Daisyworld Climate Simulation - User Manual

Table of Contents

1. Introduction
2. Getting Started
3. World Generation
4. Interface Overview
5. Controls and Tools
6. Understanding the Displays
7. Tips and Strategies
8. Troubleshooting

Introduction

Welcome to the Daisyworld Climate Simulation! This educational tool demonstrates how life and climate interact to create a self-regulating system. Based on James Lovelock’s Gaia Theory, this simulation shows how simple daisies of different colors can regulate a planet’s temperature through their albedo (reflectivity) properties.

What You’ll Learn

• How feedback loops work in climate systems
• The concept of planetary self-regulation
• The relationship between albedo and temperature
• Climate tipping points and system limits

Getting Started

System Requirements

• Any modern web browser (Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge)
• JavaScript enabled
• Screen resolution of at least 1024x768 recommended

Launching the Simulation

1. Open the HTML file in your web browser
2. The world generation screen will appear automatically
3. Configure your planet and click “Start Simulation”

World Generation

When you start the simulation, you’ll see the World Generation modal with these options:

Land Coverage (10-90%)

• Low (10-30%): Ocean world with small islands
• Medium (40-60%): Balanced land and water
• High (70-90%): Continental world with inland seas

Effect: More land provides more space for daisies to grow and regulate temperature.

Continent Size (Tiny to Huge)

• Tiny: Many small islands
• Small: Archipelagos and island chains
• Medium: Moderate-sized continents
• Large: Major landmasses
• Huge: Supercontinents

Effect: Larger continents create more uniform climate zones.

Island Frequency (None to Very High)

• Controls the number of isolated landmasses
• Islands can develop unique daisy populations

Effect: Islands create pockets of isolated evolution.

Initial Daisy Density (0-50%)

• 0%: Bare planet (daisies must be painted manually)
• 10-20%: Sparse coverage (recommended for beginners)
• 30-50%: Dense coverage (immediate climate effects)

Effect: Higher density shows immediate temperature regulation.

Buttons

• 🎲 Regenerate: Create a new random world with current settings
• ✅ Start Simulation: Begin with the displayed world

Interface Overview

Main Display Area

World Canvas

• Shows the planet surface (100x50 grid)
• Blue areas: Ocean (daisies cannot grow here)
• Brown areas: Bare land
• Colored areas: Different daisy types

Temperature Overlay

• Toggle with “Show Temperature” button
• Blue: Cold areas (< 10°C)
• Green: Optimal areas (15-30°C)
• Yellow/Orange: Warm areas (30-40°C)
• Red: Hot areas (> 40°C)

Graph Display

Shows three real-time metrics: - Red Line: Global average temperature - Cyan Line: Total daisy population - Yellow Line: Solar input level

Controls and Tools

Top Control Bar

Show Temperature / Hide Temperature

Toggles between normal view and temperature overlay.

Pause / Resume

Stops or continues the simulation without resetting.

Reset World

Restarts the current world configuration.

New World

Opens the world generation modal.

Brush Size (1-5)

Controls the painting tool radius.

Daisy Painter Panel

Daisy Palette

Eight daisy types from white to black: 1. White (Albedo: 0.9) - Reflects most heat 2. Light Gray (Albedo: 0.75) 3. Gray (Albedo: 0.6) 4. Medium Gray (Albedo: 0.5) 5. Dark Gray (Albedo: 0.4) 6. Darker Gray (Albedo: 0.3) 7. Very Dark (Albedo: 0.15) 8. Black (Albedo: 0.05) - Absorbs most heat

Eraser Tool

Removes daisies, leaving bare ground.

