Page 44 RAIN Summer 1986 CommunityInformation Technology Community Information Technology is·a regular feature sponsored by the Information Technology Institute (fl'/), a sister organization to RAIN under the organizational umbrella of the ·center for Urban Education (CUE). fl'/ helps nonprofit and public agencies learn about and use the latest in electronic Peace Games with Globally Interconnected Computers by Parker Rossman and Takeshi Utsumi The technology now exists to ·interconnect hundreds or thousands of personal computers, in different countries, through distributed networks !J.nd information prpcessing, into modeling and simulation instruments for playing "peace games" on the scale of Pentagon war games. To some people, "peace games" evokes an image of a little game played on a computer screen. Here we define peace games as research and planning to manage complex problems and to test alternatives on a global scale. (The term "peace games" was coined by T. Utsumi in 1971.) lt is now possible to combine existing technologi~s and more holistic explorations of various scenarios in solving global social problems. All kinds of possibilities for waging peace can be explored through computer simulations to see what might work and to project results before risks are actually taken. - Developing expertise in modeling and gaming can be combined in global systems, with a cascading effect, to empower explorations of new international institutions, or to remodel existing ones. New precision can come into the diagnosis of problems and the definition of issues and alternatives. Society has vast amounts of data that are not adequately ·brought to bear~in solv.ing many kinds of problems because the information ,is scattered, uncoordinated, and not available when needed. We need tools to put this data together. When the meaningful data is pulled together, computer Il).odeling can be used to help in making important decisions, models which incorporate more and more knowledge about people and ins ti tu tions. Computer models can -serve as increasingly complex models of governments and of how leaders think. They can be helpful for testing ideas and possible actions._ Some preliminary thought about waging peace through simulat~ons was offered by A.D. Carroll, who said we must use these powerful new tools to understand how the human mind functions in peace and war. Compiled .by Steve Johnson information technology. It offers a computer lab and library, c.omputer classes, on-line information services, technical assistance, and other programs. For more information about fl'/ programs, contact the Information Technology Institute, 1135 SE Sa/1JZ0n, Portland, OR 97214. FROM: The Peace Resource Book-see page 11 (Illustration by William Harsh) GLOSAS The GLOSAS (Global Systems Analysis and Simulation) Project was conceived by Tak Utsumi .in 1972. It proposes gaming solutions on a very large scale to help decisionmakers ~eal with interwoven problems. The GLOSAS Project ~eeks to construct a "Globally Distributed Decision Support System" for a plus-sum peace game. This ·involves combining the power of global multimed,ia communication networks., teleconferencing and computer conferencing, simulation and game systems, computer bulletin boards, and "situation rooms." It is ·not computers doing people's thinking; rather it is mind-empowerment tools to .. help people do better thinking. , ·The GLOSAS Project has paved the way by working for deregulations of communication policies in Japan and elsewhere to facilitate the extension of Value Added Networks (VANs) to other countries and the uses of electronic mail and computer conferences via the extension lines. It has also led to experiments to extend U.S. educational courses via computer conferencing to Japan and ·other countries. (A spin-off benefit of the project is to make possible international activities, such as the Ikego Forest Project reported in the Spring 1986 issue of RAIN.) Solving global problems, prov!ding justice and welfare, and warning of dangers and threats requires more and more sophistic1;1ted models of an emerging global system. The value of such tools will be determined by their success in helping people solve the most desperate social problems. , A great deal of modeling experience is available in political science, economic models, and strategic decision modeling. The Ciub of Rome is an international group of world modelers that seeks to call major world problems to the attention of
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