Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Conversion Of The Bluesky Framework Into Collaborative Web Service Architecture And Creation Of A Smoke Modeling Application, Narasimhan K. Larkin, Sean Raffuse, Daniel Pryden, Alan Healy, Kevin Unger, Tara Strand, Robert Solomon

JFSP Research Project Reports

This project addresses the need for a collaborative architecture for scientific modeling that allows various scientific models to easily interact. The need for such a system has been documented by recent studies such as the JFSP Smoke Roundtables and the JFSP review of tools done by the Software Engineering Institute. This project addresses these needs by modifying the BlueSky Modeling Framework so that it can better serve as a collaborative architecture, and then utilizing this architecture to create an advanced application that could not otherwise be created. The BlueSky framework was modified for this purpose, and all changes integrated into …

Community Wildfire Protection Plans: Enhancing Collaboration And Building Social Capacity, Daniel R. Williams, Pamela J. Jakes, Sam Burns, Antony Cheng, Kristen Nelson, Victoria Sturtevant, Alex Bujak, Rachel Brummel, Stephanie Grayzeck Souter, Emily Saeli Staychock

JFSP Research Project Reports

The Healthy Forest Restoration Act of 2003 (HFRA) was enacted to reduce wildfire risk to communities and other at-risk lands through a collaborative process of planning, prioritizing and implementing hazardous fuel reduction projects. One of the key features of HFRA is the development of community wildfire protection plans (CWPPs). We studied the development of CWPPs in order to identify those factors and processes that consistently lead to effective collaborative fire and fuels management as defined by HFRA, and enhance local social capacity to sustain wildfire protection activities into the future. Findings from this research highlight the importance of: (1) drawing …

Characterizing Particulate Matter Emissions By Wildland Fires Relevant To Visibility Impairment And Pm Non-Attainment, William Malm, Douglas Fox, Hans Moosmüller, Sonia Kreidenweis, Jeffrey Collett Jr., Wei Min Hao

JFSP Research Project Reports

Carbonaceous aerosols, which include contributions from industrial and mobile source emissions and biomass combustion, exert a significant impact on regional air quality. Some preliminary semi-quantitative analyses suggest that smoke from fire-related activity may contribute significantly to observed organic mass concentrations. Further, these emissions have resulted in increased conflicts with the need to attain air quality standards, especially for particulate matter (PM) and visibility, as mandated by the Clean Air Act. However, federal land managers and policy makers currently lack several important tools needed for air quality assessments: composition profiles and analytical techniques necessary to differentiate carbonaceous aerosols originating from industrial …

Extending The Reach Of The Fire Effects Planning Framework By Taking A Critical Approach To Science Delivery And Application, Anne E. Black, Carol Miller, Vita Wright, Kate Walker, Carolyn Ballard, Paula Nasiatka, Brett Fay, Linda Chappell, Dave Calkin

JFSP Research Project Reports

The Fire Effects Planning Framework (FEPF), developed under JFSP project (99-1-3-16) “Wildland fuels management: evaluating and planning risks and benefits,” was formally completed in June 2004. FEPF is a logical framework that uses available data (e.g., local, LANDFIRE data) and existing software (e.g., GIS, Farsite, FlamMap, expert knowledge) to produce maps of probable fire effects during the pre-season or in advance of a fire front. The initial project included significant technology transfer activities. As that project concluded, however, we continued to receive requests for assistance from field managers (District, Forest and Regional Forest Service offices), international organizations (Interior West Fire …

A Chronosequence Feasibility Assessment Of Emergency Fire Rehabilitation Records Within The Intermountain Western United States, Kevin C. Knutson, David A. Pyke, Troy A. Wirth, David S. Pilliod, Matthew L. Brooks, Jeanne C. Chambers

JFSP Research Project Reports

Department of the Interior (DOI) bureaus have invested heavily (for example, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) spent more than $60 million in fiscal year 2007) in seeding vegetation for emergency stabilization and burned area rehabilitation of non-forested arid lands over the past 10 years. The primary objectives of these seedings commonly are to (1) reduce the post-fire dominance of non-native annual grasses, such as cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) and red brome (Bromus rubens); (2) minimize the probability of recurrent fire; and (3) ultimately produce desirable vegetation characteristics (for example, ability to recover following disturbance [resilience], resistance to invasive species, …

Fire And Fuels Management In Coast Redwood Forests, Steven P. Norman, J. Morgan Varner, Leonel Arguello, Stephen Underwood, Bradley Graham, Greg Jennings, Yana Valachovic, Christopher Lee

JFSP Research Project Reports

Coast redwood forests rank among the most significant natural features of North America, yet our understanding of how they came to be and how we might sustain them has been beset by scientific and management uncertainty for decades. A key part of this controversy has been the historical importance of fire given the mild coastal climate and small number of lightning ignitions. In the northern part of the coast redwood range, past research found that fire was uncommon, but results conflicted with others that found fire to be as frequent as in any dry forest of western North America. We …

