Acomputational model uses computers to simulate and study complex systems^[1] using an algorithmic or mechanistic approach and is widely used in a diverse range of fields spanning fromphysics,^[2] engineering,^[3] chemistry^[4] and biology^[5] to economics, psychology, cognitive science and computer science.^[1]

The system under study is often a complexnonlinear system^[6] for which simple, intuitiveanalytical solutions are not readily available. Rather than deriving a mathematical analytical solution to the problem, experimentation with the model is done by adjusting the parameters of the system in the computer, and studying the differences in the outcome of the experiments.^[7] Operation theories of the model can be derived/deduced from these computational experiments.

Examples of common computational models areweather forecasting models,earth simulator models,flight simulator models, molecularprotein folding models, computational materials models^[8][9]Computational Engineering Models (CEM),^[10] andneural network models.

• Computational engineering
• Computational cognition
• Reversible computing
• Agent-based model
• Artificial neural network
• Computational linguistics
• Data-driven model
• Decision field theory
• Dynamical systems model of cognition
• Membrane computing
• Ontology (information science)
• Programming language theory
• Microscale and macroscale models

• Models of computation
• Mathematical modeling

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• Articles with short description
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