2019-03-072019-03-071994Ecological Modelling 75/76: 37-490304-3800https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12348/2829This contribution addresses the issue of "goal functions", quantifying the state of development of ecosystems. Numerous goal functions have been proposed with the hope that once a proper goal function has been identified it will be possible in a straightforward manner to characterize ecosystems and to improve the predictive capabilities of complex ecosystem models.application/pdfJournal Articlehttps://doi.org/10.1016/0304-3800(94)90005-1