Abstract
A model is an abstraction of the real world attempting to describe a phenomenon. Models may be strictly descriptive, an example being the introductory Chapter of part 1 of the Fennoscandian tundra ecosystem Volumes (Sonesson et al., 1975), or may try, by words, to imply more functional relationships within the ecosystem, as in the final Chapter of the present Volume (Wielgolaski, 1975a). Mathematical symbols may in many cases be used for description of ecosystems, and formal notations of the interactions in the system may be expressed by equations. Such models are normally developed from strictly conceptual to more quantitative forms, but are always imperfect and abstract representations of the real world. They may, however, be very valuable tools for increasing our understanding of the functioning of ecosystems and to see where our available data is most inadequate (cf. Sandhaug et al., 1975 in the present section). Mathematical models may also be used for the prediction of influences of change in certain parameters on the functioning of the system, e.g. by repeated computations and curve fitting, (cf. Liestøl et al., 1975 in the present section). Sometimes mathematical model building is said to be equal to systems analysis and systems ecology.
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Wielgolaski, F.E. (1975). Principles in the Use of Wide-Scale Models on Tundra Data. In: Wielgolaski, F.E. (eds) Fennoscandian Tundra Ecosystems. Ecological Studies, vol 17. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-66276-8_31
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