An open source implementation of the Modern Analog Technique (MAT) within the R computing environment

The purpose of this paper is to introduce an analytical solution for Quaternary geoscientists applying the modern analog technique (MAT) to fossil biological assemblages. We present a package called MATTOOLS that implements the MAT and offers new calibration techniques related to Monte Carlo simulation and response operating curves (ROC) that are used in assessing the critical thresholds of biological assemblage dissimilarity. The MATTOOLS solution to the MAT has the advantage of operating in the R language environment, a free open-source high-level language with hundreds of functions for statistical analysis and visualization. MATTOOLS therefore offers an easily extensible solution for individual research endeavors. We review current solutions for MAT calculations and provide an example of modern calibration using MATTOOLS.