E-Submission for Terrestrial and Aquatic Plant Studies
Environmental Fate and Effects Studies
Current as of February 2001
The following general guidance applies to both terrestrial and aquatic plant studies:
- Data should be provided in files separate from other material such as reviews.
- Data files should have a special file extension not used for other kinds of files, probably ".dat" (e.g., "ONION.DAT").
- Missing measurements should be indicated by a dot (".") as in the example below. A missing value code should be required when there are multiple endpoints in the same file.
- Individual numbers or values on a line are separated by one or more spaces.
- Lines or rows of data are separated by a hard return
- Data files should be ASCII.
- Character data such as variable names or treatment group names should consist of strings of length not more than 8 characters.
- Ratio endpoints such as emergence (the fraction of seeds that emerge) should be represented as decimal numbers rather than as percentages.
Example of suggested file format
Following is how a file might look for a study with two treatment levels and four measurement endpoints:
BLECKOFOS / ONION / EMERGENCE
10 23
| Height | Weight | Emergnce | Phytotox | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | 2.5 | 3.0 | 1.00 | 0.00 |
| C | 1.9 | 2.8 | 1.00 | 0.00 |
| 1 | 1.8 | 2.2 | 0.88 | 0.00 |
| 1 | 1.9 | 2.5 | 0.79 | 0.00 |
| 2 | . | . | 0.00 | . |
| 2 | 1.0 | 1.9 | 0.22 | 1.00 |
An explanation of each line follows:
Line 1: Title line
Line 2: Dose values applied to treated groups
Line 3: Names of measurement endpoints (#8 characters per name)
Lines 4 ff: data for individual plots, data columns as follows:
Column 1: Treatment group
Columns 2-5: Values of measurement endpoints. The endpoints are identified on Line 3.
(The 3rd name on Line 3 is the name of the 3rd endpoint from left to right, and so on.)
For further information, please contact Elizabeth Donovan (donovan.elizabeth@epa.gov), 703-347-0227 or Van Vogel (vogel.van@epa.gov), 703-347-0541.