Dr Ugur Bilge was a Tutor at Taught Course on Complexity Science at London School of Economics, back in 2006 and 2007
he delivered several seminars and took part in workshops on Complexity, below is a possible list of subjects for a 2-4 days workshop on Complexity, Agent Based Modelling and Data Mining.

Agent Based Modelling Workshop

Outline

Agent Based Modelling (ABM) is a relatively recent computer paradigm [1, 2, 3]. As opposed to conventional, “top-down” computer simulations, the ABM approach is a “bottom-up” modelling technique, sometimes resulting in unexpected, so-called “emergent” behaviour.  ABM applications model a medium to high number of independent agents such as shoppers in a supermarket [4] or workers in an organisation [5] for the investigation of overall system behaviour. Today ABM in the social context is often used together with Network Analysis techniques [6, 7] and network animation tools for visualising and simulating social agents in organisations.

EPSRC ICoSS Project [5] used the ABM approach to investigate connectivity patterns and informal networks in the work place, to identify hubs and lynchpins as well as communications bottlenecks primarily focusing on the “who knows who” question in an organisation.

Objectives

It will be assumed that students have no prior knowledge of ABM. The objectives of this workshop are to:
  • introduce, and demonstrate complexity with several demos
  • introduce the concept of ABM simulation environments
  • provide hands-on experience of ABM
  • demonstrate several real world examples of ABM
  • prepare a questionnaire to search for social networks in the course
  • put forward own ABM proposals

Possible Session Plans:

1 - Complexity and Agent Based Modelling (3 hours)
Introduction to Complexity, Chaos, Power Law 
Complexity in Business, Economy, Fitness Landscapes

2 - ABM Programming Environments (3 Hours)
NetLogo and Practical Session

3 - ABM in Real World, Business (3 Hours)
SimStore, Container World, Oil World Simulators

4 - Networks and ABM (3 Hours)
Network Theory, Social Networks, ICoSS Simulator

5 - ABM for Global Economy (3 Hours)
Global Trade Network Simulator, Oil World, Climate Change and Environment

6 - Artificial Intelligence (3 Hours)
Expert Systems, Neural Nets, Genetic Algorithms and Fuzzy Logic

7 - Big Data (3 Hours)
Web, Text and Data Mining

8 - Data Mining in Healthcare (3 Hours)
Medical and Genomic Data Mining, Predicting Patient Outcomes, COPD Simulator

References
  1. Stuart Kauffman, At home in the Universe, Penguin Books, 1995
  2. Joshua M. Epstein and Robert Axtell, Growing Artificial Societies – Social Science from the bottom up, 1996
  3. John L. Casti, Would-be Worlds, John Wiley & Sons, 1997
  4. John L. Casti, Firm Forecast, New Scientist, 24 April 1999, p42-46
  5. Ugur Bilge, Modelling Connectivity in the Work Place, ICoSS Project Report, LSE, March 200
  6. Albert Laszlo Barabasi, Linked – The new science of Networks, Perseus Publishing, 2002
  7. Mark Buchanan, Small World: Uncovering nature’s hidden networks, Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2002



SEMINARS DELIVERED_______________________________________________________________

Global Trade Network Simulator and Agent Based Modelling, London School of Economics Complexity Group Seminar, 15th June 2011

Global Trade Network Simulator, IIASA Laxenburg, Austria, 22nd November 2010

Agent Based Modelling in the Real World, Centre for Economic Agents and Finance, University of Essex, 23rd March 2010

Agent Based Modelling - Simulation Environments – a Practical Workshop, London School of Economics, 10th February 2010

Agent Based Modelling in the Real World, LSE Complexity Seminar, London School of Economics, 30th November 2009

Agent Based Modelling in the Real World, IIASA Laxenburg, Austria, 20th November 2009

Oil World Simulator, Kenos Circle, Vienna, April 2006