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Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons

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Life Sciences

Portland State University

2013

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Articles 1 - 30 of 31

Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics

Soil Development And Vegetation Response To Removal Of A Small Dam, Lassen Volcanic National Park, California, Stephanie Kay Rohdy Dec 2013

Soil Development And Vegetation Response To Removal Of A Small Dam, Lassen Volcanic National Park, California, Stephanie Kay Rohdy

Dissertations and Theses

Dam removal is increasing as dams age, yet little is understood about the pedogenic response to dam removal. This study reports on the edaphic changes of reservoir sediments and vegetation cover one year following removal of a small earthen dam in Northern California. In August 2012, I sampled surface sediments from the former Dream Lake reservoir in Lassen Volcanic National Park, and compared their physical and chemical properties with soil samples from two reference sites. I also estimated percent cover of vegetation in the former reservoir and reference sites. My results show that the reservoir was under reduced conditions, as …


Investigation Of The Structure And Dynamics Of Regioisomeric Eu³⁺ And Gd³⁺ Chelates Of Nb-Dotma: Implications For Mri Contrast Agent Design, Benjamin Charles Webber Nov 2013

Investigation Of The Structure And Dynamics Of Regioisomeric Eu³⁺ And Gd³⁺ Chelates Of Nb-Dotma: Implications For Mri Contrast Agent Design, Benjamin Charles Webber

Dissertations and Theses

The detection of disease and abnormal pathology by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has been aided significantly by the use of gadolinium (Gd3+)-based contrast agents (CAs) over the past three decades. MRI and MRI CAs play a critical role in diagnosing tumors and diseases of the central nervous system. The agents used clinically have been shown to safely increase MRI contrast despite the toxicity of Gd3+, owing to the high kinetic and thermodynamic stability of these chelates. However, current CAs enhance contrast at a small fraction of what is theoretically possible. This leads to the necessity of …


The Effects Of Large Wildfires On Employment And Wage Growth And Volatility In The Western United States, Max Nielsen-Pincus, Cassandra Moseley, Krista Gebert Nov 2013

The Effects Of Large Wildfires On Employment And Wage Growth And Volatility In The Western United States, Max Nielsen-Pincus, Cassandra Moseley, Krista Gebert

Environmental Science and Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

We examined the effect of large wildfires on economic growth and volatility in the western United States. We matched wildfire data with quarterly employment and earnings growth data to assess the specific effect of wildfire on employment and wage growth in western US counties. Wildfires generally tended to exhibit positive effects on employment and wage growth in the quarter(s) during which suppression efforts were active. However, this effect transitioned to increased economic volatility following a wildfire. The effect of wildfire also varied by the type of county in which wildfire occurred. The amount of suppression costs invested locally had the …


Carbon Dynamics In The Future Forest: The Importance Of Long-Term Successional Legacy And Climate–Fire Interactions, E. Louise Loudermilk, Robert M. Scheller, Peter J. Weisberg, Jian Yang, Thomas E. Dilts, Sarah L. Karam, Carl Skinner Oct 2013

Carbon Dynamics In The Future Forest: The Importance Of Long-Term Successional Legacy And Climate–Fire Interactions, E. Louise Loudermilk, Robert M. Scheller, Peter J. Weisberg, Jian Yang, Thomas E. Dilts, Sarah L. Karam, Carl Skinner

Environmental Science and Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

Understanding how climate change may influence forest carbon (C) budgets requires knowledge of forest growth relationships with regional climate, long-term forest succession, and past and future disturbances, such as wildfires and timber harvesting events. We used a landscape-scale model of forest succession, wildfire, and C dynamics (LANDIS-II) to evaluate the effects of a changing climate (A2 and B1 IPCC emissions; Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory General Circulation Models) on total forest C, tree species composition, and wildfire dynamics in the Lake Tahoe Basin, California, and Nevada. The independent effects of temperature and precipitation were assessed within and among climate models. Results …


Climate Change And Fire Management In The Mid-Atlantic Region, Kenneth L. Clark, Nicholas Skowronski, Heidi Renninger, Robert M. Scheller Oct 2013

