Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

The Effects Of Sediment Acidification And Temperature On The Immune Capacity Of The Atlantic Jackknife (Razor) Clam (Ensis Leei M. Huber, 2015), Brian Preziosi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Sediment acidification has been shown to negatively impact clams of economic importance such as the soft-shell clam, Mya arenaria Linnaeus, 1758, and hard clam, Mercenaria mercenaria (Linnaeus, 1758). Effects of sediment acidification on razor clams, including the Atlantic jackknife clam Ensis leei M. Huber, 2015, are unknown. E. leei has been identified as a species with potential for aquaculture operations on the New England coast. E. leei may be resilient to acidification and thus persist in acidified sediments where other clams cannot. To this end, the impact of acidified surface sediment on the internal immune capacity of adult (mean shell …

A Qualitative Representation Of Spatial Scenes In R2 With Regions And Lines, Joshua Lewis

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Regions and lines are common geographic abstractions for geographic objects. Collections of regions, lines, and other representations of spatial objects form a spatial scene, along with their relations. For instance, the states of Maine and New Hampshire can be represented by a pair of regions and related based on their topological properties. These two states are adjacent (i.e., they meet along their shared boundary), whereas Maine and Florida are not adjacent (i.e., they are disjoint).

A detailed model for qualitatively describing spatial scenes should capture the essential properties of a configuration such that a description of the represented objects …

Theory Of Lexicographic Differentiation In The Banach Space Setting, Jaeho Choi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Derivative information is useful for many problems found in science and engineering that require equation solving or optimization. Driven by its utility and mathematical curiosity, researchers over the years have developed a variety of generalized derivatives. In this thesis, we will first take a look at Clarke’s generalized derivative for locally Lipschitz continuous functions between Euclidean spaces, which roughly is the smallest convex set containing all nearby derivatives of a domain point of interest. Clarke’s generalized derivative in this setting possesses a strong theoretical and numerical toolkit, which is analogous to that of the classical derivative. It includes nonsmooth versions …

Northern Conifer Forest Management: Silvicultural, Economic, And Ecological Outcomes From 65 Years Of Study, Maren Granstrom

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

While forest managers once sought primarily to produce sustainable revenue from harvests, there is now growing value placed on non-timber outcomes like wildlife habitat, climate adaptability, and carbon storage. When deciding how to manage land for the future, foresters and landowners must assess the many outcomes of forestry activities and be aware of the tradeoffs inherent to achieving different goals. Given the slow growth of trees relative to other commercial crops, it is rare to have the continuity of land ownership, researchers, and funding needed to follow a stand for a full rotation or to observe a tree from recruitment …

A Longitudinal Study Of Mammograms Utilizing The Automated Wavelet Transform Modulus Maxima Method, Brian C. Toner

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Breast cancer is a disease which predominatly affects women. About 1 in 8 women are diagnosed with breast cancer during their lifetime. Early detection is key to increasing the survival rate of breast cancer patients since the longer the tumor goes undetected, the more deadly it can become. The modern approach for diagnosing breast cancer relies on a combination of self-breast exams and mammography to detect the formation of tumors. However, this approach only accounts for tumors which are either detectable by touch or are large enough to be observed during a screening mammogram. For some individuals, by the time …

Participatory Modeling Of Tidal Circulation On Maine Mudflats To Improve Water Quality Management Of Shellfish Areas, Gabrielle V. Hillyer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Over the past decade, researchers have become increasingly aware of the vital role stakeholder knowledge plays in understanding complex social and environmental problems. Incorporating stakeholder knowledge into understanding complex problems allows for greater awareness and identification of community needs and can help build partnerships to support the development of applied research. In this thesis, I demonstrate the value of stakeholder knowledge and research partnerships by focusing on the soft-shell clamming industry in Maine and how a complex collaboration between clammers, municipal officials, representatives from state agencies, researchers, and other partners relied on and build adaptive capacity to address complex water …

