Digital Commons Network^™

Infograz: A Data Base For Tropical Grazing Systems, K G. Rickert, J Carter, C K. Mcdonald

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

INFOGRAZ is a prototype of a comprehensive relational database that describes the management of, and stores information from, grazing experiments in northern Australia associated with the wool, beef, and dairy industries. It provides permanent storage and public access for detailed measurements on climate, soil, plants, and animals, which are a valuable resource for future pasture scientists and computer modellers of grazing systems. Thus it will prevent the detailed observations being lost with the passage of time. Verified data from each experiment are stored in tables which can be distributed on CD-ROM, along with procedures to access the data and use …

The Hydrological Impacts Of Woody Plant Encroachment On Coastal Tallgrass Prairie Of Texas, Zhiwei Guo

LSU Master's Theses

Globally, woody plant encroachment into grassland and savanna ecosystems impacts the hydrological functions of grasslands and associated wetlands. In the coastal tallgrass prairie of Texas, encroachment of woody plants has altered vegetation structure, but the hydrological impacts are poorly understood. In this study, I evaluated and quantified how woody plant encroachment affects hydrological processes on the pimple mounds and inter-mound freshwater marsh, including precipitation partitioning, infiltration in the vadose zone, groundwater recharge, and water volume in the inter-mound marsh. I randomly selected three pimple mounds with woody plants and three pimple mounds with tallgrass w to quantify hydrologic processes. The …

Analysis Of The Potential For Enhancing The Efficiency Of A Floating Photovoltaic (Fpv) System, How-Ping Wu, Ching-Yi Tseng, Chuan-Chung Jen, Yuan-Ching Chiang, Sih-Li Chen

Journal of Marine Science and Technology–Taiwan

This study examined the power generation capabilities of FPV systems and the advantages of employing active cooling on floating solar panels. Floating solar panels exhibit improved efficiency due to operating at lower temperatures facilitated by the cooling effect of water evaporation. Additionally, the high availability of water renders the application of the active cooling technique economically viable. This study developed a comprehensive simulation of a floating solar system, integrating a mathematical model to validate experimental findings and a temperature model derived from an energy equation specific to floating solar panels. This model calculates the heat transfer among the three different …

Effects Of Two Grazing Conditions On The Reproductive Achievement Of Male Alpaca In The Northern Peru Grasslands, C Pinares, E Malpartida, S Cortez

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Alpaca have recently been introduced to the northern Peru grasslands (Jalca). Effects of two systems of grazing management, co-grazing (with sheep) under fair grassland condition (CGFC) versus exclusive grazing under good grassland condition (EGGC), upon the reproductive achievement was examined from the 6th to the 16th month of age. Each system involved 20 Huacaya animals, managed by individual herders. Availability of herbage preferred by alpaca (HMA) and animal measurements (herbage intake, liveweight, testicle size, penis release from preputial attachments, plasma testosterone) were monitored monthly. Puberty, judged by the penis release from the preputial attachments, was achieved by 7 …

Experiences Of Eight Ohio Beef And Sheep Producers With Year Round Grazing, H M. Bartholomew, S L. Boyles, B Carter, E Vollborn, D Miller, R M. Sulc

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Livestock producers participated in a demonstration project to extend the grazing season and evaluate dormant forage quality and yield. Differences were not detected in yields among forage species but yield differences existed among sites. Yield estimates did not change over time across all forage species but some sites were only able to participate for two months. Producers utilizing fescue beyond November had reductions in herbage mass. Crude protein, available crude protein, acid detergent fiber, and neutral detergent fiber content differed among forage species and sites. Energy and lignin content were similar for all forage species and sites. Sodium and copper …

Forage Production Of Irrigated Lecerne- Grass Mixtures Grazed By Sheep, M L. Enrique, D P. Minon

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

The forage production and botanical changes of lucerne cultivars in pure stands and in grass mixtures were studied in a split-plot experiment with irrigation and sheep grazing. The non dormant lucerne cultivars (Medicago sativa) CUF 101, Monarca SPINTA, P 30 and common were the main plots, and tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea), canarygrass (Phalaris aquatica), cocksfoot (Dactylis glomerata), tall wheatgrass (Thynopirum ponticum) and prairie grass (Bromus catharticus) were the subplots. The experiment was grazed 3, 6 and 4 times during 3 years. Total yield was similar for all lucerne …

Oat Grazing: Forage Composition And Supplementation Response, A J. Freddi, M J. Arzadun, A A. Pissani, P Sastre

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Oat forage (Avena sativa), which has low soluble carbohydrates (SC) and high soluble protein (SP) content, can reduce liveweight gain of grazing animals; supplementation with grain and low degradability protein may serve to counteract the effect. A grazing trial was carried out on two soils with different nitrogen (NO3 -) availability, from 16 April 1994 to 6 September 1994. Steers were randomly allocated to 3 treatments: low nitrogen (LN), high nitrogen (HN) and high nitrogen with supplementation (HNS). Forage of LN showed lower SP (p<0.05) during the first month of grazing, and higher SC (p<0.05), than HN during the first two months of the trial. Animal liveweight gain was: 892, 909 and 775 g/an/day for LN, HNS and HN, respectively, with animals in HN of significantly lower liveweight gain (p<0.05). Under the conditions of this trial, animals grazing on oat forage with lower SC and higher SP had lower liveweight gain and responded to supplementation.

Native And Introduced Forage Systems For Cow-Calf Production, S W. Coleman, W A. Phillips, J D. Volesky

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

The objectives of this study was to compare a highly productive introduced warm-season perennial grass to native range for cowcalf production over two years. Three systems, 1) native range with pelleted soybean or cottonseed meal as winter protein supplement (NC); 2) native range with wheat pasture (NW); and 3) Plains Bluestem with wheat pasture (PB) were compared. Protein supplements were given twice weekly and cows grazing wheat pasture were allowed 6 hrs to graze. Cows on NW were heavier with higher condition at breeding in the spring of 1994 than those on NC and cows on PB were heavier and …

Rotational Stocking And Soil Nutrient Distribution On Hawaiian Grasslands, B W. Mathews, J P. Tritschler, L E. Sollenberger

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

A naturalized kikuyu (Pennisetum clandestinum Hochst. ex Chiov.) grassland was grazed by heifers (Bos taurus) for 2 years to determine the effects of two rotational stocking methods (short vs. long grazing periods) on soil N, P, K, Ca, Mg, and S distribution in paddocks with natural shade. Additionally, kikuyugrass-greenleaf desmodium (Desmodium intortum Urb.) paddocks were used to evaluate soil nutrient distribution in rotationally stocked paddocks (long grazing periods) without shade. In the study with shade, soil N, P, and K distribution did not differ between stocking methods. These nutrients accumulated within 15 m of shade, but did not …

Relationship Between Height And Sward Quality In Rotational Dairy Systems, M R. Mosquera-Losada, A Gonzalez-Rodriguez

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Height is a good guide for management in dairy systems.Intake by dairy cows depends on amount offered and quality of pasture and for this reason a relationship between that offered and pasture quality with height should be studied. The experiment was conducted in NW of Spain with three different stocking rates in dairy systems. A lower quality sward was found in the taller offered pasture as indicated by its higher ADF and lower CP percentages. Total sward ADF (kg x ha-a) was higher in taller offered pasture, which indicated a lower pasture quality, however the total CP was positively related …

Non-Destructive Methods For The Estimation Of Sward Production, M R. Mosquera-Losada, A Gonzalez-Rodriguez

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

Two non- destructive methods of grass production were compared: grassmeter and sward stick, in order to find an equation for transforming one into the other in dairy rotational systems. Linear, logarithmic and quadratic equations were fitted to the data. Linear equation was preferred by simplicity. General equations which included all the year periods showed no differences between sward stick and grassmeter. A detailed study of the different phenology states showed lower heights with grassmeter than with the sward stick method, which should take into account grazing management height recommendations.

Real-Time Non-Photorealistic Rendering Method For Black And White Comic Style In Games And Animation, Yan Hu, Lizhe Chen, Hanna Xie, Yuyao Ge, Shun Zhou, Xingquan Cai

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: To address the issues of high resource consumption and lengthy workflow in general nonphotorealistic, this paper proposes a real-time non-photorealistic rendering method for black and white comic style in games and animation. A specialized lighting model is designed to highlight the main environmental light and the grayscale grading of diffuse reflection based on the analysis of the lighting model effect. The pre-processing of the scene is achieved by merging the various components of the lighting model. A screen space three-phase edge detection method is proposed to sequentially perform depth edge detection, normal edge detection, and color edge detection on …

Oregon State Rank Assessment For Midget Quillwort (Isoetes Minima), Lindsey K. Wise

Institute for Natural Resources Publications

Oregon state conservation status assessment for midget quillwort (Isoetes minima) using NatureServe methodology, 2024.

