Improving the Scientific Foundation for Atmosphere-Land-Ocean Simulations Report of a Workshop (2005) / Chapter Skim
Currently Skimming:
4 Impediments to and Ideas for Progress in Model Development
4 Impediments to and Ideas for Progress in Model Development
Pages 19-27
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From page 19... ...
First, and perhaps foremost, workshop participants expressed concern that the atmospheric and oceanic sciences do not attract the best and brightest graduate students. It was suggested that prospective graduate students tend to see meteorology as the strictly applied endeavor of making better weather and climate forecasts, which they often perceive as the subjective interpretation of satellite images and the application of advanced computer graphics.
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From page 20... ...
Workshop participants noted that another challenge of engaging new people in the field is that the development and refinement of model parameterizations is not seen as an attractive career path by most young researchers. In the United States, most large modeling centers maintain groups dedicated to developing and improving parameterizations, but these groups tend to be small and, consequently, overtaxed.
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From page 21... ...
Compartmentalization also compromises the efficiency of observational programs. Workshop participants cited several examples in which expensive field measurement programs were conducted at the instigation of one group of scientists, but certain key measurements that could have helped another group were not made, even though the added cost would have been marginal.
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From page 22... ...
At present, university curricula in atmospheres and oceans do a good job of teaching about computational mathematics, geophysical fluid dynamical theory, and the observational record, but they do not do well enough in preparing students for postgraduate research involving the practices of complex computational simulation modeling and modern measurement techniques. Although in most universities the time constraints on expanding the curriculum are severe, this deficiency potentially could be ameliorated by such things as shifts in course contents (e.g., perhaps doing more in the style of case studies)
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From page 23... ...
More of these kinds of opportunities could potentially better educate and inspire the younger generation. Conveying the Intellectual Excitement of the Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences As mentioned above, there was a concern among many of the workshop participants that the sciences of the atmosphere and ocean suffer from misperceptions about their nature, and this affects the kinds of students attracted to the work.
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From page 24... ...
Workshop participants thought that the modeling enterprise in the United States might be improved if its modeling centers similarly increased incentives and rewards and elevated the intellectual excitement for such work. The concept of the aforementioned Climate Process and Modeling Teams (CPTs)
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From page 25... ...
If these experiments work well, then expanding the scope of the CPTs could be beneficial in addressing additional processes and carrying out new field measurement programs in which this comprehensive responsibility is inherent in their conception and design. Workshop participants also discussed that, as part of the process of continually improving models, efforts need to be made to remove physical representations that have been shown to be inferior or defective.
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From page 26... ...
Therefore, several workshop participants suggested it would be best if the physical and numerical aspects of a model's design be considered as closely coupled problems. Furthermore, it may be that new approaches to the challenges of numerical integration could be valuable, such as using exact discrete representation to formulate parameterizations.
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From page 27... ...
. Workshop participants thought that much could be gained if these methods were widely adopted by the U.S.
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