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Zhang, Y., Li, S., Fath, B.D. 
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9440-6842, Yang, Z., & Yang, N.
(2011).
Analysis of an urban energy metabolic system: Comparison of simple and complex model results.
Ecological Modelling 223 (1) 14-19. 10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2011.08.005.
Abstract
A fundamental difference between simple and complex systems is how the research objects are subdivided to support different study purposes. Based on a comparison between two urban energy system models - one with 5 and the other with 17 sectors - we concluded that the two models were most similar in terms of their description of the overall system structure and most different in terms of their description of specific intra-system relationships. The smaller number of system components and relationships in the 5-sector model facilitated judgments of the system's overall situation, thereby revealing where the key problems were found. In contrast, the 17-sector model provided enough details about the system to assist in the formulation of concrete operational measures to solve specific problems. Our results indicate that the division of a model into sectors should depend on the explicit problem to be solved and the context for that problem; different goals will require different numbers of system components. The results also demonstrate how simple and complex models can be used in tandem to examine a system from different perspectives.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | Model selection; Urban energy metabolism; Systems analysis; Ecological network analysis |
| Research Programs: | Advanced Systems Analysis (ASA) |
| Bibliographic Reference: | Ecological Modelling; 223(1):14-19 (24 December 2011) (Published online 3 September 2011) |
| Depositing User: | IIASA Import |
| Date Deposited: | 15 Jan 2016 08:45 |
| Last Modified: | 27 Aug 2021 17:21 |
| URI: | https://pure.iiasa.ac.at/9537 |
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