This model is a classic simulation of the production cycle in the ocean, including the effects of the thermocline in switching off advection of dissolved nutrients and detritus to the surface layer.  It illustrates a number of interesting features including the coupling of three state variables in a
This model is a classic simulation of the production cycle in the ocean, including the effects of the thermocline in switching off advection of dissolved nutrients and detritus to the surface layer.

It illustrates a number of interesting features including the coupling of three state variables in a closed cycle, the use of time to control the duration of advection, and the modulus function for cycling annual temperature data over multiple years.

The model state variables are expressed in nitrogen units (mg N m-3), and the calibration is based on:

Baliño, B.M. 1996. Eutrophication of the North Sea, 1980-1990: An evaluation of anthropogenic nutrient inputs using a 2D phytoplankton production model. Dr. scient. thesis, University of Bergen.
 
Fransz, H.G. & Verhagen, J.H.G. 1985. Modelling Research on the Production Cycle of Phytoplankton in the Southern Bight of the Northn Sea in Relation to Riverborne Nutrient Loads. Netherlands Journal of Sea Research 19 (3/4): 241-250.

This model was first implemented in PowerSim some years ago by one of my M.Sc. students, who then went on to become a Buddhist monk. Although this is a very Zen model, as far as I'm aware, the two facts are unrelated.
This model is a classic simulation of the production cycle in the ocean, including the effects of the thermocline in switching off advection of dissolved nutrients and detritus to the surface layer.  It illustrates a number of interesting features including the coupling of three state variables in a
This model is a classic simulation of the production cycle in the ocean, including the effects of the thermocline in switching off advection of dissolved nutrients and detritus to the surface layer.

It illustrates a number of interesting features including the coupling of three state variables in a closed cycle, the use of time to control the duration of advection, and the modulus function for cycling annual temperature data over multiple years.

The model state variables are expressed in nitrogen units (mg N m-3), and the calibration is based on:

Baliño, B.M. 1996. Eutrophication of the North Sea, 1980-1990: An evaluation of anthropogenic nutrient inputs using a 2D phytoplankton production model. Dr. scient. thesis, University of Bergen.
 
Fransz, H.G. & Verhagen, J.H.G. 1985. Modelling Research on the Production Cycle of Phytoplankton in the Southern Bight of the Northn Sea in Relation to Riverborne Nutrient Loads. Netherlands Journal of Sea Research 19 (3/4): 241-250.

This model was first implemented in PowerSim some years ago by one of my M.Sc. students, who then went on to become a Buddhist monk. Although this is a very Zen model, as far as I'm aware, the two facts are unrelated.
This is an edited copy of the original simple building heat flow. I addressed the insulation aspect of this problem by reducing the conductivity values of both the walls and windows. To address a chiller system, I integrated mechanical cooling into the process. To address solar panels, I calculated
This is an edited copy of the original simple building heat flow. I addressed the insulation aspect of this problem by reducing the conductivity values of both the walls and windows. To address a chiller system, I integrated mechanical cooling into the process. To address solar panels, I calculated the effect they may have on electricity prices by adding Solar Panel variables to the equation.
 The World3 model is a detailed simulation of human population growth from 1900 into the future. It includes many environmental and demographic factors. 
   
 Use the sliders to experiment with the initial amount of non-renewable resources to see how these affect the simulation. Does increasing th

The World3 model is a detailed simulation of human population growth from 1900 into the future. It includes many environmental and demographic factors.

 

Use the sliders to experiment with the initial amount of non-renewable resources to see how these affect the simulation. Does increasing the amount of non-renewable resources (which could occur through the development of better exploration technologies) improve our future? Also, experiment with the start date of a low birth-rate, environmentally focused policy.

Simple model to illustrate oyster growth based on primary production of Phytoplankton as a state variable, forced by light and nutrients, running for a yearly period.  Phytoplankton growth based on on Steele's and Michaelis-Menten equations), where:   Primary Production=(([Pmax]*[I]/[Iopt]*exp(1-[I]
Simple model to illustrate oyster growth based on primary production of Phytoplankton as a state variable, forced by light and nutrients, running for a yearly period.

Phytoplankton growth based on on Steele's and Michaelis-Menten equations), where: 

Primary Production=(([Pmax]*[I]/[Iopt]*exp(1-[I]/[Iopt])*[S])/([Ks]+[S]))

Pmax: Maximum production (d-1)
I: Light energy at depth of interest (uE m-2 s-1)
Iopt: Light energy at which Pmax occurs (uE m-2 s-1)
S: Nutrient concentration (umol N L-1)
Ks: Half saturation constant for nutrient (umol N L-1).