Getting Over The Dam: Overcoming Institutional Barriers To The Recovery Of Atlantic Salmon By Navigating The Social-Science/Policy Interface, Melissa E. Flye

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The term governance has undergone somewhat of an evolution since its inception, originally describing the act of governing, it has come to represent a more collaborative form of governing which is distinct from hierarchical control models (Marin and Mayntz, 1991). Collaborative governance refers to the systems associated with public policy decision making and resource management which span the jurisdictional boundaries of public agencies, levels of government, and/or public and private spheres in order to pursue a public policy goal or outcome (Emerson et al., 2012). Environmental management is often considered an inherently collaborative effort, as ecological systems and species rarely …

Three-Dimensional Analytical Model Of Tidal Flow In The Damariscotta River Estuary, Me, Stephanie L. Ayres

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Estuaries are coastal bodies of water subjected to strong tidal influence and characterized by their morphology, tidal dynamics, topography, and stratification. Tidal flow is critically important to the water circulation, nutrient influx, and sediment transport in or out of an estuary. However, tidal asymmetry enhanced by estuary shape and nonlinear processes can lead to complications in estuarine flow. Analytical models are used to systematically study tidal flow within an estuary. Previous studies have derived analytical models of varying complexity and applied them to investigate tidal and residual flow. This thesis derives a three-dimensional analytical model with a perturbation expansion of …

Modeling Response Of Water Quality To Land-Use And Climate Change In Lake Auburn, Me, Nicholas Messina

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Lake Auburn, Maine, USA, is a historically unproductive lake that has experienced multiple algal blooms since 2011. The lake is the water supply source for a population of ~60,000. We modeled past temperature, and concentrations of dissolved oxygen (DO) and phosphorus (P) in Lake Auburn by considering the watershed and internal contributions of P as well as atmospheric factors, and predicted the change in lake water quality in response to future climate and land-use changes. A stream hydrology and P-loading model (SimplyP) was used to generate input from two major tributaries into a lake model (MyLake) to simulate physical mixing, …

Algorithm To Derive Inherent Optical Properties From Remote Sensing Reflectance In Turbid And Eutrophic Lakes, Kun Xue, Emmanuel Boss, Ronghua Ma, Ming Shen

Marine Sciences Faculty Scholarship

Inherent optical properties play an important role in understanding the biogeochemical processes of lakes by providing proxies for a variety of biogeochemical quantities, including phytoplankton pigments. However, to date, it has been difficult to accurately derive the absorption coefficient of phytoplankton [aph(λ)] in turbid and eutrophic waters from remote sensing. A large dataset of remote sensing of reflectance [ Rrs (λ)] and absorption coefficients was measured for samples collected from lakes in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River and Huai River basin (MLYHR), China. In the process of scattering correction of spectrophotometric measurements, the particulate absorption coefficients …

Evaluating Satellite Estimates Of Particulate Backscatter In The Global Open Ocean Using Autonomous Profiling Floats, K. M. Bisson, E. Boss, T. K. Westberry, M. J. Behrenfeld

Marine Sciences Faculty Scholarship

Satellite retrievals of particulate backscattering (bbp) are widely used in studies of ocean ecology and biogeochemistry, but have been historically difficult to validate due to the paucity of available ship-based comparative field measurements. Here we present a comparison of satellite and in situ bbp using observations from autonomous floats (n = 2,486 total matchups across three satellites), which provide bbp at 700 nm. With these data, we quantify how well the three inversion products currently distributed by NASA ocean color retrieve bbp. We find that the median ratio of satellite derived bbp to float bbp ranges from 0.77 to 1.60 …

Factors Driving The Seasonal And Hourly Variability Of Sea-Spray Aerosol Number In The North Atlantic, Georges Saliba, Chia Li Chen, Savannah Lewis, Lynn M. Russell, Laura Helena Rivellini, Alex K.Y. Lee, Patricia K. Quinn, Timothy S. Bates, Nils Haëntjens, Emmanuel S. Boss, Lee Karp-Boss, Nicholas Baetge, Craig A. Carlson, Michael J. Behrenfeld

