Synthetic environment explained

A synthetic environment is a computer simulation that represents activities at a high level of realism, from simulation of theaters of war to factories and manufacturing processes. These environments may be created within a single computer or a vast distributed network connected by local and wide area networks and augmented by super-realistic special effects and accurate behavioral models. SE allows visualization of and immersion into the environment being simulated.^[1]

A synthetic environment can be divided into the following:

• Synthetic natural environment – Representation of climate, weather, terrain, oceans, space, etc.
• Synthetic human-made environment – Representation of human-made structures like buildings, bridges, and roads
• Synthetic psychological environment – Representation of psychological influences on individuals and/or groups based on demography and other cultural factors.

See also

• Modeling and simulation
• Glossary of military modeling and simulation

Further reading

• Braudaway, Wesley Ph.D., "Chapter 3 Synthetic Natural Environments Representation", University of Central Florida, http://www.iems.ucf.edu/about/faculty/proctor/Interoperability%20Text/Chapter%203/Synthetic%20Natural%20Env%20-%20Final.htm

Notes and References

1. "Department of Defense Modeling and Simulation (M&S) Glossary", DoD 5000.59-M, Department of Defense, 1998 Web site: Archived copy . 2009-04-22 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20070710104756/http://www.dtic.mil/whs/directives/corres/pdf/500059m.pdf . 2007-07-10 .