Brave New Worlds: How computer simulation changes model-based science

A large part of science involves building and investigating models. One key feature of model-based science is that one thing is studied as a means of learning about some rather different thing. How scientists make inferences from a model to the world, then, is a topic of great interest to philosophers of science. An increasing number of models are specified with very complex computer programs. In this thesis, I examine the epistemological issues that arise when scientists use these computer simulation models to learn about the world or to think through their ideas. I argue that the explosion of computational power over the last several decades has revolutionised model-based science, but that restraint and caution must be exercised in the face of this power. To make my arguments, I focus on two kinds of computer simulation modelling: climate modelling and, in particular, high-fidelity climate models; and agent-based models, which are used to represent populations of interacting agents often in an ecological or social context. Both kinds involve complex model structures and are representative of the beneficial capacities of computer simulation. However, both face epistemic costs that follow from using highly complex model structures. As models increase in size and complexity, it becomes far harder for modellers to understand their models and why they behave the way they do. The value of models is further obscured by their proliferation, and a proliferation of programming languages in which they can be described. If modellers struggle to grasp their models, they can struggle to make good inferences with them. While the climate modelling community has developed much of the infrastructure required to mitigate these epistemic costs, the less mature field of agent-based modelling is still struggling to implement such community standards and infrastructure. I conclude that modellers cannot take full advantage of the representational capacities of computer simulations unless resources are invested into their study that scale proportionately with the models' complexity

Whole-Body Regeneration

This Open Access volume provides a comprehensive overview of the latest tools available to scientists to study the many facets of whole-body regeneration (WBR). The chapters in this book are organized into six parts. Part One provides a historical overview on the study of the WBR phenomena focusing on the primary challenges of this research. Parts Two and Three explore a series of non-vertebrate zoological contexts that provide experimental models for WBR, showing how they can be approached with cellular tools. Parts Four, Five, and Six discuss the future advancements of WBR, reporting about the cutting-edge techniques in genetics and omics used to dissect the underlying mechanisms of WBR, and systems biology approaches to reach a synthetic view of WBR. Written in the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series format, chapters include introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials and reagents, step-by-step, readily reproducible laboratory protocols, and tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Authoritative and thorough, Whole-Body Regeneration: Methods and Protocols is a valuable resource for scientists and researchers who want to learn more about this important and developing field

Whole-Body Regeneration

This Open Access volume provides a comprehensive overview of the latest tools available to scientists to study the many facets of whole-body regeneration (WBR). The chapters in this book are organized into six parts. Part One provides a historical overview on the study of the WBR phenomena focusing on the primary challenges of this research. Parts Two and Three explore a series of non-vertebrate zoological contexts that provide experimental models for WBR, showing how they can be approached with cellular tools. Parts Four, Five, and Six discuss the future advancements of WBR, reporting about the cutting-edge techniques in genetics and omics used to dissect the underlying mechanisms of WBR, and systems biology approaches to reach a synthetic view of WBR. Written in the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series format, chapters include introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials and reagents, step-by-step, readily reproducible laboratory protocols, and tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Authoritative and thorough, Whole-Body Regeneration: Methods and Protocols is a valuable resource for scientists and researchers who want to learn more about this important and developing field

Spacelab Science Results Study

Beginning with OSTA-1 in November 1981 and ending with Neurolab in March 1998, a total of 36 Shuttle missions carried various Spacelab components such as the Spacelab module, pallet, instrument pointing system, or mission peculiar experiment support structure. The experiments carried out during these flights included astrophysics, solar physics, plasma physics, atmospheric science, Earth observations, and a wide range of microgravity experiments in life sciences, biotechnology, materials science, and fluid physics which includes combustion and critical point phenomena. In all, some 764 experiments were conducted by investigators from the U.S., Europe, and Japan. The purpose of this Spacelab Science Results Study is to document the contributions made in each of the major research areas by giving a brief synopsis of the more significant experiments and an extensive list of the publications that were produced. We have also endeavored to show how these results impacted the existing body of knowledge, where they have spawned new fields, and if appropriate, where the knowledge they produced has been applied