Climate Change And Fire Management In The Mid-Atlantic Region, Kenneth L. Clark, Nicholas Skowronski, Heidi Renninger, Robert M. Scheller

Environmental Science and Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

In this review, we summarize the potential impacts of climate change on wildfire activity in the mid­-Atlantic region, and then consider how the beneficial uses of prescribed fire could conflict with mitigation needs for climate change, focusing on patters of carbon (C) sequestration by forests in the region. We use a synthesis of field studies, eddy flux tower measurements, and simulation studies to evaluate how the use of prescibed fire affects short-and long-term forest C dynamics. Climate change may create weather conditions more conducive to wildfire activity, but successional changes in forest composition, altered gap dynamics, reduced understory and forest …


Job Growth And Loss Across Sectors And Time In The Western Us: The Impact Of Large Wildfires, Max Nielsen-Pincus, Cassandra Moseley, Krista Gebert Sep 2013

Job Growth And Loss Across Sectors And Time In The Western Us: The Impact Of Large Wildfires, Max Nielsen-Pincus, Cassandra Moseley, Krista Gebert

Environmental Science and Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

The link between economic growth and natural hazards has long been studied to better understand the effects of natural hazards on local, regional, and country level growth patterns. However, relatively little generalizable research has focused on wildfires, one of the most common forest disturbances in the western United States (US). We examined the effect of large wildfires on employment growth across sectors and time in the western US.We matched wildfire occurrences from 2004 to 2008 and their duration with monthly employment data to identify the effect of wildfire on employment growth. Wildfires generally tended to exhibit positive effects on employment …


Thinking Aloud In The Science Classroom: Can A Literacy Strategy Increase Student Learning In Science?, Lindsey Joan Mockel Aug 2013

Thinking Aloud In The Science Classroom: Can A Literacy Strategy Increase Student Learning In Science?, Lindsey Joan Mockel

Dissertations and Theses

This research study investigated the effect of using the think aloud protocol while reading informational text on students' ability to learn from text in a secondary science classroom. The participants in this study were high school students (n=47) in three classes of a mixed-grade Integrated Biology, Chemistry, and Physics course. The study tracked student achievement during a four-week curriculum unit on the theory of evolution and evidence for biological evolution. All students received instruction on using the think aloud protocol, and all students practiced the think aloud protocol when reading short articles related to scientific evidence for evolution. The researcher …


Ccaat/Enhancer-Binding Protein Delta (C/Ebp-Delta) Expression In Antarctic Fishes: Implications For Cell Cycle And Apoptosis, Isaac Martin Sleadd Aug 2013

Ccaat/Enhancer-Binding Protein Delta (C/Ebp-Delta) Expression In Antarctic Fishes: Implications For Cell Cycle And Apoptosis, Isaac Martin Sleadd

Dissertations and Theses

Chapter 1: Antarctic fishes are extremely cold adapted. Despite their inability to upregulate heat shock proteins, recent studies have demonstrated a capacity for heat response in these animals. A cDNA microarray study looked at the Notothenioid fish Trematomus bernacchii and revealed heat sensitivities for hundreds of genes, two of which code for members of the CCAAT/Enhancer-binding protein (C/EBP) family of transcription factors. These molecular switches are best known for their roles in apoptosis, inflammation and cell cycle arrest. This dissertation further elucidates the role of C/EBP-delta in the Antarctic fishes T. bernacchii and Pagothenia borchgrevinki.

