Digital Commons Network^™

Cyanobacterial Harmful Algal Blooms: Chapter 35: Risk Assessment Workgroup Report, Joyce Donohue, Jennifer Orme–Zavaleta, Michael Burch, Daniel Dietrich, Belinda Hawkins, Tony Lloyd, Wayne Munns, Jeffery Steevens, Dennis Steffensen, Dave Stone, Peter Tango

United States Environmental Protection Agency: Publications

Risk assessment is a four–stage process used in evaluating the impact of contaminants on the well being of individuals, populations and/or the physical environment. As defined by the National Academy of Sciences (1983), the four components are as follows: hazard identification, dose– response assessment, exposure assessment and risk characterization.
The goal of a risk assessment is to utilize existing information coupled with site specific data to quantitatively characterize the potential risk of a stressor to an identified receptor(s). Quantitative, risk–based estimates of dose–response relationships integrated with exposure scenarios and information on environmental conditions often become the basis for regulatory measures …

Cyanobacterial Harmful Algal Blooms: Chapter 26: Human Health Effects Workgroup Report, Sandra Azevedo, Neil Chernoff, Ian Falconer, Michael Gage, Elizabeth Hilborn, Michelle Hooth, Karl Jensen, Robert Macphail, Ellen Rogers, Glen Shaw, Ian Stewart

United States Environmental Protection Agency: Publications

Two types of approaches may be used to evaluate the toxicity of environmental agents:

• Observational population studies may be used to investigate humans or animals in contact with the agent of interest, either prospectively or retrospectively.
• Experimental studies may be performed under controlled conditions on animals, living tissues or cells. These results may be extrapolated to human and animal populations.

Observational epidemiological studies of human and animal populations have the advantage of investigating the effects of environmentally relevant exposures to naturally–occurring mixtures of toxins. Health effects may be identified in the target species of concern. These studies are …

Cyanobacterial Harmful Algal Blooms: Chapter 38: Integrating Human And Ecological Risk Assessment: Application To The Cyanobacterial Harmful Algal Bloom Problem, Jennifer Orme-Zavaleta, Wayne Munns, Jr.

United States Environmental Protection Agency: Publications

Environmental and public health policy continues to evolve in response to new and complex social, economic and environmental drivers. Globalization and centralization of commerce, evolving patterns of land use (e.g., urbanization, deforestation), and technological advances in such areas as manufacturing and development of genetically modified foods have created new and complex classes of stressors and risks (e.g., climate change, emergent and opportunist disease, sprawl, genomic change). In recognition of these changes, environmental risk assessment and its use are changing from stressor-endpoint specific assessments used in command and control types of decisions to an integrated approach for application in communitybased decisions. …

Cyanobacterial Harmful Algal Blooms: Chapter 15: Cyanotoxins Workgroup Report, Rex Pegram, Andrew Humpage, Brett Neilan, Maria Runnegar, Tonya Nichols, Robert Thacker, Stephan Pflugmacher, Stacey Etheridge, Adam Love

United States Environmental Protection Agency: Publications

The Cyanotoxins Workgroup was charged with the identification and prioritization of research needs associated with: the identification of cyanotoxins; toxicokinetics and toxicodynamics of cyanotoxins; human susceptibility to the toxins; cyanobacterial genetics/omics and factors for inclusion in predictive models of toxin production; and risk reduction from an intentional or accidental release of cyanotoxins. Papers presented for the Cyanotoxins Session of the symposium on toxin types, toxicokinetics, and toxicodyamics (See Humpage this volume), cyanobacterial genetics of toxin production (See Neilan this volume), and parameters related to human risks from cyanobacterial exposure (See Love this volume) set the stage for Cyanotoxins Workgroup discussions. …

Cyanobacterial Harmful Algal Blooms: Chapter 2: A Synopsis Of Research Needs Identified At The Interagency, International Symposium On Cyanobacterial Harmful Algal Blooms (Isoc-Hab), H. Kenneth Hudnell, Quay Dortch

