Dear DSSATers

Following on from last years' discussion on this topic on this listserver,
we are currently carrying out a review for the UK Department for
International Development (DFID) on the applications of crop simulation
models with particular reference to developing countries. We are considering
these applications under the three broad headings of (a) Tools to aid
Research, (b) Tools to aid Decision Making (at all levels from policy making
to farmer), and (c) Tools for Education, Training and Technology Transfer.

Our efforts so far have shown that most of the documented applications of
simulation models have been in research, although we recognise that this may
be more of a reflection of the literature we have scanned. There seems to
have been limited success in incorporating such models into decision support
systems (DSS), mostly in pest/disease management. It seems to us that
inadequate thought has gone into the types of decisions that farmers might
make - most are on the basis of 'rules-of-thumb' developed over years of
practical experience, and most of the crop responses to variability in the
decisions made are relatively flat (e.g. it doesn't matter within a couple
of weeks or so when fertiliser is applied), so that the extra 'precision'
gained through use of a DSS is of no practical use for a farmer. This may be
the case particularly with farmers in developing countries, where there is
very little 'real' decision making to be done (i.e. planting is dictated by
the onset of rains, fertiliser application is dictated by when it arrives on
the farm, weeding when labour is available, etc.). We have also been unable
to find much published information on the use (success or otherwise) of crop
simulation models in education and teaching.

We would like to ask subscribers of DSSAT, therefore,
1.      Do you agree with our assessment of DSS; if not, are you aware of
any successful applications of crop simulation models in this area?
2.      For those in education, do you use crop simulation models in your
teaching? If so, what are your experiences? Do you teach the use of specific
models (e.g. DSSAT, MACROS, etc.), or do you use models to illustrate
principles (say of crop physiology)? What do you see are the benefits of
using models? What are the limitations of the models you have used? Have you
had to make any modifications to the models to make them more suitable for
the purpose? What is the response of your students to using models to learn?
We are particularly interested in the experiences of educators in developing
countries (although not exclusively) in using models.

Apologies for any cross-postings.

=========
Dr Robin Matthews
Institute of Water and Environment
Cranfield University, Silsoe, Bedfordshire MK45 4DT, UK.
Tel: +44 (0)1525 863008; Fax: +44 (0)1525 863384
mailto:[log in to unmask]
http://www.silsoe.cranfield.ac.uk/iwe/people/RobinMatthews.htm
http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/rbmatthews/
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