Marine Sciences Faculty Scholarship

Four North Atlantic Aerosol and Marine Ecosystems Study (NAAMES) field campaigns from winter 2015 through spring 2018 sampled an extensive set of oceanographic and atmospheric parameters during the annual phytoplankton bloom cycle. This unique dataset provides four seasons of open-ocean observations of wind speed, sea surface temperature (SST), seawater particle attenuation at 660 nm (cp,660, a measure of ocean particulate organic carbon), bacterial production rates, and sea-spray aerosol size distributions and number concentrations (NSSA). The NAAMES measurements show moderate to strong correlations (0.56 < R < 0.70) between NSSA and local wind speeds in the marine boundary layer on hourly timescales, but this relationship weakens in the campaign averages that represent each season, in part because of the reduction in range of wind speed by multiday averaging. NSSA correlates weakly with seawater cp,660 (R = 0.36, P << 0.01), but the correlation with cp,660, is improved (R = 0.51, P < 0.05) for periods of low wind speeds. In addition, NAAMES measurements provide observational dependence of SSA mode diameter (dm) on SST, with dm increasing to larger sizes at higher SST (R = 0.60, P << 0.01) on hourly timescales. These results imply that climate models using bimodal SSA parameterizations to wind speed rather than a single SSA mode that varies with SST may overestimate SSA number concentrations (hence cloud condensation nuclei) by a factor of 4 to 7 and may underestimate SSA scattering (hence direct radiative effects) by a factor of 2 to 5, in addition to overpredicting variability in SSA scattering from wind speed by a factor of 5.

A Review Of Protocols For Fiducial Reference Measurements Of Water-Leaving Radiance For Validation Of Satellite Remote-Sensing Data Over Water, Kevin G. Ruddick, Kenneth Voss, Emmanuel Boss, Alexandre Castagna, Robert Frouin, Alex Gilerson, Martin Hieronymi, B. Carol Johnson, Joel Kuusk, Zhongping Lee, Michael Ondrusek, Viktor Vabson, Riho Vendt

Marine Sciences Faculty Scholarship

© 2019 by the authors. This paper reviews the state of the art of protocols for measurement of water-leaving radiance in the context of fiducial reference measurements (FRM) of water reflectance for satellite validation. Measurement of water reflectance requires the measurement of water-leaving radiance and downwelling irradiance just above water. For the former there are four generic families of method, based on: (1) underwater radiometry at fixed depths; or (2) underwater radiometry with vertical profiling; or (3) above-water radiometry with skyglint correction; or (4) on-water radiometry with skylight blocked. Each method is described generically in the FRM context with reference …

Multi-Level Governance Of Climate Change Adaptation: United Nations Negotiations And Adaptation Project Implementation In Nicaragua And Samoa, Anna E. Mcginn

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The rapid entry into force of the Paris Agreement reaffirmed, with certainty, that the international community would continue its efforts to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to climate change impacts opening a new era of international cooperation on climate change. This thesis explores how both negotiations around climate change adaptation and adaptation project implementation have evolved in this post-Paris Agreement era (from adoption in December 2015 to present). Using the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change’s (UNFCCC) Adaptation Fund as the central lens, the chapters explore international negotiations around the Fund as well as two Adaptation Fund funded …

Mechanisms Of Ice Core Stable Isotope Variability In The Upper Kaskawulsh-Donjek Region, St. Elias Mountains, Yukon, Canada, Erin A. Mcconnell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

I use instrumental and ice core records to examine drivers of observed isotope variability in the Upper Kaskawulsh-Donjek (UKD) region of the St. Elias Mountains, Yukon, Canada over the time frame of instrument-proxy overlap (mid-1900s to present). One of the drivers of post-depositional isotope signal alteration is the vertical percolation of meltwater from the glacier surface through shallow layers of snow, which causes a reduction in the amplitude of the isotope signal recorded in ice cores. I examine isotope signal preservation in two sites in the St. Elias Mountains: Eclipse Icefield and Icefield Divide. These sites are relatively close (~30 …