Available Building Technology As A Tool For Developing Construction And Structure Systems., J. Q. . Nader Ibrahim Ismael

Journal of Engineering Research

The research aims to study the impact of available building technology in each era in the development of the constructional thought and implementation techniques used and its impact on the development of different types of buildings, through the emergence of different types of buildings and the development of buildings types in terms of shape and height, through the development of building materials used Whether construction materials or finishing materials, as well as used construction techniques and equipment, and the impact of all on the development of construction thought and construction systems through different eras . The research also represents an …

Using Recycled Materials Towards Sustainable, Eco-Friendly Building In Hot Regions – A Review, Mai W. Madkour Hosny A. Dewer, And Shaimaa M. Refaat

Journal of Engineering Research

Due to population growth and increased urban activity, there is a rise in waste production, which poses health and environmental risks. Additionally, the extraction and transportation of natural resources to places of employment require significant energy consumption, and the world has therefore moved to seek new alternatives away from traditional construction methods by recycling building materials such as concrete, brick, glass, wood, etc., or using new building materials such as rice straw, plastics, corks, etc., taking into account architectural design. The research is aimed at demonstrating that recycled materials have the potential to perform a better environmental performance by preserving …

Heritage Preservation In Egyptian Villages And Centers, Azza Elsakka Ahmed Abdalwahaab , Ebtehal Fady Shareef

Journal of Engineering Research

Heritage holds deep significance as a collective memory and a source of pride for any society. However, in today's world, it has evolved beyond its symbolic status and emerged as a crucial factor in human development across various dimensions. Preserving and restoring heritage has thus become an urgent issue that demands extensive cooperation between governments, international society, and community associations.

Diversity In Harmony: Creating The Built Environment’S Future, Doaa Mustafa Hashim Abu Zaid Ahmed Albadri

Journal of Engineering Research

The research paper investigates the relationship between the architectural history , innovative design and artifical intelligence ( AI) in shaping the built environment of the future. It investigates architects' ongoing efforts to push past design limitations using AI, with a focus on the expressive capacity of historical architectural materials. It addresses the transformation nature of generative design, emphasizing an iterative process using AI tools. The research paper makes a link between generative design as well as emerging forms of architecture by referencing the Dancism Movement using AI Midjourney tool. A case study demonstrates DANCISM Movement patterns, redefining high-rise buildings by …

The Transformation Of Greek Grasslands Under The Impact Of Socio-Economic Factors, R Thanopoulos

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

The impact of socio-economic factors on the transformation of Greek grasslands is examined. Factors like urbanisation, migration, collapse of traditional way of life, social pressure for land distribution, intensification of agriculture shaped the evolution of grasslands. Thus, these factors should be taken into consideration for the planning of grasslands management.

Chemical And Physical Properties Of Fine Fractions From A Village Proximate To A Uranium Mine: Insights About Soil Health, Mary P. Haley

Nanoscience and Microsystems ETDs

Thousands of abandoned uranium mines (AUM) in Native American tribal lands have not been fully remediated, leaving uranium mine wastes exposed and accessible for potential erosion and transport by wind. Analyzing the metal and organic content of the fine-grained fractions in soils could uncover the impact of mine legacy on the soil health in communities that live in proximity to AUM. This study investigates the physical and chemical properties of the fine-grained fraction (μm) of soils to quantify the effect of heavy metal-bearing particulates on the soil health in the village of Paguate and within the Jackpile-Paguate AUM located on …

Artificial Carbon Sequestration In Utah, Signee Storrud, Kendall Becker, Scott Hotaling

All Current Publications

Carbon dioxide is an important greenhouse gas that helps keep Earth warm and habitable. But since humans began burning large quantities of fossil fuels during the Industrial Revolution, there has been a rapid increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide from approximately 280 parts per million in 1750 to more than 420 parts per million in 2024. Natural carbon storage processes have been unable to keep up with humans’ carbon dioxide emissions, and the sudden rise in atmospheric carbon dioxide has led to rapid global warming and climate change. One climate adaptation tool that may help rebalance Earth’s carbon cycle is artificial …