Further developments:
- Nutrients as state variable in cycle with detritus from phytoplankton and oyster biomass.
- Light limited by the concentration of phytoplankton.
- Temperature effect on phytoplankton and Oyster growth.


Collapse of the economy, not just recession, is now very likely. To give just one possible cause,
in the U.S. the fracking industry is in deep trouble. It is not only that most
fracking companies have never achieved a   free cash flow   (made a profit)
since the fracking boom started in 2008, but th
Collapse of the economy, not just recession, is now very likely. To give just one possible cause, in the U.S. the fracking industry is in deep trouble. It is not only that most fracking companies have never achieved a free cash flow (made a profit) since the fracking boom started in 2008, but that  an already very weak  and unprofitable oil industry cannot cope with extremely low oil prices. The result will be the imminent collapse of the industry. However, when the fracking industry collapses in the US, so will the American economy – and by extension, probably, the rest of the world economy. To grasp a second and far more serious threat it is vital to understand the phenomenon of ‘Global Dimming’. Industrial activity not only produces greenhouse gases, but emits also sulphur dioxide which converts to reflective sulphate aerosols in the atmosphere. Sulphate aerosols act like little mirrors that reflect sunlight back into space, cooling the atmosphere. But when economic activity stops, these aerosols (unlike carbon dioxide) drop out of the atmosphere, adding perhaps as much as 1° C to global average temperatures. This can happen in a very short period time, and when it does mankind will be bereft of any means to mitigate the furious onslaught of an out-of-control and merciless climate. The data and the unrelenting dynamic of the viral pandemic paint bleak picture.  As events unfold in the next few months,  we may discover that it is too late to act,  that our reign on this planet has, indeed,  come to an abrupt end?  
European Masters in System Dynamics 2016 New University of Lisbon, Portugal  Simple model to represent oyster individual growth by simulating feeding and metabolism.
European Masters in System Dynamics 2016
New University of Lisbon, Portugal

Simple model to represent oyster individual growth by simulating feeding and metabolism.
Diagrams of theories of control of destiny at multiple scales as fundamental causes of social determinants of health from  Whitehead 2016 article  in Health and Place
Diagrams of theories of control of destiny at multiple scales as fundamental causes of social determinants of health from Whitehead 2016 article in Health and Place
 Interplay between wolves eating sheep and farmers killing wolves.

Interplay between wolves eating sheep and farmers killing wolves.

Clone of Pesticide Use in Central America for Lab work        This model is an attempt to simulate what is commonly referred to as the “pesticide treadmill” in agriculture and how it played out in the cotton industry in Central America after the Second World War until around the 1990s.     The cotto
Clone of Pesticide Use in Central America for Lab work


This model is an attempt to simulate what is commonly referred to as the “pesticide treadmill” in agriculture and how it played out in the cotton industry in Central America after the Second World War until around the 1990s.

The cotton industry expanded dramatically in Central America after WW2, increasing from 20,000 hectares to 463,000 in the late 1970s. This expansion was accompanied by a huge increase in industrial pesticide application which would eventually become the downfall of the industry.

The primary pest for cotton production, bol weevil, became increasingly resistant to chemical pesticides as they were applied each year. The application of pesticides also caused new pests to appear, such as leafworms, cotton aphids and whitefly, which in turn further fuelled increased application of pesticides. 

The treadmill resulted in massive increases in pesticide applications: in the early years they were only applied a few times per season, but this application rose to up to 40 applications per season by the 1970s; accounting for over 50% of the costs of production in some regions. 

The skyrocketing costs associated with increasing pesticide use were one of the key factors that led to the dramatic decline of the cotton industry in Central America: decreasing from its peak in the 1970s to less than 100,000 hectares in the 1990s. “In its wake, economic ruin and environmental devastation were left” as once thriving towns became ghost towns, and once fertile soils were wasted, eroded and abandoned (Lappe, 1998). 

Sources: Douglas L. Murray (1994), Cultivating Crisis: The Human Cost of Pesticides in Latin America, pp35-41; Francis Moore Lappe et al (1998), World Hunger: 12 Myths, 2nd Edition, pp54-55.

