Digital Commons Network^™

Boulder Distribution Analysis Of Impact Craters In The Tharsis Region And Elysium Planitia, Mars, Nicole Button

LSU Master's Theses

Crater counting is an accepted method for dating the surface of a planetary body. An older landscape will have a higher areal density of craters due to exposure of impacts occurring over a longer time period. Since each initial impact only forms one primary crater, secondary craters need to be excluded in the crater counting method to appropriately catalog only distinct impact events. However, small primary craters may be difficult to distinguish from secondary craters. Understanding physical features of impact craters, such as the ejecta blanket, would improve the planetary community’s ability to differentiate between the two types of craters. …

Multi-Hazard Performance Assessment Of High-Rise Buildings, Jad El Khoury Antoun

LSU Master's Theses

In the last few decades, there has been an important increase in building high-rise constructions in many cities around the world. Since they offer several benefits in populous areas in terms of space efficiency, economy and sustainability, tower buildings attracted practitioners and researchers to understand better their exclusive behavior and response to natural hazards (e.g., hurricanes, earthquakes). Because of their flexibility and their commonly limited damping, skyscrapers are more susceptible to wind and earthquake actions than low- and mid-rise buildings. Moreover, many locations are prone to multiple hazards; hence, it is important to understand thoroughly the structural behavior of structures …

Generalizability Of Multiple Measures Of Treatment Integrity: An Empirical Replication, Elizabeth Wilson

LSU Master's Theses

Treatment integrity is essential for the implementation of interventions in schools as it determines the accuracy or consistency with which different components of a treatment are implemented. There are no current standards regarding the best practices in treatment integrity measurement; however, higher integrity is associated with enhanced student outcomes. At present, there is no database providing information on treatment integrity for practitioners, researchers, and policy-makers to reference for choosing an appropriate level of treatment integrity needed for certain interventions for certain problems. Consequently, there is a need to establish convergent validity among different methods of treatment integrity measurement using multiple …

Growth And Development Of Two Broiler Strains With Low Protein And Crystalline Amino Acid Supplemented Diets, Chaoyang Li

LSU Master's Theses

The objective of this research was to compare the growth performance of broilers from two commercial breeds with control, low protein and low protein supplemented with crystalline amino acids diets. This was a randomized block design, and identical experiments were conducted on successively in two years. In each experiment, day-old chicks, Ross 708 broilers and Cobb 405 broilers, were randomly assigned into three dietary treatments: 1) positive control, 2) low crude protein (LP), and 3) LP + crystalline amino acids (CAA). A three phase feeding program was used. Feed and water were provided ad-libitum. On d 12, 19, 26, 33, …

High-Throughput Droplet Barcoding And Automated Image Analysis In Microfluidic Droplet Trapping Array, Manibarathi Vaithiyanathan

LSU Master's Theses

Molecularly-targeted therapeutics and personalized medicine have dramatically increased the median survival rate of patients suffering from cancer. However, cellular heterogeneity and the personalized nature of cancer have resulted in the limited success of single drug treatments which has led to the use of multiple therapeutic combinations. This has required the development of new analytical methods capable of multiplexed high-throughput screening (HTS) technologies necessary to identify is single or multi-agent therapies are effective in ex vivo samples like liquid biopsies. Droplet microfluidic devices have garnered significant interest to facilitate high-throughput, single cell analysis of heterogeneous populations. However, these devices are still …

Patterns In Abundance Of Louisiana’S Avifauna Revealed By The Louisiana Bird Atlas Project, Matthew L. Brady

LSU Master's Theses

The Louisiana Bird Atlas Project is a multi-year citizen science effort designed to quantify bird distribution and abundance for all species regularly occurring in the state of Louisiana during two time periods: summer and winter. Data were collected by volunteers in a citizen science framework across eight years, from 2007 to 2014. A total of 351 species was recorded (254 during the Summer Bird Atlas and 315 during the Winter Bird Atlas). Maps showing distribution and relative abundance for each species were generated within a Geographical Information System, and were accompanied by short descriptions of status, distribution, abundance, and other …

A Study Of The Urban Red Fox (Vulpes Vulpes) Population In Baton Rouge, Louisiana Using Social Media, Ahsennur Soysal

