Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Methods For Drone Trajectory Analysis Of Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops Truncatus), Jillian D. Bliss

Theses and Dissertations

With the increase in the use of UAS (Unmanned Aerial Systems) for marine mammal research, there is a need for the development of methods of analysis to transform UAS high resolution video into quantitative data. This study sought to develop a preliminary method of analysis that would quantify and present a way to visualize the dynamics and relative spatial distribution and changes in distribution of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) in the waters of Turneffe Atoll, Belize. This approach employs a previously developed video tracking program ‘Keypoint Tracking’ that enables manual tracking of individual dolphins and the creation of …

Dynamics Of Redox-Driven Molecular Processes In Local And Systemic Plant Immunity, Philip Berg

Theses and Dissertations

The work here presents two main parts. In the first part, chapters 1 – 3 focus on dynamical systems modeling in plant immunity, whereas chapters 4 – 6 describe contributions to computational modeling and analysis of proteomics and genomics data. Chapter 1 investigates dynamical and biochemical patterns of reversibly oxidized cysteines (RevOxCys) during effector-triggered immunity (ETI) in Arabidopsis, examines the regulatory patterns associated with Arabidopsis thimet oligopeptidase 1 and 2’s (TOP1 and TOP2), roles in the RevOxCys events during ETI, and analyzes the redox phenotype of the top1top2 mutant. The second chapter investigates the peptidome dynamics during ETI …

Assessing Wood Failure In Plywood By Deep Learning/Semantic Segmentation, Ramon Ferreira Oliveira

Theses and Dissertations

The current method for estimating wood failure is highly subjective. Various techniques have been proposed to improve the current protocol, but none have succeeded. This research aims to use deep learning/semantic segmentation using SegNet architecture to estimate wood failure in four types of three-ply plywood from mechanical shear strength specimens. We trained and tested our approach on custom and commercial plywood with bio-based and phenol-formaldehyde adhesives. Shear specimens were prepared and tested. Photographs of 255 shear bonded areas were taken. Forty photographs were used to solicit visual estimates from five human evaluators, and the remaining photographs were used to train …

Towards Structured Planning And Learning At The State Fisheries Agency Scale, Caleb A. Aldridge

Theses and Dissertations

Inland recreational fisheries has grown philosophically and scientifically to consider economic and sociopolitical aspects (non-biological) in addition to the biological. However, integrating biological and non-biological aspects of inland fisheries has been challenging. Thus, an opportunity exists to develop approaches and tools which operationalize planning and decision-making processes which include biological and non-biological aspects of a fishery. This dissertation expands the idea that a core set of goals and objectives is shared among and within inland fisheries agencies; that many routine operations of inland fisheries managers can be regimented or standardized; and the novel concept that current information and operations can …

Dynamic Soil Properties In The Lower Rio Grande Valley: Understanding Responses Of Infiltration Rate, Bulk Density, Aggregate Stability To Different Tillage Practices, Temiloluwa Faith Awotoye

Theses and Dissertations

Dynamic Soil Properties (DSPs) are soil properties that change in response to both natural and human-caused interruptions and pressures such as agro-based and wildland management. These soil properties can transform for months or even years in response to the farm use and management procedures. This research project investigates the relationship between different dynamic soil physical properties and tillage practices in the Texas Hidalgo sandy clay loam benchmark soil series. Data analyses was done to compare the effect of tillage to these soil physical properties and build a discussion about relationships between on-farm practices to other aspects of farm viability. We …

South Texas Wildlife Activity Across A Fragmented Landscape And Road Mitigation Corridor, Caitlin K. Brett

Theses and Dissertations

Wildlife crossing structures (WCS) and roadside fencing are commonly installed to mitigate habitat fragmentation, wildlife road mortalities, and other negative effects that roads can have on the surrounding landscape. Eight such WCS were constructed below Farm-to-Market (FM)106 in Cameron County, Texas, across a 16 km corridor transecting the Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge. These WCS, paired with adjacent roadside fencing, were intended to prevent road mortalities of the endangered ocelot (Leopardus pardalis) and to mitigate the barrier effect of FM106 on this and other meso-mammal species. This study will analyze camera trap data from roadside and habitat reference …

Influence Of Pretreatments On Physiological Status And Post-Planting Survival Of Thornforest Seedlings In A Restoration Context, Douglas E. Mainhart

