# Agent-based model
An agent-based model simulates autonomous agents that interact according to local rules inside an environment; macroscopic patterns then emerge. [[Bounded_rationality|Bounded rationality]], adaptation, networks, and stochasticity allow generative exploration of social, ecological, economic, and epidemiological dynamics. Its grid-world limiting case is the [[Cellular_automaton|cellular automaton]].
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## Microsims (promoted from legacy — three.js first)
### MicroSim spec
- **Recommended sim type:** agent-based model
- **Microsimmability score:** 94/100
- **Layout:** drawing region (canvas) on top; control region (sliders/buttons) below.
### Parameters (tunable controls)
- `Number of agents`
- `Interaction radius`
- `Move speed`
### What animates
Many autonomous agents follow local rules and you watch group-level patterns emerge from their interactions.
### Learning objective
Explain how local agent rules produce emergent system-level behavior.
### MicroSim spec
- **Recommended sim type:** agent-based
- **Microsimmability score:** 93/100
- **Layout:** drawing region (canvas) on top; control region (sliders/buttons) below.
### Parameters (tunable controls)
- `Number of agents`
- `Interaction radius`
- `Movement speed`
### What animates
Autonomous agents move and interact, and group patterns emerge as their rules change.
### Learning objective
Show how local agent rules produce system-level outcomes.
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## Microsims — three.js
### Agent-based model (three.js)
<div class="microsim-player">
<iframe src="https://wikitube-3d-microsims.netlify.app/Agent-based_model.html" width="100%" height="620" frameborder="0" loading="lazy" sandbox="allow-scripts allow-same-origin" title="Agent-based model — three.js microsim"></iframe>
</div>
**Open it full-screen:** [Agent-based_model.html](https://wikitube-3d-microsims.netlify.app/Agent-based_model.html) · library `threejs` · route `microsim/threejs/`
### Related microsims
Live sims on neighbouring articles — 6 of them inside this article's own Wikipedia link tree:
- [[Complex_system]] *(in tree)*
- [[Emergence]] *(in tree)*
- [[Feedback]] *(in tree)*
- [[Network_theory]] *(in tree)*
- [[Phase_space]] *(in tree)*
- [[Self-organization]] *(in tree)*
*Sim hosted off-article; the article owns the reference, not the runtime (WIKI_RULES §10.4). Placed by `g08_place_microsims.py`.*
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## Reveal
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*Concept aligned with [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agent-based_model); adapted text, where present, is licensed [CC BY-SA 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).*
## Overview
The approach descends from [[John_von_Neumann|John von Neumann]]'s automata and [[Conway's_Game_of_Life|Conway's Game of Life]] through the [[Santa_Fe_Institute|Santa Fe Institute]]'s work on the [[Complex_adaptive_system|complex adaptive system]], into [[Multi-agent_system|multi-agent systems]], [[Artificial_life|artificial life]], and [[Agent-based_computational_economics|agent-based computational economics]]. Each agent runs an [[Algorithm|algorithm]] — often a [[Cognitive_model|cognitive model]] — while [[Emergence|emergence]] and [[Collective_intelligence|collective intelligence]] appear one level up, as in [[Swarm_behaviour|swarm behaviour]], [[Ant_colony_optimization_algorithms|ant-colony optimization]], and [[Particle_swarm_optimization|particle swarm optimization]].
In practice models couple to [[Game_theory|game-theoretic]] payoffs like the [[Prisoner's_dilemma|prisoner's dilemma]], [[Population_dynamics|population dynamics]] in [[Ecology|ecology]], [[Compartmental_models_(epidemiology)|compartmental epidemiology]], [[Social_network_analysis|social network analysis]] over the [[Complex_network|complex network]], and [[Monte_Carlo_method|Monte Carlo]] replication for [[Verification_and_validation|verification and validation]] of every [[Computer_simulation|computer simulation]] claim.
## Wikipedia : Wikitube
**Strict pair:** [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agent-based_model) : [Wikitube](https://en.wikitube.io/wiki/Agent-based_model)
## Previous hub tags
Hubs: `Systems`. Portals: [[PORTAL_Systems]], [[PORTAL_Agent-based_model]].