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Social Simulation & the Semantic Grid

We are investigating the use of Semantic Web/Grid technologies to annotate social simulation models so they can be effectively used in evidence-based policy development and appraisal. These technologies can be used to make a simulation service more descriptive by annotating different aspects of the model (e.g. input, outputs, behaviours, etc.) to create a searchable resource more accessible to non-developers. They allow users to explore the results generated by other authors, and to try new simulation runs to test how typical the reported results are, what other results are possible, and whether the author's conclusions are justified. To date, we have developed an initial social simulation ontology (see above) capturing the characteristics of simulation models, e.g. type of simulation, behavioral characteristics, space model, execution type, etc. The ontology resides in a repository implemented using the Sesame open source Java framework; you can access the ontology here: [Policy Grid Ontologies].

In the context of social simulation we are also exploring how Semantic Web technologies can be used to create a more sophisticated workflow environment. Some of the challenges are:

• Capturing the social scientist's requirements associated with an abstract workflow (e.g. data quality, execution platform constraints, scientific goals);
• Integrating workflows into an argument (evidence) structure;
• Improving interoperability and re-use of workflows by facilitating the sharing of data between activities, e.g. describing activity, input and outputs.