Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Understanding And Finding Solutions To The Problem Of Sedimentation In The National Wildlife Refuge System, Max Post Van Der Burg, Karen E. Jenni, Timothy L. Nieman, Josh D. Eash, Gregory A. Knutsen

USGS Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center

The National Wildlife Refuge System (Refuge System) is a collection of public lands maintained by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for migratory birds and other wildlife. Wetlands on individual National Wildlife Refuges (Refuges) may be at risk of increased sedimentation because of land use and water management practices. Increased sedimentation can reduce wetland habitat quality by altering hydrologic function, degrading water quality, and inhibiting growth of vegetation and invertebrates. On Refuges negatively affected by increased sedimentation, managers have to address complex questions about how to best remediate and mitigate the negative effects. The best way to account for these …

Horticulture For Pollinator Conservation, Carter M. Westerhold

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Pollinators worldwide are declining. Consequently, the agricultural and ecological services these insects provide are in danger of being lost. Land use intensification, via urbanization, has greatly influenced this decline in pollinators. Luckily, through targeted horticultural practices, stable populations of pollinators can be sustained within urban areas. The horticultural practices of planting diverse floral resources and managing pollinator habitat in urban areas can sustain these populations. Two studies were conducted with the intent to identify horticultural knowledge gaps that could be reduced to aid in pollinator conservation efforts. First, a study to compare Nebraska native and non-native ornamental plants was conducted. …

Individual And Community Well-Being In Nonmetropolitan Nebraska: 2017 Nebraska Rural Poll Results, Rebecca J. Vogt, Cheryl A. Burkhart-Kriesel, Randolph L. Cantrell, Bradley Lubben, L. J. Mcelravy, T. L. Meyer

Rural Futures Institute: Publications

Conclusion

By many different measures, rural Nebraskans are positive about their community. Many rural Nebraskans rate their community favorably on its social dimensions: as friendly, trusting and supportive. Most rural Nebraskans say it would be difficult to leave their community and have a positive attachment to their community. And, most rural Nebraskans disagree that their community is powerless to control its future.

Across all years of this study, rural Nebraskans’ views about the change in their community have generally been positive. The proportion believing their community has changed for the better during the past year has usually been greater than …

Econometric Estimation Of Groundwater Depth Change For The High Plains Aquifer, Jonathan R. Sims

Department of Agricultural Economics: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This article presents a new method for estimating changes in depth to groundwater at a yearly, county level and incorporates these estimates as the dependent variable of econometric models for the High Plains aquifer. The High Plains (Ogallala) aquifer underlies eight states in the central United States and is the primary source of irrigation water for this large food producing region. The stock of groundwater is a finite, non-renewable resource with minimal recharge in most areas. Many fields of study, including hydrology and agricultural economics, are interested in depth to groundwater changes because they serve as a proxy for estimating …

An Unparalleled Opportunity For An Important Ecological Study, L. David Mech, Shannon M. Barber-Meyer, Juan Carlos Blanco, Luigi Boitani, Ludwig Carbyn, Glenn Delgiudice, Steven H. Fritts, Djuro Huber, Olof Liberg, Brent Patterson, Richard R. Thiel

USGS Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center

Wolves (Canis lupus) and moose (Alces americanus) have been studied since 1958 on 540-squarekilometer Isle Royale National Park, in Lake Superior. Wolves arrived there across the ice around 1949, and the population once increased to about 50, averaging about 25 annually (Mech 1966, Jordan et al. 1967, Vucetich and Peterson 2009). However, for various reasons, wolf numbers there have now dwindled to 2 nonbreeders, and the US National Park Service has proposed reintroducing 20–30 wolves over 3 years (National Park Service 2016). This situation offers an unparalleled opportunity to promote science-based management of this unique national park. …

Is Cooperative Memory Special? The Role Of Costly Errors, Context, And Social Network Size When Remembering Cooperative Actions, Jeffrey R. Stevens, Tim Winke

Jeffrey Stevens Publications

Theoretical studies of cooperative behavior have focused on decision strategies, such as tit-for-tat, that depend on remembering a partner’s last choices. Yet, an empirical study by Stevens et al. (2011) demonstrated that human memory may not meet the requirements that needed to use these strategies. When asked to recall the previous behavior of simulated partners in a cooperative memory task, participants performed poorly, making errors in 10–24% of the trials. However, we do not know the extent to which this task taps specialized cognition for cooperation. It may be possible to engage participants in more cooperative, strategic thinking, which may …

Media, Institutions And Voting: Perceptions Of Nonmetropolitan Nebraskans: 2017 Nebraska Rural Poll Results, Rebecca J. Vogt, Cheryl A. Burkhart-Kriesel, Randolph L. Cantrell, Bradley Lubben, L. J. Mcelravy, Timothy L. Meyer

Rural Futures Institute: Publications

Conclusion

Rural Nebraskans most trust information received from local news sources (TV and newspapers) and public sources (PBS and public radio). They least trust information from social networking sites and Internet blogs. Most rural Nebraskans are somewhat or very confident in their ability to recognize news that is made up.

