Scientific Simulators - Terms, License & Disclaimer
Website: https://pietrocottone.com
Author and Developer: Pietro Cottone, Ph.D.
Last updated: November 2, 2026
- Introduction and Scope
The interactive scientific simulators available through pietrocottone.com are educational resources independently developed by Pietro Cottone, Ph.D.
They are designed to facilitate the understanding of selected concepts in pharmacology, physiology, neuroscience, and related scientific disciplines through interactive mathematical models, graphical representations, and educational exercises.
These Terms, License & Disclaimer apply to the scientific simulators made available through this website, including their software, interfaces, visualizations, documentation, and supported export functions.
These terms supplement the website’s general Terms of Use and the licensing information contained within each simulator’s About & License section.
Where a simulator provides specific scientific limitations or additional licensing conditions, those provisions should be read together with this document. In the event of an inconsistency, the more specific terms governing that simulator will ordinarily take precedence.
- Educational Purpose
The simulators are provided exclusively for educational, instructional, and conceptual exploration.
Their intended uses include:
- Individual study and independent learning.
- Classroom instruction and educational demonstrations.
- Exploration of pharmacological and physiological relationships.
- Illustration of scientific principles and mathematical models.
- Noncommercial educational presentations and teaching materials.
- Formative exercises and conceptual problem-solving.
The simulators are intended to support scientific understanding and critical thinking.
They are not intended to replace authoritative textbooks, peer-reviewed scientific literature, professional instruction, or independently validated computational tools.
- Not for Clinical or Patient-Specific Use
The simulators are not medical devices and are not intended for clinical diagnosis, treatment, patient management, medication selection, dosing decisions, or any other clinical decision-making.
They must not be used to determine or predict the condition, treatment, prognosis, or physiological responses of individual patients.
The simulations do not constitute medical, pharmaceutical, or other healthcare advice.
Numerical outputs, mathematical curves, graphical representations, and other results must not be interpreted as clinically validated measurements or patient-specific predictions.
Users should consult qualified healthcare professionals and appropriate clinical references when addressing real-world medical questions.
No physician-patient, healthcare-provider-patient, or other professional advisory relationship is established through the use of these simulators.
- Scientific Models, Assumptions, and Limitations
Each simulator represents a simplified, prescribed, or idealized description of selected scientific mechanisms.
The models may intentionally omit physiological, pharmacological, biochemical, anatomical, or regulatory processes that are not necessary for their specific educational objectives.
Certain parameters, numerical relationships, graphical representations, and simulated responses may be illustrative rather than experimentally measured or clinically validated.
In particular:
- Mathematical relationships may rely on simplified assumptions.
- Physiological processes may be represented under idealized conditions.
- Biological variability and individual differences may be omitted.
- Model parameters may not correspond to real-world experimental or clinical values.
- Graphical representations may be schematic rather than directly measured.
- Relationships demonstrated under selected conditions may not apply to other conditions.
- Simulated outputs may differ substantially from actual biological responses.
Users should not assume that a scientifically illustrative model is a comprehensive or predictive representation of a biological system.
Each simulator may contain a dedicated Models & Limitations, Model & Limitations, or Limitations section describing its particular assumptions, mathematical structure, and scientific constraints.
Users are strongly encouraged to consult these sections when interpreting results or incorporating simulator-generated materials into educational activities.
- Accuracy, Validation, and Potential Errors
Reasonable efforts are made to develop the simulators according to established scientific concepts and to verify their mathematical and graphical consistency.
Nevertheless, the simulators may contain programming errors, numerical inaccuracies, incomplete representations, conceptual simplifications, unexpected behavior, or other limitations.
Testing, mathematical audits, supporting documentation, or references to published scientific literature do not constitute a guarantee of accuracy, completeness, or suitability for a particular application.
The author does not guarantee that simulator outputs reproduce experimentally observed responses or reliably predict real biological systems.
Users remain responsible for independently verifying calculations, scientific interpretations, and exported results before relying on them for teaching, research, publication, or other purposes.
Corrections and improvements may be introduced as errors are identified or scientific understanding evolves.
- Copyright and Intellectual Property
Copyright © 2026 Pietro Cottone. All rights reserved.
Unless otherwise indicated, the original simulator software, source code, interface design, visualizations, explanatory materials, and associated documentation are independently authored by Pietro Cottone and are protected by applicable intellectual property laws.
Any third-party components or materials incorporated into a simulator remain subject to their respective ownership rights and applicable licenses.
Access to a simulator does not transfer ownership of its software or grant unrestricted rights to reproduce, modify, redistribute, or commercially exploit it.
