Digital Commons Network^™

Animal Suicide: An Account Worth Giving?, Irina Mikhalevich

Animal Sentience

Peña-Guzmán (2017) argues that empirical evidence and evolutionary theory compel us to treat the phenomenon of suicide as continuous in the animal kingdom. He defends a “continuist” account in which suicide is a multiply-realizable phenomenon characterized by self-injurious and self-annihilative behaviors. This view is problematic for several reasons. First, it appears to mischaracterize the Darwinian view that mind is continuous in nature. Second, by focusing only on surface-level features of behavior, it groups causally and etiologically disparate phenomena under a single conceptual umbrella, thereby reducing the account’s explanatory power. Third, it obscures existing analyses of suicide in biomedical ethics and …

Perturbations Observed In The Orbital Elements Of The Spectroscopic Binary 57 Cygni, Kenneth W. Mclaughlin, Janak Panthi

Journal of the Iowa Academy of Science: JIAS

We present spectroscopy that confirms periodic Doppler-shifts along with photometry that reinforces a lack of eclipsing in the double-lined spectroscopic binary 57 Cygni. Our spectroscopy concentrates on a range encompassing H-alpha and the helium 667.8 nm line, where we find Doppler-shifts of both stars resolved in the helium line but less so in the broader H-alpha profile. Although we find the radial velocities derived from both lines reasonably consistent, we retained only the helium-line derived velocities for sinusoidal curve-fits to the orbital dependence. The fit-amplitudes specify the ratio of the stellar masses as 1.03 ± 0.05, in agreement with previous …

From Icon Of Empire To National Emblem: New Evidence For The Fallow Deer Of Barbuda, Sophia Perdikaris, Allison Bain, Sandrine Grouard, Karis Baker, Edith Gonzalez, A. Rus Hoelzel, Holly Miller, Reaksha Persaud, Naomi Sykes

School of Global Integrative Studies: Faculty Publications

Barbuda and Antigua’s national animal is the fallow deer, Dama dama dama, a species native to the eastern Mediterranean that has been transported around the world by people during the last 8000 years. The timing and circumstances by which fallow deer came to be established on Barbuda are currently uncertain but, by examining documentary, osteological and genetic evidence, this paper will consider the validity of existing theories. It will review the dynamics of human–Dama relationships from the 1500s AD to the present day and consider how the meaning attached to this species has changed through time: from a …

Social Contact Patterns Can Buffer Costs Of Forgetting In The Evolution Of Cooperation, Jeffrey R. Stevens, Jan K. Woike, Lael J. Schooler, Stefan Lindner, Thorsten Pachur

Jeffrey Stevens Publications

Analyses of the evolution of cooperation often rely on two simplifying assumptions: (i) individuals interact equally frequently with all social network members and (ii) they accurately remember each partner's past cooperation or defection. Here, we examine how more realistic, skewed patterns of contact—in which individuals interact primarily with only a subset of their network's members—influence cooperation. In addition, we test whether skewed contact patterns can counteract the decrease in cooperation caused by memory errors (i.e. forgetting). Finally, we compare two types of memory error that vary in whether forgotten interactions are replaced with random actions or with actions from previous …

Historical Observations And Identifications Of Plants And Animals In The Vicinity Of Engineer Cantonment In 1819-1820, Hugh H. Genoways, Brett C. Ratcliffe, Carl R. Falk, John R. Bozell

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

Historical observations and identifications of plants and animals in the vicinity of Engineer Cantonment in 1819–1820 (James 1822) are shown below in Roman and Roman italic print. Specimens identified through phytoarcheological and zooarcheological analysis of materials and believed to be reasonably associated or contemporaneous with the Long Expedition use of the site (AU4) are shown in boldface. Species present in both the historical and archeological data are marked by an asterisk (*). References used in this compilation include Benedict (1996), Brewer (1970 [1840]), Conant and Collins (1991), Ducey (2000), Evans (1997), Falk et al. (this volume), Genoways et al. (2008), …

