Microsoft Word - SustainabilityReport_BCC.doc

met is to build models of the “spatial dynamics” that will reveal the patterns of

variability over time.

Another technique managers have used to protect fish populations is to

create “marine protected areas,” keeping fishers entirely out of areas that are

particularly important for breeding. This raises another mathematical challenge

for predicting fish populations, because the marine protected areas create a

sharp boundary: inside the boundary, the fish are protected, and outside, they’re

not. Most mathematical models rely on smooth transitions from one zone to

another.

Fisheries are just one example where math is key to managing the Earth’s

resources. Lumber, food, and fuel provide other examples. As human population

grows, we have to be smarter about how we manage resources so that the

planet is able to produce enough to sustain us. Mathematics is a key tool to

predict the consequences of our decisions.

Figure 13: Managing air pollution raises mathematical challenges including modeling how
pollutants disperse, determining minimum levels of different pollutants that have health effects,
and developing air pollution indices that provide early warning about unhealthy air. Credit: Getty
Images

Forests are another example that demands mathematical models for

understanding, and new techniques will be needed to capture their complexity. A

simple interaction that’s easy to model is the three-way dance among fire,

aspens and ponderosa pines throughout the Rocky Mountains. A mature Rocky

mountain forest is predominantly ponderosa pine, but when a fire burns hot

enough to kill the ponderosas, the quick-spreading aspens take over. The