Modeling object complexity and behavior: Towards an ontological paradigm

A novel paradigm is proposed that, although adopting many of the basic object-oriented concepts, removes the limitations imposed by modeling complexity and behavior with instance variables and methods. The problem is examined from an ontological point of view with the purpose of achieving a clear and semantically based definition of complexity and behavior. The concepts of system and law are introduced as modeling primitives, and it is shown that complexity and behavior, including time-dependent behavior, are strictly related aspects to be modeled jointly. A consequence of this paradigm is the definition of a precise context for coding constraints and dynamics.