Lecture 2 Flashcards
What is the first step in the procedure of building a model?
Why is it important to clearly define the goals of a model?
- It ensures the model is focused on answering the correct questions.
- Helps in deciding the complexity and structure of the model (e.g., size structure for fish populations).
- Prevents unnecessary complexity or wrong model application.
What are the main steps in constructing a model?
- Problem definition
- Conceptualization of the model
- Mathematical formulation
- Numerical formulation
- Verification
- Sensitivity analysis
- Calibration
- Validation
What is the goal of model conceptualization?
What is a conceptual model?
What types of conceptual models exist?
What is a black box model?
How do you distinguish between a black box model and a mechanistic model?
What are some examples of state variables in a conceptual model?
What is the role of mathematical formulation in modeling?
What is an ordinary differential equation (ODE) in modeling?
What are initial and boundary conditions in mathematical models?
What is the difference between deterministic and stochastic models?
What is the process of model verification?
What are some key checks during the mathematical formulation?
What should you do if a model result seems strange or unexpected?
What is sensitivity analysis in modeling?
What is the purpose of model calibration?
What is the final step after model calibration and verification?
How do you verify the internal logic of a model?
What is the difference between deterministic and stochastic models?
What type of models do we generally use in ecological modeling?
What are numerical solutions in modeling?
What checks should be performed on the mathematical formulation?
What is verification in modeling?
How do you verify the internal logic of a model?
How do you perform model verification?
What is numerical formulation in modeling?
What is sensitivity analysis?
What is calibration in modeling?
What is validation in modeling?
3 formula for a model of biogeochemical cycling in salt marshes
What are the main equations for biogeochemical cycling in salt marshes?
How do you verify a model?
How do you verify the order of magnitude in model results?
What is the first step in constructing an ecological model?
Defining the purpose or establishing the scientific/management question the model will address.
What are empirical models?
What are mechanistic models?
Models that represent the underlying processes driving system changes.
What is the difference between deterministic and stochastic models?
Deterministic models provide consistent results for the same inputs, while stochastic models include randomness in their predictions.
What is a conceptual model, and how is it represented?
A visual representation of how the system works, using boxes for state variables and arrows for flows.
What tool is commonly used to create ordinary differential equation (ODE) representations?
SIMULINK.
What are black-box models?
Models where internal mechanisms are not explicitly modeled, but input-output relationships are analyzed (e.g., AI models).
Provide an example of a black-box model.
What is involved in the mathematical framework of an ecological model?
Writing equations that describe variable interactions (e.g., biomass growth and carrying capacity).
What are initial and boundary conditions?
Initial conditions: Define the starting point of state variables (e.g., initial fish population).
Boundary conditions: Specify external influences at the edges of the model’s spatial domain (e.g., nutrient inflow).
What is the purpose of calibration in ecological modelling?
To adjust parameters so the model’s behavior aligns with real-world data.
What is model validation?
The process of testing a model’s predictive capability using independent datasets.
What is the European Regional Seas Ecosystem Model (ERSEM)?
A model that simulates nutrient cycling and food web dynamics using mechanistic equations.
Verification of a model
