lower rates of consumption (based on production) result in higher rates of production and consumption in the long-run. Rates of consumption over 100% of production will diminish the savings stock and eventually cause rates of production and consumption to fall.
 Goodwin cycle  IM-2010  with debt and taxes added, modified from Steve Keen's illustration of Hyman Minsky's Financial Instability Hypothesis "stability begets instability". This can be extended by adding the Ponzi effect of borrowing for speculative investment.

Goodwin cycle IM-2010 with debt and taxes added, modified from Steve Keen's illustration of Hyman Minsky's Financial Instability Hypothesis "stability begets instability". This can be extended by adding the Ponzi effect of borrowing for speculative investment.

Simplification of Prevention Investment Framework  (private) IM  See WIP integrating with economic view  insight (private)  and  multiscale version IM private
Simplification of Prevention Investment Framework (private) IM See WIP integrating with economic view insight (private) and multiscale version IM private
 Regulation of resource allocation to service in response to service quality. A non-price-mediated resource allocation system. From Sterman JD Business Dynamics p172 Fig 5-27

Regulation of resource allocation to service in response to service quality. A non-price-mediated resource allocation system. From Sterman JD Business Dynamics p172 Fig 5-27

Investigations into the relationships responsible for the success and failure of nations. This investigation was prompted after reading numerous references on the subject and perceiving that *Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty* by Acemoglu and Robinson seem to make a gre
Investigations into the relationships responsible for the success and failure of nations. This investigation was prompted after reading numerous references on the subject and perceiving that *Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty* by Acemoglu and Robinson seem to make a great deal of sense.
Adapted from Hartmut Bossel's "System Zoo 3 Simulation Models, Economy, Society, Development."  ​Population model where the population is summarized in four age groups (children, parents, older people, old people). Used as a base population model for dealing with issues such as employment, care for
Adapted from Hartmut Bossel's "System Zoo 3 Simulation Models, Economy, Society, Development."

​Population model where the population is summarized in four age groups (children, parents, older people, old people). Used as a base population model for dealing with issues such as employment, care for the elderly, pensions dynamics, etc.
  Goodwin Model:   This is a basic version of the Goodwin Model based on Kaoru Yamagushi (2013),  Money and Macroeconomic Dynamics , Chapter 4.5 ( link )     Equilibrium conditions:   Labor Supply  = 100  Devation from the equilibrium conditions generates growth cycles.
Goodwin Model:
This is a basic version of the Goodwin Model based on Kaoru Yamagushi (2013), Money and Macroeconomic Dynamics, Chapter 4.5 (link)

Equilibrium conditions:
  • Labor Supply = 100
Devation from the equilibrium conditions generates growth cycles.
Clone of Pesticide Use in Central America for Lab work        This model is an attempt to simulate what is commonly referred to as the “pesticide treadmill” in agriculture and how it played out in the cotton industry in Central America after the Second World War until around the 1990s.     The cotto
Clone of Pesticide Use in Central America for Lab work


This model is an attempt to simulate what is commonly referred to as the “pesticide treadmill” in agriculture and how it played out in the cotton industry in Central America after the Second World War until around the 1990s.

The cotton industry expanded dramatically in Central America after WW2, increasing from 20,000 hectares to 463,000 in the late 1970s. This expansion was accompanied by a huge increase in industrial pesticide application which would eventually become the downfall of the industry.

The primary pest for cotton production, bol weevil, became increasingly resistant to chemical pesticides as they were applied each year. The application of pesticides also caused new pests to appear, such as leafworms, cotton aphids and whitefly, which in turn further fuelled increased application of pesticides. 

The treadmill resulted in massive increases in pesticide applications: in the early years they were only applied a few times per season, but this application rose to up to 40 applications per season by the 1970s; accounting for over 50% of the costs of production in some regions. 

The skyrocketing costs associated with increasing pesticide use were one of the key factors that led to the dramatic decline of the cotton industry in Central America: decreasing from its peak in the 1970s to less than 100,000 hectares in the 1990s. “In its wake, economic ruin and environmental devastation were left” as once thriving towns became ghost towns, and once fertile soils were wasted, eroded and abandoned (Lappe, 1998). 

Sources: Douglas L. Murray (1994), Cultivating Crisis: The Human Cost of Pesticides in Latin America, pp35-41; Francis Moore Lappe et al (1998), World Hunger: 12 Myths, 2nd Edition, pp54-55.

