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Impact Of Nutrition On Pollutant Toxicity: An Update With New Insights Into Epigenetic Regulation, Jessie B. Hoffman, Michael C. Petriello, Bernhard Hennig

Superfund Research Center Faculty Publications

Exposure to environmental pollutants is a global health problem and is associated with the development of many chronic diseases, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes and metabolic syndrome. There is a growing body of evidence that nutrition can both positively and negatively modulate the toxic effects of pollutant exposure. Diets high in proinflammatory fats, such as linoleic acid, can exacerbate pollutant toxicity, whereas diets rich in bioactive and anti-inflammatory food components, including omega-3 fatty acids and polyphenols, can attenuate toxicant-associated inflammation. Previously, researchers have elucidated direct mechanisms of nutritional modulation, including alteration of nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells (NF-κB) signaling, …

Geoengineering, Marine Microalgae, And Climate Stabilization In The 21st Century, Charles H. Greene, Mark E. Huntley, Ian Archibald, Léda N. Gerber, Deborah L. Sills, Joe Granados, Colin M. Beal, Michael J. Walsh

Natural & Applied Sciences Faculty Publications

Society has set ambitious targets for stabilizing mean global temperature. To attain these targets, it will have to reduce CO2 emissions to near zero by mid-century and subsequently remove CO2 from the atmosphere during the latter half of the century. There is a recognized need to develop technologies for CO2 removal; however, attempts to develop direct air-capture systems have faced both energetic and financial constraints. Recently, BioEnergy with Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS) has emerged as a leading candidate for removing CO2 from the atmosphere. However, BECCS can have negative consequences on land, nutrient, and water use as well as …

Conserved Patterns Of Integrated Developmental Plasticity In A Group Of Polyphenic Tropical Butterflies, Erik Van Bergen, Dave Osbaldeston, Ullasa Kondandaramaiah, Oskar Brattström, Kwaku Aduse-Poku, Paul M. Brakefield

Publications and Research

Background: Developmental plasticity is thought to have profound macro-evolutionary effects, for example, by increasing the probability of establishment in new environments and subsequent divergence into independently evolving lineages. In contrast to plasticity optimized for individual traits, phenotypic integration, which enables a concerted response of plastic traits to environmental variability, may affect the rate of local adaptation by constraining independent responses of traits to selection. Using a comparative framework, this study explores the evolution of reaction norms for a variety of life history and morphological traits across five related species of mycalesine butterflies from the Old World tropics.

Results: Our data …

Cultivating An Alternative Paradigm In Urban Areas To Achieve Greater Food Certainty In The United States, Owen Beatty

Honors Theses – Charlotte Campus

The purpose of this study is to analyze food insecurity in the United States and propose a potential solution by means of increased localized agriculture and urbanized initiatives as new paradigms of relief. The word paradigms in this thesis is used to describe the examples of innovative alternatives to contemporary systems. A wide variety of research was gathered that examines the current U.S. food system and government nutrition assistance programs. The United States Department of Agriculture measures poverty by assessing a family’s cash income with a comparison to their needs. One such need is the cost of food, in which …

Nanoscale Measurement Of Trace Element Distributions In Spartina Alterniflora Root Tissue During Dormancy, Huan Feng, Yu Qian, J. Kirk Cochran, Qingzhi Zhu, Wen Hu, Hanfei Yan, Li Li, Xiaojing Huang, Yong S. Chu, Houjun Liu, Shinjae Yoo, Chang Jun Liu

Department of Earth and Environmental Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

This paper reports a nanometer-scale investigation of trace element (As, Ca, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, S and Zn) distributions in the root system Spartina alterniflora during dormancy. The sample was collected on a salt marsh island in Jamaica Bay, New York, in April 2015 and the root was cross-sectioned with 10 μm resolution. Synchrotron X-ray nanofluorescence was applied to map the trace element distributions in selected areas of the root epidermis and endodermis. The sampling resolution was 60 nm to increase the measurement accuracy and reduce the uncertainty. The results indicate that the elemental concentrations in the epidermis, outer …

