Research team resolves decades-long problem in microscopy

When viewing biological samples with a microscope, the light beam is disturbed if the lens of the objective is in a different medium than the sample. For example, when looking at a watery sample with a lens surrounded by ...

Study underscores uncertain costs of iron fertilization

As society grapples with the intensifying consequences of climate change, decision-makers are increasingly looking to carbon dioxide removal as a necessary complement to emission reductions. One of the strategies that has ...

Scientists warn that the Baltic Sea gray seal hunt is too large

Researchers at the University of Gothenburg warn that today's hunting quotas of about 3,000 animals pose a risk to the long-term survival of the gray seal in the Baltic Sea. The conclusions of this new study are based on ...

Scientists trigger mini-earthquakes in the lab

Earthquakes and landslides are famously difficult to predict and prepare for. By studying a miniature version of the ground in the lab, scientists at the UvA Institute of Physics have demonstrated how these events can be ...

Mathematical model

A mathematical model uses mathematical language to describe a system. Mathematical models are used not only in the natural sciences and engineering disciplines (such as physics, biology, earth science, meteorology, and engineering) but also in the social sciences (such as economics, psychology, sociology and political science); physicists, engineers, computer scientists, and economists use mathematical models most extensively. The process of developing a mathematical model is termed 'mathematical modelling' (also modeling).

Eykhoff (1974) defined a mathematical model as 'a representation of the essential aspects of an existing system (or a system to be constructed) which presents knowledge of that system in usable form'.

Mathematical models can take many forms, including but not limited to dynamical systems, statistical models, differential equations, or game theoretic models. These and other types of models can overlap, with a given model involving a variety of abstract structures.

This text uses material from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA