System development for parallel cellular automata and its applications

Cellular automata (CA) are a powerful technique for modeling otherwise intr actably complex systems. However, the amount of computation required can be large. This may mean that the use of CA is not feasible or that models mus t be simplified, resulting in loss of accuracy. To address this, we have im plemented a system called the Cell Driver to facilitate the development of CA in parallel. The Cell Driver is designed to support the rapid developmen t of parallel cellular automata applications, making parallel computing eas ily accessible for CA developers. We present the results of applications in fire modeling, earthquake modeling, and crystal growth. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.