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Draft:David Geoffrey Green

David Geoffrey Green
CitizenshipAustralia
Known forDual-phase evolution, Fine-resolution pollen analysis, Network theory of complexity
AwardsNSW Premiers Award 1998
Scientific career
FieldsComplexity Theory
Ecology
Society
InstitutionsMonash University Department of Data Science and Artificial Intelligence
Doctoral advisorE.C.Pielou
Other academic advisorsGordon Preston

David Geoffrey Green is an Australian computer scientist and author. He is best known for his contributions to knowledge in complexity theory, ecology and society.

Early life, education and career

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Born in Melbourne, Green won a scholarship to Melbourne Grammar School in 1961. In 1971, he completed a Bachelor of Science degree at Monash University and followed this with a Master of Science degree in Mathematics, studying under Gordon Preston. During his undergraduate studies, he saw untapped potential for mathematics and computing in the life sciences. To exploit this potential, he undertook a PhD in Ecology with E.C.Pielou at Dalhousie University in Canada. A notable feature of his thesis on the postglacial forest ecology of Nova Scotia was the first application of time series analysis to preserved pollen data.

Upon completing his studies, Green returned to Australia and worked briefly in Mathematics at LaTrobe University (1977-1978). He then accepted a research position in the Department of Biogeograpy and Geomorphology at the Australian National University (ANU) (1979-1990).

In 1990, the Australian Government established an agency called the Environmental Resources Information Network (ERIN) [1] to support decision-making on environmental matters. As ERIN's Associate Director for Environmental Information (1990-91), Green led a team that designed and built query systems about biodiversity and the environment. In 1991, he returned to ANU as an Australian Research Council Senior Fellow, sharing his time between the Supercomputer Facility and Research School of Biological Science. During this time, he resumed his work on environmental modelling, as well as experimenting with information networks.

In 1994, he accepted a Chair of Computer Science at Charles Sturt University. His team developed some of the first undergraduate courses in Web technology. Collaboration with the New South Wales Department of Education led to the establishment of the NSW Higher School Certificate Online, one of the country's first online resources for high school students. This work was recognized with a Premier's Award in 1998.

In 2003, Green returned to Monash University as Professor of Computer Science in the Faculty of Information Technology. His notable roles in the following years included member of the ARC Centre for Complex Systems (2004-2009), Associate Dean (Research) (2012-2015) and Chair of the ARC Mathematics and Computing Committee (2018-2020) as part of Excellence for Research in Australia (ERA).

Green retired in 2021, but remains affiliated with Monash University's Department of Data Science and Artificial Intelligence.

Research contributions

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Complexity Theory

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He is best known for his contributions to the theory of Complex Systems. In 1992, he showed that networks are inherent in both the structure and behavior of all complex systems [2]. An important implication of this was that the connectivity avalanche [3], which occurs as the number of connections increases in random networks, underlies almost all cases of critical phase change, such as crystallization and ice formation. This work also led to the theory of Dual-Phase Evolution, which provides a mechanism by which order emerges in many natural and artificial systems. His research on complexity also provided insights in a diversity of fields, including forest ecology, geographic information, social networks, proteins, artificial intelligence and theory of computation.

Ecology and environment

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Green’s early research in ecology explored the potential of combining statistical methods with fine-resolution Palynology [4], [5]. His analysis of preserved pollen and charcoal records showed that fires play an important role in postglacial plant migrations and in transitions between different forest types [6]. Building on this early work, he pioneered some of the first models of plant processes in landscapes [7]. These models showed that spatial processes, such as seed dispersal, played an important role in plant persistence and spread. These results led to later research that highlighted the role of complexity in ecology [8], [9] .

World Wide Web

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In 1990-1991, Green worked on implementing the Environmental Resources Information Network (ERIN) for the Australian government. [1], [10]. This project highlighted a need for ways to share information quickly and widely. In 1992, Green launched Australia’s first World Web service, called ‘The LIFE Server’ [11] . Its aim was to experiment with new ways of sharing scientific information, and to provide aggregated links to research information and resources in several areas. These included the development of online resources for the international biodiversity projects International Organization for Plant Information and the Biodiversity Information Network (BIN21) [12]. The site also developed distributed approaches for storing and accessing Online Geographic Information [13].

Human society

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Green's later research focussed on the impacts of complexity in society. This included contributions to psychology and socio-economics [14], but especially the nature and causes of unanticipated social trends, and the impacts of new technology on society [15], [16].

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References

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  1. ^ a b Green, D.G.; Bolton, M (1991). "The Environmental Resources Information Network". Trees and Natural Resources. 33 (2): 14–16.
  2. ^ Green, David G.; Liu, J.; Abbass, H. (2014). "Dual-Phase Evolution". Dual Phase Evolution. Springer. pp. 3–40. doi:10.1007/978-1-4419-8423-4_1. ISBN 978-1-4419-8422-7.
  3. ^ Erdős, P. & Rényi, A. (1960). "On the evolution of random graphs" (PDF). Publications of the Mathematical Institute of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. 5: 17–61.
  4. ^ Green, David G. (1983). "The ecological interpretation of fine-resolution pollen records". New Phytologist. 94 (3): 459–477. doi:10.1111/j.1469-8137.1983.tb03459.x.
  5. ^ Green, David G. (1981). "Time Series and Postglacial Forest Ecology". Quaternary Research. 15 (3): 265–277. Bibcode:1981QuRes..15..265G. doi:10.1016/0033-5894(81)90030-2.
  6. ^ Green, David G. (1987). "Pollen evidence for the postglacial origins of Nova Scotia's forests". Canadian Journal of Botany. 65 (6): 1163–1179. doi:10.1139/b87-163.
  7. ^ Green, David G. (1989). "Simulated effects of fire, dispersal and spatial pattern on competition within forest mosaics". Vegetatio. 82 (2): 139–153. doi:10.1007/BF00045027.
  8. ^ Green, David G.; Sadedin, S. (2005). "Interactions matter—complexity in landscapes and ecosystems". Ecological Complexity. 2 (2): 117–130. Bibcode:2005EcoCm...2..117G. doi:10.1016/j.ecocom.2004.11.006.
  9. ^ Green, D.G.; Klomp, N.I.; Rimmington, G. & Sadedin, S. (2020). Complexity in Landscape Ecology (Second ed.). Berlin: Springer. ISBN 978-3-030-46772-2.
  10. ^ Busby, John (1992). The Environmental Resources Information Network (ERIN). Proceedings of the GIS and Environmental Rehabilitation Workshop. Vol. 33, no. 2. pp. 14–15.
  11. ^ Clarke, Roger (2013). ""Morning Dew on the Web in Australia: 1992-95"". Journal of Information Technology. 28 (2): 93–110. doi:10.1057/jit.2013.1. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
  12. ^ Biodiversity Information Network "BIN21Project"
  13. ^ Green, D.G. & Bossomaier, T.R.J. (2000). Online GIS and Spatial Metadata. London: Taylor & Francis Ltd. ISBN 0-748-40954-8.
  14. ^ Green, David G. (2023). "Emergence in complex networks of simple agents". Journal of Economic Interaction and Coordination. 18 (3): 419–462. doi:10.1007/s11403-023-00385-w.
  15. ^ Green, D.G. (2004). The Serendipity Machine: A Voyage of Discovery Through the Unexpected World of Computers. Sydney: Allen and Unwin. ISBN 1-86508-655-X.
  16. ^ Green, D.G. (2014). Of Ants and Men: The Unexpected Side Effects of Complexity in Society. Berlin: Springer. doi:10.1007/978-3-642-55230-4. ISBN 978-3-642-55229-8.



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