United States Environmental Protection Agency: Publications

Evidence indicates that the incidence of cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms (CHABs) is increasing in spatial extent and temporal frequency worldwide. Cyanobacterial blooms produce highly potent toxins and huge, noxious biomasses in surface waters used for recreation, commerce, and as drinking water sources. The Interagency, International Symposium on Cyanobacterial Harmful Algal Blooms (ISOC-HAB) characterized the state of the science and identified research needed to address the risks posed by CHABs to human health and ecosystem sustainability. This chapter provides a synopsis of CHAB research needs that were identified by workgroups that addressed charges in major topic areas. The research and infrastructure …

Cyanobacterial Harmful Algal Blooms: Chapter 3: Occurrence Of Cyanobacterial Harmful Algal Blooms Workgroup Report, Anthony Fristachi, James Sinclair, Sherwood Hall, Julie Hambrook Berkman, Greg Boyer, Joann Burkholder, John Burns, Wayne Carmichael, Al Dufour, William Frazier, Steve Morton, Eric O’Brien, Steven Walker

United States Environmental Protection Agency: Publications

Freshwater cyanobacteria periodically accumulate, or bloom, in water bodies across the United States (US). These blooms, also known as cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms (CHAB), can lead to a reduction in the number of individuals who engage in recreational activities in lakes and reservoirs, degrade aquatic habitats and potentially impact human health. In 1998, Congress passed the 1998 Harmful Algal Bloom and Hypoxia Research and Control Act (HABHRCA) to address CHABs that impacted living marine resources, fish and shellfish harvests and recreational and service industries along US coastal waters. In 2004, as part of its reauthorization, HABHRCA requires federal agencies to …

Nitrogen In The Environment: Chapter 22. New Policy Directions, A.P. Manale

United States Environmental Protection Agency: Publications

Advances in linking the science of ecology with economics and the development of agri-environmental modeling systems coupled with new information technology suggest new public policy approaches that reward agricultural producers for providing ecological services. An incentive-based ecosystem approach that identifies and quantifies an array of environmental services that can be provided by agricultural land, and then facilitates the development of markets in these services can protect environmental quality while improving farm income. Sustainability can be achieved whereby economic needs of society are integrated into environmental protection. Before presenting new agricultural policy approaches for improving environmental quality and, in particular, managing …

Bridging The Gaps Between Design And Use: Developing Tools To Support Environmental Management And Policy, B. S. Mcintosh, C. Giupponi, A. A. Voinov, C. Smith, K. B. Matthews, M. Monticino, M. J. Kolkman, N. Crossman, M. Van Ittersum, D. Haase, A. Haase, J. Mysiak, J. Groot, S. Sieber, P. Verweij, N. Quinn, P. Waeger, N. Gaber, D. Hepting, H. Scholten, A. Sulis, H. Van Delden, E. Gaddis, H. Assaf

United States Environmental Protection Agency: Publications

Sound decisions in environmental policy and management usually require the examination of alternative solutions, and may require the consideration of alternative problem fornlulations prior to option assessment. Constructing and considering the consequences of alternative problems (variables and relations) and policy options (norms and standards) is fundamental for processes of policy fornlulation (Vickers, 1965).

Complexity And Uncertainty: Rethinking The Modelling Activity, M. Brugnach, C. Pahl-Wostl, K. E. Lindenschmidt, J. A.E.B. Janssen, T. Filatova, A. Mouton, G. Holtz, P. Van Der Keur, N. N. Gaber

United States Environmental Protection Agency: Publications

Complexity and uncertainty have become critical considerations for environmental modelling applications, opening ne\v avenues for the use and development of models. Increasingly l110dels are being recognized as essential tools to learn, coml11unicate, explore and resolve the particulars of complex environmental problems (Sterman, 2002; Van den Belt, 2(04). However, this shift in the way in which models have been used has not always been accompanied by a concomitant shift in the way in which models have been conceived and implemented. Too often, models were conceived and built as predictive devices, aimed at capturing single, best, objective explanations. Considerations of uncertainty were …

