OR235
Lab 2

You will work in teams of two to complete the following two major exercises. Be prepared to hand in both these exercises.

In exercise one all teams will examine the details of the System Development Flight Simulator (sysdev.itm). If you haven't already downloaded it, you can do so from the models page. Use the guide below to answer questions 1 - 8. Note that for this exercise one you should first print out both the model layer and the equations. Be sure to open the sub-models before printing.

In exercise two you will complete small stock and flow diagrams within the System Dynamics Diagramming - Basic Structures & Processes model (lab2.itm). You can download it from the models page. Be prepared to show your completed diagrams to the class and to discuss them. Each team should work independently. During discussion of the models, the class will be able to see the differing approaches of  team A versus team B, team C versus team D, etc. Please work as follows:

Teams A & B - Compounding & Draining
Teams C & D - Producing & Co-Flow
Teams E & F  - Staffing Model with Delays & Personal Finance Model
Be prepared to hand in both these exercises.


System Development Simulation Questions

1. What are the six sectors in the model?

2. What are the two sub-models? What is the purpose of a sub-model (hint: look in Help)?

3. What do the following variations on the converter icon symbolize?

4. What is the causal effect of  hardware work hours per week [hw work hours per week] on completing hardware designer tasks [completing hw des]?

5. What is the mathematical/analytical relationship between these two variables, i.e. how does a change in hw work hours per week affect completing hw des?

6. How is the start of the software tasking controlled, i.e. what triggers the start of software development?

7. How is the start of the integration tasking controlled, i.e. what triggers it?

8. How would you modify this human v. machine competitor simulation to make it a human v. human competitor model?