Theses and Dissertations

Semi-arid ecosystems across the globe have faced land conversion posing a threat to the important ecosystem services they provide. Revegetation-centered restoration efforts in arid regions have low success due to limited water availability and higher temperatures. Typically, practitioners utilize methods that modify field conditions around seedlings to mitigate these stressors. I evaluated the efficacy of in-nursery treatments to improve plant water status. Three pretreatments were applied: elevated CO2, drought hardening, and an antitranspirant foliar spray. My goal was to understand how these pretreatments would impact survival and growth in the field and what physiological traits they altered. Elevated CO2 and …

An Assessment Of Physical And Microbial Dynamic Properties Sensitive To Tillage Practices In Hidalgo Sandy Clay Loam Soils, Rocio N. Hernandez

Theses and Dissertations

Mechanized tillage is known to impact the dynamic physical, biological and chemical properties of a given soil, and as a result, can cause systematic harm to the soil’s function (Alam et al., 2014). The aim of this study is to assess how a series of land management tillage practices will impact dynamic physical and biological soil health parameters such as aggregation, carbon, respiration, and enzymatic activity (β-glucosidase). According to Acir et al (2020), the aforementioned soil parameters are both co-influenced and dependent, indicating a response to tillage is likely. A total of 198 samples of Hidalgo series soils were collected …

Grapefruit Peel Biochar Applications For Immobilizing Copper And Lead In Soil, Michael Alfredo Navarro

Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated the efficacy of grapefruit peel (GP) derived biochar materials (two pyrolysis temperatures 450°C and 800°C) as a potential adsorbent to immobilize heavy metal (copper and lead) in a local sandy loam clay soil. A batch adsorption test with heavy metal concentrations at 50 mg L-1, and 100 mg L-1 revealed that soil itself had the highest immobilization percentage compared to the GP biochars. A soil column experiment was conducted to determine how much the GP biochar samples and the tested soil will exhibit adsorptive characteristics for heavy metals when 50 ml of 50 mg L-1 copper or …

Incorporating Native Plants In Insectary Strips To Promote Insect Diversity And Below-Ground Beneficial Microbes In South Texas, Lindsey N. Richards

Theses and Dissertations

Farm edges are generally the most undisturbed areas in a farm with diverse vegetation and can enhance agrobiodiversity and provide crucial food and shelter for wildlife, insects, and soil biota. Planting native wildflowers with the ability to reseed and withstand local climatic conditions for semi-permanent vegetation around farm edges or in between crops has potential to biologically control pests. To test this, we ran a two-year study and installed three different flowering insectary strips on a certified organic vegetable farm in South Texas during the winter season. The treatments were: 1) a commercially sourced 17-species native wildflower seed mix; 2) …

Weather Parameters Influencing The Incidence Of Citrus Canker Caused By Aw Strain In The Rio Grande Valley, Amit Sharma

Theses and Dissertations

Citrus canker caused by bacterium Xanthomonas citri subsp. citri (Xcc) seriously affects the citrus industry by making the fruit unmarketable due to unsightly lesions on the fruit. Canker caused by Aw strain of Xcc was reported in the citrus trees located in the residential areas of the Rio Grande Valley (RGV). Canker severity differs amongst cultivars/varieties, and it is influenced by prevailing environmental conditions. Multiple regression modeling of the disease incidence with the environmental variables such as temperature, humidity, windspeed, wind gust, and rainfall was performed to understand the environmental conditions that are favorable for spread of citrus …

Classification Models For 2,4-D Formulations In Damaged Enlist Crops Through The Application Of Ftir Spectroscopy And Machine Learning Algorithms, Benjamin Blackburn

Theses and Dissertations

With new 2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) tolerant crops, increases in off-target movement events are expected. New formulations may mitigate these events, but standard lab techniques are ineffective in identifying these 2,4-D formulations. Using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and machine learning algorithms, research was conducted to classify 2,4-D formulations in treated herbicide-tolerant soybeans and cotton and observe the influence of leaf treatment status and collection timing on classification accuracy. Pooled Classification models using k-nearest neighbor classified 2,4-D formulations with over 65% accuracy in cotton and soybean. Tissue collected 14 DAT and 21 DAT for cotton and soybean respectively produced higher accuracies than the …

Improvement Value Of Forest Resources By Use Of Cottonseed Protein Meal As A Bio-Based Wood Adhesive For Hardwood Plywood Products, Edward David Entsminger

