Business Management Simulation – 1: Historical Context

Our recent family trip to Egypt was highly educational for both my wife and me, as well as for our children. We do not, as a habit, confine ourselves to all-inclusive hotels and spend our holidays simply sunbathing and swimming from morning to evening. Instead, during our limited vacation time, the more we move physically and the more new things we learn, the more mentally refreshed we feel. I would recommend that those who seek mental and emotional rest do the same, and use their vacation time—within their means—as much as possible “to gain new experiences”.

Technological advancement and the level of civilization are not the same thing.

Ancient Egyptian history is significant because this civilization built the only surviving structure of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World that has reached the present day. The Great Pyramid of Giza, also known as the Pyramid of Khufu or the Pyramid of Cheops, is the oldest and largest of the three monumental pyramids located in the ancient necropolis of Giza, now part of Cairo, the capital of Egypt. Believed to have been constructed around 2560–2551 BCE, this monumental structure has been the subject of hundreds of documentaries exploring how it was built, with dozens of theories proposed—including claims of extraterrestrial assistance. It is striking how many ideas humans can generate about things they do not understand, do not know, or perceive as “mysteries,” isn’t it? Although approximately 4,500 years have passed and very few technologically comparable artifacts have survived from that era to the present day, the technological level we currently possess often leads us to assume that today’s “level of civilization” is far more advanced. But are technological development and the level of civilization the same thing, or do they always progress in parallel? In my view, they are definitely not the same. In fact, when we learn more about the intellectual level of people who lived in various ancient civilizations thousands of years ago, their understanding of society and governance, their sense of justice and even their herbal and natural treatment methods for diseases, it is difficult not to be surprised. At times, I find myself asking: how is it that, in different fields as a whole humanity, we have sometimes managed not to progress, but to regress so significantly? The key to the “secret” of the construction of the Great Pyramid of Giza—long regarded as the largest structure ever built by human hands—and of ancient Egyptian civilization lies, according to archaeological findings, in small-scale architectural models discovered among burial goods. Initially thought to be toys, these models are in fact evidence that small-scale prototypes were used in city planning and architectural projects. Some of these models, built at scales such as 1/100 or 1/500, were used to simulate the design of various structures such as temples, tombs, and pyramids, serving as guides during construction. As can be understood, what is considered one of the earliest known forms of “simulation” in history consists of scaled architectural models used in Ancient Egypt, including those employed to assess the effects of Nile floodwaters on construction projects. It was precisely these simulations—repeated trials, drills, and real-like applications—that led Ancient Egyptian civilization to success, particularly in agriculture and construction.

The First Known Simulator in the Field of Medicine: Resusci Anne

Throughout the thousands of years from Ancient Egypt to the present day, various forms of simulation were developed and used in different regions such as Mesopotamia and China, particularly for agricultural practices and military strategy, including games like Go (Weiqi). During the Renaissance in the 15th century, Leonardo da Vinci designed various mechanical models and prototypes to understand how machines and gear systems functioned. These models were a form of physical simulation developed to study the effects of motion and force. In the 17th century, Isaac Newton used the laws of universal gravitation and motion to perform mathematical simulations in order to predict the movements of planets. These simulations became a turning point in the field of celestial physics. In medicine, the first known simulator was, interestingly, produced in a relatively recent year—1960—by the Norwegian toy manufacturer Asmund S. Laerdal. Until that time, the Norwegian industrialist had almost exclusively produced wooden toys. However, he quickly adapted his factory and production lines to the newly emerging plastic manufacturing technologies. In response to demand, he produced the resuscitation mannequin known as “Resusci Anne,” designed for practicing chest compressions and artificial respiration. Since he thought that male medical students and interns in research hospitals might be reluctant to kiss a man’s face, he considered it appropriate to use a woman’s face for the mannequin. But whose face should be used as the model? While researching how to prevent potential copyright and inheritance issues that might arise in the future, he came across information about a young woman who had drowned in the River Seine in Paris nearly 70 years earlier and whose identity had never been established. During the autopsy procedures, a cast of her face had been taken. After completing the necessary formalities, he reproduced this cast and applied it to the face of the mannequin that would be used as a medical simulator. L’Inconnue de la Seine (The Unknown Woman of the Seine) thus came to be regarded as “the most kissed girl in history.” Beyond the humorous aspect of the story, this mannequin simulator—affectionately called “Annie” by medical students—has, through its use in training, contributed to saving the lives of millions of people by enabling them to learn first aid and resuscitation techniques. Human popular culture is truly fascinating; subjects from many different fields become intertwined and influence one another. Medical students and healthcare professionals working with Resusci Anne had a particular habit they developed as part of their training during simulation practice. During artificial respiration and CPR practice, when they needed to pause and check the patient, they would loudly ask, “Annie, are you okay? Are you okay, Annie?” This became so popular and culturally influential, particularly in the United States, that American singer Michael Jackson incorporated it into his song “Smooth Criminal,” for which he wrote the lyrics himself.

The Great Leader Mustafa Kemal Atatürk stated: “Preventive measures must be considered before a disaster occurs, because once a disaster has happened, lamenting it is of no use.” To simulate means to design something or an event as if it were real and to recreate a similar version of it; in other words, it is a form of “drill.” In the next part of our article, after examining the various types of simulations and simulators that have left their mark on the 20th and 21st centuries, we will discuss different applications and training programs around the world and in our country that are particularly important for business life and especially for corporate top management.