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Abstract
Nonlinear behavior is prevalent in all aspects of the Earth System, including ecological responses to global change (Gallagher and Appenzeller 1999; Steffen et al. 2004). Nonlinear behavior refers to a large, discontinuous change in response to a small change in a driving variable (Rial et al. 2004). In contrast to linear systems where responses are smooth, well-behaved, continuous functions, nonlinear systems often undergo sharp or discontinuous transitions resulting from the crossing of thresholds. These nonlinear responses can result in surprising behavior that makes forecasting difficult (Kaplan and Glass 1995). Given that many system dynamics are nonlinear, it is imperative that conceptual and quantitative tools be developed to increase our understanding of the processes leading to nonlinear behavior in order to determine if forecasting can be improved under future environmental changes (Clark et al. 2001).
| Publication type | Book chapter |
|---|---|
| Publication Subtype | Book Chapter |
| Title | Spatial nonlinearities: Cascading effects in the earth system |
| Chapter | 14 |
| ISBN | 978-3-540-32729-5 |
| Year Published | 2006 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Springer |
| Contributing office(s) | Fort Collins Science Center |
| Description | 10 p. |
| Larger Work Type | Book |
| Larger Work Subtype | Monograph |
| Larger Work Title | Terrestrial ecosystems in a changing world |
| First page | 165 |
| Last page | 174 |
| Online Only (Y/N) | N |
| Additional Online Files (Y/N) | N |
| Google Analytic Metrics | Metrics page |