ISYE 6501 FINAL PAPER 2026
COMPREHENSIVE QUESTIONS AND
ACCURATE SOLUTIONS
◉ Types of Simulation
Answer: Deterministic
Stochastic
Continuous-Time
Discrete-Event
◉ Deterministic Simulation
Answer: Same inputs always produce same outputs - no randomness
Best for systems with no variability (rare in practice)
◉ Stochastic Simulation
Answer: Randomness means different outputs in each run
Best for most real-world analytics applications
◉ Continuous-Time Simulation
Answer: Changes happen continuously, modeled with differential
equations
,Best for chemical processes, disease spread
◉ Discrete Event Simulation
Answer: System changes only at specific times
Best for call centers, airports, manufacturing lines, hospitals
◉ Key Elements of Simulation Models
Answer: Entities
Modules
Resources
Decision Points
Statistics
◉ Elements of Simulation Models - Entities
Answer: Things that move through the system (bags, calls, wafers,
patients)
◉ Elements of Simulation Models - Modules
Answer: Process components (queues, storage areas, workstations)
◉ Elements of Simulation Models - Resources
, Answer: Servers that can be varied to adjust outcomes (workers,
machines, equipment)
◉ Elements of Simulation Models - Decision Points
Answer: Branching logic based on rules or probability
◉ Elements of Simulation Models - Statistics
Answer: Tracking performance metrics (throughput, wait times,
utilization)
◉ Simulation Software
Answer: Generates pseudo-random numbers from specified
probability distributions (i.e. ARENA)
◉ Replication
Answer: A single simulation run. Run many replications to get a
distribution of outcomes
◉ Validation
Answer: Comparing your simulation to real data to confirm that it
matches before using it for decision-making. A model that doesn't
match reality will give wrong answers
COMPREHENSIVE QUESTIONS AND
ACCURATE SOLUTIONS
◉ Types of Simulation
Answer: Deterministic
Stochastic
Continuous-Time
Discrete-Event
◉ Deterministic Simulation
Answer: Same inputs always produce same outputs - no randomness
Best for systems with no variability (rare in practice)
◉ Stochastic Simulation
Answer: Randomness means different outputs in each run
Best for most real-world analytics applications
◉ Continuous-Time Simulation
Answer: Changes happen continuously, modeled with differential
equations
,Best for chemical processes, disease spread
◉ Discrete Event Simulation
Answer: System changes only at specific times
Best for call centers, airports, manufacturing lines, hospitals
◉ Key Elements of Simulation Models
Answer: Entities
Modules
Resources
Decision Points
Statistics
◉ Elements of Simulation Models - Entities
Answer: Things that move through the system (bags, calls, wafers,
patients)
◉ Elements of Simulation Models - Modules
Answer: Process components (queues, storage areas, workstations)
◉ Elements of Simulation Models - Resources
, Answer: Servers that can be varied to adjust outcomes (workers,
machines, equipment)
◉ Elements of Simulation Models - Decision Points
Answer: Branching logic based on rules or probability
◉ Elements of Simulation Models - Statistics
Answer: Tracking performance metrics (throughput, wait times,
utilization)
◉ Simulation Software
Answer: Generates pseudo-random numbers from specified
probability distributions (i.e. ARENA)
◉ Replication
Answer: A single simulation run. Run many replications to get a
distribution of outcomes
◉ Validation
Answer: Comparing your simulation to real data to confirm that it
matches before using it for decision-making. A model that doesn't
match reality will give wrong answers