Simulation of MTBF with controls   F(t) = 1 - e ^ -λt   Where    • F(t) is the probability of failure    • λ is the failure rate in 1/time unit (1/h, for example)   • t is the observed service life (h, for example)  The inverse curve is the trust time On the right the increase in failures brings its
Simulation of MTBF with controls

F(t) = 1 - e ^ -λt 
Where  
• F(t) is the probability of failure  
• λ is the failure rate in 1/time unit (1/h, for example) 
• t is the observed service life (h, for example)

The inverse curve is the trust time
On the right the increase in failures brings its inverse which is loss of trust and move into suspicion and lack of confidence.
This can be seen in strategic social applications with those who put economy before providing the priorities of the basic living infrastructures for all.

This applies to policies and strategic decisions as well as physical equipment.
A) Equipment wears out through friction and preventive maintenance can increase the useful lifetime, 
B) Policies/working practices/guidelines have to be updated to reflect changes in the external environment and eventually be replaced when for instance a population rises too large (constitutional changes are required to keep pace with evolution, e.g. the concepts of the ancient Greeks, 3000 years ago, who based their thoughts on a small population cannot be applied in 2013 except where populations can be contained into productive working communities with balanced profit and loss centers to ensure sustainability)

Early Life
If we follow the slope from the leftmost start to where it begins to flatten out this can be considered the first period. The first period is characterized by a decreasing failure rate. It is what occurs during the “early life” of a population of units. The weaker units fail leaving a population that is more rigorous.

Useful Life
The next period is the flat bottom portion of the graph. It is called the “useful life” period. Failures occur more in a random sequence during this time. It is difficult to predict which failure mode will occur, but the rate of failures is predictable. Notice the constant slope.  

Wearout
The third period begins at the point where the slope begins to increase and extends to the rightmost end of the graph. This is what happens when units become old and begin to fail at an increasing rate. It is called the “wearout” period. 
The housing market is heavily dependent on two main factors; supply and demand. Both play a major role in determining an equilibrium price for both sellers and buyers in the real estate market.     Residents, or the general population of individuals, place significant reliance on financial instituti
The housing market is heavily dependent on two main factors; supply and demand. Both play a major role in determining an equilibrium price for both sellers and buyers in the real estate market. 

Residents, or the general population of individuals, place significant reliance on financial institutions to provide sources of capital i.e mortgages, to fund their purchases of homes. The rate of interest charged by these organisations in turn gives buyers (consumers) purchasing power, creating demand. 

Supply is made up of the number of houses in the market, and consequently, of these, the number of houses which are up for sale. As the prices of houses for sale increases, the demand for purchase of these properties decreases. Conversely, the lower price, the higher the demand. Once the market reaches an equilibrium point, to which buyers and sellers form an agreement, houses are sold accordingly. An underlying factor to consider is the cost of construction, which impacts producers, or suppliers in this instance, and thus the number of homes for sale, and the expected profit sellers hope to achieve. 

The simulated graph highlights the common scenario within the housing market, to which we see that as price increases, the total number for houses for sale decreases, generating an opposite slope to the price. As the price for houses increases, the demand for the houses decreases and vice versa. The equilibrium is evident at time 14 whereby the price of houses and the number of houses for sale overlaps which in turn creates a market to which both buyers and sellers are happy.
The simulation integrates or sums (INTEG) the Nj population, with a change of Delta N in each generation, starting with an initial value of 5. The equation for DeltaN is a version of  Nj+1 = Nj  + mu (1- Nj / Nmax ) Nj  the maximum population is set to be one million, and the growth rate constant mu
The simulation integrates or sums (INTEG) the Nj population, with a change of Delta N in each generation, starting with an initial value of 5.
The equation for DeltaN is a version of 
Nj+1 = Nj  + mu (1- Nj / Nmax ) Nj
the maximum population is set to be one million, and the growth rate constant mu = 3.
 
Nj: is the “number of items” in our current generation.

Delta Nj: is the “change in number of items” as we go from the present generation into the next generation. This is just the number of items born minus the number of items who have died.

mu: is the growth or birth rate parameter, similar to that in the exponential growth and decay model. However, as we extend our model it will no longer be the actual growth rate, but rather just a constant that tends to control the actual growth rate without being directly proportional to it.

