Dear Ecolog-L members, Lael Parrott, Stefano Mazzoleni, and I are organizing a Research Topic (i.e. a flexible form of special issue; see below) titled "Hybrid Solutions for the Modelling of Complex Environmental Systems” in the journal Frontiers in Environmental Science.
Our goal is to bring together experts in the field of hybrid modelling to discuss how this approach can address the challenge of representing the complexity of natural systems. Systems studied in environmental science, due to their structure and the heterogeneity of the entities composing them, often exhibit complex dynamics that can only be captured by hybrid approaches. While several concurrent definitions of “hybrid modelling” can be found in the literature, it is defined here broadly as the approach consisting in coupling existing modelling paradigms to achieve a more accurate or efficient representation of systems. The need for hybrid models generally arises from the necessity to overcome the limitation of a single modelling technique in terms of structural flexibility, capabilities, or computational efficiency. Considering that this field of study is still young and poorly documented, this research topic aims at compiling a corpus that will serve as reference for scientists interested in taking advantage of this particular type of models to simulate complex environmental systems. It will also strive to become a focal point for new developments in this discipline. Contributions on the following themes are welcome: . theoretical or applied hybrid models in the field of environmental sciences . innovative technical or methodological developments in the coupling of heterogeneous models . review articles on particular conceptual aspects of hybrid modeling . opinion or perspective papers of general importance for the discipline Papers describing models in any field of environmental science, including but not limited to ecology, atmospheric sciences, marine sciences, geosciences, environmental toxicology, epidemiology, agroecology, and social-ecological systems are eligible for publication, given that they make a clear case for the use of the hybrid modeling approach featured. We particularly encourage the submission of papers that are centered on the modeling methodology rather than the results themselves, and that illustrate to an inexperienced readership how hybrid modeling can be applied practically to reproduce the inherent complexity of a variety of environmental systems. No restriction is set on the techniques coupled (e.g. System dynamics, Individual-Based Modelling, Artificial Neural Network, Cellular Automata, MCMC, Petri nets). However, potential authors should note that studies based on empirical models (in the meaning of “statistical” or “extrinsic”; e.g. General Linear Models) are admissible only if combined with a dynamic mechanistic modeling approach. More information can be found on this webpage: http://www.frontiersin.org/Environmental_Informatics/researchtopics/Hybrid_Solutions_for_the_Model/3269. Frontiers, a Swiss open-access publisher, recently partnered with Nature Publishing Group to expand its researcher-driven Open Science platform. Frontiers articles are rigorously peer-reviewed, can be disseminated freely and are widely read by the broader scientific and medical research communities. Frontiers will also compile an e-book, as soon as all contributing articles are published, that can be used in classes, be sent to foundations that fund your research, to journalists and press agencies, or to any number of other organizations. As such, a manuscript accepted for publication incurs a publishing fee, which varies depending on the article type. Research Topic manuscripts receive a significant discount on publishing fees. Please take a look at this fee table: http://www.frontiersin.org/about/PublishingFees. Abstracts are normally expected before November 28, 2014. Please note that the deadline for manuscript submission is on March 27, 2015. Do not hesitate to contact us, should you have any question. We hope that you will be interested in contributing to this Research Topic! With best regards, On behalf of the editors, Christian Vincenot