LSU Master's Theses

Foxes are timid yet resourceful animals that are integrated into many urban environments. Because they are elusive, collecting information about the number of urban foxes, their diet and spatial distribution, their interactions with the ecological community in their urban habitat, as well as residents’ response to them, is difficult. Involving stakeholders to participate in the data collection on wildlife via citizen science on social media is one way to overcome this complication, while simultaneously engaging residents in the ecology happening around them. Therefore, we used social media as the platform to engage the public to document and map the foxes …

Occurrence Of Putative Endornaviruses In Non-Cultivated Plant Species And Characterization Of A Novel Endornavirus In Geranium Carolinianum, Rachel Herschlag

LSU Master's Theses

Endornaviruses are RNA viruses, which can infect plants yet cause no apparent symptoms. To date, most descriptions of endornaviruses infecting plants have been in cultivated species. A survey for endornaviruses in non-cultivated plants was initiated in 2015 and continued through 2017 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Two hundred and seven plant species were tested for distinctive dsRNA profiles by selective extraction and gel electrophoresis, of which seven contained endornavirus-like dsRNA. RT-PCR amplification of an endornavirus-specific sequence supported the endornavirus nature of six of the seven samples. Of the six host species, one species, Geranium carolinianum was confirmed as being infected with …

Scaling Relationships Between Cranial Morphological Features And Cranial Capacity In Modern Humans, Jacob Jesch

LSU Master's Theses

Certain cranial morphologies referred to here as “cranial predictor features” are known to allometrically scale with body mass at statistically significant levels. Brain size likewise is known to scale with body mass, with brain-to-body-mass ratio being expressed numerically via the encephalization quotient. The study at hand aims to demonstrate whether brain size via its skeletal proxy of cranial capacity also scales with cranial predictor features. Correlation analysis was employed on two samples of contemporary male and female modern humans, respectively, in order to determine the statistical significance and degree of association between cranial predictor features and cranial capacity, as well …

Distinguishing Isolates Of Rotylenchulus Reniformis Endemic In Louisiana On The Basis Of Root-Associated Females And Egg Masses, Benjamin Mcinnes

LSU Master's Theses

The reniform nematode Rotylenchulus reniformis is a major pathogen of soybean and cotton in Louisiana. Previous studies have shown that populations of reniform nematode throughout the southern United States vary in reproduction and pathogenicity. Limited studies have been conducted to evaluate the reproduction and pathogenicity of populations of R. reniformis endemic in Louisiana. Studies with isolates of the nematode from eight cotton-producing parishes focused solely on reproduction of the root-associated infective and swollen female life stages with and without attached egg masses on the cotton genotypes MT2468 Ren3, M713 Ren5, and Stoneville 4946GLB2 and the soybean genotypes PI 548316, PI …

Allende, Castro, And Pinochet: An Analysis Of Forms Of Address In Political Speeches, Sophie Green

LSU Master's Theses

The central discussion of this thesis concentrates on the uses of ‘we’ and ‘they’ within the corpus of six speeches given by Latin American political leaders in the mid-to-late 20th century. Existing research explains that one’s definition of self as well as a country’s national identity is largely based on the perception of ‘other’ (Costelloe 2014: 322). In other words, the manner in which political speakers discuss the collective ‘we’ and refer to foreign adversaries with the use of ‘they’ can greatly influence national identity. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to analyze the importance of address forms and …

Mechanistic Modeling Of Nanoparticle-Stabilized Supercritical Co2 Foams And Its Implication In Field-Scale Eor Applications, Doris Patricia Ortiz Maestre

LSU Master's Theses

Previous experimental studies show that nanoparticle-stabilized supercritical CO₂ foams (or, NP CO₂ foams) can be applied as an alternative to surfactant foams, in order to reduce CO₂ mobility in gas injection enhanced oil recovery (EOR). These nanoparticles, if chosen correctly, can be an effective foam stabilizer attached at the fluid interface in a wide range of physicochemical conditions.

