README.Rmd

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# shelltrace

The goal of shelltrace is to provide the user with an open-source,
 widely accessible version of the ShellTrace model that is described
 in the Geoscientific Model Development Paper "ShellTrace v1.0 - A
 new approach for modelling growth and trace element uptake in marine
 bivalve shells: Model verification on pacific oyster shells
 (Crassostrea gigas)". The model reconstructs growth rates and the rates
 of incorporation of trace elements into the shells of bivalves. The goal
 of the model is to reconstruct uptake rates of various trace elements in
 order to shed light on the processes that influence these uptake rate and
 to enable the discussion of trace element concentrations in bivalve
 shells in relation to their environment.

## Instructions

The way this package works is slightly different from a regular R package.
 Most of the functions contained in this package are not meant to run
 individually. Instead, they form a sequence of steps that need to be followed
 for the model to work. Examples of all functions and a detailed explanation of
 their mathmatics are found in the paper which explains the model. Some functions,
 such as "Oyster_plot_cross_section" are meant to be run by itself, but all
 functions are embedded in larger functions, such as "Oyster_combined_run" that
 run all functions of the model in the right order.

# Availability

Besides being uploaded to the CRAN database, the source code of this entire
package will also be made available online as a supplement to the paper in
Geoscientific Model Development and as an entry in the open source research
data repository Zenodo (http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.817258).