Most rural Nebraskans have confidence in their local institutions (public safety agencies in their community; public schools in their community; and voting and election systems in their county). On the other hand, over one-quarter of rural Nebraskans have very little confidence in the following national institutions: U.S. House of Representatives, …

Shopping For Food In Nonmetropolitan Nebraska: 2017 Nebraska Rural Poll Results, Rebecca J. Vogt, Cheryl A. Burkhart-Kriesel, Randolph L. Cantrell, Bradley Lubben, L.J. Mcelravy, Timothy L. Meyer, Vanessa Wielenga

Rural Futures Institute: Publications

Conclusion

Rural Nebraskans purchase their food from a variety of stores. Almost four in ten buy most of their food from a supercenter (like Wal-Mart or Costco). Just over three in ten typically shop at a supermarket and just under three in ten buy most of their food at a small grocery store. Differences in the type of store most utilized occur by community size. Persons living in or near larger communities are more likely than persons living in or near smaller communities to purchase the majority of their food from either a supermarket or supercenter.

Persons living in or …

Mapping The Ecology Of Information: Hierarchical Habitat Selection By Nebraska Pheasant Hunters, Lyndsie Wszola

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Hunting regulations are assumed to moderate the effects of hunting consistently across a game population. A growing body of evidence suggests that hunter effort varies temporally and spatially, and that variation in effort at multiple spatial scales can affect game populations in unexpected ways. We set out to determine the causes of variation in hunting effort among ring-necked pheasant (Phasianus colchicus) hunters at four spatial scales: among regions within the state of Nebraska, among sites within a given region, among access points at a given site, and among habitat patches within a site. At each scale, pheasant hunters used direct …

Simulating The Impact Of A Co2-Equivalent Meat Tax On Grain And Livestock Markets, Regan Gilmore, Azzeddine Azzam

UCARE Research Products

Research Question

What are the potential effects of imposing a carbon dioxide (CO2) equivalent tax on meat consumption, including beef, pork, and poultry, on U.S. livestock and grain markets and greenhouse gas emissions?

This is the second half of a research project introduced in the poster entitled "Using an Equilibrium Displacement Model to Simulate the Impact of an Environmental Meat Tax on Grain and Livestock Markets," online at https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/ucareresearch/125/

Perceptions Of Agriculture And The Economy In Nonmetropolitan Nebraska: 2017 Nebraska Rural Poll Results, Rebecca J. Vogt, Cheryl A. Burkhart-Kriesel, Randolph L. Cantrell, Bradley Lubben, L.J. Mcelravy, Timothy L. Meyer

Rural Futures Institute: Publications

Conclusion

Most rural Nebraskans view their economic well-being as being dependent on agriculture. Over three-fourths feel their economic well-being is at least somewhat tied to agriculture. Economic dependence on agriculture has changed very little over the past seven years. The proportions reported in 2017 are almost identical to those from 2010.

Similarly, most rural Nebraskans believe the economic well-being of their community is very much dependent on agriculture. Overall, over nine in ten rural Nebraskans feel their community’s economic well-being is at least somewhat tied to agriculture.

Most rural Nebraskans say their job/income security is about the same as it …

Geometry-Based Mass Grading Of Mango Fruits Using Image Processing, M. A. Momin, Md Towfiqur Rahman, M. S. Sultana, C. Igathinathane, A. T. M. Ziauddin, T. E. Grift

Department of Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

Mango (Mangifera indica) is an important, and popular fruit in Bangladesh. However, the post-harvest processing of it is still mostly performed manually, a situation far from satisfactory, in terms of accuracy and throughput. To automate the grading of mangos (geometry and shape), we developed an image acquisition and processing system to extract projected area, perimeter, and roundness features. In this system, images were acquired using a XGA format color camera of 8-bit gray levels using fluorescent lighting. An image processing algorithm based on region based global thresholding color binarization, combined with median filter and morphological analysis was developed …

Family Feud Ends Up In Court, J. David Aiken

Cornhusker Economics

A May 2017 decision by the Nebraska Court of Appeals deals with an unfortunately common situation in Nebraska family farm corporations– is the on-farm heir (or heirs) in charge of the corporation legally required to share the corporation’s income with the off-farm heirs? (24 Neb. App. 649) As we shall see, the court answered “no” even though that seems to be an unfair result.

