Small numerical simulator example

This is a small example of the kind of small numerical simulator I often write as I explore the dynamics of different kinds of systems. It’s not sophisticated, or advanced, but it is powerful.

Usage

python3 ski_sim.py | tee results.png

This type of code runs multiple times faster with Pypy than it does with standard python.

Exercises

(Simple) Replace the normal distributions with distributions with other shapes, especially heavy tails.
(Simple) Measure queue wait latency directly, calculating percentiles or other statistics.
(Moderate) Model the effect of breaks in lift service. What happens when a lift is unavailable or stopped for a short period of time?
(Moderate) Model the effect of people giving up waiting after a period of time. At what capacity does the system become stable?
(Moderate) Model the effect of different classes of service. How does giving some people priority alter other people’s waiting time?
(Advanced) Extend the simulation to model a network of slopes and lifts, and skiiers of different speed.