2008 Epa’S Report On The Environment: Indicators Presenting Data For Epa Region 7, United States Environmental Protection Agency

United States Environmental Protection Agency: Publications

EPA’s 2008 Report on the Environment (ROE) compiles, in one place, the most reliable indicators currently available to answer 23 questions that EPA believes are of critical importance to its mission to protect human health and the environment.
The indicators are supported by data gathered from federal and state agencies and non-governmental organizations. All ROE indicators were peer-reviewed to meet exacting standards for accuracy, representativeness, and reliability, and the report has undergone extensive internal and interagency review, SAB review, and public comment. The indicators present trends wherever adequate data are available, and establish national baselines where they are not. The …

Nebraska Summary: S721 New Holland T4030, Nebraska Tractor Test Lab

Nebraska Tractor Tests

ABOUT THE TEST REPORT AND USE OF THE DATA The test data contained in this report are a tabulation of the results of a series of tests. Due to the restricted format of these pages, only a limited amount of data and not all of the tractor specifications are included. The full OECD report contains usually about 30 pages of data and specifications. The test data were obtained for each tractor under similar conditions and therefore, provide a means of comparison of performance based on a limited set of reported data. EXPLANATION OF THE TEST PROCEDURES Purpose The purpose of …

Nebraska Summary: S765 New Holland Td5030, Nebraska Tractor Test Lab

Nebraska Tractor Tests

ABOUT THE TEST REPORT AND USE OF THE DATA The test data contained in this report are a tabulation of the results of a series of tests. Due to the restricted format of these pages, only a limited amount of data and not all of the tractor specifications are included. The full OECD report contains usually about 30 pages of data and specifications. The test data were obtained for each tractor under similar conditions and therefore, provide a means of comparison of performance based on a limited set of reported data. EXPLANATION OF THE TEST PROCEDURES Purpose The purpose of …

Factors Affecting The Spread Of A Bioterrorist Agent Throughout A Building, William A. Cantrell

Inquiry: The University of Arkansas Undergraduate Research Journal

Bioterrorism has become a greater concern for Americans since the 2001 anthrax letters. Recent studies have explored the possibilities of biological attacks, and most deal with possible large-scale attacks. However, there is reason to believe that small-scale attacks are more likely. Even though there have been investigations of the postal delivery system and the spread of bioagents through mail, few if any studies have looked at attack on a single building and the resultant spread form room to room. One particular method of attacking a building would be a single-even release of an aerosol bioagent in the building. This paper …

Genomic Counter-Stress Changes Induced By The Relaxation Response, Jeffery A. Dusek, Hasan H. Otu, Ann L. Wohlhueter, Manoj Bhasin, Luiz F. Zerbini, Marie G. Joseph, Herbert Benson, Towia A. Libermann

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering: Faculty Publications

Background: Mind-body practices that elicit the relaxation response (RR) have been used worldwide for millennia to prevent and treat disease. The RR is characterized by decreased oxygen consumption, increased exhaled nitric oxide, and reduced psychological distress. It is believed to be the counterpart of the stress response that exhibits a distinct pattern of physiology and transcriptional profile. We hypothesized that RR elicitation results in characteristic gene expression changes that can be used to measure physiological responses elicited by the RR in an unbiased fashion.

