Convergent Anthropocene Systems-of-Systems: Overcoming the Limitations of System Dynamics with Hetero-functional Graph Theory
Mohammad Mahdi Naderi, Megan Harris, Ehsanoddin Ghorbanichemazkati, John C. Little, Amro M. Farid
TL;DR
The paper addresses the need for modeling interdependent Anthropocene systems beyond traditional System Dynamics by proposing a model-based systems engineering approach using SysML and Hetero-functional Graph Theory (HFGT). It demonstrates that translating graphical SysML models into HFGT-based formulations (HFNMCF) can reproduce the dynamic behavior captured by SD while enabling a broader set of system thinking abstractions and the handling of heterogeneous, multi-domain components. Through a Mono Lake case study, the authors show that MBSE–SysML–HFGT achieves results equivalent to SD (end-of-period volumes with minimal error) but provides deeper insights into system structure, boundary delineation, and function-to-form allocation, and supports discrete-event and hybrid dynamics. The work argues that this convergence of SoS modeling offers scalable, cross-disciplinary capability for representing, analyzing, and simulating Anthropocene systems, and outlines a path toward an SoS computational framework, decision-support system, and pedagogy, with applications planned for Chesapeake Bay and other coupled challenges.
Abstract
Understanding the complexity and interdependence of systems in the Anthropocene is essential for making informed decisions about societal challenges spanning geophysical, biophysical, sociocultural, and sociotechnical domains. This paper explores the potential of Hetero-functional Graph Theory (HFGT) as a quantification tool for converting Model-based Systems Engineering (MBSE), stated in the Systems Modeling Language (SysML), into dynamic simulations-offering a comprehensive alternative to System Dynamics (SD) for representing interdependent systems of systems in the Anthropocene. The two approaches are compared in terms of systems thinking abstractions, methodological flexibility, and their ability to represent dynamic, multi-functional systems. Through a comparative study, the Mono Lake system is simulated in Northern California using both SD, and MBSE and HFGT, to highlight technical, conceptual and analytical differences. The simulations show equivalent results. However, MBSE and HFGT provide distinct advantages in capturing the nuances of the system through a broader set of systems thinking abstractions and in managing adaptive, multi-functional system interactions. These strengths position MBSE and HFGT as a powerful and flexible approach for representing, modeling, analyzing, and simulating heterogeneous and complex systems-of-systems in the Anthropocene.