Experimental Study Of Local Fire Conditions And Effects On Surface Or Near-Surface Archeological Resources At National Park Service Units – Midwest Region., Jay T. Sturdevant, Rod Skalsky, Cody L. Wienk, Brennan Dolan, Dustin Gonzalez, David Amrine

JFSP Research Project Reports

Today, park managers must routinely balance the restoration needs of natural resources with the preservation of cultural resources. This project was designed to provide park managers with scientific data on the impacts from wildland fire to archeological resources at National Park Service units in the Midwest Region. Experimental research was conducted at six parks to record data on fire conditions (i.e., fuels, fire temperature, and burn duration) and the impacts on multiple classes of archeological materials routinely observed at sites within the region. The experimental study of fire conditions in different regional environments addresses questions regarding the threats or non-threats …

Droughtscape- Winter 2009, Kelly Smith

Droughtscape, Quarterly Newsletter of NDMC, 2007-

Bastrop TX: Feb. 12 Central CA: Feb. 24, 26

La Niña May Keep West and Gulf Coast Dry

Big Canoes to Launch

2008 in Review

U.S. Feels Drought Impacts in 2008

NDMC Welcomes Widhalm, Sakamoto

Climate Modelers at Workshop Look to Sea Surface Temperatures for Drought Prediction

Simulation Of Boundary Layer Trajectory Dispersion Sensitivity To Soil Moisture Conditions: Mm5 And Noah-Based Investigation, Rezaul Mahmood

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Effect Of Drought And Agriculture On Ring-Necked Pheasant Abundance, Nebraska Panhandle, Charles J. Randel Iii

The Prairie Naturalist

The objectives of my study were to detennine the effects of drought (e.g., Palmer Modified Drought Severity Index; PMDI, Bridges et at. 2001) and/or agricultural practices (e.g., conversion) on RNP abundance in the Nebraska Panhandle (NP).

My RNP survey data were found to be correlated negatively to drought condition (PMDI) in January, February, and April. This was supported by Snyder (1984) and Riley (1995), both of whom reported that decreased precipitation in spring affected RNP production in the western Great Plains and Iowa, respectively. Late winter and early spring drought affect subsoil moisture and decrease primary production (Kiesselbach et al. …

The Prairie Naturalist Manuscript Submission Guidelines, Christopher N. Jacques, Troy W. Grovenburg, Jonathan Jenks

The Prairie Naturalist

These guidelines present The Prairie Naturalist (PNAT) policies and procedures for submitting scientific manuscripts for consideration for publication. In January 2009, a change in Editorial staff occurred and these guidelines address the ongoing transition and update the online "Suggestions for Contributors" guidelines provided on the PNAT website (http://www.fhsu.edu/biology/pn/prairienat.htm); these instructions supersede all previous guidelines. Tables and appendices are included for common word expressions with superfluous wording, examples of correct format and style guidelines for tables accompanying manuscripts, guidance in properly preparing Research Articles and Notes, citing literature, and mandatory abbreviations for tables, figures and parenthetical expressions.

Third Report Of The North Dakota Bird Records Committee: 2004-2005, Dan Svingen, Ron E. Martin

The Prairie Naturalist

Since 1979, North Dakota's bird records committee has collected, evaluated, and archived documentations of rare bird occurrences in the state. In 2004 and 2005, this committee resolved 189 rare bird records. On the basis of these record reviews, six species were ad~ed to the North Dakota state bird list: mottled duck (Anas fulvigula), yellow-billed loon (Cavia adamsii), white-tailed kite (Elanus leucurus), little stint (Calidris minuta), glaucous-winged gull (Larus glaucescens), and great black-backed gull (Larus marinus). Four species were added to the list of nesting species within the state: snowy …

Common Raven Nests In North Dakota After 100-Year Hiatus, Melvin P. Nenneman, Todd A. Grant, Ron E. Martin

The Prairie Naturalist

Our observations represent the first documented nesting by the common raven in North Dakota since the late 1800's. Houston (1977) suggested that the expansion of the American crow onto the Canadian prairies was limited by the scarcity of trees for nest sites, which also might have limited the extent of the common raven. Aspen woodland has increased substantially in and around J. Clark Salyer National Wildlife Refuge since European settlement, due primarily to fire suppression and extirpation of large herbivores (Grant and Murphy 2005). Thus, plausibly these increases in woodland habitat might be providing nest sites necessary for the common …

Factors Associated With Duck Use Of Impounded And Natural Wetlands In Western South Dakota, Jane E. Austin, Deborah A. Buhl

The Prairie Naturalist

Many wetlands in the northern Great Plains west of the Missouri River are stock ponds, created by impoundment of natural drainages or excavation of existing wetlands to provide water for livestock or improve habitat for waterfowl. We evaluated factors influencing use of wetlands by breeding duck pairs and broods relative to modification, water regime, size, and hydrological location on United States Forest Service lands within the Grand River National Grassland in northern South Dakota (2003 and 2004). Responses for both indicated pairs and broods were related positively to wet area, total wetland area within 4 km, emergent edge cover, and …

