Ginger BoothMake the MathI've been associated with professors at the Yale School of Forestry since 1993. This collection of simulators covers more high-level interactions of humans with their environment. The Habitable Planet topic is a subset of these, done for Harvard-Smithsonian and the Annenberg Foundation.
Demographics explores population growth pyramids, much like my earlier Human Demographics simulator, where you can change birth and death rate schedules. In this rendition, the user can set vital rates to match those of a different country. (E.g., how would India's population develop under US birthrates.) Countries: USA, China, Egypt, India, Italy, Mexico, and Nigeria.
Disease demonstrates contagious disease spread through a population. Three diseases (Kold, Impfluenza, and Red Death) are supplied, and the user can create variations with different incubation, deathrate, etc. parameters. Explores the effects of population density, population mixing, vaccination strategies, and pitting one virus against another.
Ecology is a construct-your-own-foodweb simulator, from a supplied collection of plants, herbivores, omnivores, and a top predator. Explores competition and trophic switching.
Energy explores meeting energy demand via assorted technologies, while trying to keep atmospheric CO2 below the international goal of 550 ppm through the year 2100.
ForestNPP is a simple calculator that estimates forest net primary productivity, before and after climate change scenarios, based on the Osnabruck Biosphere Model. Environmental science teaching simulator.
Human Demographics explores human population growth and the current demographic transition. Allows students to shift and change fertility and mortality rates. Shows overall population growth, both officially projected and simulated, and population pyramids, for 7 example countries (USA, China, Egypt, Germany, India, Italy, Mexico.) Used in teaching Environmental
Science and Conservation Biology.
Reimplemented in HTML5 for The Habitable Planet treatment of Demographics.
In the game Foodweb Kerplunk, the player tries to save species in a plot of suburban California chaparral. Foodweb Kerplunk has been featured as an NRDC website pick of the week (Mar'03), and in Mitch Leslie's NetWatch column in Science (Feb'03).
Kerplunk has been republished for German middle-schoolers by the SWR broadcasting company.
A Foodweb Kerplunk Lab for high school biology students, written by Adam James, Biology Teacher and Football Coach, at Carter-Riverside High School, Fort Worth ISD, Texas (2005).
The Aid Game explores the effects of humanitarian aid on population growth and the environment.
Aidgame received a lovely composite peer review at Merlot (2012).