ELIGIBILITY: This project is for a student taking the online MSc in Statistics and Data Science.
In biodiversity experiments, typically the number, identity and proportions of species are manipulated across experimental units. Often additional treatments are of interest to test alongside species diversity treatments. The design of these experiments can be challenged by the multiple dimensions of species diversity but also by the practical logistics of how the experiments can be implemented in field or lab experiments. In this project, the relative merits of using split-plot versus completely randomised designs for testing species diversity in combination with other treatments will be assessed using a simulation study. The different modelling approaches suited to the tested designs will also be explored using empirical data.