J. Efstathiou, A. Calinescu
Keywords: Supply networks, agent-based systems, networks
Supply chains are complex, dynamic organisations that may have undesirable properties, such as the Bullwhip effect. Attempts to map supply networks have been frustrated by the dynamic nature of these organizations. A multidisciplinary research project at the University of Oxford is integrating researchers from the life and social sciences with engineers, physicists, computer scientists and engineers to address fundamentally the modelling and understanding of complex, agent-based dynamic networks. The goal of the project is to enable the design and management of complex distributed systems, such as supply chains. The case study networks of the project include fungal networks, slime moulds and ant colonies. This paper will introduce the research project and explain the advantages of agent-based modelling of supply networks.
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Dear Authors,
in section 4 you mention that in the second phase of CABDYN the "reverse problem" is tackled. To my understanding of complex systems there are "blackbox" like agents (you can only watch the behaviour but know nothing about their motivations or goals) that interact in a nonlinear way. As you also mention in your paper, it is not possible to predict the global behaviour even when knowing the individual behaviours. How would you then try to determine individual behaviours from a global to-be behaviour?
Best Regards
George