Methylation-Based Enrichment Facilitates Low-Cost, Noninvasive Genomic Scale Sequencing Of Populations From Feces, Kenneth L. Chiou, Christina M. Bergey

United States Public Health Resources

Obtaining high-quality samples from wild animals is a major obstacle for genomic studies of many taxa, particularly at the population level, as collection methods for such samples are typically invasive. DNA from feces is easy to obtain noninvasively, but is dominated by bacterial and other non-host DNA. The high proportion of non-host DNA drastically reduces the efficiency of high-throughput sequencing for host animal genomics. To address this issue, we developed an inexpensive capture method for enriching host DNA from noninvasive fecal samples. Our method exploits natural differences in CpG-methylation density between vertebrate and bacterial genomes to preferentially bind and isolate …

Mother-Infant Interactions In A Wild Population Of Macaca Nemestrina (Linnaeus), Emily M. Dura, Lori K. Sheeran, Nadine Ruppert, Clay P. Arango, Sofia K. Blue

Student Published Works

Until now, mother-infant relationships have not been studied in a wild population of the Southern Pig-tailed Macaques Macaca nemestrina. We observed six mother-infant dyads from April 2016 to September 2016 in the Segari Melintang Forest Reserve, Peninsular Malaysia using focal sampling methods from the perspectives of both individuals. We hypothesized that as infant age increased, the same important mother-infant behaviours, previously observed to change in captive pig-tailed macaque mother-infant studies, would also change over time in field conditions. We expected that as the infant ages, mothers would decrease their rates of restraint and retrieval, and increase their rates of …

The Infrastructure-Extractives-Resource Governance Complex In The Pan-Amazon: Roll Backs And Contestations, Denise Bebbington, Ricardo Verdum, Cesar Gamboa, Anthony J. Bebbington

Geography

Large-scale access and energy infrastructure projects, together with expanding investments in natural resource extraction, pose significant challenges to biodiversity conservation, forest cover, and the defence of forest peoples' rights and livelihoods across the wider Amazon region. Following a period in which safeguards and forest dwellers' territorial rights were strengthened under more permissive political opportunity structures, the current period has been characterized by efforts to weaken these protections and to facilitate large-scale private investment in previously protected lands. We describe these investment-based threats to forests and rights, and the nature of regulatory rollbacks in the region. We then discuss some of …

Sustainability At Sit: A Look At The Past, A Plan For The Future, Taliesin Haugh

Capstone Collection

Climate change threatens our world and way of life. Intelligent development and investment could mitigate the worst threats of climate change, while simultaneously providing continuous growth for the global economy. The New Climate Economy proposes efforts to combat this ecological collapse that would result in $30 trillion in new annual economic growth by 2030. Stockholm Resilience Center agrees, giving a framework based on global ecological systems that calls for five critical tasks that can bring growth and stability: Renewable energy

Sustainable local food production

New development models, based on what has worked globally

Reduction of wealth inequity

Education, health, and …

Program And Proceedings: Nebraska Academy Of Sciences 1880–2018, 138th Anniversary Year, One Hundred-Twenty-Eighth Annual Meeting

Nebraska Academy of Sciences: Programs and Proceedings

Program

Aeronautics and Space Science

Collegiate Academy: Biology

Biological and Medical Sciences

Chemistry and Physics>/p>

Collegiate Academy: Chemistry and Physics

Learn to Print 3-D Models for Your Classroom Workshop

Aeronautics and Space Science Poster Session

Maiben Memorial Lecture: Thomas Clemente

Anthropology

Applied Science and Technology

Earth Science

Environmental Sciences

Teaching of Science and Mathematics

Friend of Science Award: Mary Kalen Romjue and Michael Sibbernsen

Simultaneous Use Of Physiological Sensors For A Neuromarketing Task, Charles Descheneaux

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Physiological measurements have become more popular in Psychological research over the past ten years. These advancements allowed different objective sensors to become another measurement tool in a scientific arsenal of collecting data. Traditionally, performance and after task subjective measures have been used for most studies in Psychological research. With the opportunity to use these subjective measures along with objective measures, more data can be collected during research and therefore potentially produce better quality conclusions. Eye Tracking (ET), functional near infrared (fNIR), transcranial Doppler ultrasound (TCD), electrocardiogram (EKG) and the electroencephalogram (EEG) have shown great promise in their ability to produce …

Tenuiphantes Zelatus (Zorsch), T. Zibus (Zorsch), And Centromerus Mariannae Sp. Nov. (Araneae: Linyphiidae) In The Pacific Northwest, Jozef Slowik

Insecta Mundi

The linyphiid spiders Tenuiphantes zelatus (Zorsch, 1937), T. zibus (Zorsch, 1937), and Centromerus mariannae sp. nov. are diagnosed, described or redescribed and illustrated, including the previously undescribed female of T. zibus. All are common species of the Pacific Northwest of North America but were previously inadequately described (T. zelatus and T. zibus) or illustrated only but not described or named (C. mariannae).

Description Of Phyllium (Phyllium) Conlei, New Species, And A First Look At The Phylliidae (Phasmatodea) Of The Lesser Sunda Islands, Indonesia, Royce T. Cumming, Pablo Valero Riquelme, Sierra N. Teemsma

Insecta Mundi

The Phylliidae (Phasmatodea) diversity of the Lesser Sunda Islands, Indonesia is preliminarily examined, and revealed to be notably lacking in completeness with only two species currently recorded. Of the nine islands/ island groups within the Lesser Sunda Islands, only the westerly islands (Bali and Lombok) have single species recorded: Phyllium (Pulchriphyllium) pulchrifolium Audinet-Serville, 1838, from Bali, and Phyllium (Phyllium) conlei Cumming, Valero, and Teemsma, new species, from Lombok. The latter species is herein described and differentiated from congenerics. To conclude, with so few species recorded from the Lesser Sunda Islands, a key to species for Java and the Lesser …

Cover

Journal of the Iowa Academy of Science: JIAS

No abstract provided.

The Synapse 18

The Synapse: Intercollegiate science magazine

No abstract provided.

The Holobiont With Its Hologenome Is A Level Of Selection In Evolution, Scott F. Gilbert, E. Rosenberg, I. Zilber-Rosenberg

Biology Faculty Works

No abstract provided.

Three Methodological Innovations In Race And Ethnicity Research, Jeffrey Napierala

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

This dissertation examines topics related to racial and ethnic diversity through three essays. Each essay takes a new perspective on a current issue in the literature and utilizes a unique statistical methodology to address that issue. The first essay uses the Monte Carlo Simulation Method to develop a measure of segregation for the ACS and uses it to assess whether the ACS is useful for measuring segregation in places with different sizes. The second essay considers whether a relatively unexplored factor, genetics, is correlated with migration. This perspective broadens our understanding of why migration occurs and is perpetuated over time. …

Identification Of Qtl Modifying The Activity Of The Tcb1-S Locus And Characterization And Sequencing Of Two Plutonium-Beryllium Induced Reduced Gametophyte Transmission Mutants In Maize, Merritt Bryer Burch

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis is split into two independent projects both involving the male gametophyte generation of maize. The first project looks at how pollen interacts with the female gametophyte to reduce its transmission in cross-incompatible reactions controlled by the unilateral cross-incompatibility system, teosinte crossing barrier 1. The second project explores two plutonium-beryllium induced male gametophyte mutants and attempts to uncover their genetic basis.

