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Model Structure Identification and the Growth of Knowledge

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System Identification, Environmental Modelling, and Control System Design

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Abstract

This chapter honors Peter, then, in recounting my career-long experience (1970–2010) of staring down the devilishly difficult: the problem of model structure identification—of using models for discovery. I still regard this matter as one of the grand challenges of environmental modeling (Beck et al., White Paper, 2009). If I appear modest about our progress in the presence of such enormity, so I am. But let no-one presume that I am therefore not greatly enthused by the progress I believe I and my students (now colleagues) have made over these four decades. It has been a privilege to be allowed the time to work on such a most attractive and engaging topic.

When contemplating the interpretation of some time-series data, often have I thought: “Why bother with the struggle, when I could simply pass it all over to the virtuoso—Peter”.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    It did not, as it happens. The two co-exist fruitfully today, notwithstanding the supposed academic inferiority of the latter.

  2. 2.

    The EPCL, a platform for real-time monitoring of water quality in a variety of aquatic environments, was operated from 1997 through 2008. All the data bases gathered with it are archived in the Georgia Watershed Information System (GWIS) and are publicly and freely available for downloading and analysis at www.georgiawis.org.

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Acknowledgements

Support for this work has been provided over the decades by the University of Cambridge, the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, Imperial College London, and the University of Georgia (UGA). In particular, funding for the Environmental Process Control Laboratory of UGA, together with support for graduate assistantships for ZL and JDS, has come from the Wheatley-Georgia Research Alliance endowed Chair in Water Quality and Environmental Systems. The freedom of enquiry enabled through this form of financial support has simply been invaluable. We are also indebted to J P Bond, for his visualization and graphic design of Figs. 4.6, 4.7 and 4.8.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA

    M. B. Beck

  2. North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND, USA

    Z. Lin

  3. Wageningen University, Wageningen, The Netherlands

    J. D. Stigter

Authors
  1. M. B. Beck
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  2. Z. Lin
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  3. J. D. Stigter
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Correspondence to M. B. Beck .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Computer Engineering, RMIT University, Swanston Street 10, Melbourne, 3000, Victoria, Australia

    Liuping Wang

  2. Centre de Recherche en, Automatique de Nancy, Université Nancy I, Vandoeuvre-les-Nancy CX, France

    Hugues Garnier

Additional information

Personal Tribute to Professor Peter C. Young from the First Author (MBB).

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Beck, M.B., Lin, Z., Stigter, J.D. (2012). Model Structure Identification and the Growth of Knowledge. In: Wang, L., Garnier, H. (eds) System Identification, Environmental Modelling, and Control System Design. Springer, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-85729-974-1_4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-85729-974-1_4

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