of being separated from any real-world environment for some purpose, such as experimentation.
I would like to experiment with an artificial environment or better an ecosystem within a artificial environment. To grow plants, to include a ecology and forms of organisms. Inevitable is the fact that without organisms there can be no ecology, and if i create a artificial environment i have to deal with abiotic factors too.
In ecology and biology, abiotic components (also called abiotic factors) are non-living chemical and physical factors in the environment, which affect ecosystems. Abiotic phenomena underlie all of biology.
In biology, abiotic factors can include soil acidity, light, radiation, temperature, water, atmospheric gases, and soil. The macroscopic climate often influences each of the above. Pressure and sound waves may also be considered in the context of marine or sub-terrestrial environments
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecology
For wind directions, i will use computer ventilators, to create differences in climate, i will use components out of cooling systems, boilers or heating systems.
Water aggregation states are of importance within changing climate or artificial climate control.
This to create an world within an world, to make this work i have to use several techniques to imitate nature in a sense. for example irrigation is used to assist in the growing of plants, it's a artificial way to water the plants, but copied from rivers that overflow.
As a concept it's an very interesting topic, are we indeed in seek for new technology's to use this for aerospace engineering, in case we indeed want to go to Mars and create a ecosphere.
See picture below: www.sodahead.com
To make a tiny model of Mars and to create Terra forming to create a self-regulating anaerobic biosphere.
I compare this with the foolishness of Cornelis Lely a dutch civil engineer and statesman. He oversaw the passage of an act of parliament authorizing construction of the Zuiderzee Works, a huge project – designed to his own plans – that turned the Zuiderzee into a lake and made possible the conversion of a vast area of former seabed into dry land.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cornelis_Lely
Cornelis Lely is honored, for example a city in the Netherlands and in Suriname is named after him.
This man is honored because of engineering and creating, but what never came to discussion is the fact that he destroyed a complete ecosystem, to turn a sea in to a sweet water lake is the biggest ecological disasters of the Dutch history.
One of most notable features of the
Netherlands was the Zuiderzee. The name meant "Southern Sea"
in Dutch, but it was actually a shallow bay of the North Sea that ran
60 miles (100km) inland and was about 30 miles (50km) wide. Despite
its great size covering almost 2000 square miles it was only about 15
feet deep.
While the Zuiderzee was a resource for
fishing and allowed access for trade, it could become dangerous
whenever one of the frequent North Sea storms would push water
through the bay's inlet. Dikes would fail and the resulting floods
would kill hundreds or even thousands of people. In 1421 a seawall on
the Zuiderzee dike broke during a storm and flooded 72 villages
killing about 10,000 people.
In the 17th century the first plans to
address this problem were drawn up. It wasn't until the 19th century,
however, that the technology to actually do the job was developed.
Cornelis Lely, a Dutch civil engineer, came up with a plan that
proposed building a long dam that would close off the Zuiderzee and
turn it into a lake. The plan also included building four polders in
the lake that would be drained and used mainly for agriculture.
Lely became Minister of Transport and
Public Works in 1913 and tried to push his plan forward. Not
everybody agreed with his ideas, however. Fishermen along the
Zuiderzee were concerned that they would lose their livelihood.
Others were worried that such a project might create higher water
levels at other places along the coast. The government was also
alarmed about the enormous price tag of the project.
In 1916 during a winter storm, however,
several dikes gave way along the Zuiderzee and the result was more
damaging floods. After this disaster Lely's bold plan gained much
public support. On June 14, 1918 the Zuiderzee Act was passed and the
project was officially started. Its goals were to protect the region
against floods from the North Sea, increase the country's food supply
by creating polders that could be turned into farmland and use what
remained of the Zuiderzee to improve water management.
http://www.unmuseum.org/7wonders/zunderzee.htm
One century ago, the present Flevoland
was just a patch of water in the Zuiderzee. Only the former
islands of Schokland and Urk, which are
now part of the province of Flevoland, have a longer history. The
history of Flevoland begins with the words spoken by Dutch Queen
Wilhelmina during her speech of September 1913: ‘I consider it time
to initiate the enclosure and reclamation of the Zuiderzee. This will
result in an improvement to the water management infrastructure of
the surrounding provinces, expansion of the habitable land area and a
permanent increase in employment.’
The Zuiderzee was then a dangerous
inland sea that penetrated right into the heart of the Netherlands.
Cornelis Lely’s plan to enclose the Zuiderzee and partially drain
it was accepted in 1918. Lely’s objectives for impoldering were
manifold: better flood protection, improved water management, faster
transport links between the west, north and east of the Netherlands,
and more farmland and employment. Construction of the 2.5 kilometre
long dike from North-Holland to the Wieringen island was completed in
1924. The 30 kilometre long Afsluitdijk from Wieringen to Friesland
was finished in 1932, turning the Zuiderzee into a lake – the
IJsselmeer. Five years later, reclamation of the Northeast Polder was
initiated. In 1957 Eastern Flevoland fell dry, and in 1968 Southern
Flevoland also became land.
http://www.flevoland.nl/english/from-past-to-present/
Making optimal use of the available
resources are characteristics that are typical of the Dutch people.
Much of the country borders the sea and there are many internal
waterways and lakes. The Dutch people have clearly put this to good
use, reclaiming land from water.
Cornelis Lely reclaimed a significant
part of the Zuiderzee to create polders. The largest polder,
Flevoland, is now home to around 400,000 people.
Jer Wenmaekers, thought of reclaiming land from water not only with the Zuiderzee but also the Waddenzee.
From disaster point of view, both plans, that from Cornelis Lely and Jer Wenmaekers have excluded the possible lost of the most important function of these seas. The Zuiderzee and Waddenzee functioned as womb, the water was shallow and were excellent breeding grounds. Not only for fish, but for the entire ecology like mammals, birds, molluscs, plants and insects.
But to show off how good we are by creating land, and without thinking about the possible risks, we like experiments and act when new things occur.
(I will add later more...)
From disaster point of view, both plans, that from Cornelis Lely and Jer Wenmaekers have excluded the possible lost of the most important function of these seas. The Zuiderzee and Waddenzee functioned as womb, the water was shallow and were excellent breeding grounds. Not only for fish, but for the entire ecology like mammals, birds, molluscs, plants and insects.
But to show off how good we are by creating land, and without thinking about the possible risks, we like experiments and act when new things occur.
(I will add later more...)
Today, the Dutch are deploying the same
techniques in Abu Dhabi to create new artificial islands off the
coast. They are also helping to construct robust dykes in New
Orleans
http://www.studyinholland.nl/why-study-in-holland/be-a-pioneer.
In a way there are a lot of people that thought of creating worlds within the world.
The World Islands at the shore of Abu Dhabi is an artificial archipelago consisting of about 300 small islands constructed in the rough shape of a world map, located 4.0 kilometers off the coast of Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The islands are composed mainly of sand dredged from Dubai's shallow coastal waters. 321 million cubic meters of sand and 31 million tons of rock were used to build the islands that cover an area roughly 6 by 9 kilometers, and is surrounded by an oval-shaped breakwater island.
http://www.amusingplanet.com/2013/10/dubai-enormous-world-artificial.html