Geosphere Controls

Continental Drift (0-100)

• Speed of tectonic movement
• Higher values = more dynamic landmasses

Volcanic Activity (0-100)

• Frequency of new land formation
• Can create new islands from ocean

Erosion (0-100)

• Rate of land wearing away
• Coastal areas erode into ocean

Atmosphere Controls

Solar Input (0-100)

• Critical Control: Amount of heat from the sun
• Simulates increasing solar luminosity
• Start low (50-70) for stable conditions

Cloud Albedo (0-100)

• Reflectivity of clouds
• Higher = more cooling effect

Greenhouse Effect (0-100)

• Atmospheric heat retention
• Higher = warmer planet

Biosphere Controls

Growth Rate (0-100)

• How quickly daisies reproduce
• Higher = faster spreading

Mutation Rate (0-100)

• Chance of daisies changing color
• Higher = more adaptation

Thermal Tolerance (0-100)

• Temperature range for daisy survival
• Higher = daisies survive extreme temperatures

Understanding the Displays

Information Panel

Global Temp

• Current average planetary temperature
• Optimal range: 15-30°C
• Daisies die below 5°C or above 40°C

Total Daisies

• Number of daisy tiles on the planet
• Maximum possible = land tiles available

Planet Albedo

• Average reflectivity (0.0 = black, 1.0 = white)
• Higher albedo = cooler planet

Time

• Simulation cycles elapsed
• Use for tracking long-term trends

Reading the Graph

The graph shows the last 200 time units:

Temperature Trends

• Rising: Planet warming (need more white daisies)
• Falling: Planet cooling (need more black daisies)
• Oscillating: System finding balance

Population Dynamics

• Crashes: Temperature exceeded tolerance
• Booms: Optimal conditions reached
• Stability: Successful regulation

Tips and Strategies

For Beginners

1. Start Simple
   • Use default settings
   • Begin with 40% land coverage
   • Set initial daisy density to 20%
2. Observe First
   • Watch for 100-200 cycles before adjusting
   • Note which daisy colors dominate
   • Check temperature overlay regularly
3. Make Small Changes
   • Adjust one control at a time
   • Change by 10-20 points maximum
   • Wait to see effects

Advanced Experiments

1. Test Regulation Limits
   • Slowly increase solar input
   • Find the tipping point
   • Try to recover from collapse
2. Create Extreme Worlds
   • All white or all black daisies
   • Very high greenhouse effect
   • Minimal land coverage
3. Island Evolution
   • High island frequency
   • Watch isolated populations
   • Compare different islands

Classroom Challenges

1. Stability Challenge
   • Maintain 22.5°C for 500 cycles
   • Use any controls necessary
2. Recovery Challenge
   • Start with extreme conditions
   • Restore habitable temperature
3. Prediction Challenge
   • Set specific parameters
   • Predict the outcome
   • Test and compare

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Simulation Won’t Start

• Refresh the browser
• Check JavaScript is enabled
• Try a different browser

All Daisies Die Immediately

• Lower solar input
• Increase thermal tolerance
• Check temperature isn’t extreme

Temperature Runaway

• Too much solar input
• Reduce greenhouse effect
• Add more appropriate daisies

No Temperature Regulation

• Need mix of daisy colors
• Increase daisy density
• Check land coverage is sufficient

Performance Tips

• Close other browser tabs
• Reduce brush size for painting
• Pause while adjusting multiple controls

Keyboard Shortcuts

While not implemented in current version, these would be useful additions: - Space: Pause/Resume - T: Toggle temperature - R: Reset world - N: New world - 1-8: Select daisy type - E: Eraser tool

Educational Notes

Key Concepts Demonstrated

1. Negative Feedback
   • White daisies cool hot planets
   • Black daisies warm cool planets
2. Positive Feedback
   • Initial changes amplify
   • Can lead to runaway effects
3. Emergence
   • Simple rules create complex behavior
   • No central control needed
4. Resilience
   • System recovers from disturbances
   • Has limits to adaptation

Real-World Connections

• Ice-albedo feedback in polar regions
• Forest effects on local climate
• Cloud formation and cooling
• Greenhouse gases and warming
• Biodiversity and stability

Credits

Based on the original Daisyworld model by James Lovelock and Andrew Watson (1983), demonstrating the Gaia hypothesis. Inspired by SimEarth (1990) by Maxis.

Version History

• v1.0: Initial release with core features
• World generation system
• Temperature regulation
• Multiple control parameters
• Real-time graphing

End of User Manual