Gaml

GAML, short for the GAMA Modeling Language, is a domain-specific language designed for authoring agent-based models within the GAMA platform. It provides a high-level, readable syntax for describing autonomous agents, their attributes, decision rules, and interactions, as well as the environments in which they operate. Models written in GAML are used to study complex adaptive systems across fields such as ecology, urban planning, epidemiology, and economics.

In GAML, model components include species (the types of agents), their parameters and state variables, and the environment, which may include geographic space, networks, or abstract grids. Behaviors are expressed through rules and handlers that govern perception, decision, and action cycles. The language supports scheduling, randomness, and interaction patterns, enabling stochastic experiments and scenario comparisons.

A key strength of GAML is its integration with spatial data and geographic information systems. Models can incorporate real-world maps, raster data, land-use layers, and other geospatial inputs to produce spatially explicit simulations. GAML also supports multi-scale modeling, time management, and rich visualization and data output facilities for analysis.

Development and use: GAML is part of the GAMA platform, an open-source environment used by researchers and practitioners around the world. The language emphasizes readability and reusability, with facilities for organizing code into models, species libraries, and experiments; it supports parameter sweeps, sensitivity analyses, and provenance of simulation results. The platform provides editors, debuggers, and visualization tools to support model development and communication.

GAML has been applied to a wide range of domains, including ecology and conservation, transportation and urban systems, social dynamics, and environmental assessment. It is designed to be approachable to non-programmers while offering the depth required for complex experiments.