Open AccessBuilding an empirical model of global carbon flux
Author(s) -
Schultz Colin
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
eos, transactions american geophysical union
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.316
H-Index - 86
eISSN - 2324-9250
pISSN - 0096-3941
DOI - 10.1029/2011eo440012
Subject(s) - abstraction , atmosphere (unit) , computer science , complex system , process (computing) , empirical modelling , flux (metallurgy) , development (topology) , carbon flux , data science , systems engineering , artificial intelligence , meteorology , engineering , simulation , epistemology , mathematics , chemistry , geography , ecology , philosophy , organic chemistry , ecosystem , biology , operating system , mathematical analysis
Predicting the behavior of a complex system, like the one that explains the exchange of carbon between the Earth's surface and the atmosphere, by trying to produce theoretical formulations of every environmental process is a daunting challenge. Likewise, the alternative approach—forsaking numerical abstraction in favor of predictions based explicitly on observations—has been hindered by a lack of both observational data and the computational power needed to make sense of it. Expanding detector networks, advancements in processing power, and the development of new computational techniques, however, are opening the door to the development of empirical models of complex systems.