Teaching

Topics: the definition of climate, the role of models in understanding climate processes, and the construction and application of 0D and 1D energy balance models. The course also aims at familiarising students with complex and coupled climate models, and the hierarchy of climate models. Aside from this, we will examine natural and anthropogenic drivers of climate change, climate feedback mechanisms, climate sensitivity, the development and use of climate scenarios, and the role and importance of the IPCC. The course structure ensures a cohesive understanding by presenting philosophical perspectives alongside scientific ones.

Topics: the definition of climate, the role of models in understanding climate processes, and the construction and application of 0D and 1D energy balance models. The course also aims at familiarising students with complex and coupled climate models, and the hierarchy of climate models. Aside from this, we will examine natural and anthropogenic drivers of climate change, climate feedback mechanisms, climate sensitivity, the development and use of climate scenarios, and the role and importance of the IPCC. The course structure ensures a cohesive understanding by presenting philosophical perspectives alongside scientific ones.

Topics: climate dynamics, climate modeling, climate change

Topics: What is scientific progress? To what extent, and in which respects, is science progressive? What is science progressing towards? What makes progress possible in science? How can we recognize progressive developments in science?

Topics: The characteristics of the climate system (complexity, chaos, feedback, nonlinearity, and multiple equilibria), the role of models and computation in science (especially the role of models in explaining and understanding), the structure and function of climate models (with special emphasis on the particularities of modelling complex systems), model coupling, and model hierarchies.

Topics: the fundamental metaphysical and epistemological questions raised by mathematics, such as "what is mathematics about?" and "how do we come to know it?"