Methods/Principal Findings: We assessed whole blood transcriptional profiles in 19 healthy, long-term practitioners of daily RR …

Differential Expression Of Gadd45Β In Normal And Osteoarthritic Cartilage: Potential Role In Homeostasis Of Articular Chondrocytes, Kosei Ijiri, Luiz F. Zerbini, Haibing Peng, Hasan H. Otu, Kaneyuki Tsuchimochi, Miguel Otero, Cecilia Dragomir, Nicole Walsh, Benjamin E. Bierbaum, David Mattingly, Geoff Van Flandern, Setsuro Komiya, Thomas Aigner, Towia A. Libermann, Mary B. Goldring

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering: Faculty Publications

Objective—Our previous study suggested that growth arrest and DNA damage–inducible protein 45β (GADD45β) prolonged the survival of hypertrophic chondrocytes in the developing mouse embryo. This study was undertaken, therefore, to investigate whether GADD45β plays a role in adult articular cartilage.

Methods—Gene expression profiles of cartilage from patients with late-stage osteoarthritis (OA) were compared with those from patients with early OA and normal controls in 2 separate microarray analyses. Histologic features of cartilage were graded using the Mankin scale, and GADD45β was localized by immunohistochemistry. Human chondrocytes were transduced with small interfering RNA (siRNA)–GADD45 …

Thermodynamically Coupled Transport In Simple Catalytic Reactions, Yaşar Demirel

Yaşar Demirel Publications

Considerable work published on chemical reaction-diffusion systems investigates mainly mathematically coupled nonlinear differential equations. This study presents the modeling of a simple elementary chemical reaction with thermodynamically and mathematically coupled heat and mass transport with external mass and heat transfer resistances. The thermodynamic coupling refers that a flow occurs without or against its primary thermodynamic driving force, which may be a gradient of temperature or chemical potential. The modeling is based on the linear nonequilibrium thermodynamics approach and phenomenological equations by assuming that the system is in the vicinity of global equilibrium. This approach does not need detailed coupling mechanisms. …

Artificial Immune System Based Image Pattern Recognition In Energy Efficient Wireless Multimedia Sensor Networks, Honggang Wang, Dongming Peng, Wei Wang, Hamid Sharif, J. Wegiel, D. Nguyen, R. Bowne, C. Backhaus

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering: Faculty Publications (to 2015)

In Wireless Multimedia Sensor Networks (WMSNs), low cost Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS) camera sensors may only produce low resolution images due to hardware limitations. However, super-resolution images may be constructed from these low resolution images in a multiple sensor network, improving object pattern recognition success rates. There is a critical image recognition challenge in these reconstructed superresolution images for accuracy, complexity and limited energy resource in wireless sensor networks. Artificial Immune Systems (AIS), in particular those possessing algorithmic efficiency for image pattern differentiation, categorization and recognition, have potential advantages in low-cost automated monitoring and object detection applications. In this …

Grammar-Based Distance In Progressive Multiple Sequence Alignment, David Russell, Hasan H. Otu, Khalid Sayood

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering: Faculty Publications

Background: We propose a multiple sequence alignment (MSA) algorithm and compare the alignment-quality and execution-time of the proposed algorithm with that of existing algorithms. The proposed progressive alignment algorithm uses a grammar-based distance metric to determine the order in which biological sequences are to be pairwise aligned. The progressive alignment occurs via pairwise aligning new sequences with an ensemble of the sequences previously aligned.
Results: The performance of the proposed algorithm is validated via comparison to popular progressive multiple alignment approaches, ClustalW and T-Coffee, and to the more recently developed algorithms MAFFT, MUSCLE, Kalign, and PSAlign using the BAliBASE 3.0 …

Effects Of Wind Field Inhomogeneities On Doppler Beam Swinging Revealed By An Imaging Radar, B.L. Cheong, T.-Y. Yu, Robert D. Palmer, K.-F. Yang, Michael Hoffman, S.J. Frasier, F.J. Lopez-Dekker

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering: Faculty Publications

In this work, the accuracy of the Doppler beam-swinging (DBS) technique for wind measurements is studied using an imaging radar—the turbulent eddy profiler (TEP) developed by the University of Mas- sachusetts, with data collected in summer 2003. With up to 64 independent receivers, and using coherent radar imaging (CRI), several hundred partially independent beams can be formed simultaneously within the volume defined by the transmit beam. By selecting a subset of these beams, an unprecedented number of DBS configurations with varying zenith angle, azimuth angle, and number of beams can be investigated. The angular distributions of echo power and radial …