Microbial Diversity Of The Symbiotic Colony Of Bacteria And Yeast (Scoby) And Its Impact On The Organoleptic Properties Of Kombucha, Danielle L. St-Pierre

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Kombucha is an effervescent fermented tea beverage that is gaining popularity for its probiotic nature and purported health benefits. The market for kombucha is expected to reach $1.8 billion by the year 2020. The composition of microbes that compose the symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeast (SCOBY) is highly variable with some species commonly found from the Gluconobacter, Acetobacter, Zygosaccharomyces, Saccharomyces, and Schizosaccharomyces genera.

It was hypothesized that different SCOBYs, obtained from different sources would vary in microbial diversity and produce different biochemical and flavor profiles in the resulting beverage over several generations. Kombucha is a fermented …

Fractures, Fluids, And Metamorphism: Shear Zone Initiation In The Marcy Anorthosite Massif, Adirondacks, New York, Usa, James Hodge

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Localized shear zones are important rheological features that influence deformation behavior throughout the Earth’s middle-to-lower crust. Therefore, the processes through which shear zones initiate and localize remains an important geologic question. The study of strain localization and shear zone initiation is made difficult due to continued deformation overprinting the microstructures which lead to initiation and obfuscating the context in which localization occurred. The Marcy anorthosite in the Adirondack Highlands, New York, is a nominally granulite-facies, plagioclase-rich massif cut by centimeter-to-meter scale shear zones which provides a natural example of shear zone localization within the middle-to-lower crust. My work focuses on …

Synthesis And Characterization Of Heteronuclear Inorganic Complexes For The Photodegradation Of Persistant Organic Pollutants, Matthew A. Moyet

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The focus of this thesis is to investigate the structural modification and characterization potential of common photocatalysts that have various uses for environmental remediation purposes. Pollution involving organic chemicals is one of the most common scenarios found in communities throughout the country. Efforts to rid contaminated drinking water supplies of these chemicals include physical and chemical filters, which have limited ability and efficacy. This lack of efficient filtration services has led to an increased demand for more effective treatment methods. Chemical species that react in the presence of light are known as photocatalysts and have been used in previous studies …

Mountain Livelihoods In A Time Of Change: A Case Study Of Upper Mustang In Nepal, Sandesh Shrestha

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A case study was conducted in a remote Himalayan village—Yara—in the Upper Mustang region of Nepal. The goal of this study was to understand and assess the livelihood strategies of local people in the village. The study focused on understanding the socio-economic and environmental driving factors of livelihood vulnerability, prevalent livelihood activities, emergent livelihood strategies, and resulting livelihood outcomes in the village. We used multiple data generation methods, which included both qualitative social science and quantitative biophysical components. For the qualitative component, we utilized multiple data generation methods including key informant interviews, semi-structured household interviews, group discussions, and field observations. …

A Tale Of Two Bays: The Development And Applications Of The Saco And Casco Modeling Project, Stephen M. Moore

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis details the development and application of a finite-volume, hydrodynamic model of Saco and Casco Bays. The primary study conducted herein focused on coupling storm simulations with sea level rise (SLR) to identify vulnerabilities of the two bays. The February 1978 Northeaster and an April freshwater discharge event in 2007 following the Patriot’s Day Storm were modeled by utilizing the Finite-Volume Coastal Ocean Model (FVCOM). Both events were repeatedly simulated under SLR scenarios ranging from 0 to 7 ft. Modeled storm responses were identified from the 1978 blizzard simulations and were tracked across SLR scenarios. By comparing changes in …

A Review Of Protocols For Fiducial Reference Measurements Of Downwelling Irradiance For The Validation Of Satellite Remote Sensing Data Over Water, Kevin G. Ruddick, Kenneth Voss, Andrew C. Banks, Emmanuel Boss, Alexandre Castagna, Robert Frouin, Martin Hieronymi, Cedric Jamet, B. Carol Johnson, Joel Kuusk, Zhongping Lee, Michael Ondrusek, Viktor Vabson, Riho Vendt