The Academic Research Library And Science Education: A Roadmap For The Journey, Sue Ann Gardner

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries: Conference Presentations and Speeches

Science libraries are integral to the process of science inquiry.

Science education is facilitated within science libraries.

The future of science libraries is predicated on librarians maintaining a meaningful relationship with those engaging in scholarship.

Science libraries need to combine traditional and emerging service models, provide access to a wide array of materials, incorporate appropriate technology, and offer ergonomic work spaces to promote effective learning.

The science commons includes varied work spaces which encourage innovation and creativity, facilitate situated and active learning, and promote communities of practice.

The National Science Education Standards definition of science inquiry includes the diverse ways …

Replicability And Reproducibility In Comparative Psychology, Jeffrey R. Stevens

Jeffrey Stevens Publications

Psychology faces a replication crisis. The Reproducibility Project: Psychology sought to replicate the effects of 100 psychology studies. Though 97% of the original studies produced statistically significant results, only 36% of the replication studies did so (Open Science Collaboration, 2015). This inability to replicate previously published results, however, is not limited to psychology (Ioannidis, 2005). Replication projects in medicine (Prinz et al., 2011) and behavioral economics (Camerer et al., 2016) resulted in replication rates of 25 and 61%, respectively, and analyses in genetics (Munafò, 2009) and neuroscience (Button et al., 2013) question the validity of studies in those fields. Science, …

The Russian Food And Agricultural Import Ban, Marianna Khachaturyan, E. Wesley F. Peterson

Cornhusker Economics

In 2014 the United States, European Union (EU), and several other countries imposed economic sanctions on Russia in response to its annexation of Crimea and support for separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine (Nelson, 2017; Europa, 2017). Prior to the 1990s, the use of economic sanctions to challenge the behavior of foreign governments was fairly rare as the target country could easily turn to the cold-war adversary of the sanctioning country to avoid their effects. With the end of the Cold War, sanctions, usually comprehensive in nature restricting economic relations across the board, became a major foreign policy tool. Because comprehensive …

Homestead National Monument Of America, Bat Acoustic Monitoring, September 2016, Daniel S. Licht

United States National Park Service: Publications

Abstract

Homestead National Monument of America is a 211-acre park located in an agrarian landscape in southeastern Nebraska. From September 16 to October 1, 2016, park staff deployed acoustic monitors at three sites in the park for purposes of monitoring night-time bat activity. The three sites averaged 179, 48, and 33 bat detections per night. Night-time bat activity was generally highest in the 1-2 hours following sunset.

Based on the acoustic surveys the big brown (Eptesicus fuscus), eastern red (Lasiurus borealis), northern long-eared (Myotis septentrionalis) and evening bats (Nycticeius humeralis) were present at the …

Perceived Effects Of Use Of Information And Communication Technologies (Icts) On Rural Farmers’ Knowledge In Orlu Agricultural Zone, Imo State., Tijjani Abu Rimi Mr, Anaeto Francis Chudi Dr, Emerhirhi Emily Emily Mrs

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

The aim of this study was to ascertain the effects of use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) on farmers’ knowledge in Orlu Agricultural Zone, Imo State. Data were collected with structured questionnaires distributed to 130 respondents randomly selected from the 10 extension blocks in Orlu Agricultural Zone. Data collected were analyzed descriptively. The result obtained showed that, radio is the most readily available ICT device (99.2%), followed by mobile phone (97.7%). It was also observed that ICT use have effects on the farmers’ knowledge on improve use of equipment with a mean response of 2.93, increase knowledge of use …

Analysis Of The Roles Of Information And Communications Technologies In Rural Women Farmers’ Empowerment In Rivers State, Nigeria., Tijjani Abu Rimi Mr, Anaeto Francis Chudi Dr

