Introduction

From May to September of 1993, work has been done to simulate a sample forest population using Maine FIA data from three forest inventories. When finished, the new population promises to be one of the first populations of its size with information spanning three time periods. This population simulates a single forest plot of 10.8 hectares which has been constructed by `gluing' together 835 smaller fifth-acre plots.

Over the last four months, we have become familiar, almost intimate, with these data. We have noted a number of peculiarities which, at the time, we weren't able to investigate further. In addition, we've noticed instances in which we realize we could have done a certain procedure differently, but we were unable to effect those changes because they were noticed too late in the process.

Now that we've finished the first draft of the population, it is time to go back an investigate all these peculiarities in the data as well as the procedures and strategies that we couldn't fully investigate earlier. This document will serve as a step-by-step record of the procedures followed to condition and prepare the initial Maine FIA data, construct the paradigm for the large sample population, and finally measure and analyze this population.