Identification of QTL Modifying the Activity of the Tcb1-s Locus
Teosinte crossing barrier 1 (Tcb1) is a unilateral cross-incompatibility system present in maize that provides a pre-zygotic pistil barrier to plants carrying Tcb1-s (strong allele) from pollen …

University Of Nebraska At Omaha 2018-2019 Course Catalog, University Of Nebraska At Omaha

Undergraduate Catalogs

Located in one of America’s best cities to live, work and learn, the University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) is Nebraska’s premier metropolitan university. With more than 15,000 students enrolled in 200-plus programs of study, UNO is recognized nationally for its online education, graduate education, military friendliness, and community engagement efforts.Founded in 1908, UNO has served learners of all backgrounds for more than 100 years and is dedicated to another century of excellence both in the classroom and in the community.

Fear And (Non) Fiction: Agrarian Anxiety In “The Colour Out Of Space”, Antonio Barroso

Master's Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

This literary and sociological study examines H.P. Lovecraft’s “The Colour Out of Space” alongside New England agricultural societies in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries as their members faced socio-political change. Anxieties expressed in the short story reflect fears of communities facing erasure at the hands of a reservoir project. Patterns of historical American rural communities facing destruction in the name of progress as well as modern communities facing similar threats show the endurance of Lovecraft’s specific brand of fear.

A Description Of Nesting Behaviors, Including Factors Impacting Nest Site Selection, In Black‐And‐White Ruffed Lemurs (Varecia Variegata), Andrea L. Baden

Publications and Research

Nest site selection is at once fundamental to reproduction and a poorly understood component of many organisms’ reproductive investment. This study investigates the nesting behaviors of black-and-white ruffed lemurs, Varecia variegata, a litter-bearing primate from the southeastern rainforests of Madagascar. Using a combination of behavioral, geospatial, and demographic data, I test the hypotheses that environmental and social cues influence nest site selection and that these decisions ultimately impact maternal reproductive success. Gestating females built multiple large nests throughout their territories. Of these, females used only a fraction of the originally constructed nests, as well as several parking locations as infants …

Michigan Academician, Volume 45, Issue 3

Michigan Academician

No abstract provided.

A Preliminary Investigation Of Acculturative Stress And Diurnal Cortisol Among Latina Women, Lucas Torres, Felicia Mata-Greve, April L. Harkins

Clinical Lab Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

The interplay between biological and cultural factors has remained understudied among ethnic minority groups, including Latinos. To the best of our knowledge, minimal to no research has examined the relationship between acculturative stressors and diurnal cortisol among Latina women. This initial exploratory study sought to examine the relationship between cortisol and acculturative stress. Among a small sample of adult Latina women, salivary cortisol was collected at 3 time points (waking, 30 min postwaking, and bedtime) to assess the cortisol awakening response (CAR) and diurnal cortisol response. Information regarding acculturative stress and acculturation was also collected. The major results showed that …

Hunger In The Land Of Plenty: Local Responses To Food Insecurity In Iowa, Gabrielle E. Roesch-Mcnally, Jacqueline Ann Nester, Andrea D. Basche, Eric Christianson, Emily Zimmerman

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Story County (estimated population 92,406 in 2013) lies in the heart of central Iowa, a state renowned for its remarkable agricultural productivity. Iowa leads all states for production of corn, soybean, and hogs. Revenues from agricultural products in Iowa total more than $30 billion annually according the 2012 Agricultural Census (USDA-NASS 2014). This productivity stems from a favorable natural and political environment. The temperate climate, productive soils, and gentle topography are ideal for our production system of commodity agriculture facilitated by federal policies, which include subsidized crop insurance and commodity payments (Horrigan, Lawrence, and Walker 2002). Despite this productivity and …

Re-Evaluating Captive Chimpanzee “Dominance”: Dominance Hierarchy And Chimpanzee-Caregiver Relationships At Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest, Jake Funkhouser

