Modelling the adaptability of biological systems

Eugene Ch’ng

Research output: Journal PublicationArticlepeer-review

Abstract

There are millions of species of organisms in estimation today, each possessing different preferences or tolerance towards a multitude of factors; these factors include mainly competition between species and environmental conditions. From a computer modelling point of view, these biological systems could be difficult to implement. However, if a unified formula could be found to measure all of the factors against the preferences of each life form, its potentials for modelling open systems that require multiple external input variables could be significant. This article explores a formula and variations of it as applied first to measure sessile systems – vegetation, which requires multiple variables for determining its fitness, and then to a pilot study exploring its use for dynamic vagile systems. Experiments suggest that using the formula and variations of it on vegetation communities yielded distribution patterns similar to those in natural landscapes. Experiments using the formula in the pilot study showed characteristics of emergent behaviours as each dynamic system seeks its own ecological niche. The findings provided evidence that the formula could be extended for modelling a wide variety of open biological systems.
Original languageEnglish
Number of pages8
JournalThe Open Cybernetics Systemics Journal
Volume1
Issue number1
Publication statusPublished - 2007
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Biological systems
  • modelling
  • Tolerance
  • Adaptability
  • Open systems

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