4.2.7 Developing The Population Model—Demonstrated

Now that the POPULATION has been defined, the modules are built and tested. Then, each of the modules is progressively integrated until the model is complete according to the initially stated requirements. Verification, application of an extensive set of tests, determines the extent to which the model behaves as required.

The extent to which the model sufficiently maps onto the real-world problem space is then determined through validation. Validation can be comprehensive, but it can never be complete. We validate up to the point that we accept the model as being both a necessary and sufficient representation of the real-world problem faced. The model should then provide a vehicle through which we can develop strategies which we can enact to manage and control the problematic situation. Verification and validation are discussed further at Chapter 6.