By using NP CO₂ foam experiments available in the literature, this study performs two tasks: (i) presenting how a mechanistic foam model can be used to fit experimental data and determine required model parameters, and (ii) investigating the …

Evidence Of Subglacial Brine Inflow And Wind-Induced Mixing From High Resolution Temperature Measurements In Lake Bonney, Antarctica, Jade Lawrence

LSU Master's Theses

Hypersaline brine beneath Taylor Glacier enters proglacial West Lobe Lake Bonney (WLB) subglacially as well as from Blood Falls, a surface discharge point at the Taylor Glacier terminus. The brine strongly influences the water column of WLB. Because of the extremely high salinities below the chemocline in WLB, density is determined almost entirely by salinity and temperature can be used as a passive tracer. Cold brine intrusions enter WLB at the glacier face and intrude in to the water column at the depth of neutral buoyancy, where they can be identified by anomalously cold temperatures at that depth. This study …

Combining Downhole And Sediment Logging To Understand Spatial Variability In Grain-Size, Facies, And Reservoir Quality Of A Large-Scale Mississippi River Point Bar, False River, Louisiana, Elizabeth D. Olson

LSU Master's Theses

Although the general processes by which meandering river point bars are constructed have been known for some time, there is a lack of clarity regarding why small-scale heterogeneities develop. This is especially true in the largest meandering river systems, which are equivalent to some of the most important hydrocarbon reservoirs in the world. In this study, we evaluate the stratigraphic architecture of the 80 km² False River Point Bar System on the Lower Mississippi River and use the knowledge gained to better comprehend point bar construction at different phases. Previous studies of small to medium-scale systems have been unable …

Characterization Of Aspergillus Flavus Soil And Corn Kernel Populations From Eight Mississippi River States, Jorge A. Reyes Pineda

LSU Master's Theses

Aspergillus flavus is a saprophytic ascomycete that can also actively invade the seed of crops and potentially contaminate them with harmful aflatoxins. Management of A. flavus currently relies mostly on biocontrol. However, there is still a lot to learn about its biology and ecology so the current approach can be improved. An A. flavus population survey was undertaken during the fall of 2014 across eight Mississippi River states to determine population diversity and geographic distribution of VCGs. Isolates from corn and soil were also characterized for VCG, sclerotial morphotype, mating type, cyclopiazonic acid, and aflatoxin production in order to determine …

The Impact Of Co2-Related Ocean Acidification On The Molecular Regulation Of Shell Development In The Eastern Oyster (Crassostrea Virginica)., Mackenzie L. Richards

LSU Master's Theses

Eastern oysters (Crassostrea virginica), native to the Gulf of Mexico, are keystone species in estuarine ecosystems and are economically valued. Current research indicates that ocean acidification adversely affects the physiology and morphology of larval oysters, but the molecular mechanisms of this impact remain unstudied. Ocean acidification is contributed to by elevated atmospheric CO₂ due to increased anthropogenic activities, causing heightened partial pressure of CO₂ (pCO₂), and eutrophication from land-based runoff in the Gulf. The objective of this work was to determine the genomic response of the eastern oyster in Louisiana to simulated ocean acidification. …

Field Investigation And Performance Evaluation Of Interface Bonding Between Pavement Layers, Ramendra N. Das

LSU Master's Theses

Proper bonding between pavement layers is essential to provide a monolithic pavement structure that allows distribution of loading over a larger area. Inadequate interface bonding may cause debonding or shear failure at the interface due to the accumulation of concentrated tensile stresses at the bottom of the overlay. Tack coat, a light application of asphaltic cement emulsion is applied on the existing surface to create a strong adhesive bond between pavement layers. The objectives of this study are to investigate the effects of various factors affecting bond strength between hot-mix asphalt (HMA) overlay and underlying pavement layers in the field. …

Effects Of Soil Silicon Amendment And Nitrogen Levels On Rice Insect Pest Complex, James Michael P. Villegas

LSU Master's Theses

Rice plants are consistently subjected to various pressures by insect pests throughout the growing season. The main insect pest complex reported in Louisiana are the rice water weevil (major early-season insect pest), fall armyworm (sporadic early-season pest), sugarcane borer and rice stalk borer (long- established but sporadic stem boring pests), Mexican rice borer (an invasive stem-boring pest), and rice stink bug (major late-season pest). Soil silicon amendment has been shown to enhance plant resistance against herbivorous pests. Rice is a typical silicon-accumulating graminaceous crop. Field and greenhouse experiments were conducted from 2015 to 2017 to investigate the effects of soil …

