what were “computers” in the late 1800s? richardson’s “forecast factory”…

What were “computers” in the late 1800s?

• Richardson’s “Forecast Factory”…

What was “science” in the late 1800s?

“Natural Philosophy”

• Grew out of “alchemy”– Not just “changing lead into gold”– Said that matter was just the “feces” that

hides the true “philosophickal mercury”—the true nature of objects

“Natural Philosophy”

• Said that alchemy was crap.

• Believes in:– Cause and effect– Rationality– Empiricism– Skepticism– Transparency/Reproducibility– God

Famous Guys

Alchemists

• Descartes• Newton

Natural Philosophers

• Hooke (discovered cells)

• Leibnitz (discovered calculus)

• Boyle (gas laws)• Halley (comets,

motions)• Huygens (astronomy)

An Age of Ideas

• Very interested in:– Intellectual property (patents, copyrights)– What does it mean to have created

something?– What does it mean to have been created?

– Example: Newton vs. Leibnitz

Invention

• A bear trap

What would the caveman think?

The trap embodies the genius.

Your programs embody your genius!

Avatars/Agents

• The traps acts like the genius would act.

• Your programs act like you would act.

– Only faster, more reliably, more consistently, etc.

Models

• It is often said in textbooks that “Models embody the sum of all meteorological knowledge”.

• How does new stuff get added to a model?

Models

• The collective genius of the atmospheric science community (for good or for bad) is combined to:– Make forecasts– Analyze past climates– Perform case studies

Doing Something Great

• Someday, you are going to do something great in meteorology.

• Written up in some kind of report or article.

• Eventually added to a model and becomes part of the output of the meteorological community.

125 Years Ago

• Natural Philosophers were also interested in God.

125 Years Ago

• God didn’t snap his fingers to create the world…

God “Invented” the World

• Built it piece by piece in the same way you would write a program or build anything.

• In that sense, you embody God’s genius, perfection, etc.

• In that sense, you are God’s avatar/agent.