Null Model Data

Teaching null model analysis
This can be a challenging topic, particularly for undergraduate students, and so we developed an inexpensive hands-on manipulative model to illustrate the salient points. From there we described how to transition into standard research-quality simulations using Gotelli and Entsminger's Ecosim software and the data linked below. Full details and software download links are in our paper.

Files for null model analysis
Data matrices were compiled under Bruce Patterson's 1991 NSF grant BSR 9106981. The grant supported a collaboration of Wirt Atmar, Alan Cutler, Gregory Mikkelson, Bruce Patterson, and David Wright. The original matrices, citations, and notes concerning their derivation were downloaded from AICS Research INC.

Recommended citation format: ''Atmar, J.W., and B.D. Patterson. 1995. The nestedness temperature calculator: a visual basic program, including 294 presence-absence matrices. AICS Research, Inc., University Park, NM, and The Field Museum, Chicago.''

Disclaimer: In the files linked below, I have removed notes and citations, and transposed the data. While I have not intentionally modified the data in any other way, neither have I gone back to the original publications to confirm accuracy.

The data matrices can be copied into a simple text editor (such as Notepad) and saved as .txt files. The resulting files can be opened directly from Ecosim. The file names in the last column match those used by Atmar et al in their original work and until recently linked to .txt files files on Declan McCabe's website .... but that web site is dead and I have not had the time to delete the links. So use the first column. Note: the first data set is artificial and created for a recently published teaching exercise linked above.