Aquatic Physiosphere-Biosphere Dynamics and Modelling

Thisencyclopedia is a reference for aquatic physical, biological and biogeochemical sciences,collecting and connecting a number of topics, concepts and facts about aquatic systems and their scientific investigation.The scope of the book comprises the aquatic physiosphere-biospheretransition zone, an entity that encompasses both inanimate matter and collectives(the physiosphere) as well as living organisms and collectives (the biosphere). This combined approach is meaningfulbecause both realms are intimately linkedand because available methods of investigation are often similar. Muchcan be gained from considering both spheres at and across their interfacejointly, and while there is a strong focus on marine systems, most conceptspresentedare also applicable to freshwater systems.This presentedsnapshot of knowledge of the transition zone between theaquatic physiosphere and biosphere is taken from a very specific angle: the pointof view of a modeler.Modeling is not only a state-of-the-art mode of scientificinvestigation, but also requires the explicit specification of all assumptions (helping to avoid fallacies), and offers the advantage of being quantitative and allows fortheoretical "what if" scenarios. As in any reference work, equal emphasis is given to fundamental facts, thedefinition of terms and the explanation of concepts, in an attempt to establisha joint language for physicists, biologists and biogeochemists. Although originating from a modeler's approach to nature, the resulting suite ofcompatible concepts may also be useful beyond modeling purposes. Furthermore, the material is presented in a condensed, straightforward way. Hence, the lengthof each entry is limited to one (occasionally two) pages, thus offering a quickintroductory overview. This excludes lengthy derivations and very specialized details.The book is geared towardsresearchers, teachers and advanced students in the field of aquatic (marine and limnic) sciences, in particular those interested or involved in interdisciplinary work.