The fact that a simulator is freely accessible through a web browser does not mean that its underlying software is released into the public domain or distributed under an open-source license.
The scientific facts, ideas, mathematical principles, and methods illustrated by the simulators remain subject to the distinctions and limitations established by applicable intellectual property law.
All rights not expressly granted are reserved by their respective rights holders.
- Free Noncommercial Educational Use
Permission is granted to individuals, students, educators, researchers, and academic institutions to access and use the simulators free of charge for noncommercial educational purposes.
Permitted activities include:
- Running the simulators through the official website.
- Demonstrating their functions during classroom instruction.
- Exploring parameters, conditions, and model responses.
- Using interactive exercises for independent learning.
- Displaying the simulators during educational presentations.
- Directing students or colleagues to the official website.
- Using simulator-generated figures in accordance with Section 8.
These permissions are provided on a nonexclusive, nontransferable basis and do not authorize redistribution of the underlying software.
Normal classroom instruction does not require individual written permission, provided that the simulator is accessed through its authorized source, its attribution remains visible, and its use complies with these terms.
- Exported Figures and Educational Materials
Certain simulators provide functions to export graphical representations and reports in formats such as PDF, PNG, or SVG.
Figures generated through these built-in functions may be reproduced, shared, cropped, resized, annotated, or otherwise reasonably adapted for noncommercial educational and scholarly purposes, provided that appropriate attribution is maintained.
Permitted uses may include:
- Classroom handouts and lecture presentations.
- Student assignments and educational exercises.
- Noncommercial academic and scientific presentations.
- Educational reports and teaching materials.
- Scholarly publications and other noncommercial research-related communications.
- Other noncommercial instructional activities consistent with these terms.
Attribution does not need to remain embedded within the exported image itself. When a figure is cropped, modified, or incorporated into another work, acknowledgment of Pietro Cottone and the original simulator source may instead be provided in an accompanying figure caption, slide footer, references slide, acknowledgment section, or another reasonably accessible location within the resulting material.
Where practical, attribution should identify the simulator’s title, author, version, and original website (https://pietrocottone.com).
Reasonable modifications must not misrepresent the underlying scientific information, obscure the simulated nature of the results, or falsely imply that the material represents experimental measurements, clinical records, or independently validated predictions.
Users must not falsely claim authorship or ownership of the original simulator-generated material.
Commercial publication, resale, licensing, or other commercial exploitation of exported figures requires prior written permission, except where otherwise permitted by applicable law.
Permission to reproduce or adapt exported figures does not grant permission to redistribute, modify, or republish the underlying simulator software.
- Restrictions on Software Redistribution and Modification
Except where expressly authorized in writing or permitted by applicable law, users may not:
- Copy or distribute the underlying simulator software.
- Republish or host the simulator on another website or platform.
- Modify and redistribute the simulator or derivative versions of its protected software.
- Incorporate the simulator software into other applications, products, or educational platforms.
- Package or distribute the simulator as standalone software.
- Sell, license, or commercially exploit the simulator software.
- Remove or misrepresent copyright, authorship, or licensing notices.
These restrictions apply to the simulator software and its protected expressive elements, not to scientific principles, facts, or other material that is not protected by copyright.
The permissions granted for ordinary browser access and educational demonstrations do not authorize the distribution of copies of the underlying software.
Nothing in these terms prohibits uses that cannot lawfully be restricted, including applicable statutory exceptions and limitations.
Educators, institutions, and other interested parties are encouraged to provide direct links to the simulator on the official website rather than hosting unauthorized copies.
- Citation and Attribution
Users are encouraged to acknowledge the simulator when incorporating its content or results into educational materials, presentations, reports, or scholarly publications.
When reproducing or adapting exported figures, appropriate attribution to Pietro Cottone and the original simulator source is required, in accordance with Section 8.
Attribution may appear in a figure caption, slide footer, references slide, acknowledgment section, or another reasonably accessible location within the resulting material. It does not need to remain embedded within the exported figure itself.
Where practical, attribution should identify the simulator’s title, author, version, and official website.
A suggested citation format is:
Cottone, P. (2026). [Simulator Title] (Version [Number]) [Interactive educational software]. https://pietrocottone.com/
The appropriate simulator title and version number should be taken from its About & License section.
Citation or attribution does not, by itself, authorize uses otherwise restricted under these terms.
- Independent Development and Institutional Affiliations
The simulators are presented as independently developed educational resources by Pietro Cottone, Ph.D., through his personal website.
They are not presented as official Boston University educational, scientific, or clinical resources.