The simulation integrates or sums (INTEG) the Nj population, with a change of Delta N in each generation, starting with an initial value of 5. The equation for DeltaN is a version of  Nj+1 = Nj  + mu (1- Nj / Nmax ) Nj  the maximum population is set to be one million, and the growth rate constant mu
The simulation integrates or sums (INTEG) the Nj population, with a change of Delta N in each generation, starting with an initial value of 5.
The equation for DeltaN is a version of 
Nj+1 = Nj  + mu (1- Nj / Nmax ) Nj
the maximum population is set to be one million, and the growth rate constant mu = 3.
 
Nj: is the “number of items” in our current generation.

Delta Nj: is the “change in number of items” as we go from the present generation into the next generation. This is just the number of items born minus the number of items who have died.

mu: is the growth or birth rate parameter, similar to that in the exponential growth and decay model. However, as we extend our model it will no longer be the actual growth rate, but rather just a constant that tends to control the actual growth rate without being directly proportional to it.

F(Nj) = mu(1‐Nj/Nmax): is our model for the effective “growth rate”, a rate that decreases as the number of items approaches the maximum allowed by external factors such as food supply, disease or predation. (You can think of mu as the growth or birth rate in the absence of population pressure from other items.) We write this rate as F(Nj), which is a mathematical way of saying F is affected by the number of items, i.e., “F is a function of Nj”. It combines both growth and all the various environmental constraints on growth into a single function. This is a good approach to modeling; start with something that works (exponential growth) and then modify it incrementally, while still incorporating the working model.

Nj+1 = Nj + Delta Nj : This is a mathematical way to say, “The new number of items equals the old number of items plus the change in number of items”.

Nj/Nmax: is what fraction a population has reached of the maximum "carrying capacity" allowed by the external environment. We use this fraction to change the overall growth rate of the population. In the real world, as well as in our model, it is possible for a population to be greater than the maximum population (which is usually an average of many years), at least for a short period of time. This means that we can expect fluctuations in which Nj/Nmax is greater than 1.

This equation is a form of what is known as the logistic map or equation. It is a map because it "maps'' the population in one year into the population of the next year. It is "logistic'' in the military sense of supplying a population with its needs. It a nonlinear equation because it contains a term proportional to Nj^2 and not just Nj. The logistic map equation is also an example of discrete mathematics. It is discrete because the time variable j assumes just integer values, and consequently the variables Nj+1 and Nj do not change continuously into each other, as would a function N(t). In addition to the variables Nj and j, the equation also contains the two parameters mu, the growth rate, and Nmax, the maximum population. You can think of these as "constants'' whose values are determined from external sources and remain fixed as one year of items gets mapped into the next year. However, as part of viewing the computer as a laboratory in which to experiment, and as part of the scientific process, you should vary the parameters in order to explore how the model reacts to changes in them.
 The World3 model is a detailed simulation of human population growth from 1900 into the future. It includes many environmental and demographic factors. 
 Use the sliders to experiment with the initial amount of non-renewable resources to see how these affect the simulation. Does increasing the amou

The World3 model is a detailed simulation of human population growth from 1900 into the future. It includes many environmental and demographic factors.

Use the sliders to experiment with the initial amount of non-renewable resources to see how these affect the simulation. Does increasing the amount of non-renewable resources (which could occur through the development of better exploration technologies) improve our future? Also, experiment with the start date of a low birth-rate, environmentally focused policy.

An element of Perspectives: The Foundation of Understanding and Insights for Effective Action. Register at http://www.systemswiki.org/

 This model describes nitrogen cycling in a dune-lake system in the Northland region of New Zealand. It is based on stock and flow diagrams where each orange oval represents an input, while each blue box represents a stock. Each arrow represents a flow. Flows reduce the stock at which they start and

This model describes nitrogen cycling in a dune-lake system in the Northland region of New Zealand. It is based on stock and flow diagrams where each orange oval represents an input, while each blue box represents a stock. Each arrow represents a flow. Flows reduce the stock at which they start and add to the stock at which they end.

