We describe a physics-prototyping environment, called the Tecolote Framework, which allows model developers to work more efficiently and accurately. This Framework provides a parallel computer-science support layer and a set of highlevel physics-modeling components such as meshes, fields, operators, and a simple database. A new model can be plugged into the Framework’s support system in a matter of minutes through our generic interface. The model developer can then use the Framework’s fields and operators to write parallel physics equations that will run both reliably and efficiently on large numbers of processors. The developer has immediate access to parallel input, output, and graphics capabilities.