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