Marine Sciences Faculty Scholarship

This paper reviews the state of the art of protocols for the measurement of downwelling irradiance in the context of Fiducial Reference Measurements (FRM) of water reflectance for satellite validation. The measurement of water reflectance requires the measurement of water-leaving radiance and downwelling irradiance just above water. For the latter, there are four generic families of method, using: (1) an above-water upward-pointing irradiance sensor; (2) an above-water downward-pointing radiance sensor and a reflective plaque; (3) a Sun-pointing radiance sensor (sunphotometer); or (4) an underwater upward-pointing irradiance sensor deployed at different depths. Each method-except for the fourth, which is considered obsolete …

Improved Estimates Of Tributary Nitrogen Load To Casco Bay, Maine, Whitley J. Gray

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Over the past two decades, total nitrogen (TN) concentrations have increased in Casco Bay (CBEP 2015). The sources of the increased nitrogen are poorly understood but occur with simultaneous population growth and land use changes. The total riverine nitrogen load to Casco Bay was previously estimated by Liebman and Milstead (2012) using the United States Geologic Survey’s (USGS) SPAtially Referenced Regression On Watershed attributes (SPARROW) model. The SPARROW model uses watershed characteristics, regional monitoring data and nitrogen source data to estimate nitrogen loading but was not validated using measurements of nitrogen in the Casco Bay watershed. This study attempts to …

Investigation Of Student Understanding Of Implicit Differentiation, Connor Chu

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Challenges that students face in first semester calculus have been found to be a factor in high attrition rates of students from science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) majors. With an increase in the demand for STEM graduates, an attempt must be made to remedy this issue. Research has shown that students have difficulties with many topics in the realm of calculus. Of these, students have been found to struggle with the concept of derivative and ideas related to it. However, some derivative topics have not been examined as thoroughly as others. Implicit differentiation, a technique that allows us to …

Predictive Diagnostic Analysis Of Mammographic Breast Tissue Microenvironment, Dexter G. Canning

Honors College

Improving computer-aided early detection techniques for breast cancer is paramount because current technology has high false positive rates. Existing methods have led to a substantial number of false diagnostics, which lead to stress, unnecessary biopsies, and an added financial burden to the health care system. In order to augment early detection methodology, one must understand the breast microenvironment. The CompuMAINE Lab has researched computational metrics on mammograms based on an image analysis technique called the Wavelet Transform Modulus Maxima (WTMM) method to identify the fractal and roughness signature from mammograms. The WTMM method was used to color code the mammograms …

Interglacial Expansion Of Alpine Glaciers In Garwood Valley, Antarctica, Laura Mattas

Honors College

It is important to understand the response of the Antarctic Ice Sheet (AIS) to ongoing global atmospheric and oceanic warming to anticipate future sea-level change. There are several contrasting views in this regard. Harig and Simons (2015) concur with the IPCC (2013) conclusion that, in recent decades, outflow across the peripheral grounding lines of the ice sheet has exceeded increased accumulation on the interior surface of the ice sheet. In contrast, Zwally et al. (2015) suggest that recent surface accumulation in the interior East and West Antarctica has outpaced peripheral losses. They further suggest that this recent positive imbalance adds …

Effect Of Hydroculture Methods On Tomato Root Morphology And Anatomy, Lia Maclellan

Honors College

Three methods of hydroculture were compared for their effects on the root anatomy and morphology of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum cv. Defiant). A hydroponic deep water culture method, an ebb-flood system using expanded clay pellets as a solid medium and an aeroponic sub-mist system were compared, with a solid peat/perlite medium for control. The treatments were found to have significant effects on plant root and shoot length, as well as root and shoot biomass. Root morphology was visually distinct among treatments, and all methods of hydroculture were associated with a significant increase in vascular tissue in plant roots compared with the …

