mesocosmn.
/ˈmɛsə(ʊ)ˌkɒz(ə)m/, U.S. /ˈmɛzoʊˌkɑzəm/; see also meso- comb. form. Ecology.
An enclosed and essentially self-sufficient (but not necessarily isolated) experimental environment or ecosystem that is on a larger scale than a laboratory microcosm.
ΚΠ
1981 Appl. & Environmental Microbiol. 41 268 Direct brushing of the fiber glass-reinforced plastic tank walls of experimental estuarine mesocosms minimized the ‘wall effect’ by keeping a surface that maintained a low biomass of a slowly accumulating bacterial film.
1988 Audubon July 12/2 We are entering the age of the mesocosm, the artificially designed and constructed but self-sustaining semiworld.
1999 New Scientist 29 May 66/1 (advt.) We require a senior scientist, to work primarily with our newly-established aquatic mesocosm systems.
This is a new entry (OED Third Edition, September 2001; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1981