Chapter 2: C/EBP-delta is constitutively …


The Role Of Wood Microsites At Timberline-Alpine Meadow Borders For Conifer Regeneration, Adelaide Chapman Johnson Aug 2013

The Role Of Wood Microsites At Timberline-Alpine Meadow Borders For Conifer Regeneration, Adelaide Chapman Johnson

Dissertations and Theses

This research aimed to determine whether wood microsites ("nurse logs"), which are regeneration sites in Pacific Northwest (PNW) subalpine forests, supported regeneration at timberline-alpine meadow borders. Upward advance of forests and conifer invasion into alpine meadows, which may be occurring in conjunction with climate warming, have gained worldwide attention. Successful alpine meadow seedling regeneration depends on suitable substrate availability, or microsites, for seedling establishment. To better understand factors associated with wood microsite occurrence, mechanisms of wood input were determined and four specific hypotheses were posed to assess: (1) seedling density and seedling survival; (2) growing season length, summer mean growing …


Interspecific Variation In Leaf-Level Biogenic Emissions Of The Bambuseae, Andrea Natalie Melnychenko Jun 2013

Interspecific Variation In Leaf-Level Biogenic Emissions Of The Bambuseae, Andrea Natalie Melnychenko

Dissertations and Theses

Plants emit a diverse range of biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOCs) into the atmosphere, of which isoprene is the most abundantly emitted. Isoprene significantly affects biological and atmospheric processes, but the range of isoprene and BVOCs present in bamboos has not been well characterized. In this thesis I explore the range of isoprene emission found in bamboos and relate it to plant morphological and physiological characteristics. In addition, I measure and relate the entire suite of BVOCs present in the bamboos to their fundamental isoprene emission rate.

Interspecific variation in isoprene emission documented in a comprehensive survey of bamboos. Two …


Preserving Nature Through Film: Wilderness Alps Of Stehekin And The North Cascades, 1956-1968, Nicolas Timothy Bergmann Jun 2013

Preserving Nature Through Film: Wilderness Alps Of Stehekin And The North Cascades, 1956-1968, Nicolas Timothy Bergmann

Dissertations and Theses

On March 22, 1958 David Brower's film Wilderness Alps of Stehekin premiered to an audience of conservationists in Seattle, Washington. Almost two years in the making, the thirty-one minute film advocated the preservation of nature in Washington's North Cascades through the creation of a national park. Over the next decade, Wilderness Alps of Stehekin became the most influential publicity tool in the struggle to preserve the North Cascades. Because of the region's geographic isolation, the film was the first time many people throughout the nation were exposed to the scenic grandeur of the area. Images of craggy peaks and colorful …


Interview With Candace Russo, Linus Pauling Institute, 2013 (Audio), Candace Russo May 2013

Interview With Candace Russo, Linus Pauling Institute, 2013 (Audio), Candace Russo

All Sustainability History Project Oral Histories

Interview of Candace Russo by Kevin Foster in Corvallis, Oregon on May 31st, 2013.

The interview index is available for download.


Interview With Carter Latendresse, Catlin Gabel School, 2013 (Audio), Carter Latendresse May 2013

Interview With Carter Latendresse, Catlin Gabel School, 2013 (Audio), Carter Latendresse

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Interview of Carter Latendresse by Carmen Vigil at Catlin Gabel School on May 30th, 2013.

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Interview With Vida Shore, Alameda Elementary, 2013 (Audio), Vida Shore May 2013

Interview With Vida Shore, Alameda Elementary, 2013 (Audio), Vida Shore

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Interview of Vida Shore by Brianna Demko at Alameda Elementary in NE Portland, Oregon on May 24th, 2013.

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Interview With Jaylen Schmitt, Alameda Elementary, 2013 (Audio), Jaylen Schmitt May 2013

Interview With Jaylen Schmitt, Alameda Elementary, 2013 (Audio), Jaylen Schmitt

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Interview of Jaylen Schmitt by Brianna Demko at Alameda Elementary School in NE Portland, Oregon on May 24th, 2013.

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Interview With Linda Colwell, Eat, Think, Grow, 2013 (Audio), Linda Colwell May 2013

Interview With Linda Colwell, Eat, Think, Grow, 2013 (Audio), Linda Colwell

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Interview of Linda Colwell by Loraine Decker on May 24th, 2013.


Interview With Maggie Michaels, Portland Public Schools, 2013 (Audio), Maggie Michaels May 2013

Interview With Maggie Michaels, Portland Public Schools, 2013 (Audio), Maggie Michaels

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Interview of Maggie Michaels by Carmen Vigil in NE Portland, Oregon on May 23rd, 2013.

