Numerical applications of the scaling concept (Q1284413)

This paper is concerned with the application of the scaling concept to some problems in numerical analysis. The aim of the paper is to present a survey of some recent applications in the field rather than to investigate new applications. After a historical introduction to the subject showing its connection with the classical dimensional analysis and the more recent theories of group invariance, the author focus their attention on some specific applications in the frame of numerical analysis collected in two sections devoted to ordinary differential problems and partial differential problems. In the case of ordinary differential problems several examples of two point boundary value problems and initial value problems have been presented to show that a scaling analysis of the numerical scheme can lead to more reliable algorithms that retain the symmetries of the underling problem. The section devoted to partial differential equations considers finite difference schemes with special emphasis in adaptive schemes for blow-up problems. The paper ends with a complete bibliography on the subject that is also available on internet as a BIB file prepared by the author and can be very helpful for researchers interested in the field.