Floodplain Impacts On Water Quality: A Case Study In Southern Louisiana, Emily Delduco

LSU Master's Theses

The quantity and quality of dissolved carbon delivered to coastal margins by rivers is an important component of global carbon cycling. The Atchafalaya River (AR) discharges ~25% of the flow of the Mississippi River (MR) and the total flow of the Red River (RR) into the Gulf of Mexico (GoM) annually while flowing through the largest bottomland swamp in North America. This provides a unique opportunity to study floodplain impacts on dissolved carbon processes in a large river system. The research aimed to: (1) determine DIC and DOC transport and processing by a river swamp basin under varied seasons and …

Saccades Attenuate Postural Sway Despite Muscular Fatigue Negatively Influencing Proprioception, Matthew Alan Yeomans

LSU Master's Theses

Abstract

Background: Muscular fatigue, which reduces force output and position sense, often leads to increased sway and potential balance impairments. In contrast, saccadic eye movements can attenuate sway more than fixating gaze on an external target. The goal of this study was to determine whether the use of saccades could compensate for the increased postural sway in a fatigued state. Methods and Materials: We compared the effects of gazing at a fixation point (FP) and performing saccades (SAC) on various sway measures of the center of pressure (CoP) while participants stood as still as possible on a force plate. Participants …

Prevention Of Alkali-Silica Reaction (Asr) In Lightweight Wellbore Cements Containing Silica-Based Microspheres, Dylan Albers

LSU Master's Theses

Drilling through low pressure formations, either offshore or through depleted formations, requires the use of low density fluids to prevent lost circulation ensuring proper placement of cement for proper zonal isolation and structural integrity. Achieving these densities in cements can be done through foaming the cement, increasing water content, or using silica-based microspheres. Water extended cements are useful at densities down to 13 ppg below which only foaming and silica-based microspheres can be used. Each of these methods coming with individual limitations, with foamed cements being sensitive to high pressures and silica-based microspheres having chemical instability in the high alkalinity …

Issues Related To Carbon Dioxide Pipeline Transportation Infrastructure In Louisiana, Michael Allen Layne Iii

LSU Master's Theses

There is no single solution to mitigate anthropogenic climate change; a multifaceted approach with economic incentives is needed. Carbon dioxide (CO₂) enhanced oil recovery (EOR) is one such solution which provides an economic incentive, in the capture and sale of oil, for sequestering CO₂ underground. While carbon capture and subsequent geological injection are both mature technologies, there has been little discussion or appreciation for the role of pipelines. The current CO₂ pipeline infrastructure will need to significantly expand in order to accommodate increasing EOR production. However, pipeline construction costs, and institutional factors impacting development, may be …

Microgrid Energy Management With Flexibility Constraints: A Data-Driven Solution Method, Okan Ciftci

LSU Master's Theses

Microgrid energy management is a challenging and important problem in modern power systems. Several deterministic and stochastic models have been proposed in the literature for the microgrid energy management problem. However, more accurate models are required to enhance flexibility of the microgrids when accounting for renewable energy and load uncertainties. This thesis proposes key contributions to solve the energy management problem for smart building (or small-scale microgrid). In Chapter 3, a deterministic energy management model is presented taking into account system flexibility requirements. Energy storage systems are deployed to enhance the grid flexibility and ramping capability. The objective function of …

Teachers' Experience Of A Flood In Their School Community: Their Beliefs, Perceptions, And Thoughts About Practice, Caroline Tolentino

LSU Master's Theses

The increasing number of flooding incidences in Louisiana exposes a significant number of children to the possible traumatic effects of this natural disaster. Flooding takes a toll not only on families and children, but on teachers as well. While the effects of other types of disasters on children have been considered in previous studies, research has not thoroughly addressed the effects of flooding on children and on early childhood teachers. Teachers can be very instrumental in helping young children cope and making sure their needs are met after the experience of a traumatic event (Perry & Szalavitz, 2008; Le Brocque, …

Effect Of Hot Water Conditioning On Microbial Safety And Quality Of In-Shell Pecans, Karuna Kharel

