"What are theory and experiment in climate research?"

Computational models of the Earth system lie at the heart of modern climate science. Concerns about their predictions have been illegitimately used to undercut the case that the climate is changing and this has put dynamical modelling in an awkward position. I will discuss ways that we, as a community, can contribute by highlighting some of the major outstanding questions that drive climate science, and I will outline their mathematical dimensions. I will put a particular focus on the issue of simultaneously handling the information coming from data and models, and argue that this balancing act will impact the way in...

Computational models of the Earth system lie at the heart of modern climate science. Concerns about their predictions have been illegitimately used to undercut the case that the climate is changing and this has put dynamical modelling in an awkward position. I will discuss ways that we, as a community, can contribute by highlighting some of the major outstanding questions that drive climate science, and I will outline their mathematical dimensions. I will put a particular focus on the issue of simultaneously handling the information coming from data and models, and argue that this balancing act will impact the way in which we formulate problems in nonlinear science.

 

 

Event Details

Date/Time:

  • Date: 
    Wednesday, October 26, 2011 - 11:00am

Location:
IBB 1128