M.Sc. in Environmental Engineering SIMA 2018 New University of Lisbon, Portugal   Model to represent oyster individual growth by simulating feeding and metabolism. Model (i) partitions metabolic costs into feeding and fasting catabolism; (ii) adds allometry to clearance rate; (iii) adds temperature
M.Sc. in Environmental Engineering SIMA 2018
New University of Lisbon, Portugal

 Model to represent oyster individual growth by simulating feeding and metabolism. Model (i) partitions metabolic costs into feeding and fasting catabolism; (ii) adds allometry to clearance rate; (iii) adds temperature dependence to clearance rate; (iv) illustrates how clearance rate per gram is used if we multiply by the oyster biomass
Simple model to illustrate   algal  ,   growth based on primary production of Phytoplankton as a state variable, forced by light and nutrients, running for a yearly period.  Phytoplankton growth based on on Steele's and Michaelis-Menten equations), where:   Primary Production=(([Pmax]*[I]/[Iopt]*exp
Simple model to illustrate   algal  ,   growth based on primary production of Phytoplankton as a state variable, forced by light and nutrients, running for a yearly period.

Phytoplankton growth based on on Steele's and Michaelis-Menten equations), where: 

Primary Production=(([Pmax]*[I]/[Iopt]*exp(1-[I]/[Iopt])*[S])/([Ks]+[S]))

Pmax: Maximum production (d-1)
I: Light energy at depth of interest (uE m-2 s-1)
Iopt: Light energy at which Pmax occurs (uE m-2 s-1)
S: Nutrient concentration (umol N L-1)
Ks: Half saturation constant for nutrient (umol N L-1).

Further developments:
- Nutrients as state variable in cycle with detritus from phytoplankton and oyster biomass.
- Light limited by the concentration of phytoplankton.
- Temperature effect on phytoplankton and Oyster growth.

  Biogas, model  as well birefineray option to seperate c02 , chp from bogas model are proposed
With Our-Green-Spine we have discovered new insights how trees / forest / green structures are part of the managing system of controlling the temperature of our Earth via their cooling capacity by using water and influencing the water cycle. We want to translate our insights in a climate model. Peop
With Our-Green-Spine we have discovered new insights how trees / forest / green structures are part of the managing system of controlling the temperature of our Earth via their cooling capacity by using water and influencing the water cycle. We want to translate our insights in a climate model. People who to join us please send an email to marcel.planb@gmail.com.
Thanks, Marcel de Berg
This model implements the one-dimensional version of the advection-dispersion equation for an estuary. The equation is:  dS/dt = (1/A)d(QS)/dx - (1/A)d(EA)/dx(dS/dx) (Eq. 1)  Where S: salinity (or any other constituent such as chlorophyll or dissolved oxygen), (e.g. kg m-3); t: time (s); A: cross-se
This model implements the one-dimensional version of the advection-dispersion equation for an estuary. The equation is:

dS/dt = (1/A)d(QS)/dx - (1/A)d(EA)/dx(dS/dx) (Eq. 1)

Where S: salinity (or any other constituent such as chlorophyll or dissolved oxygen), (e.g. kg m-3); t: time (s); A: cross-sectional area (m2); Q: river flow (m3 s-1); x: length of box (m); E: dispersion coefficient (m2 s-1).

For a given length delta x, Adx = V, the box volume. For a set value of Q, the equation becomes:

VdS/dt = QdS - (d(EA)/dx) dS (Eq. 2)

EA/x, i.e. (m2 X m2) / (m s) = E(b), the bulk dispersion coefficient, units in m3 s-1, i.e. a flow, equivalent to Q

At steady state, dS/dt = 0, therefore we can rewrite Eq. 2 for one estuarine box as:

Q(Sr-Se)=E(b)r,e(Sr-Se)-E(b)e,s(Se-Ss) (Eq. 3)

Where Sr: river salinity (=0), Se: mean estuary salinity; Ss: mean ocean salinity

E(b)r,e: dispersion coefficient between river and estuary, and E(b)e,s: dispersion coefficient between the estuary and ocean.

By definition the value of E(b)r,e is zero, otherwise we are not at the head (upstream limit of salt intrusion) of the estuary. Likewise Sr is zero, otherwise we're not in the river. Therefore:

QSe=E(b)e,s(Se-Ss) (Eq. 4)

At steady state

E(b)e,s = QSe/(Se-Ss) (Eq 5)

The longitudinal dispersion simulates the turbulent mixiing of water in the estuary during flood and ebb, which supplies salt water to the estuary on the flood tide, and make the sea a little more brackish on the ebb.

You can use the slider to turn off dispersion (set to zero), and see that if the tidal wave did not mix with the estuary water due to turbulence, the estuary would quickly become a freshwater system.
Demonstration of excretion vs immobilization as function of feedstock C:N
Demonstration of excretion vs immobilization as function of feedstock C:N