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

Information and Communication Technology is a potent force in the developing world for social, economic and educational transformation of individuals, agencies and institutions. This study examined the veritable roles of ICT in empowering rural women farmers in Rivers State. The specific objectives were to examine the demographic characteristics of the respondents, identify ICT devices in use by the respondents; information needs of the respondents, the roles of ICTs in rural women empowerment and constraints to the use of ICT devices by the respondents. Structured questionnaire was used to elicit information from respondents and oral interview where necessary. The respondents were …

Nebraska Retailing Activity Changes Since 1990 And The Effect Of The Great Recession By Town/City Size Classes, Anil Giri, Bruce Johnson

Cornhusker Economics

Retailing is an important sector of our state’s economy and is watched carefully as an indicator of overall economic performance. This retailing activity, however, is not evenly distributed across different town/ city size classes. Large cities and towns serve as retail centers for larger geographic areas as well as for some nearby small towns. In other words, small trade centers experience trade leakage relative to their population and large centers experience retail gain relative to their population. Relative retail activity can be measured and hence compared using Pull Factor (PF) as a metric.

In essence, PF measures the relative market …

Ptsd, Alcohol Dependence, And Conduct Problems: Distinct Pathways Via Lability And Disinhibition, Jeffrey S. Simons, Raluca M. Simons, Carol O'Brien, Scott F. Stoltenberg, Jessica A. Keith, Jaime A. Hudson

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

This study tested the role of affect lability and disinhibition in mediating associations between PTSD symptoms and two forms of alcohol-related problems, dependence syndrome symptoms (e.g., impaired control over consumption) and conduct problems (e.g., assault, risk behaviors). Genotype at the serotonin transporter linked polymorphic region (5-HTTLPR) was hypothesized to moderate associations between traumatic stress and PTSD symptoms. In addition, the study tested whether childhood traumatic stress moderated associations between combat trauma and PTSD symptoms. Participants were 270 OIF/OEF/OND veterans. The hypothesized model was largely supported. Participants with the low expression alleles of 5-HTTLPR (S or L_G) exhibited stronger …

Protocol For Surveying Bat Use Of Lava Tube Caves During Winter In Craters Of The Moon National Monument And Preserve, Standard Operating Procedures, Thomas J. Rodhouse, Kathleen Slocum, Todd Stefanic, Shawn Thomas, Meghan Lonneker

United States National Park Service: Publications

Background

The Upper Columbia Basin Network I&M (Inventory and Monitoring) program and Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve are collaborating to monitor winter bat use in Arco Tunnel, which is a safely accessed cave in the northern portion of the monument that consistently has been found with the largest number of bats (~30/year) among the set of caves recently inventoried. The standard operating procedures documented here and the methods described in the associated protocol narrative will also be used to periodically inventory other caves within the monument and surrounding preserve as park resources and safety (winter environmental and …

The International Scientific Association For Probiotics And Prebiotics (Isapp) Consensus Statement On The Definition And Scope Of Prebiotics, Glenn R. Gibson, Robert W. Hutkins, Mary Ellen Sanders, Susan L. Prescott, Raylene A. Reimer, Seppo J. Salminen, Karen Scott, Catherine Stanton, Kelly S. Swanson, Patrice D. Cani, Kristin Verbeke, Gregor Reid

Department of Food Science and Technology: Faculty Publications

In December 2016, a panel of experts in microbiology, nutrition and clinical research was convened by the International Scientific Association for Probiotics and Prebiotics to review the definition and scope of prebiotics. Consistent with the original embodiment of prebiotics, but aware of the latest scientific and clinical developments, the panel updated the definition of a prebiotic: a substrate that is selectively utilized by host microorganisms conferring a health benefit. This definition expands the concept of prebiotics to possibly include non-carbohydrate substances, applications to body sites other than the gastrointestinal tract, and diverse categories other than food. The requirement for selective …

Nonprofit Pay In A Competitive Market: Wage Penalty Or Premium?, Christian King, Gregory B. Lewis

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Two competing theories argue that the nonprofit sector pays differently: Nonprofit employees may accept lower pay to be able to do meaningful work for a good cause, or they may earn higher pay due to nonprofit organizations’ tax exemptions and weaker incentives to hold down wages. To test these opposing expectations, we use the 2005-2013 American Community Surveys to examine pay differences among registered nurses working for nonprofit, for-profit, and public hospitals. We also test hypotheses that public and nonprofit hospitals have smaller pay disparities by gender, race, and relationship status. We find that pay is highest in nonprofit hospitals, …

Review Of Bird Brain: An Exploration Of Avian Intelligence By Nathan Emery, Alan B. Bond

