Introduction
This practical will introduce the BEAST software for Bayesian evolutionary analysis,
with a focus on virus evolution. In this exercise we will investigate the population
history of the the H5N1 influenza epidemic, by using the Bayesian Skyline Plot (BSP),
which estimates changes in effective population size through time. The data are 21
H5N1 strain Influenza A sequences sampled between 1997 and 2005 from Southeast
Asia; including viruses from birds, pigs and humans.
To undertake the exercises in this practical, you will need to have access to the
following software packages in a format that is compatible with your computer system
(all three are available for Mac OS X, Windows and Linux/UNIX operating systems):