arXiv subjects

Megan S. Harris

Publications and source records attributed to Megan S. Harris.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

An Introduction to Model-Based Systems Engineering and Hetero-functional Graph Theory for Hydrological Systems

This introductory overview introduces a unified modeling framework for representing interconnected environmental systems using Model-Based Systems Engineering and Hetero-functional Graph Theory. Existing environmental models encode rich structural and process-level information, yet much of this knowledge remains implicit within domain-specific formulations. This paper demonstrates how such information can be formalized into a consistent ontology that explicitly represents system structure, function, and interconnections. Using illustrative hydrological examples, the tutorial illustrates how conventional process models can be translated into a scalable system-of-systems representation. These examples highlight how embedded relationships in existing models can be made explicit and computationally tractable. While using simplified examples, the overview provides a foundation for integrating heterogeneous models across environmental and engineered domains. More broadly, this work offers a step-by-step introduction to a generalizable modeling framework for complex systems.

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arXiv2026

A System-of-Systems Convergence Paradigm for Societal Challenges of the Anthropocene

Modern societal challenges, such as climate change, urbanization, and water resource management, demand integrated, multi-discipline, multi-problem approaches to frame and address their complexity. Unfortunately, current methodologies often operate within disciplinary silos, leading to fragmented insights and missed opportunities for convergence. A critical barrier to cross-disciplinary integration lies in the disparate ontologies that shape how different fields conceptualize and communicate knowledge. To address these limitations, this paper proposes a system-of-systems (SoS) convergence paradigm grounded in a meta-cognition map, a framework that integrates five complementary domains: real-world observations, systems thinking, visual modeling, mathematics, and computing. The paradigm is based on the Systems Modeling Language (SysML), offering a standardized, domain-neutral approach for representing and analyzing complex systems. The proposed methodology is demonstrated through a case study of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed, a socio-environmental system requiring coordination across land use, hydrology, economic and policy domains. By modeling this system with SysML, the study illustrates practical strategies for navigating interdisciplinary challenges and highlights the potential of agile SoS modeling to support large-scale, multi-dimensional decision-making.

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arXiv2026

A Hetero-functional Graph State Estimator for Watershed Systems: Application to the Chesapeake Bay

Regional watersheds are complex systems of systems encompassing hydrology, land-use decision-making, estuarine ecological feedbacks, and overlapping governance jurisdictions. Their effective management underlies many modern societal challenges and therefore requires models that capture interdependencies between natural and institutional systems. Regional-specific models such as the Chesapeake Assessment Scenario Tool, used in this paper's case study, provide valuable nutrient estimates but rely on structurally opaque watershed routing that limits integration into broader systems-level analyses. This paper introduces a modeling framework for watershed systems. First, a region-independent reference architecture is developed. Second, the Weighted Least Squares Error Hetero-functional Graph State Estimator, an extension of Hetero-functional Graph Theory (HFGT), is adapted to estimate nutrient flows from uncertain data. The framework is demonstrated through instantiation in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed. By establishing a shared ontology grounded in Systems Modeling Language and HFGT, the approach enables integration of economic and governance systems to support sustainable watershed management.

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arXiv2026

Embedding Economic Input-Output Models in Systems of Systems: An MBSE and Hetero-functional Graph Theory Approach

Characterizing the interdependent nature of Anthropocene systems of systems is fundamental to making informed decisions to address challenges across complex ecological, environmental, and coupled human-natural systems. This paper presents the first application of Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) and Hetero-functional Graph Theory (HFGT) to economic systems, establishing a scalable and extensible methodology for integrating economic input-output (EIO) models within a unified system-of-systems modeling framework. Integrating EIO models into the MBSE-HFGT workflow demonstrates how the structural form and function of economic systems can be expressed through SysML's graphical ontology and subsequently translated into the computational structure of HFGT. Using a synthetic Rectangular Choice of Technology (RCOT) example as a pedagogical foundation, the study confirms that the dynamics captured by basic EIO models, as well as other complex economic models grounded in EIO theory, can be equivalently reproduced within the MBSE-HFGT framework. The integration with MBSE and HFGT thus preserves analytical precision while offering enhanced graphical clarity and system-level insight through a shared ontological structure. By integrating modeling languages and mathematical frameworks, the proposed methodology establishes a foundation for knowledge co-production and integrated decision-making to address the multifaceted sustainability challenges associated with Anthropocene systems of systems.

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