Theses and Dissertations

Literature shows that production of cottonseed adhesives is feasible to develop an environmentally friendly and competitive bio-based wood adhesive. Defatted cottonseed and water-washed cottonseed meals were prepared from glandless cottonseed and were used in adhesive formulations to produce three-ply yellow poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera) plywood panels as the first objective. These two cottonseed meals were compared with the properties of plywood panels made with an adhesive formulated from a commercial soybean meal, as a control. Adhesive resins were prepared from each protein meal with sodium metabisulfite (Na2S2O5) and one of two polyamido-amine-epichlorohydrin (PAE) wet strength agents, and the plywood panels were …

Determining The Effects Of Elevated Carbon Dioxide On Soil Acidification, Cation Depletion, And Soil Inorganic Carbon And Mapping Soil Carbons Using Artificial Intelligence, Jannatul Ferdush

Theses and Dissertations

Soil carbon is the largest sink and source of the global carbon cycle and is disturbed by several natural, anthropogenic, and environmental factors. The global increase of atmospheric CO₂ affects soil carbon cycling through varied biogeochemical processes. The first chapter is a compilation of current information on potential factors triggering soil acidification and weathering mechanisms under elevated CO₂ and their consequences on soil inorganic carbon (SIC) pool and quality. Soil water content and precipitation were critical factors influencing elevated CO₂ effects on the SIC pool. The second chapter examines a detailed column experiment in which six soils …

Quantifying Aboveground Biomass In A Tropical Forest Using A Lidar Waveform Weighted Allometric Model, Alejandro Rojas

Theses and Dissertations

Our knowledge of the distribution and amount of terrestrial above ground biomass (AGB) has increased using lidar technology. Recent advancements in satellite lidar has enabled global mapping of forest biomass and structure. However, there are large biases in satellite lidar estimates which impacts our understanding of carbon dynamics, particularly in tropical forests.

Ni-Meister et al. (2022) developed a lidar full waveform weighted height-based allometric model which produced very good results in temperate deciduous/conifer forest in the continental US. The purpose of this study was to evaluate this biomass model in an African tropical forest using the Land Vegetation and Ice …

Tree Ring Reconstructions Of Streamflow For The Lower Rio Grande Valley Of Texas, Adedolapo Mutiyat Adeyanju

Theses and Dissertations

The Rio Grande River is a major water source for people living within the USA-Mexico border. The Rio Grande River has its headwaters in the San Juan Mountains in Colorado and the Sierra Madre Occidental in Mexico before flowing into Texas through El-Paso. The water supply issues facing the Lower Rio Grande Basin (LRGB) are extremely complex from international restrictions to severe climate change. The river shares its flow between the U.S.A and Mexico based on the provisions of the 1944 treaty between the U.S.A and Mexico. The LRGB flow is regulated by releases from Falcon and Amistad Reservoirs managed …

Assessment Of Nitrogen-Based Fertilizer Transport And Microbial Activities In Sandy Soil Profiles In South Texas, Gladys De La Rosa

Theses and Dissertations

Conventional farming is a common practice in Lower Rio Grande Valley (LRGV) and the application of nitrogen fertilizer is essential for plant growth and support. However, managing the rate of nitrogen that is applied can benefit farmers financially and reduce nitrate leaching that can have an adverse effect on the local environment and aquatic systems, e.g., rivers and estuaries. Sandy soils are more vulnerable to water infiltration due to the large proportion of macropores. This study aims to (i) assess how nitrate from a variety of fertilizers (i.e., synthetic and organic) distributes on the top 60 cm layer of a …

Quantifying And Predicting Drought Performance In Woody Semi-Arid Seedlings In South Texas: Implications For Enhancing Drought Resilience In Restoration, Zarek Contreras

Theses and Dissertations

Increasingly frequent and severe droughts in the Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge have been observed to cause large variation in species-specific mortality patterns in young seedlings, spanning 6 – 43 % mortality within the first year. To understand the underlying mechanisms behind this, we subjected seedlings of five woody semi-arid species (Celtis pallida, Forestiera angustifolia, Sideroxylon celastrinum, Phaulothalmnus spinescens, and Zanthoxylum fagara) to a point-of-no-return drought experiment in order to (1) identify potential metrics capable of predicting species wilting and mortality responses, and (2) to understand the underlying mechanisms that correspond to species drought performance …

Development Of Enhanced Food Packaging Systems Based On Blends Of Bio-Based And Biodegradable Polymers Exhibiting Antimicrobial Properties, Aishat Agboluaje