Transportation Security Framework For A Medium-Sized City, Ryan Fries, Mashrur Chowdhury, Anne Dunning

Publications

Terrorist attacks have made security preparedness unquestionably necessary in all cities. While major metropolitan areas have long recognized that their global visibility has required strong security operations, many medium-sized cities, specifically those of the U.S. and European Union, now face the need to establish transportation security frameworks for the first time. This paper assesses the resources available to help medium-sized cities begin the task of creating such systems. This assessment presents infrastructure risk assessment tools, identifies infrastructure and funding resources, and creates a process for developing a security framework to connect agencies responsible for transportation security in these metropolitan areas. …

Anaerobic Treatment Of Army Ammunition Production Wastewater Containing Perchlorate And Rdx, Emina Atikovic, Makram T. Suidan, Stephen W. Maloney

United States Army: Publications

Perchlorate is an oxidizer that has been routinely used in solid rocket motors by the Department of Defense and National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Royal Demolition Explosive (RDX) is a major component of military high explosives and is used in a wide variety of munitions. Perchlorate bearing wastewater typically results from production of solid rocket motors, while RDX is transferred to Army industrial wastewaters during load, assemble and pack operations for new munitions, and hot water or steam washout for disposal and deactivation of old munitions (commonly referred to as demilitarization, or simply demil).
Biological degradation in Anaerobic Fluidized Bed …

The History Of The Unl Water Center From 1964, Water Center, School Of Natural Resources

Nebraska Water Center: Administrative Materials

Water is an integral part of Nebraska’s economy and well being in a state that depends on an adequate supply for all uses, including agricultural, municipal, industrial, recreational and wildlife habitat.

Nebraska is fortunate with regard to its water supply, having tremendous groundwater reserves which are estimated to be in excess of two billion acrefeet (an acre-foot being enough water to cover one acre of land with a foot of water, or approximately 325,000 gallons), combined with an estimated annual precipitation of 86 million acre-feet and annual average surface water inflows of 1.7 million acre-feet, give the state adequate supplies …

Computational Modeling Of Oxidative Stress: An Analysis Of Nad(P)H Effects On Nitric Oxide And Superoxide During Hypertension, Aaron Strobel

Inquiry: The University of Arkansas Undergraduate Research Journal

Nitric oxide (NO) is inactivated in the human body when exposed to superoxide (02-). This reaction forms peroxynitrite (ONOO). Superoxide is produced in the cardiac system by several mechanisms, including NAD(P)H oxidase. Superoxide dismutase (SOD) breaks down superoxide into oxygen and hydrogen peroxide. This prevents superoxide from reacting with nitric oxide and allows normal function to take place. Superoxide and peroxynitrite are main contributors to vascular disease in the human body, in particular hypertension.

Effects Of Gamma-Sterilization On The Physico-Chemical Properties Of Natural Sediments, T.L. Bank, Ravi K. Kukkadapu, A.S. Madden, M.A. Ginder-Vogel, M.E. Baldwin, P.M. Jardine

United States Department of Energy: Publications

Batch U(VI) sorption/reduction experiments were completed on sterilized and non-sterilized sediment samples to elucidate biological and geochemical reduction mechanisms. Results from X-ray absorption nearedge structure (XANES) spectroscopy revealed that γ-sterilized sediments were actually better sorbents of U(VI), despite the absence of any measurable biological activity. These results indicate that γ-irradiation induced significant physico-chemical changes in the sediment which is contrary to numerous other studies identifying γ-sterilization as an effective and minimally invasive technique. To identify the extent and method of alteration of the soil as a result of γ-sterilization, untreated soil samples, physically separated size fractions, …

Identifying And Explaining Map Quality Through Provenance: A User Study, Nicholas Ricky Del Rio, Paulo Pinheiro Da Silva

