P Holme, F Liljeros, Mechanistic models in
computational social science, Front. Phys. 3, 78 (2015).

Origins of computer simulation
1940’s

The Monte Carlo project
1940’s

The Monte Carlo project
1940’s
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Early soc. sci. sim. Geography
1950’s

Early soc. sci. sim. Geography
Hägerstrand T, 1965. A Monte Carlo approach to
diffusion. Eur. J. Sociol., 6, pp 43-67.
1950’s

Early soc. sci. sim. Geography
Hägerstrand T, 1965. A Monte Carlo approach to
diffusion. Eur. J. Sociol., 6, pp 43-67.
1950’s

Early soc. sci. sim. Geography
Hägerstrand T, 1965. A Monte Carlo approach to
diffusion. Eur. J. Sociol., 6, pp 43-67.
1950’s

Early soc. sci. sim. Geography
Hägerstrand T, 1965. A Monte Carlo approach to
diffusion. Eur. J. Sociol., 6, pp 43-67.
1950’s

Early soc. sci. sim. Geography
Hägerstrand T, 1965. A Monte Carlo approach to
diffusion. Eur. J. Sociol., 6, pp 43-67.
1950’s

Early soc. sci. sim. Geography
Hägerstrand T, 1965. A Monte Carlo approach to
diffusion. Eur. J. Sociol., 6, pp 43-67.
1950’s

Early soc. sci. sim. Geography
Hägerstrand T, 1965. A Monte Carlo approach to
diffusion. Eur. J. Sociol., 6, pp 43-67.
1950’s

Early soc. sci. sim. Geography
Hägerstrand T, 1965. A Monte Carlo approach to
diffusion. Eur. J. Sociol., 6, pp 43-67.
1950’s

Early soc. sci. sim. Geography
Hägerstrand T, 1965. A Monte Carlo approach to
diffusion. Eur. J. Sociol., 6, pp 43-67.
1950’s

Early soc. sci. sim. Geography
Hägerstrand T, 1965. A Monte Carlo approach to
diffusion. Eur. J. Sociol., 6, pp 43-67.
1950’s

Early soc. sci. sim. OP res.
Jennings NH, Dickins JH. Computer simulation of peak
hour operations in a bus terminal. Management
Sci. (1958) 5:106–20. 1950’s

Why computer simulations?

Why computer simulations?
It’s nothing new
Simulation may be traced back to the beginning of
time—be it the make-believe world of the child at
play, or the adult make-believe world of the stage.
Harry Harman, 1961
one should realize that a computer is, in principle,
nothing more than a desk calculator and a note pad
Gilbert & Hammel, 1966
1960’s

Why computer simulations?
It’s nothing new
Simulation may be traced back to the beginning of
time—be it the make-believe world of the child at
play, or the adult make-believe world of the stage.
Harry Harman, 1961
one should realize that a computer is, in principle,
nothing more than a desk calculator and a note pad
Gilbert & Hammel, 1966
1960’s

Why computer simulations?
To facilitate causal reasoning
breaking down the code in appropriate blocks and
linking them by mechanisms corresponding to the
real system can help researchers to reason about
cause and effect
Gullahorn & Gullahorn, 1965
1960’s

Why computer simulations?
To do experiments otherwise impossible
Before the computer program we had no satisfactory
approach to huge, complex, ill-defined systems
difficult to grapple with
Colman, 1965
1960’s

Why computer simulations?
As proof-of-concept models
One of the advantages of computer simulation
is this one, of guaranteeing sufficiency and
completeness. The computer simulation model
will not operate if you forget anything.
Feigenbaum, 1963
1960’s

Why computer simulations?
Forecasting and scenario testing
following the Club of Rome’s Limits to growth,
several proposals of “whole Earth simulation”
1970’s

Social media data science
Rice & Borgman, 1983. The use of computer‐
monitored data in information science and
communication research.
Advantages of “CSS”:
• Automated collection
• Unobtrusive collection of accurate data
• Full census and network data
• Longitudinal data
• Automated experiments
1980’s

Social media data science
1980’s