Incorporating system dynamic modeling in infection transmission of tuberculosis

Abstract

The thesis involves the following terms with the corresponding definitions: Calibration – a process by which model parameters are adjusted to bring model’s outputs into agreement with data. Compartmental model – a modeling approach where the population is divided into different compartments, representing their status of disease or other factors. Deterministic model – a model which has only one possible output when all its parameters are fully specified. Optimization – the process of finding the best input variable values from among all possibilities without explicitly evaluating each possibility. Parameter – any quantity governing rates of change of different compartments. Simulation – the representation of behavior or characteristics of one system using another system. System Dynamics – an approach to understand the nonlinear behavior of a complex system over time using stock, flows, internal feedback loops. Validation – the set of processes and activities intended to verify that models are performing as expected.