MASON (Java)
title: "MASON (Java)" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["cellular-automaton-software", "self-organization", "theorem-proving-software-systems", "artificial-life", "agent-based-model", "free-software-programmed-in-java", "software-using-the-academic-free-license"] topic_path: "society/education" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MASON_(Java)" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::data[format=table title="Infobox software"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | MASON |
| developer | Sean Luke |
| released | |
| latest release version | 20 |
| latest release date | |
| programming language | Java |
| platform | Java platform |
| size | 3.3 MB |
| language | English |
| genre | Agent-based model simulation |
| license | Academic Free License, version 3.0 (with caveats) |
| website | |
| :: |
| name = MASON | developer = Sean Luke | released = | latest release version = 20 | latest release date = | programming language = Java | platform = Java platform | size = 3.3 MB | language = English | genre = Agent-based model simulation | license = Academic Free License, version 3.0 (with caveats) | website =
MASON is a multi-agent simulation environment developed in Java.
Development
MASON is developed at George Mason University's Evolutionary Computation Laboratory in conjunction with the GMU Center for Social Complexity. First released in 2003, the environment continues to be maintained and kept up to date. The name, as well as referring to the parent institution, derives from the acronym Multi-Agent Simulator Of Neighborhoods (or Networks).
MASON development started within the Java.net environment, then moved to Google Code{{cite web |url=http://code.google.com/p/mason/ |title=mason - Project Hosting on Google Code |accessdate=19 January 2011}} and is now at GitHub.{{cite web |url=https://github.com/eclab/mason |title=mason - Project Hosting on Github |website=GitHub |accessdate=10 August 2015}}
Whilst MASON is less extensive than other similar libraries it is designed with simplicity and execution speed as a priority.
Applets
Applets developed using MASON include Craig Reynolds' Boids algorithm, Balls and Bands, a simulation of Hooke's law, an L-system generator, Conway's Game of Life, Sugarscape and autonomous multi-robot systems.
MASON may be used with the Eclipse Integrated development environment.
References
References
- (19 January 2011). "MASON Multiagent Simulation Toolkit".
- (January 2018). "mason: Home".
- (September 2006). "Agent-based simulation platforms: review and development recommendations.". Simulation.
- Tucker Balch. "MASON instructions".
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