Complex Variation In Habitat Selection Strategies Among Individuals Driven By Extrinsic Factors, Edward J. Raynor, Hawthorne L. Beyer, John M. Briggs, Anthony Joern

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Understanding behavioral strategies employed by animals to maximize fitness in the face of environmental heterogeneity, variability, and uncertainty is a central aim of animal ecology. Flexibility in behavior may be key to how animals respond to climate and environmental change. Using a mechanistic modeling framework for simultaneously quantifying the effects of habitat preference and intrinsic movement on space use at the landscape scale, we investigate how movement and habitat selection vary among individuals and years in response to forage quality–quantity tradeoffs, environmental conditions, and variable annual climate. We evaluated the association of dynamic, biotic forage resources and static, abiotic landscape …

Drivers Of Nitrogen Transfer In Stream Food Webs Across Continents, B. C. Norman, M. R. Whiles, S. M. Collins, A. S. Flecker, S. K. Hamilton, S. L. Johnson, E. J. Rosi-Marshall, L. R. Ashkenas, W. B. Bowden, C. L. Crenshaw, T. Crowl, W. K. Dodds, R. O. Hall, R. El-Sabaawi, N. A. Griffiths, E. Marti, W. H. Mcdowell, S. D. Peterson, H. M. Rantala, T. Riis, K. S. Simon, J. L. Tank, S. A. Thomas, D. Von Schiller, J. R. Webster

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Studies of trophic-level material and energy transfers are central to ecology. The use of isotopic tracers has now made it possible to measure trophic transfer efficiencies of important nutrients and to better understand how these materials move through food webs. We analyzed data from thirteen ¹⁵N-ammonium tracer addition experiments to quantify N transfer from basal resources to animals in headwater streams with varying physical, chemical, and biological features. N transfer efficiencies from primary uptake compartments (PUCs; heterotrophic microorganisms and primary producers) to primary consumers was lower (mean: 11.5%, range:100%). Total N transferred (as a rate) was greater in streams …

Exploring Elementary Students’ Scientific Knowledge Of Agriculture Using Evidence-Centered Design, Molly Brandt, Cory Forbes, Jenny Keshwani

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

The public is more disconnected from agriculture than ever. Americans are now two to four generations removed from the farm with a majority of Americans having no direct experience in agriculture. As a result, the public lacks the knowledge and appreciation of the food, fuel, and fiber it demands. The National Agricultural Learning Objectives (NALOs) were recently developed to describe students’ agricultural knowledge but have, as yet, not been used to guide research into students’ agricultural literacy. The purpose of this project is to further understand students’ agricultural literacy through NALO-based assessment of students’ knowledge. This study focused on the …

The 5e Learning Cycle: What's The Story?, Kelsey Lipsitz, Dante Cisterna, Deborah Hanuscin

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Multi-Scale Habitat Selection By Cow Moose (Alces Alces) At Calving Sites In Central Ontario, A.A.D. Mclaren, J. F. Benson, B.R. Patterson

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Ungulate Predation And Ecological Roles Of Wolves And Coyotes In Eastern North America, John F. Benson, Karen M. Loveless, Linda Y. Rutledge, Brent R. Patterson

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Understanding the ecological roles of species that influence ecosystem processes is a central goal of ecology and conservation biology. Eastern coyotes (Canis latrans) have ascended to the role of apex predator across much of eastern North America since the extirpation of wolves (Canis spp.) and there has been considerable confusion regarding their ability to prey on ungulates and their ecological niche relative to wolves. Eastern wolves (C. lycaon) are thought to have been the historical top predator in eastern deciduous forests and have previously been characterized as deer specialists that are inefficient predators of …

How Do Communities Proactively Address Lead Remediation? Community Case Studies From Iowa, Emma Nordmeyer

2016-2017: Scott County, Iowa and the Scott County Health Department

Scott County Health Department officials reached out to the Sustainable Working Landscapes Initiative (SWLI) program at Augustana College to start a partnership to address environmental issues related to lead hazards in Scott County homes. Students in Fall 2016 Contemporary Social Issues class worked in teams to perform case studies on communities in Iowa that address lead remediation proactively. Teams of students studied Dubuque, Linn, Polk, Marshall, and Black Hawk counties in Iowa. The students worked to identify obstacles, successes, key questions, and recommendations for future directions in lead remediation from these communities. This report is a summary of those findings.

