Models, measurement and computer simulation: the changing face of experimentation

Abstract

The paper presents an argument for treating certain types of computer simulation as having the same epistemic status as experimental measurement. While this may seem a rather counterintuitive view it becomes less so when one looks carefully at the role that models play in experimental activity, particularly measurement. I begin by discussing how models function as ''measuring instruments'' and go on to examine the ways in which simulation can be said to constitute an experimental activity. By focussing on the connections between models and their various functions, simulation and experiment one can begin to see similarities in the practices associated with each type of activity. Establishing the connections between simulation and particular types of modelling strategies and highlighting the ways in which those strategies are essential features of experimentation allows us to clarify the contexts in which we can legitimately call computer simulation a form of experimental measurement.

Boon and Bane: On the Role of Adjustable Parameters in Simulation Models

“…10 10 Here, our paper ties in with recent accounts of how simulation influences the standard notion of experiment and measurement (cf. Morrison 2009, Tal 2013.…”

“…There is a beginning debate on the changing face of experimentation due to computer use (cf. Morrison 2009, Tal 2013. It is indeed striking to what extent supposedly classical experiments make use of simulation in their experimental setup; examples range from the Large Hadron Collider at Cern to scanning tunnel microscopes.…”

“…Two interconnected aspects make up our claim: First, both varieties of experiments, or if you prefer another terminology: simulation and classical experiment, 2 A variety of good motivations are given in, for instance, Axelrod (1997), Barberousse, Franceschelli, andImbert (2009), Dowling (1999), Galison (1996), Humphreys (1994), Hughes (1999), Keller (2003), Morgan (2003), Morrison (2009), Rohrlich (1991, Winsberg (2003). 3 If you want to avoid talking about experiment in this context, these properties can be known only by actually conducting simulations.…”

Experiments, Simulations, and Epistemic Privilege

“…These trends are reflected in increased attention from philosophers of science to experimentation (e.g. , Franklin 1990;Hacking 1983;Radder 2003;Weber 2004), to simulation (e.g., Humphreys 2004;Weisberg 2013;Winsberg 2010), and to their methodological and epistemic points of convergence and contrast (e.g., Barberousse et al 2008;Guala 2002;Morgan 2005;Morrison 2009;Parker 2009;Peck 2004;Peschard 2012;Winsberg 2009). …”

“…Simulations in this broader sense are taken to include studies of computer models, model organisms in laboratories, and model airplanes in wind tunnels. Discussions of the relationship between experiment and simulation in the literature have focused sometimes on computer simulation (Humphreys 2004;Morrison 2009;Parker 2009;Peck 2004) and sometimes on simulation in the broader sense (Guala 2002;Morgan 2005, 320;Winsberg 2009Winsberg , 2010. I highlight this contrast upfront because being clear about which sense of 'simulation' is at stake matters.…”