Week-by-Week
FEBRUARY
February 25:
1. Course Overview and Introduction - Introduction to Systems Thinking
Course structure, syllabus review, reading assignments, projects and mentoring, grading,
expectations (students and faculty)
2. A Systems View of the World (1)
Looking at the world as a system of systems; systems science, and complexity science;
system thinking; methods of decision making; simple, complicated, and complex systems
February 27: A Systems View of the World (2)
Looking at the world as a system of systems; systems science, and complexity science;
system thinking; methods of decision making; simple, complicated, and complex systems
HW Assignment:
- Read: Systems Science, Systems Thinking, Complex Systems, System Dynamics
- Study: Habits course 1 & 2 in Habits Course from the Waters Center Foundation
MARCH
March 4: Introduction to System Dynamics (1)
Components of system dynamics; system dynamics modeling; STELLA Architect software
HW Assignment:
- Purchase the 6-month STELLA Architect v.8.x and upload it on your own computer.
Click here to purchase. A perpetual student license is also available.
You will need to open an account on the ISEE systems website
- Read "A leader's framework for decision making" by D. Snowden and M. Boone (2007)
- Study: Habits course 3 & 4 in Habits Course from the Waters Center Foundation
March 6: Introduction to System Dynamics (2)
Components of system dynamics; system dynamics modeling; STELLA Architect software
HW Assignment
- Start studying the SD tutorial on the ISEE systems website on your own.
- Study: Habits course 5 & 6 in Habits Course from the Waters Center Foundation
March 11: Introduction to System Dynamics (3)
Components of system dynamics; system dynamics modeling; STELLA Architect software
HW Assignment
- Browse through "An introduction to systems thinking - STELLA software" by B. Richmond (2004)
- Study SD tutorials (Tutorials 1-4) on the ISEE systems website
- Leverage Points: Places to intervene in a system by D. Meadows. Be ready to
present examples of leverage points in class.
- Study: Habits course 7 & 8 from the Waters Center Foundation
March 13: Introduction to System Dynamics (4)
Components of system dynamics; system dynamics modeling; STELLA Architect software
Reading and HW Assignment
- Browse through "An introduction to systems thinking - STELLA software" by B. Richmond (2004)
- Study SD tutorials (Tutorials 1-6) on the ISEE systems website
- Study: Habits course 9 from the Waters Center Foundation
March 18: Introduction to System Dynamics (5)
Bass diffusion model of epidemics
- Study: Habits course 10 & 11 from the Waters Center Foundation
HW: Create an SD model of acceleration, speed, and position for the following two cases:
(i) An object is launched in the vertical direction at a height Ho with a velocity Vo.
Model the vertical trajectory of the object using STELLA. Gravity effect only.
(ii) Consider the trajectory of the object in an x-y plane. Model the trajectory assuming the
object starts at the origin with initial velocities Vox and Voy. Gravity only.
Choose input data that best illustrate the models.
Turn in copies (hard or online) of the models and graphs.
March 20: The Water-Energy-Land-Food Nexus (1)
Nexus components and representations
Study: Habits course 12 & 13 from the Waters Center Foundation
Reading Assignment: Understanding the Nexus (Hoff, 2011)
HW: Complete the transmission model developed in class on March 18.
March 25: The Water-Energy-Land-Food Nexus (2)
SD Modeling of the nexus (the WELF modules)
S-shaped, Global seeking models, Architect interface.
Study: Habits course 14 & 15 from the Waters Center Foundation
Reading assignment: The Pardee RAND Report on the FEW nexus
March 27: Modeling human system archetypes
The Architect interface, "Growth and collapse" model
The WELF-climate change model
Study: Archetypes 1 and 2 from the Waters Center Foundation
March 27: System Dynamics Modeling and Nexus Models- Archetypes
(Chapter 6 and section 5.4.4 in my book)
The WELF-climate change model
Overshoot and collapse generic structure.
Read "System Archetypes " by Braun (2002).
Study: Archetype 3, 4 & 5 from the Waters Center Foundation
APRIL
April 1: Collecting and Analyzing Data for System Dynamics Modeling
PAR methods of primary and secondary data collection and analysis.
Integration of data analysis in individual and group decision system modeling.
The WELF-climate change model (pp. 85-118 in my book)
Study: Archetypes 6 & 7 from the Waters Center Foundation
HW Due: Zoom book exercise. Answer questions.
April 3: Systems Approach to Management of Development Projects
Project Design and Planning
Capacity assessment and development - The UVC approach to
Municipal Sanitation Systems (MSS)
Reading: Document
Study: Archetypes 8 & 9 from the Waters Center Foundation
April 8 Sustainability and Sustainable Development (1)
Human footprint; Definitions of sustainability: A systems approach to sustainability
Integrating sustainability in engineering projects (The Envision Framework)
Reading assignment:
- The five core principles of sustainability, according to M. Ben-Eli (2011)
- The Envision Framework. Browse through this document.
HW Assignment
- Take the footprint quiz
April 10: Agent-Based Modeling (ABM)
Download AnyLogic (personal learning edition)
HW Assignment: Martina Bustos Case Study. Questions distributed on April 13
April 15. Final presentations (Part 1)
April 17 Final presentations (Part 2)