There might be a really useful related application here. If I could set up a 2D scene to be simulated headlessly, apply forces programmatically, and then receive the x position of an actor as an output, then this could be useful for simulating complex UI behaviors.
For example, recently I wanted to create a scrolling behavior with boundaries based on properties of the content. In this case, I wanted to draw a column of cards with a bit of tension to overcome before flipping to the next card.
See this diagram: https://imgur.com/a/zVvwtEu
If the viewport was a physical actor in a simulation, gliding along a track that I could generate based on the content, then the left edge of the actor could control the scrollTop or drive the translateY of the content, etc.
Just wanted to share a possible application of your awesome work.