Statistical modeling in setting air quality standards

  • Date: 01/29/2007
Lecturer(s):

Jim Zidek (University of British Columbia)

Location: 

University of Washington

Topic: 

The earth's atmosphere is a stochastic complex system which includes
amongst other things pollution fields some of which derive from
anthropogenic sources. Because of their negative health impacts, these
fields are now the subject to regulation. However setting the air
quality standards needed to regulate them is itself a complex business
and that leads to a need for good models for these fields and for
predicting human exposures to them. This talk, drawing on my recent
experience and research connected with ozone, will describe:
-physical and statistical approaches to modelling pollution field and why these must be combined in setting standards;
-a computer model for predicting human exposure and why it is needed for the same purpose.
Finally I will try to convey a sense of the difficulties faced by
scientists involved in what has come to be called "post normal" science
and in particular, the process of involving them in the process of
developing standards.

Other Information: 

10th Anniversary Speaker Series 2007

Sponsor: 

pims