Theses and Dissertations

Food packaging is one of the important aspects of food processing, which contributes greatly to decreasing post-harvest food losses. While ensuring that foods are adequately packaged, it is also important to consider the impact of these food packaging materials on the environment. Accordingly, this research work was aimed at investigating the potential of bio-based and biodegradable blends of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and chitosan loaded with antimicrobial agents such as turmeric, clove, and cinnamon for use in food packaging applications. The methodology involved creating PVA/chitosan films with varying compositions via solvent casting method and selecting the best composition exhibiting the highest …

Cover Crops And Irrigation Impacts On Corn And Soybean Production In The Mid-Southern Usa, Dillon Aaron Russell

Theses and Dissertations

Reducing groundwater withdrawals from the Mississippi River Valley Alluvial Aquifer is imperative to sustain future irrigated cropping systems in the mid-southern USA. This research was conducted to determine the impacts of cover crops and irrigation sensor thresholds on corn (Zea mays L.) and soybean (Glycine max L.) production, water productivity, irrigation water use efficiency, and soil physical properties in the Mississippi Delta. The cover crop treatments included cereal rye (Secale cereale L.), hairy vetch (Vicia villosa R.), wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)-radish (Raphanus sativus L.)-turnip (Brassica rapa L.) mix, and no cover crop. The irrigation thresholds included -40 kPa, -90 kPa, …

Evaluating Soil Health Changes Following Cover Crop And No-Till Integration Into A Soybean (Glycine Max) Cropping System In The Mississippi Alluvial Valley, Alexandra Gwin Firth

Theses and Dissertations

The transition of natural landscapes to intensive agricultural uses has resulted in severe loss of soil organic carbon (SOC), increased CO₂ emissions, river depletion, and groundwater overdraft. Despite negative documented effects of agricultural land use (i.e., soil erosion, nutrient runoff) on critical natural resources (i.e., water, soil), food production must increase to meet the demands of a rising human population. Given the environmental and agricultural productivity concerns of intensely managed soils, it is critical to implement conservation practices that mitigate the negative effects of crop production and enhance environmental integrity. In the Mississippi Alluvial Valley (MAV) region of Mississippi, USA, …

Use Of Consumer Grade Small Unmanned Aerial Systems (Suas) For Mapping Storm Damage In Forested Environments, James Dewey Cox

Theses and Dissertations

Storm damages to forested environments pose significant challenges to landowners, land managers, and conservationists alike. Damage scope and scale assessments can be difficult, costly, and time consuming with conventional pedestrian survey techniques. Consumer grade sUAS technology offers an efficient, cost-effective way to accurately assess storm damage in small to moderate sized survey areas (less than 10 km²). Data were collected over a 0.195 km² area of damaged timber within the Kisatchie National Forest in Central Louisiana using a DJI Mavic 2 Pro drone. Collected imagery was processed into an orthomosaic using Agisoft Metashape Professional with a resulting ground sampling distance …

Influence Of Nutrients And The Native On E. Coli Survival In The Beach Environment, Brigid Meyers

Theses and Dissertations

E. coli is used as an indicator for water quality to determine if water poses a health risk for pathogens. Past research has shown that E. coli is present in high numbers in freshwater beach sands distinct from fecal pollution events, yet the precise mechanism for their persistence in not well understood. Persistent E. coli populations in sand can resuspend into adjacent water and lead to increased beach closures when no threat is present. This work identifies factors that influence the survival of E. coli in sand using laboratory microcosms to replicate beach conditions. Microcosms were deployed to examine the …

Spline Modeling And Localized Mutual Information Monitoring Of Pairwise Associations In Animal Movement, Andrew Benjamin Whetten

Theses and Dissertations

to a new era of remote sensing and geospatial analysis. In environmental science and conservation ecology, biotelemetric data recorded is often high-dimensional, spatially and/or temporally, and functional in nature, meaning that there is an underlying continuity to the biological process of interest. GPS-tracking of animal movement is commonly characterized by irregular time-recording of animal position, and the movement relationships between animals are prone to sudden change. In this dissertation, I propose a spline modeling approach for exploring interactions and time-dependent correlation between the movement of apex predators exhibiting territorial and territory-sharing behavior. A measure of localized mutual information (LMI) is …

The Effects Of An R103q Mutation On The Chemical And Physical Properties Of The Enzyme Cytochrome C Nitrite Reductase (Ccnir), Shahama Alam

