SimiLive Demos
A series of demonstration models illustrating the capabilities of the
SimiLive visualization tools. If you have
a model you would like to see here, let us know!
3-D Views:
Arabidopsis whole plant
The model includes the photosynthesis process, the plant's circadian
clock and the allocation of new material to roots and leaves. The 3-D
view shows the growing plant, which does not emerge into view until
around 150 hours after the start.
Branching plant
This is an L-systems model of plant stem or root growth. Each element
of the stem has a certain probability of producing a new branch,
leading to a very complex and lifelike pattern of growth. The stem
also increases in thickness during growth.
Particle diffusion
A model of what happens at a molecular level when a crystalline solid
warms up and becomes liquid. Initially the molecules vibrate around
their positions in the lattice, but as more energy is added, they
start to move further and eventually the lattice shape disappears. The
visualization tool shows molecules initially in opposite sides of the
lattice in green and orange so the process can be followed.
Shading, agroforestry
This is a simple model of competition for light in a cropping system
where an annual crop is grown as an understorey to a sparsely forested
area. The beige lollipops represent amount of annual crop in each grid
square, while the green ones represent individual trees. The effect of
competition for light is seen as the annual crop growing faster in the
clearings.
Three-body problem
Two bodies in space, under the influence of mutual gravitation, will
orbit their common centre of mass on a fixed path forever. Three or
more bodies however will behave chaotically, and the 'problem' is that
there is no analytical solution to predict their motion as in the
two-body case. But we can model them numerically, as in this example
with eight bodies.
Grid Views:
Fire spread
In this grid model, vegetation grows in each grid square at a regular
rate, and the more there is, the more likely it is to burn if a spark
appears or if a neighbouring square burns. When it burns the amount of
vegetation is reduced, so a fire eventually burns out. Because in
reality the fire burns much faster than the vegetation grows, the
model pauses the growth process while fire is burning. The
visualization has been set up to show squares progressing from black
to green to beige as the vegetation increases, with squares currently
alight shown in orange.
Game of Life
Conway's Game of Life is a 2-D rectangular grid with simple rules for
deciding whether a cell appears, persists or dies in each square
according to whether its neighbours are populated. Simple initial
patterns create complex series of configurations and usually settle
down into stable patterns eventually, although many have been
discovered with interesting properties.
Polygon Views:
Urban development
A map of the boroughs of a city, showing population density. The model
is chiefly concerned with waste management, including landfill, sewage
and recycling.
World natural capital
A model of the effects of strategies for managing ecosystem services
worldwide. The map shows the countries of the world, coloured
according to the health of their ecosystems. Changing the inputs will
affect not only how the ecosystems turn out, but also the consequences
on living standards and population.