Model (representation)

A model is a simplified representation of a real or imagined system. It preserves selected features so the system can be described, explained, predicted, or simulated.

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Abstraction: The process of retaining selected features while setting aside others to make an idea or system easier to handle. Every model abstracts: its usefulness depends on which features it preserves and which it leaves out.
Mathematical model: A representation of a system using mathematical objects and relations. Equations make assumptions explicit and allow quantities to be derived or calculated.
Weather forecasting: The prediction of atmospheric conditions using observations and models of the atmosphere. Numerical weather models turn atmospheric measurements and physical laws into forecasts.
Theory: A structured set of principles that explains phenomena and supports testable consequences. A theory can guide many models, while a model makes a more specific representation.
System: A set of interacting components considered together as a whole. A model represents a system by selecting its components, boundaries, and interactions.
Physical model: A material object built to represent selected properties of another object or system. A scaled or constructed object represents spatial form through tangible structure.
Climate model: A mathematical representation of interactions among climate-system components, used to study past and future climate. Climate models project long-term responses to natural and human influences.
Hypothesis: A proposed explanation or prediction that can be tested against evidence. A hypothesis is a claim to assess; a model organizes relationships that can generate such claims.
Assumption: A proposition accepted as a starting point for reasoning or analysis. Assumptions make a model tractable, while also limiting where its conclusions apply.
Agent-based model: A computational model in which autonomous agents follow rules and interact. System-level patterns can emerge from specified behaviors of individual agents.