Investigating Ions’ Effects On The Fluorescent Protein Dendra2, Benjamin Waterman

Honors College

While superresolution microscopy has opened the doors to insights into biological phenomena we couldn’t have dreamed of in the last century, its methodology is naturally limited. We aim to push the envelope of its capabilities by testing the effect that Ca2+ and H+ ions have on the fluorescent protein Dendra2. Utilizing a newly designed perfusion chamber, we flow separate solutions containing Ca2+ and H+ ions into a cellular environment, in which the cells in question have been tagged with Dendra2. Utilizing the superresolution technique known as Spectral Fluorescence Photoactivation Localization Microscopy, we are able to obtain information about the emission …

Understanding Volume Transport In The Jordan River: An Application Of The Navier-Stokes Equations, Gwyneth E. Roberts

Honors College

This study aims to characterize the circulation patterns in short and narrow estuarine systems on various temporal scales to identify the controls of material transport. In order to achieve this goal, a combination of in situ collected data and analytical modeling was used. The model is based on the horizontal Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes equations in the shallow water limit with scaling parameters defined from the characteristics of the estuary. The in situ measurements were used to inform a case study, seeking to understand water level variations and tidal current velocity patterns in the Jordan River and to improve understanding of …

Atmospheric Correction Of Satellite Ocean-Color Imagery During The Pace Era, Robert J. Frouin, Bryan A. Franz, Amir Ibrahim, Kirk Knobelspiesse, Ziauddin Ahmad, Brian Cairns, Jacek Chowdhary, Heidi M. Dierssen, Jing Tan, Oleg Dubovik, Xin Huang, Anthony B. Davis, Olga Kalashnikova, David R. Thompson, Lorraine A. Remer, Emmanuel Boss, Odele Coddington, Pierre Yves Deschamps, Bo Cai Gao, Lydwine Gross, Otto Hasekamp, Ali Omar, Bruno Pelletier, Didier Ramon, François Steinmetz, Peng Wang Zhai

Marine Sciences Faculty Scholarship

The Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem (PACE) mission will carry into space the Ocean Color Instrument (OCI), a spectrometer measuring at 5 nm spectral resolution in the ultraviolet (UV) to near infrared (NIR) with additional spectral bands in the shortwave infrared (SWIR), and two multi-angle polarimeters that will overlap the OCI spectral range and spatial coverage, i. e., the Spectrometer for Planetary Exploration (SPEXone) and the Hyper-Angular Rainbow Polarimeter (HARP2). These instruments, especially when used in synergy, have great potential for improving estimates of water reflectance in the post Earth Observing System (EOS) era. Extending the top-of-atmosphere (TOA) observations to …

Retrieving Aerosol Characteristics From The Pace Mission, Part 1: Ocean Color Instrument, Lorraine A. Remer, Anthony B. Davis, Shana Mattoo, Robert C. Levy, Olga V. Kalashnikova, Odele Coddington, Jacek Chowdhary, Kirk Knobelspiesse, Xiaoguang Xu, Ziauddin Ahmad, Emmanuel Boss, Brian Cairns, Heidi M. Dierssen, David J. Diner, Bryan Franz, Robert Frouin, Bo Cai Gao, Amir Ibrahim, J. Vanderlei Martins, Ali H. Omar, Omar Torres, Feng Xu, Peng Wang Zhai

Marine Sciences Faculty Scholarship

NASA’s Plankton, Aerosol, Clouds, ocean Ecosystem (PACE) satellite mission is scheduled to launch in 2022, with the Ocean Color Instrument (OCI) on board. For the first time reflected sunlight from the Earth across a broad spectrum from the ultraviolet (UV: 350 nm) to the short wave infrared (SWIR: 2260 nm) will be measured from a single instrument at 1 km spatial resolution. While seven discrete bands will represent the SWIR, the spectrum from 350 to 890 nm will be continuously covered with a spectral resolution of 5 nm. OCI will thus combine in a single instrument (and at an enhanced …