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Interview With Richard "Brick" Street, Grant High School, 2013 (Audio), Richard Street May 2013

Interview With Richard "Brick" Street, Grant High School, 2013 (Audio), Richard Street

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Interview of Richard "Brick" Street by Ciji Dieringer at Grant High School in Portland, Oregon on May 22nd, 2013.

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Interview With Nicole Hoffmann, Abernathy School, 2013 (Audio), Nicole Hoffmann May 2013

Interview With Nicole Hoffmann, Abernathy School, 2013 (Audio), Nicole Hoffmann

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Interview of Nicole Hoffmann by Nichole Bull at Portland State University on May 21st, 2013.

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Interview With Susan Wiencke, Madison High School, 2013 (Audio), Susan Wiencke May 2013

Interview With Susan Wiencke, Madison High School, 2013 (Audio), Susan Wiencke

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Interview of Susan Wiencke by Ciji Dieringer on May 15th, 2013.

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Interview With Justin Davidson, Candy Lane Elementary, 2013 (Audio), Justin Davidson May 2013

Interview With Justin Davidson, Candy Lane Elementary, 2013 (Audio), Justin Davidson

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Interview of Justin Davidson by Nicole Bull at Candy Lane Elementary in Milwaukie, Oregon on May 15th, 2013.

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Interview With Courtney Leeds, Candy Lane Elementary, 2013 (Audio), Courtney Leeds May 2013

Interview With Courtney Leeds, Candy Lane Elementary, 2013 (Audio), Courtney Leeds

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Interview of Courtney Leeds by Nicole Bull at Candy Lane Elementary in Portland, Oregon on May 15th, 2013.

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Interview With Kristine Garnero Obbink, Portland Public School, 2013 (Audio), Kristine Garnero Obbink May 2013

Interview With Kristine Garnero Obbink, Portland Public School, 2013 (Audio), Kristine Garnero Obbink

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Interview of Kristine Garnero Obbink by Loraine Decker at 705 N. Killingsworth St., Portland, Oregon on May 14th, 2013.

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Interview With Julie Corpron, Raleigh Park Elementary Garden, 2013 (Audio), Julie Corpron May 2013

Interview With Julie Corpron, Raleigh Park Elementary Garden, 2013 (Audio), Julie Corpron

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Interview of Julie Corpron by Margret Harburg May 14th, 2013.

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An Alternative Ribozyme For The Rna Hypercycle, Ishak Elkhal May 2013

An Alternative Ribozyme For The Rna Hypercycle, Ishak Elkhal

Student Research Symposium

In the quest to forward understanding of the prebiotic world (specifically, the RNA World Hypothesis), one of the most interesting paradigms to consider is the potential for cooperative networks that may have driven molecular evolution forward. Such a network may exist as an RNA hypercycle, as proposed by Eigen (1977). Much progress has been made towards an RNA hypercycle-like system, especially using the Azoarcus ribozyme system demonstrated by Vaidya et al. (2012). The current work is dedicated to constructing a second model as a cooperative RNA network, utilizing a group I intron from Coxiella burnetii (Cbu1917). The intron was constructed …


Application Of Gis And Spatial Analysis Of Golden Eagle Fatalities Caused By Wind Turbines At The Altamont Pass Wind Resource, Andrew James Pinger Apr 2013

Application Of Gis And Spatial Analysis Of Golden Eagle Fatalities Caused By Wind Turbines At The Altamont Pass Wind Resource, Andrew James Pinger

Dissertations and Theses

The Altamont Pass Wind Resource Area (Altamont) near Livermore, California is the oldest and largest wind farm in the United States. It is known as a location of high avian mortality, especially for diurnal raptors such as the Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysaetos). Using the avian monitoring data collected at Altamont for over thirteen years (1998-2003, 2005- 2011), records were analyzed of 134 golden eagle deaths caused by wind turbine collisions. All wind turbines present during the same temporal range were characterized according to turbine variables, and geographic placement characteristics. Values of turbines that killed golden eagles were compared to values …


