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Geosciences LibreTexts

1. Daisyworld

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  • Daisyworld is a hypothetical world with two colors of daisies as its only life forms: black daisies and white daisies. White petaled daisies absorb less heat than black petaled daisies, but they grow better at warmer temperatures. A simulation of Daisyworld tracks the two daisy populations and the surface temperature of the world as it responds to the proportion of each type of daisy. The temperature of Daisyworld is stabilized by negative feedbacks between temperature and the preferential growth of different colored daisies. Changes can be made to the world to destabilize temperature if a positive feedback mechanism is added. 

    Graphical representation of the key ideas: Incoming energy is reflected and absorbed. Heat is emitted. Any imbalance in heat causes a change in temperature.

     Figure \(\PageIndex{1}\): The key science of heat balance for Daisyworld