Standardized classification of vegetation at the continental scale is extremely important for nature conservation and ecological research. A major step towards comprehensive classification of European vegetation has been recent establishment of an integrated database of European vegetation coordinated at Masaryk University. A synthesis of these huge data requires development of a new generation of expert systems for vegetation classification based on coupled information on species composition and the environment. This project aims at developing new logic of expert systems for vegetation classification using elements of previous expert systems combined with elements of artificial intelligence. We will develop new algorithms, procedures for semi-automatic construction of classification expert systems, and efficient software to apply these methods to vegetation databases, including an online application. The new methods will be tested in a series of case studies of European vegetation types involving international teams, which will guarantee dissemination of the new methods.

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