Effects Of Increased Nitrogen Deposition On The Dominance Of Hedera Helix In The Pacific Northwest, Bianca Christine Dolan Mar 2013

Effects Of Increased Nitrogen Deposition On The Dominance Of Hedera Helix In The Pacific Northwest, Bianca Christine Dolan

Dissertations and Theses

Increased nitrogen deposition has been shown to promote the dominance of invasive species, and nitrogen deposition rates have steadily increased in most of the Western United States in recent years due to population increases. The purpose of this study was to determine if increased rates of nitrogen deposition are contributing to the success of Hedera helix in the Pacific Northwest. Plots were established in Lesser Park in Portland, Oregon and received monthly treatments of ammonium nitrate for one year. Growth, measured as change in percent cover, was compared between treated and untreated plots for both H. helix and native species. …


Status Of Nutria (Myocastor Coypus) Populations In The Pacific Northwest And Development Of Associated Control And Management Strategies, With An Emphasis On Metropolitan Habitats, Trevor Robert Sheffels Mar 2013

Status Of Nutria (Myocastor Coypus) Populations In The Pacific Northwest And Development Of Associated Control And Management Strategies, With An Emphasis On Metropolitan Habitats, Trevor Robert Sheffels

Dissertations and Theses

The nutria (Myocastor coypus) is a semi-aquatic rodent native to South America that was introduced to the Pacific Northwest, USA, in the 1930s. Primary damage categories from this invasive species include burrowing and herbivory, resulting in habitat degradation. Nutria have become well-established in metropolitan habitats, and anecdotal information suggests the problem has increased in recent years. However, little regional research on the species has been conducted. The scope of this research, which emphasizes metropolitan habitats, includes three primary foci in relation to nutria populations in the Pacific Northwest: modeling habitat suitability, assessing activity and movement patterns, and identifying and managing …


Wood Microsites At Timberline-Alpine Meadow Borders: Implications For Conifer Seedling Regeneration And Alpine Meadow Conifer Invasion, Adelaide C. Johnson, J. Alan Yeakley Feb 2013

Wood Microsites At Timberline-Alpine Meadow Borders: Implications For Conifer Seedling Regeneration And Alpine Meadow Conifer Invasion, Adelaide C. Johnson, J. Alan Yeakley

Environmental Science and Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

The importance of climate warming on forests is recognized worldwide and has increased attention on the significance of both timberline advance and alpine meadow invasion by forests. Successful seedling regeneration in alpine meadows depends on availability of suitable substrates, or microsites, for seedling establishment. We sought to determine whether wood microsites (i.e., nurse logs), which are regeneration sites in Pacific Northwest subalpine forests, promoted regeneration at timberline-alpine meadow borders. To determine the ecological role of wood microsites, we examined mechanisms forming wood microsites; compared density, survival, and percent nitrogen content of seedlings growing on wood microsites to adjacent soil substrates; …


Daily Temperature Fluctuations Unpredictably Influence Developmental Rate And Morphology At A Critical Early Larval Stage In A Frog, Juliana M. Arrighi, Ezra S. Lencer, Advait Jukar, Daesik Park, Patrick C. Phillips, Robert H. Kaplan Jan 2013

Daily Temperature Fluctuations Unpredictably Influence Developmental Rate And Morphology At A Critical Early Larval Stage In A Frog, Juliana M. Arrighi, Ezra S. Lencer, Advait Jukar, Daesik Park, Patrick C. Phillips, Robert H. Kaplan

Systems Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

Background: Environmental temperature has profound consequences for early amphibian development and many field and laboratory studies have examined this. Most laboratory studies that have characterized the influence of temperature on development in amphibians have failed to incorporate the realities of diel temperature fluctuations (DTF), which can be considerable for pond-breeding amphibians.

Results: We evaluated the effects of different ecologically relevant ranges of DTF compared with effects of constant temperatures on development of embryos and larvae of the Korean fire-bellied toad (Bombina orientalis). We constructed thermal reaction norms for developmental stage, snout- vent length, and tail length by fitting …