simulate
v.to create a model or a copy of something to see how it works. You often do this on a computer to test a situation without doing it in real life.
v.to imitate the appearance or character of a process or system, typically for the purpose of study or training. Often involves the use of a mathematical or computer model to predict real-world outcomes.
“Scientists use computers to simulate the weather.”
“The flight software can simulate various emergency scenarios to help pilots practice their response times.”
“By using advanced algorithms to simulate the structural stresses on the bridge, engineers identified potential points of failure before the first stone was even laid.”
The verb is transitive and requires a direct object representing the system or condition being imitated.
Simulate is a transitive verb and does not take the preposition 'to' before its object.
“As an actor I was simulating these experiences and I went home every night, whereas the real participants are in an 18-month program and the work and recovery is never done.”
“To test their idea, the researchers built a model simulating Cygnus X-3 as a continuous source, spraying high-energy protons into space for hundreds of thousands of years.”
Common in science writing
First attested in 1652; Borrowed from Latin simulātus, perfect passive participle of simulō (“make like, imitate, copy, represent, feign”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix)), from similis (“like”). See similar.
First attested in c. 1425, in Middle English; inherited from Middle English symulat(e), simulat(e), similat(e) (“feigned; similar”), borrowed from Latin simulātus, see -ate (adjective-forming suffix) and Etymology 1 for more.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.