Week 8

Question 1

What is sensitivity analysis?

Answer 1

a method used to assess how changes in specific input variables affect the output or outcome of a model or decision

Question 2

what are the 3 types of sensitivity analysis?

Answer 2

mathematical, statistical, graphical

Question 3

how does mathematical sensitivity analysis work?

Answer 3

assess sensitivity of a model output to the range of variation of an input (one-at-a-time OAT)

Question 3

how does statistical sensitivity analysis work?

Answer 3

involves running simulation in which inputs are assigned probability distributions and assessing the effect of variance in inputs on the output distribution

Question 4

how does graphical sensitivity analysis work?

Answer 4

gives representation of sensitivity in the form of graphs, charts, or surfaces

Question 5

what is a local sensitivity analysis?

Answer 5

one factor is changed and the others are held constant (OAT)

Question 6

what are the advantages of OAT?

Answer 6

easily applied and interpreted, often needs fewer simulation runs compared to global sensitivity analysis

Question 7

what are the disadvantages of OAT?

Answer 7

explores a reduced space of inputs, interactions are not considered, sampling is inefficient when the number of parameters is large

Question 8

what are the 4 steps of the invariant-variant method?

Answer 8

identify values of interest, create binary maps, conduct index overlay, and partition the resulting raster into two parts (invariant and variant)

Question 9

how can you determine what is invariant and variant?

Answer 9

look at frequency of high values, consider how many locations are derived

Question 10

what is path dependence?

Answer 10

the dependence of future societal decision processes and/or socio-ecological outcomes on those that have occurred in the past

Question 11

what is lock-in?

Answer 11

when the trajectory of the path becomes so fixed that its almost impossible to alter or reverse