Their mathematical models, scientific interpretations, educational approaches, and other content do not necessarily represent the official views, policies, or positions of Boston University or any other affiliated institution.
Unless expressly stated otherwise, no institutional sponsorship, approval, validation, or endorsement is implied.
References to academic affiliations are provided for professional identification and context and do not independently establish institutional responsibility for the simulators.
References to academic affiliations are provided for professional identification and context and do not independently establish institutional responsibility for the simulators.
- Use of Results in Research and Publications
The simulators are designed primarily for conceptual and instructional purposes rather than as validated research instruments.
Use of simulator-generated results in scientific publications, academic presentations, or research-related activities requires careful consideration of the underlying assumptions and limitations.
Users should clearly distinguish between:
- Results generated by an educational simulator.
- Independently established mathematical or theoretical relationships.
- Experimental measurements.
- Validated computational predictions.
- Clinical observations.
Simulator-generated figures or outputs should not be represented as original experimental or clinical data.
Where results are discussed in scholarly work, users should identify the simulator, its version, and relevant scientific limitations.
Users are responsible for determining whether the simulator’s assumptions, methods, and numerical outputs are appropriate for their intended scholarly application.
- Privacy and Data Handling
The simulators generally operate through interactive functions presented within the visitor’s web browser and do not ordinarily require personal accounts or identifying information.
Users should avoid entering real patient information, confidential research data, or other sensitive personal information into simulator controls.
Accessing the simulators may involve ordinary website requests, hosting logs, and other technical processing associated with providing web content.
Additional information about personal data, cookies, and related technologies is available in the website’s Privacy Policy.
The website’s Privacy Policy governs the processing of personal information and should be consulted separately from these licensing and educational-use provisions.
- Availability, Updates, and Version Control
The simulators may be updated, revised, corrected, replaced, or discontinued at the author’s discretion.
Changes may affect mathematical models, numerical results, graphical representations, features, interfaces, or educational explanations.
The author does not guarantee continuous availability of any particular simulator or version.
Users should identify the version used when preparing instructional materials or scholarly references.
Unless otherwise indicated, the official authorized versions are those made available through pietrocottone.com.
Copies obtained from unauthorized sources may be outdated, modified, incomplete, or otherwise different from the author’s official versions.
- Disclaimer of Warranties
To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, the simulators are provided “as is” and “as available,” without warranties of any kind, express or implied.
The author does not warrant that the software will be uninterrupted, error-free, fully accurate, complete, secure, or suitable for any particular purpose.
No guarantee is made concerning the correctness, physiological validity, pharmacological accuracy, clinical applicability, or predictive reliability of simulator-generated results.
Nothing in this disclaimer excludes warranties or protections that cannot lawfully be excluded.
- Limitation of Liability
To the extent permitted by applicable law, Pietro Cottone shall not be liable for losses or damages arising from misuse of the simulators, reliance on inaccurate or incomplete outputs, inappropriate interpretation of their models, unauthorized redistribution, or interruption of their availability.
Users assume responsibility for evaluating and verifying the suitability of simulator-generated information for their intended educational or scholarly purposes.
The simulators must not be relied upon for clinical or other safety-critical decisions.
Nothing in these terms excludes or limits liability where doing so would be prohibited by applicable law or restricts rights that cannot lawfully be waived.
- Requests for Permission and Reporting Errors
Users wishing to redistribute the software, incorporate it into another platform, obtain authorization for commercial uses, or request permission beyond the scope of this license should contact the author in advance.
The author also welcomes reports of suspected programming errors, scientific inaccuracies, or unexpected simulator behavior.
When reporting an issue, users are encouraged to identify the simulator, version, relevant settings, and observed behavior.
Submitting feedback, corrections, or suggestions does not automatically grant the sender rights to the simulator or imply acceptance of a proposed modification.
Permission requests and error reports may be submitted through the website’s Contact page.
- Changes to These Terms
These Terms, License & Disclaimer may be updated periodically to reflect changes in software functionality, scientific content, licensing practices, or applicable legal requirements.
The date at the beginning of this document indicates its latest revision.
Updated terms will apply as permitted by applicable law. Previously authorized uses remain subject to the terms and legal requirements applicable to those uses.
- Applicable Law
These terms are intended to be interpreted in accordance with the applicable laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the United States, without overriding mandatory rights or protections provided by applicable law.
If a provision is held unenforceable, the remaining provisions shall continue to apply to the extent legally permissible.
- Contact
For questions concerning the simulators, their licensing, permitted use, scientific limitations, or requests for authorization, please contact:
Pietro Cottone, Ph.D.
Massachusetts, United States