新世纪地球科学视野中的新技术和新方法(代序)

从科学发展战略的角度 ,讨论了新技术、新方法在地球科学中的应用。新世纪的地球科学在新技术、新方法的应用方面呈现出鲜明的时代特色 ,即观测范围的扩大与观测能力的增强 ,多学科观测的海量数据的积累与地球观测系统的整合 ,不断增强的挑战非线性复杂地球系统中的预测问题的能力。特别是 ,作为地球观测系统的整合的“数字地球”和作为地球过程的模拟工具的高效并行计算 ,将在地球系统科学的发展中发挥重要作用。从方法论的角度 ,文中特别指出 ,只有掌握新技术、新方法的人对新技术、新方法有正确的理解 ,并具有创新性的思维 ,新技术、新方法才能发挥其应有的效能。

PREFACE: IMPACT OF NEW TECHNOLOGY ON EARTH SCIENCE IN 21st CENTURY

This essay envisages the impact of new technologies on Earth science in the perspective of the strategy for science and technology development. Application of new technology to Earth science in the 21st Century is characterized by the expansion of the range of observations and the enhancement of observational capabilities, accumulation and integration of multi disciplinary Earth observauion data, and the building of the ability to challenge the problem of the prediction of the nonlinear and complex Earth system. Remarkably, Digital Earth as an integration of Earth observation system, and high performance parallel calculation as an efficient tool for the simulation of Earth processes, will play an important role in the development of Earth system science. In the view of methodology, the impact of new technology on the development of Earth science depends, to much extent, on the understanding of the function of these tools by the people who utilize them, and, more importantly, on the innovative radical notions on how to make use of these advanced technologies appropriately.