mesocosm

American  

[mee-zuh-koz-uhm, mez-uh-] / ˈmi zəˌkɒz əm, ˈmɛz ə- /

noun

Environmental Science.

1. a relatively large, controlled outdoor experimental environment or ecosystem, as opposed to one in a laboratory.

   The research facility, with 50 3,000-liter shallow freshwater mesocosms, is one of Europe's largest.

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Etymology

Origin of mesocosm

First recorded in 1980–85; meso- ( def. ) + -cosm ( def. )

Example Sentences

Why are mesocosm and microcosm experiments not considered to represent the true nature of ecosystems?

From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022

“You have so little space and a limited system. In the mesocosm, you are manipulating a natural system.”

From New York Times • Apr. 3, 2022

Best says that her mesocosm experiments are more sophisticated and realistic than lab studies, but less easy to control.

From Nature • Jan. 30, 2018