Glossary

A glossary of terms used with pymt. Because pymt is a Python package, more information on many of these terms can be found in the Python Glossary.

$

The default shell prompt.

>>>

The default Python prompt.

…

The Python prompt for interactively entering code in an indeted code block.

Anaconda

A Python distribution that includes libraries for scientific computing and a package manager. See https://www.anaconda.com/distribution for more information.

Basic Model Interface (BMI)

A set a functions that are used to interact with and control a model. See https://csdms.colorado.edu/wiki/BMI_Description for more information.

Community Surface Dynamics Modeling System (CSDMS)

CSDMS is an NSF-funded program that seeks to transform the science and practice of earth-surface dynamics modeling. For more information, visit https://csdms.colorado.edu.

class

A program that acts as a template for creating objects.

conda

The package manager for Anaconda. Also an informal name for an Anaconda installation.

conda-forge

A collection of community-built packages distributed by Anaconda. See https://conda-forge.org.

conda environment

A conda sub-installation that isolates a group of packages from the main conda installation. See also Conda environments.

configuration file

A file that contains information for setting up a model.

coupling

See model coupling.

data

Information held by an object.

import

The process of bringing code from a Python module into another module or into an interactive Python session.

instance

See object.

Matplotlib

A Python plotting library used in pymt. For more information, see https://matplotlib.org.

method

Programs that act upon the data of an object.

model

A computer program that attempts to describe a physical process with mathematical relationships that evolve over time and are solved numerically. For more information, see, for example, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Numerical_modeling_(geology).

model configuration file

A file, usually in a text-based format, that lists the tunable parameters of a model and supplies their initial values.

model coupling

Models are coupled when they exchange inputs and outputs, often at the resolution of individual time steps. One-way coupling occurs when the outputs from one model are used as inputs to another model. Two-way coupling is when outputs from one model are used as inputs for another model, which in turn supplies its outputs to the first model as inputs, producing a feedback.

module

A file (with the .py extension) that contains Python code.

NumPy

A Python library that provides arrays. Outputs from pymt are NumPy arrays. See also http://www.numpy.org.

object

A variable that is a concrete example of a class. Objects have data and methods that act upon those data.

package

A directory of Python modules that contains a package definition file. Packages can be installed into a Python distribution and imported into a Python session. Packages may define subpackages, each with their own package definition file.

package definition file

A file named __init__.py that denotes a directory contains a Python package.

Standard Names

A semantic mediation technology developed at CSDMS for precisely matching variable names between models. For more information, see https://csdms.colorado.edu/wiki/CSDMS_Standard_Names.

tarball

An archive file that contains several other files, usually compressed.