Brood Parasitism In A North American Population Of White-Faced Ibis, Mark E. Clark

The Prairie Naturalist

In 2007 while monitoring reproductive success among various overwater nesting birds at J. Clark Salyer National Wildlife Refuge in North Dakota, I observed parasitism of a white-faced ibis nest by a cattle egret. I located a nest on 23 May 2007 that contained four white-faced ibis eggs and one cattle egret egg. The nest was located in the middle of a small colony of nesting white-faced ibis (approximately 35 pairs) and black-crowned night herons (approximately 30 pairs). On 3 June 2007 all of the eggs were still present in the nest, but two of the white-faced ibis eggs began hatching …

Probabilistic Movement Model With Emigration Simulates Movements Of Deer In Nebraska, 1990–2006, Charles J. Frost, Scott E. Hygnstrom, Andrew J. Tyre, Kent M. Eskridge, David M. Baasch, Justin R. Boner, Gregory M. Clements, Jason M. Gilsdorf, Travis C. Kinsell, Kurt C. Vercauteren

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Movements of deer can affect population dynamics, spatial redistribution, and transmission and spread of diseases. Our goal was to model the movement of deer in Nebraska in an attempt to predict the potential for spread of chronic wasting disease (CWD) into eastern Nebraska. We collared and radio-tracked >600 white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) and mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) in Nebraska during 1990–2006.We observed large displacements (>10 km) for both species and sexes of deer, including migrations up to 100 km and dispersals up to 50 km. Average distance traveled between successive daily locations was 166m for …

Farmers And Nature Conservation: What Is Known About Attitudes, Context Factors And Actions Affecting Conservation?, Johan Ahnström, Jenny Höckert, Hanna L. Bergea, Charles A. Francis, Peter Skelton, Lars Hallgren

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Farmers’ attitudes towards viability of specific conservation practices or actions strongly impact their decisions on adoption and change. This review of ‘attitude’ information reveals a wide range of perceptions about what conservation means and what the impacts of adoption will mean in economic and environmental terms. Farmers operate in a tight financial situation, and in parts of the world they are highly dependent on government subsidies, and cannot afford to risk losing that support. Use of conservation practices is most effective when these are understood in the context of the individual farm, and decisions are rooted in land and resource …

Scaling Up Of Co2 Fluxes From Leaf To Canopy In Maize-Based Agroecosystems, Timothy J. Arkebauer, Elizabeth A. Walter-Shea, Mark A. Mesarch, Andrew E. Suyker, Shashi Verma

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Carbon dioxide fluxes are being measured in three maize-based agroecosystems in eastern Nebraska in an effort to better understand the potential for these systems to sequester carbon in the soil. Landscape-level fluxes of carbon, water and energy were measured using tower eddy covariance systems. In order to better understand the landscape-level results, measurements at smaller scales, using techniques promoted by John Norman, were made and scaled up to the landscape-level. Single leaf gas exchange properties (CO₂ assimilation rate and stomatal conductance) and optical properties, direct and diffuse radiation incident on the canopy, and photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) reflected and …

A System For Estimating Bowen Ratio And Evaporation From Waste Lagoons, Rezaul Mahmood

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Near Surface Atmospheric Response To Simulated Changes In Land-Cover, Vegetation Fraction, And Soil Moisture Over Western Kentucky, Rezaul Mahmood

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Panarchy: Discontinuities Reveal Similarities In The Dynamic System Structure Of Ecological And Social Systems, Ahjond S. Garmestani, Craig R. Allen, Lance Gunderson

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

In this paper, we review the empirical evidence of discontinuous distributions in complex systems within the context of panarchy theory and discuss the significance of discontinuities for understanding emergent properties such as resilience. Over specific spatial-temporal scale ranges, complex systems can configure in a variety of regimes, each defined by a characteristic set of self-organized structures and processes. A system may remain within a regime or dramatically shift to another regime. Understanding the drivers of regime shifts has provided critical insight into system structure and resilience. Although analyses of regime shifts have tended to focus on the system level, new …

Impact Of Empire Expansion On Household Diet: The Inka In Northern Chile’S Atacama Desert, Sheila D. Vinton, Linda Perry, Karl J. Reinhard, Calogero M. Santoro, Isabel Teixeira-Santos

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

The impact of expanding civilization on the health of American indigenous societies has long been studied. Most studies have focused on infections and malnutrition that occurred when less complex societies were incorporated into more complex civilizations. The details of dietary change, however, have rarely been explored. Using the analysis of starch residues recovered from coprolites, here we evaluate the dietary adaptations of indigenous farmers in northern Chile’s Atacama Desert during the time that the Inka Empire incorporated these communities into their economic system. This system has been described as ‘‘complementarity’’ because it involves interaction and trade in goods produced at …