Beschreibung:
<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title><jats:p>Space and time are the domains used by every model in the applied environmental sciences, with the latter normally considered to add a fourth dimension to our simulated versions of reality. Dealing with modern challenges in water‐related disciplines requires that we extend our historical perspective as far back as possible to capture underlying long‐term dynamics that would otherwise be impossible to detect. At the same time, performing and interpreting retrospective studies demands an understanding of their strengths and weaknesses. Here I attempt to clarify both the importance of the past and the inevitable “paleo conundrum” associated with it by drawing on personal experience and on research projects conducted using tree‐ring records in the western U.S. How to best incorporate proxy data, together with instrumental observations, into models used to manage water resources for coping with an uncertain future remains a non‐trivial task.</jats:p>