All Master's Theses

This thesis is composed of two journal-ready articles and an accompanying appendix with additional data and interpretation. Overall, this thesis describes and statistically analyzes dominance relationships in two nonhuman primate groups with novel methods, possible correlations between dominance and testosterone, and uncovers the prominent connection of caregivers to captive chimpanzee social networks. Chapter I addresses current and past variability in behavioral measures and statistical methods to derive dominance rankings. I propose a novel approach to using existing statistical techniques to analyze dominance ranks, context-dependent dominant structures (agonistic competitions, lack of agonism, privileged role, priority access to resources), the reliability of …

Use Of A Two-Action Paradigm Apparatus With Captive Lemurs: Insights Into Social Learning, Carly Batist

All Master's Theses

Lemurs have been understudied in cognitive research despite possessing a unique phylogenetic position as the lineage linking primates to other mammals. I used a two-action paradigm apparatus to test social learning abilities in seven lemur species at the Duke Lemur Center. There were three groups: push (had model previously taught to push), pull (had model previously taught to pull), and control (no model). I conducted experimental trials to determine if lemurs in push/pull groups learned faster and more efficiently from the model than lemurs in control groups who lacked a model to observe. I found evidence of social facilitation in …

Response Of Three Species Of Monkeys To Caregiver Use Of Species-Typical Behavior, Lillian Anna Stolar

All Master's Theses

Caregivers are a primary part of captive monkey environments. When addressing psychological well-being of captive nonhuman primates, social environment should be considered. Chimpanzees, gorillas, New World monkeys, and Old World monkeys responded positively to interactions with caregivers. Some species showed increased affiliative behaviors and decreased abnormal or self-directed behaviors after interactions. These studies showed that caregivers can affect the behavior of nonhuman primates. Caregivers are underutilized as a source of social interaction for captive nonhuman primates. Utilizing species-typical behaviors during interactions, caregivers and nonhuman primates can communicate and interact in different ways that may be beneficial to both caregiver and …

Gorilla Life-Stage Comparison Of Head Orientation, Lisa Wilding

All Master's Theses

Staring by primates, as well as other species of animals, can be perceived as a threat and averting that gaze can minimize potential conflict. Given that gorillas are highly sexually dimorphic, they may use this staring and gaze aversion strategy more than physical contact. Due to the shape of the eye and the pigmented sclera in some primates, eye gaze can be difficult to determine, whereas, head orientation may be a more salient cue. The current study documents developmental differences among age-sex classes of captive western lowland gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) in six head orientation categories (Head Toward …

Single And Pair Housed Chacma Baboons’ (Papio Ursinus) Response To Caregivers’ Use Of Species-Specific Behavior, Josefine Holm

All Master's Theses

Most captive primates suffer from stereotypical or abnormal behavior which can be reduced by implementing enrichment protocols. There is, however, often spatial or economic limitations to facilities’ enrichment programs, and implementing the most beneficial and cost-effective enrichment is therefore crucial to ensure the best welfare for captive primates. Social enrichment has been designated as the most effective type of enrichment, but often captive primates cannot be housed in social groups. Through this study, I wanted to determine if species-specific behavioral interactions between human caregivers and captive chacma baboons (Papio ursinus)would alter the baboons’ behaviors, and if these interactions could …

A Zooarchaeological Analysis Of Hole-In-The-Wall Canyon (45kt12) And French Rapids (45kt13) Sites: Ginkgo State Park, Washington, Matt Johnson

All Master's Theses

A taxonomic and taphonomic faunal analysis was completed for the entire zooarchaeological collection (n=5,354) for two prehistoric archaeological housepit sites, Hole-in-the-Wall Canyon (45KT12) and French Rapids (45KT13). Both sites are located near Vantage, Washington, within the inundated area of the Wanapum Reservoir. Work focused on compiling site records, projectile point analysis, and radiocarbon dating in order to study site chronology, as well as the faunal analysis itself. Site 45KT12 includes at least two occupations; one occurring around 2000 cal B.P., and one beginning around 1100 cal B.P. and continuing at least through 650 cal B.P. A single analytical unit was …