Pathways To Increasing Farmer-Led Investments In Sustainable Agricultural Water Management In Sub-Saharan Africa, Douglas J. Merrey, Peter G. Mccornick, Molly C. Nance

Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute: Faculty Publications

Without a transformative leap forward in the use of irrigation, Africa will continue falling short in the struggle to feed its growing population, improve its people’s nutrition, grow its economies, adapt to the impacts of climate change, and eliminate poverty. While Africans must lead this transformation for it to be successful, the international community can help African countries substantially increase the use of more productive and sustainable water management practices and unlock the potential of farmer-led irrigated agriculture. Achieving highly productive irrigated agricultural systems in Africa requires an enabling environment that facilitates the full engagement of farmers, public and private …

Analysis Of Bioaccumulation Of Selenium Diets In Brook Trout (Salvelnius Fontinalis), Kyle Aaron Tasker

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

The brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) is facing many challenges throughout the Appalachian region, which are thought to be brought on by effects of climate change and the loss of habitat because of the disturbance from the pursuit of energy sources, namely, the mining of coal in the region. Most of the mining occurs in the central plateau and southern mountain region of West Virginia. The brook trout have historically had an expansive range covering this region and has the potential to inhabit the headwater stream systems that occur very prevalently throughout the Appalachians. In the state of West Virginia, the …

Eating For The Environment: The Potential Of Dietary Guidelines To Achieve Better Human And Environmental Health Outcomes, Margaret Sova Mccabe

Law Faculty Scholarship

Agriculture and food production contribute significantly to greenhouse gas emissions and environmental pollution. Shifting human dietary patterns has the potential to reduce such environmental harms while also promoting human health. Government policy, in the form of the United States Dietary Guidelines (USDG), recommends what Americans should eat and could play an important role in shifting the food system to one that is more sustainable. However, the USDG are an overlooked aspect of U.S. food policy. While many countries have moved to synthesize environmental goals with dietary guidance, the United States has taken the opposite approach. In 2015, despite recommendations from …

Household Food Vulnerability Under An Extreme Weather Event In Sta. Cruz Subwatershed, Laguna, Philippines, Karen P. Quilloy, Agnes C. Rola

Journal of Economics, Management and Agricultural Development

This study is an assessment of the vulnerability of households to food insecurity under an extreme weather event. A subjective-qualitative technique primarily based on the perceived food security status of the households and their food insecurity coping strategies was used to examine household food vulnerability. Key findings reveal that households living in the vulnerable areas of Sta. Cruz subwatershed were generally resilient to extreme weather events and only suffered from slight to moderate form of food security problems. Impacts of extreme weather events on them were generally moderate but the highest impact was observed in their income sources, logistics, and …

Sensitivity Analysis Of Wolf Restoration In Yellowstone Nation Park Using Omnivory Models, Derek Fields

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

In the ever-changing world of ecology, species survival often depends on approximations and measurements taken by biologists. These approximations help to ensure and predict the future of that given species. Our ecological community of interest involves wolves, elk, and berry producing shrubs within Yellowstone National Park. We use two different systems of ordinary differential equations, each increasing in complexity to model our community. In each model the predator (wolves) and consumers (elk) compete for a common resource, berry producing shrubs. We call this consumption of resources, from more than one trophic level, omnivory. We approximate each system with parameter values …

A Spanner In The Works: Human–Elephant Conflict Complicates The Food–Water–Energy Nexus In Drylands Of Africa, Bruce Schulte, Mwangi Githiru, Urbanus Mutwiwa, Simon Kasaine

