A new view of phylogenetic estimation is presented where data sets, tree evolution models, and estimation methods are placed in a common geometric framework. Each of these objects is placed in a vector space where the character patterns are the basis vectors. This viewpoint allows intuitive understanding of various complex properties of the phylogeneticestimation problem structure. This is illustrated with examples discussing data set combinations, mixture models, consistency, and phylogenetic invariants.
Copyright 2000 Academic Press.