Avian Cognition Papers

Over the past 30 years, the study of bird behavior has been completely transformed by the ongoing revolution in cognitive psychology, opening up wholly new perspectives on the mental processes underlying such areas as foraging decisions, social intelligence, problem solving, memory encoding, and communication. Although these studies have contributed to a number of recent popular books, until now there has been no attempt to integrate avian cognition and recent findings in avian neuroanatomy and endocrinology into a single account that is attractive and accessible to a general readership. It is a steep challenge, but Nathan Emery has undertaken it in …

A Concept Analysis Of Resilience Integrating Genetics, Kosuke Niitsu, Julia F. Houfek, Cecilia R. Barron, Scott F. Stoltenberg, Kevin A. Kupzyk, Michael J. Rice

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Although clinicians and researchers are interested in the phenomenon of resilience, there is no agreed-upon definition of resilience. Scientific evidence suggests that resilience is influenced by intrapersonal (e.g., personality traits) and environmental (e.g., social support) variables. A concept analysis was conducted to better understand the meaning of resilience. In this analysis, the antecedent of resilience was a potentially traumatic event; the defining attributes were ego-resiliency, emotion regulation, social support, and heredity; and the consequences were none to mild psychopathological symptoms and positive adaptation. This analysis can help nurses better understand resilience and its relationships …

Assisted Suicide, Valerie Ontiveros

Nebraska College Preparatory Academy: Senior Capstone Projects

Assisted suicide is when a physician helps a terminally ill patient die without pain. As of right now, it is illegal in most states. Organizations about this issue were organized in the late 1930's (Humphry). According to Pro-Con. Org, 79% of patients requested assisted suicide even before they came terminally ill –if it got to that point.

Many states have different laws on assisted suicide. In no doubt, these patients go through a tremendous amount of pain and no one but themselves should decide when enough is enough. Technological advances have allowed this generation to help aid a person when …

Steroids: A Growing Dilemma In Athletics, Seara Ontiveros

Nebraska College Preparatory Academy: Senior Capstone Projects

A comprehensive and straight forward description of what exactly steroids are and what they do to the body is described by Gary Wadler, a health major at the New York University School of Medicine, he comments: “When the receptor sites in their bodies, which don’t have much testosterone in them, suddenly are presented with a lot of testosterone, they get activated…The unbalance of hormones increases the red blood cell formations... They’ll get more muscular, more defined. They’ll lose some fat, and increase their lean body mass, [they’ll] get stronger”. Although anabolic steroids and other hormones are consumed by many athletes …

A Systematic Review And Secondary Data Analysis Of The Interactions Between The Serotonin Transporter 5-Httlpr Polymorphism And Environmental And Psychological Factors In Eating Disorders, Vanja Rozenblat, Deborah Ong, Matthew Fuller-Tyszkiewicz, Kirsti Akkermann, David Collier, Rutger C. M. E. Engels, Fernando Fernandez-Aranda, Jaanus Harro, Judith R. Homberg, Andreas Karwautz, Evelyn Kiive, Kelly K. Klump, Sarah E. Racine, Jodie Richardson, Howard Steiger, Scott F. Stoltenberg, Tatjana Van Strien, Gudrun Wagner, Janet Treasure, Isabel Krug

Department of Psychology: Faculty Publications

Objectives: To summarize and synthesize the growing gene × environment (G × E) research investigating the promoter region of the serotonin transporter gene (5-HTTLPR) in the eating disorders (ED) field, and overcome the common limitation of low sample size, by undertaking a systematic review followed by a secondary data meta-analysis of studies identified by the review. Method: A systematic review of articles using PsycINFO, PubMed, and EMBASE was undertaken to identify studies investigating the interaction between 5-HTTLPR and an environmental or psychological factor, with an ED-related outcome variable. Seven studies were identified by the systematic review, with complete data sets …

Getting To Know Your Yield Response Better Through Whole-Field Randomized Experiments, Taro Mieno, David Bullock

Cornhusker Economics

Six researchers at the University of Nebraska- Lincoln are working on the USDA-NIFA-funded Data Intensive Farm Management (DIFM) project. DIFM is based at the University of Illinois, and also involves the Universities of Kentucky, Massachusetts, Maryland, and Illinois State. The overarching goal of the project is to collect production data after conducting large-scale, on-farm randomized input use field trials, and then using the information to inform growers of optimal input use practices to enhance their profits. DIFM researchers hope to find a win-win situation in which more efficient crop nutrient management both increases farm profits and water quality in the …