Biology Faculty Publications

The two major conservation issues for drylands of Africa are habitat loss or degradation and habitat fragmentation, largely fromagriculture, charcoal production, and infrastructural development. A key question for management is how these landscapes can retain their critical ecological functions and services, while simultaneously supporting resilient livelihoods. It is a clear nexus question involving food (agriculture), water, and energy (fuelwood), which is complicated by human–wildlife conflicts. While these could appear disparate issues, they are closely connected in dryland forest landscapes of Africa where elephants occur close to areas of human habitation. For instance, crop failure, whether due to weather or wildlife …

Distribution, Diversity, And Den Locations Of Canidae And Hyaenidae Species Across Habitat Type At Enashiva Nature Refuge, Grace Bullington

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Due to the importance of top-trophic level predators have on their environment including regulating prey species and influencing ecosystem biodiversity, it is important to monitor top-trophic level predators to understand how they shape their ecosystem. While top-trophic level predators can benefit the ecosystem, they can also cause problems for surrounding human settlements like predation on livestock. Species in the Canidae and Hyaenidae families occupy the top-trophic level and can influence their ecosystem and cause human-wildlife conflict.

This study looked at the distribution, diversity, and den locations of Canidae and Hyaenidae species at Enashiva Nature Refuge over the course of 21 …

The City Where The Storks Fly: Sustainable Agriculture And Species Reintroduction In Toyooka City, Japan, Nako Kobayashi

Anthropology Department Honors Papers

In 1971, the Oriental White Stork went locally extinct in Toyooka, Japan. Today, around 80 of the birds fly free throughout the city. Toyooka uses the Stork Reintroduction Project and the promotion of “Stork-Friendly” agriculture to help combat the difficulties faced as a rural Japanese municipality including population decline, increased farmland abandonment, and falling rice prices. This thesis investigates how Toyooka City uses a pragmatic approach to achieve holistic sustainability that works within the framework of our current globalized cultural, political, social and economic landscape. By drawing on the fieldwork I conducted in Toyooka as well as the informal and …

Estimating The Number Of Recreational Anglers For A Given Waterbody, Kevin L. Pope, Larkin A. Powell, Brian S. Harmon, Mark A. Pegg, Christopher J. Chizinski

Nebraska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit: Staff Publications

Knowing how many anglers use a given body of water is paramount for understanding components of a fishery related to angling pressure and harvest, yet no study has attempted to provide an estimate of the population size of anglers for a given waterbody. Here, we use information from creel surveys in a removal-sampling framework to estimate total numbers of anglers using six reservoirs in Nebraska, USA, and we examine the influence of the duration of sampling period on those estimates. Population estimates (N ± SE) of unique anglers were 2050 ± 45 for Branched Oak Lake, 1992 ± 29 for …

Sinatra Living: Team Las Vegas Proposal (Full Packet), University Of Nevada, Las Vegas. Solar Decathlon Team.

Sinatra Living: Competition Materials

This packet is the final proposal for the Team Las Vegas project, containing a number of project overview documents.

Lou Ruvo Cleveland Clinic Team Las Vegas Solar Decathlon 2017 Panel Presentation, University Of Nevada, Las Vegas. Solar Decathlon Team.

Sinatra Living: Marketing and Promotion

This document is a slide presentation, as presented on Febraury 4, 2016 to the Lou Ruvo Cleveland Clinic, to gain support for Team Las Vegas's project.

Technological Modernization And Its Impact On Agriculture, Fisheries And Fossil Fuel Utilization In The Asia Pacific Countries With Emphasis On Sustainability Perspective, Rajee Olaganathan, Kathleen Quigley

Publications

Modernization is a process that moves towards efficiency. This affects most of the fields such as agriculture, fisheries, forestry, urban planning, policy, fossil fuel usage, manufacturing, technology, economic growth etc. This process plays a major role in moving forward making things faster, better and basically more efficient. The effects of modernization on all these fields bring about the major changes to aspects such as social, economic and the environment. The level of operation has increased from a domestic level; small family scale business to large commercial levels. As the level of operation increased, the utilization of natural resources increased gradually …

A Sustainability Index For Small Island Developing States., Philip Van Beynen, Fenda A. Akiwumi, Kaya Van Beynen