Theses and Dissertations

Cytochrome c Nitrite Reductase (ccNiR) is a periplasmic homodimeric decaheme enzyme that catalyzes the reduction of nitrite to ammonium in a process that involves six electrons and eight protons. The project described herein explored the properties of the Shewanella oneidensis R103Q ccNiR variant and compared them to the properties of the wild type enzyme. Under standard assay conditions, which use the strong reducing agent methyl viologen monocation radical (MVred) as an electron source, the R103Q variant still catalyzes reduction of nitrite to ammonium, albeit with an MVred turnover rate that is 20% of the wild type’s (780 ± 50 s-1 …

The Effects Of Hybridization On Skeletal Morphology In Two Closely Related Populations Of Rhesus Macaques (Macaca Mulatta): A Geometric Morphometric Approach, Cody Zachery Schumacher

Theses and Dissertations

Precise identification and classification techniques are vital for the field of paleoanthropology to ensure that hominin fossilized remains are labeled accurately. The morphology of extinct hominin specimens will typically be compared to extant nonhuman primate species because of how closely related they are phylogenetically. Observable similarities in their morphological variation can be examined to infer which traits may be a result of evolution and this can update our understanding of their evolutionary relationships. The genus Macaca displays a level of morphological variation that is similar to that seen in the genus Homo, therefore macaques can be used as an analogous …

Removal Of Arsenic (Iii) And Arsenic (V) From Aqueous Solution Via Common Sunflower Helianthus Annuus By Phytoremediation, Irving A. Vazquez Hurtado

Theses and Dissertations

Phytoremediation provides a cost-effective, non-invasive technique to remove contaminants from the soil and groundwater. Sunflowers are fast growing and have a showed effective at removing various pollutants from soil, including lead and other heavy metals. Health issues related to arsenic are mainly attributed to exposure of arsenite, whereas arsenate is much less toxic. The common sunflower Helianthus annuus was the species used to remove both arsenic (III) and As(V) ions from hydroponics solutions. In the present study sunflower seeds were germinated for a week, placed under the sun for a day and subsequently placed in a nutrient solution to aid …

Development Of A Methodology For The Quantification Of Reaerosolization Of A Biological Contaminant Surrogate Particle From Military Uniform Fabric, George D. Cooksey

Theses and Dissertations

During a mass casualty medical evacuation after a bioaerosol attack, a decontamination method is needed that is effective at both decontamination and preventing the secondary hazard of biological particles reaerosolizing from contaminated clothing. However, neither the efficacy of current decontamination methods nor the risk of biological particle reaerosolization is significantly explored in existing literature. The goals of this thesis were to develop a repeatable methodology to quantify the reaerosolization of a biological contaminate off Airman Battle Uniform (ABU) fabric swatches, and to test the efficacy of one decontamination method (high-volume, low-pressure water) using 1 mpolystyrene latex (PSL) spheres as a …

Antiviral Effects Of Metalloshielding: Differential Antiviral Activity Of Polynuclear Platinum And Cobalt Compounds, Mary Zoepfl

Theses and Dissertations

The majority of antiviral drug development has focused on virus-specific discovery targeting discrete steps in the individual life cycles. Although great strides have been made for a number of clinically relevant diseases such as human immunodeficiency virus, influenza virus, and hepatitis B, broad spectrum antivirals do not exist. Broad spectrum antivirals would offer (1) treatment for viruses without specifically-targeted antivirals, (2) treatment for viruses which have developed resistance to their available treatments, and (3) a rapidly deployable treatment option in viral epidemics. Many viruses including human cytomegalovirus (HCMV), HIV, and SARS-CoV-2. rely on heparan sulfate (HS), a highly sulfated glycosaminoglycan …

Estimating Weighted Panel Sizes For Primary Care Providers: An Assessment Of Clustering And Novel Methods Of Panel Size Estimation On Electronic Medical Records, Martin A. Lavallee

Theses and Dissertations

Primary Care is on the frontlines of healthcare, thus they see the most diverse set of patients. In order to achieve high functioning primary care, a practice must establish empanelment, the pairing of patients to providers. Enumeration of empanelment, or estimating panel sizes, helps ensure that the demands of the patients demand the supply of providers and optimize the balance of primary care resources to improve quality of care. Further we can adjust panel sizes by using patient-level data on healthcare utilization and complexity extracted from the electronic medial record to determine the amount of care or burden of work …