LSU Master's Theses

Hot water conditioning of in-shell pecans is one common practice followed by industries to facilitate shelling. It also acts as a preventive control for potential microbiological contamination that might occur during pre- and post-harvest processes. However, heat treatment may have an effect on the eating quality of nuts. The main objectives of the study were to develop a post-harvest hot water treatment intervention as a kill step to destroy foodborne pathogens on in-shell pecans and evaluate the effect of treatments on physicochemical properties, consumer acceptance and purchase intent of dehulled and roasted pecans. The time (1-5 min) and temperature (70, …

How Dredge Pits Evolve Over Time: A Look At Their Geomorphologic Evolution And Infilling Processes, Patrick Robichaux

LSU Master's Theses

As coastal environments become more susceptible to land loss through accelerating sea level rise and subsidence, new restoration methods harnessing borrowed sediment are more valuable than ever. Mud-capped dredge pits (MCDPs) are a relatively new source of restoration-quality sediment that has only recently been utilized for beach and barrier island restorations in Louisiana. Because MCDPs have been in use for less than two decades in only a handful sites, little is understood about their evolution over decadal timescales. To improve our understanding of MCDPs after they are dredged, we have conducted a suite of geophysical surveys including bathymetry, sidescan sonar, …

The Characterization Of Alpha-Carbonic Anhydrases Through Mutagenesis And Subcellular Localization In Arabidopsis Thaliana, Lance E. Pounds

LSU Master's Theses

Carbonic anhydrases (CAs) are zinc metalloenzymes which catalyze the interconversion of carbon dioxide and bicarbonate. It is hypothesized that CA activity facilitates CO₂ flux in leaf mesophyll cells to maintain optimal rates of photosynthesis or to maintain a pool of inorganic carbon for other metabolic processes. There are three classes of CAs (α, β, and γ) in the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana. The βCAs and γCAs have been well studied, but the αCAs have received relatively little study. There are eight αCA genes in Arabidopsis. This study investigates which αCAs are expressed in shoots, their tissue-specific expression, their …

Incidence Of Aphelenchoides Besseyi In Rice In Louisiana And Host Status Of The Most Widely Planted Cultivars, Felipe Mendes Carvalho Godoy

LSU Master's Theses

Aphelenchoides besseyi, the causal agent of white tip disease of rice, has been considered a minor pest of rice during the past 50 years in the United States. Recently this nematode has been found in a number of quarantine samples in Louisiana and Arkansas. Objectives of this research were to determine incidence of this nematode in commercial seed sold to producers in Louisiana and to determine the host status of major cultivars currently produced in the state. During 2015-2016, a total of 216 seed samples representing 3 medium grain, 18 long grain, and 4 long grain hybrid cultivars were …

Predictors Of Positive Adjustment In A Sample Of Children Impacted By Hurricane Katrina, Jennifer C. Piscitello

LSU Master's Theses

Natural disasters have a profound psychological impact on children and youth (Kelley et al., 2010; Lai et al., 2015; La Greca, et al., 1996; Vernberg et al., 1996). Much of the literature assessing risk and protective factors related to children’s post-disaster recovery has primarily focused on the development of significant clinical symptoms, largely ignoring factors associated with positive adjustment and resilience. The purpose of the current investigation was to examine parenting behaviors and family organization (i.e., child routines) as they relate to children’s self-esteem and self-reliance in a sample of 371 parent-child dyads impacted by Hurricane Katrina. A series of …

Heat, Acid And Osmotic Stress Tolerance Of Leuconostoc Mesenteroides As Influenced By Prior Exposure To Various Mild Stress Conditions, Ingrid C. Osorio Rodriguez

LSU Master's Theses

The importance of Leuconostoc mesenteroides is recognized for its contribution to taste in cultured dairy products. It has been cited for its potential role as a probiotic. Consumer demand exists for new dairy products with health benefits. In the manufacture of probiotic-products survival of Leuconostoc mesenteroides would depend on its ability to tolerate challenging processing and storage conditions. Improved viability by prior exposure to mild stresses can increase stress tolerance toward a more severe stress. Furthermore, it can result in cross-protection due to connection of several proteins in response to stresses. Objective was to evaluate the effect of prior …