USF St. Petersburg Campus Faculty Publications

This paper proposes a novel approach to measuring the progress of Small Island Developing States (SIDS) towards sustainable development (SD) as set by the UN Sustainable Development Goals 2030. Currently, these goals do not provide adequate guidance on how countries might measure their progress towards sustainability. We use these goals and a subset of their targets to develop an index with concrete targets, through the use of pertinent sustainability indicators, that SIDS should aim to achieve a sustainable society. In addition to the three categorical pillars of sustainable development (social, economic, and environmental), we included the category Climate Change and …

A Serengeti Land Ethic: Deconstructing Environmental Dualism In A Critical Ecosystem, Kristyn Gorton

Honors Program Theses

This study synthesizes information on the ecology of the Serengeti Plains biome, its landscape and human history, the ethnoscience of its indigenous populations, and the current management objectives of the Serengeti’s protected areas in order to evidence the suitability of indigenous habitat management technologies in the preservation of this ecosystem. Effects of indigenous removal include the encroachment of tsetse fly bush, reduction in grassland diversity and primary productivity, and decline in the Serengeti’s keystone species, the blue wildebeest. The models of conventional national parks and community-based conservation alternatives will be evaluated in order to demonstrate the shortcomings of an environmentally …

Evaluation Of The Deadwood Bighorn Sheep Herd Translocation, Ty J. Werdel

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

From 2015-2017, we evaluated a newly established bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis) herd in the Deadwood Region of the Black Hills, South Dakota. Our objectives were to 1a) determine annual survival rates, 1b) determine cause-specific mortality, 1c) estimate population size, 2a) assess genetic diversity, 2b) assess disease prevalence, 3) evaluate movement patterns post-release, 4a) evaluate 3rd-order habitat selection, and 4b) estimate herbaceous biomass at foraging sites post-release of translocated bighorn sheep. In February 2015, we captured and translocated 26 bighorn sheep from the Luscar Mine near Hinton, Alberta, Canada to the Deadwood Region of the Black Hills, South Dakota. Overall annual …

An Evaluation Of Nitrogen Supplementation And Processed Soy Fractions On The Performance Of Cultured Fishes, Brandon M. White

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

World population growth has resulted in an increased demand for a sustainable food supply. This rapid growth coupled with an increased per capita consumption of seafood, has resulted in many of the world’s marine fisheries being over-exploited in an effort to meet the global demand for seafood. Aquaculture has attempted to fill the supply and demand gap created by the dwindling supply of fish in the world’s oceans. Fishmeal (FM) has traditionally been the primary protein ingredient in aquafeeds fed to farm-raised fish, however its unstable supply and increasing price have driven researchers to identify alternative protein sources. Soybean meal …

Evaluation Of Gamebird Use And Thermal Characteristics Of Alfalfa And Perennial Grasses In Eastern South Dakota, Neal P. Martorelli

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The northern Great Plains provide critical breeding habitat for waterfowl and gamebirds in the United States. Peak commodity prices in the late 2000s resulted in increased agricultural production and large-scale conversions of grassland habitat to monoculture row crops. However, recent declines in commodity prices have created a renewed interest for private landowners to diversify crops and enroll in government subsidized conservation programs that convert idle grassland and unproductive cropland to wildlife friendly perennial grassland plantings. Exploring alternative grassland restoration techniques can improve the efficiency of management practices to benefit future wildlife habitat and productivity on both public and private lands. …

A Comparison Of Benthic Macroinvertebrate Assemblages Between Perennial And Intermittent Headwater Streams Of The Mattole River In Northern California, Usa, Mason S. London

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Intermittent streams are common throughout the world and comprise 60% or more of total river lengths in the conterminous United States. Despite their prevalence, intermittent streams are understudied, particularly first-order headwater streams, which are vital for maintaining the function, health and biotic diversity of river networks. In June 2016, I sampled five intermittent and five perennial headwater streams in the Mattole River watershed in northwestern coastal California, USA, to compare benthic macroinvertebrate (BMI) assemblages between intermittent and perennial streams. BMI samples were collected using a 500µm mesh D-net at eight randomly located riffles along a 150-m reach, and then composited, …