MS#142. Chaos Theory and the Tragedy of the Commons

Subjects: Environment, Misuse of mathematics

Abstract: Complex dynamical systems models have been used (and misused) in service of the sustainability (or tragedy) of a commons. Their misuse results from the widespread ignorance of chaos theory. Here we consider this problem in general, and then study the special case of the tragedy of the oceans in detail. A potential role of education in commons management is proposed, in which participative simulation using NetLogo might be an integral part.

To appear, J. Math. 

[PDF] 31 pages, 5 MB