F(Nj) = mu(1‐Nj/Nmax): is our model for the effective “growth rate”, a rate that decreases as the number of items approaches the maximum allowed by external factors such as food supply, disease or predation. (You can think of mu as the growth or birth rate in the absence of population pressure from other items.) We write this rate as F(Nj), which is a mathematical way of saying F is affected by the number of items, i.e., “F is a function of Nj”. It combines both growth and all the various environmental constraints on growth into a single function. This is a good approach to modeling; start with something that works (exponential growth) and then modify it incrementally, while still incorporating the working model.

Nj+1 = Nj + Delta Nj : This is a mathematical way to say, “The new number of items equals the old number of items plus the change in number of items”.

Nj/Nmax: is what fraction a population has reached of the maximum "carrying capacity" allowed by the external environment. We use this fraction to change the overall growth rate of the population. In the real world, as well as in our model, it is possible for a population to be greater than the maximum population (which is usually an average of many years), at least for a short period of time. This means that we can expect fluctuations in which Nj/Nmax is greater than 1.

This equation is a form of what is known as the logistic map or equation. It is a map because it "maps'' the population in one year into the population of the next year. It is "logistic'' in the military sense of supplying a population with its needs. It a nonlinear equation because it contains a term proportional to Nj^2 and not just Nj. The logistic map equation is also an example of discrete mathematics. It is discrete because the time variable j assumes just integer values, and consequently the variables Nj+1 and Nj do not change continuously into each other, as would a function N(t). In addition to the variables Nj and j, the equation also contains the two parameters mu, the growth rate, and Nmax, the maximum population. You can think of these as "constants'' whose values are determined from external sources and remain fixed as one year of items gets mapped into the next year. However, as part of viewing the computer as a laboratory in which to experiment, and as part of the scientific process, you should vary the parameters in order to explore how the model reacts to changes in them.
 On the occasion of th G20-meeting in Toronto, the German Economics minister Herr Schaüble said that without restoring confidence it would not be possible to get consumer spending and business investment going. Similar remarks were made by David Cameron and Señor Zapatero of Spain. All maintain that

On the occasion of th G20-meeting in Toronto, the German Economics minister Herr Schaüble said that without restoring confidence it would not be possible to get consumer spending and business investment going. Similar remarks were made by David Cameron and Señor Zapatero of Spain. All maintain that confidence is a pre-requisite to get growth going and that, therefore, it was imperative to reduce fiscal deficits. Reducing the fiscal deficit will restore confidence at first. However, reducing the deficit very quickly will introduce a dynamic that may cause the economy to decline - and perhaps depress  consumers demand even further.  It will actually destroy confidence: few businesses are inclined to invest in a shrinking economy. Cutting the deficit too rapidly or too steeply can lead to a confidence trap.

NOTE: A big experiment is now taking place in the UK - the government has cut public spending severely! Will this lead to hardship and, perhaps, social unrest? 

Very simple causal loop diagram of a loan, which can be any loan. However, when the loan is a fixed amount, that needs to be repaid in x periods, you can cross out the 'taking out' arrow from debt to bank account.
Very simple causal loop diagram of a loan, which can be any loan. However, when the loan is a fixed amount, that needs to be repaid in x periods, you can cross out the 'taking out' arrow from debt to bank account.
This is the summary of lecture ​1 of my Course about StartUps. It's an intro to the startup ecosystem and the different stakeholders that can interact with your new enterprise at different stages of its evolution and growth. -version 1 - for info or suggestions: bonato.pietroz@gmail.com
This is the summary of lecture ​1 of my Course about StartUps. It's an intro to the startup ecosystem and the different stakeholders that can interact with your new enterprise at different stages of its evolution and growth. -version 1 - for info or suggestions: bonato.pietroz@gmail.com
 Goodwin cycle  IM-2010  with debt and taxes added, modified from Steve Keen's illustration of Hyman Minsky's Financial Instability Hypothesis "stability begets instability". This can be extended by adding the Ponzi effect of borrowing for speculative investment.

Goodwin cycle IM-2010 with debt and taxes added, modified from Steve Keen's illustration of Hyman Minsky's Financial Instability Hypothesis "stability begets instability". This can be extended by adding the Ponzi effect of borrowing for speculative investment.