Departmental Technical Reports (CS)

Applications deployed on cyber-infrastructures often rely on multiple data sources and distributed compute resources to access, process, and derive results. When application results are maps, it is possible that non-intentional imperfections can get introduced into the map generation processes because of several reasons including the use of low quality datasets, use of data filtering techniques incompatible for the kind of map to be generated, or even the use of inappropriate mapping parameters, e.g., low-resolution gridding parameters. Without some means for accessing and visualizing the provenance associated with map generation processes, i.e., metadata about information sources and methods used to derive …

Fabrication And Characterization Of Cobalt-Diamond-Like-Carbon (Co-Dlc) Nanocomposites, Gunjan Shebe

Material Science and Engineering Theses - Archive

In recent years, synthesis of magnetic nanocomposites has been receiving significant attention. These nanocomposites offer opportunities to develop active nanomaterials with various applications like magnetic data storage and biomedical applications. They can be designed to provide excellent magnetic properties. However, high saturation magnetization materials, such as Co are not biocompatible. Thus, designing nanocomposites with magnetic phase embedded in biocompatible protective shells is of immense interest. In this study, Co-DLC nanocomposites were synthesized using a hybrid CVD/PVD technique and different combination of processing parameters were used to vary the concentration of Co in the nanocomposites. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy showed, that with …

Computer Simulation Of Radio Frequency Heating Of Model Fruit Immersed In Water, Sohan Birla, Shaojin Wang, Juming Tang

Department of Engineering Mechanics: Faculty Publications

The present study investigated the effect of different factors on temperature distribution within a spherical object in a parallel plate radio frequency (RF) heating system. A finite element-computer simulation program - FEMLAB was used to solve the electromagnetic and Navier-Stoke equations for developing a model to study the effect of dielectric properties of a model fruit and its surrounding medium. The model fruit was prepared from 1% gellan gel for experimental validation of the simulation results. The results showed that spherically-shaped samples surrounded with air between RF electrodes and placed in the proximity of electrodes would not heat uniformly. Immersing …

Lightweight Objective Quality Of Voice Estimation Through Machine Learning, Daniel Riordan

Theses

Communication systems are undergoing constant and rapid innovation, both at the design stage and in the field. This in turn has led to an inereasing need for fast, efficient, portable and economic methods for the testing of these systems. For voice carrying communication systems the quality of the transmitted voice that the system produces is a large factor in the overall performance rating of the system. This measure is known as the ‘Quality of Voice’ (QoV) and can be evaluated either subjectively or objectively.

Speech quality is a complex subjective phenomenon that can be best quantified by subjective testing. A …

Creating A Reinforcement Learning Controller For Functional Electrical Stimulation Of A Human Arm, Philip S. Thomas, Michael Branicky, Antonie Van Den Bogert, Kathleen Jagodnik

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications

Clinical tests have shown that the dynamics of a human arm, controlled using Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES), can vary significantly between and during trials. In this paper, we study the application of Reinforcement Learning to create a controller that can adapt to these
changing dynamics of a human arm. Development and tests were done in simulation using a two-dimensional arm model and Hill-based muscle dynamics. An actor-critic architecture is used with artificial neural networks for both the actor and the critic. We begin by training it using a Proportional Derivative (PD) controller as a supervisor. We then make clinically relevant …

Helical Axes Of Skeletal Knee Joint Motion During Running, Antonie J. Van Den Bogert, C. Reinschmidt, A. Lundberg

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study was to determine the changes in the axis of rotation of the knee that occur during the stance phase of running. Using intracortical pins, the three-dimensional skeletal kinematics of three subjects were measured during the stance phase of five running trials. The stance phase was divided into equal motion increments for which the position and orientation of the finite helical axes (FHA) were calculated relative to a tibial reference frame. Results were consistent within and between subjects. At the beginning of stance, the FHA was located at the midepicondylar point and during the flexion phase …