Regioselective Hydroamination Of Unactivated Olefins With Diazirine And Total Synthesis Of Nostodione A And Scytonemin, Qingyu Xing

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

As an atom-economic way of carbon-nitrogen bond formation, hydroaminations are great tool for make amines, hydrazines, and other nitrogen-containing heterocycles. Specifically, radical hydroamination is a useful approach for functionalization of unactivated olefins, especially in sterically hindered environments. Diversification remains a challenge for radical hydroaminated products, since the nitrogen sources are carefully designed. In the first chapter of this dissertation, we report a highly diversifiable radical hydroamination reaction with diazirine as a nitrogen source and its potential applications in synthesis of several pharmaceutical interested compounds. Cobalt catalyzed regioselective hydroamination with diazirine shows wide function group tolerance, like phenyl thioether, ketones, esters, …

Synthesis And Analysis Of Borazine Polymers, Kayla M. Besel

2024 Symposium

Plastics and polymers are incredibly useful and ubiquitous in our daily lives but they are incredibly persistent in the environment, killing more than 1.1 million seabirds and animals each year and the global production of plastic has doubled since 1950.¹ A potential path to eliminate this problem is to create polymers that biodegrade or breakdown over time or in certain conditions. Three distinct degradable polymers were synthesized. The synthesis, characterization, and kinetics monitored by UV/Vis over a range of pH’s will be discussed.

1. Derraik, J. G. B. “The pollution of the marine environment by plastic debris: a review” …

Microplastic Accumulation In The Marsh Periwinkle (Littoraria Irrorata), Sarah Keaton, Hannah Lukhard, Eli Windy, Manar Hasan

DePaul Discoveries

Contamination of oceans by microplastics (mm) currently poses a major threat to aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems worldwide. Recent attention towards this issue has raised questions about the extent to which microplastics have accumulated in the environment, and has led to an increase in studies on the effects of microplastics in various organisms. However, levels of contamination in protected natural areas are still largely unexplored, yet can offer an important empirical perspective on the issue. In addition, little is known about the potential effects of microplastics on behavior in the field. This research was conducted within the protected ACE Basin National …

Detection And Quantification Of Acetaminophen In Aquatic Samples From Cádiz, Spain, Hannah R. Desmarais, Michelle N. Mikos

DePaul Discoveries

Pharmaceutical contaminants in water are becoming increasingly prevalent. This could have potentially harmful effects on human health and aquatic environments, even at low concentrations. Acetaminophen, the active ingredient of Tylenol ®, was the target compound for this study, and the aim was to determine is presence and concentration in various aquatic samples in and around the city of Cádiz, Spain. It was predicted that acetaminophen would be detected in low concentrations in river water, drain outflow, University of Cádiz saltwater flow, and lagoon water, but undetectable in the University of Cádiz sink water and fountain water. The presence and concentration …

Postweaning Skull Growth In Living Didelphid Marsupials: The Case Of Gracilinanus Agilis And Cryptonanus Chacoensis, Iveth A. Villalobos Guerrero, Noé U. De La Sancha

DePaul Discoveries

Ontogeny is described as the history of an organism through its lifetime including development, growth, and allometry. The ontogenetic approach in cranial dimensions has proved useful in interpreting evolutionary patterns. Among the largest Didelphidae family of Neotropical marsupials, the species of Gracilinanus agilis and Cryptonanus chacoensis are poorly known. In this study, we address three questions; Is there sexual dimorphism in these species? What is the pattern of allometry? Which allometric patterns best describe the patterns in the skull and mandible? We applied geometric morphometrics to describe and test these differences using MorphoJ. A discriminant function analysis was performed to …

The Impacts Of Urbanization On Soil: The Effect On Decomposition Rates And Microbial Communities, Maximus C. Halekakis

DePaul Discoveries

The anthropogenic impacts of industrialization have left many ecosystems polluted. Soil, being an imperative actor for ecosystem functions, is important to observe under anthropogenic change. My study examined soil organic matter decomposition, microbial biomass carbon(MBC) and the fungal to bacteria ratio(F:B) across an urban-suburban-exurban landuse gradient in San Luis Obispo, California. A cotton strip assay as well as microBIOMETER® testing was performed on three geographic locations in and outside of the city. The cotton strip decomposition acts as an indicator for organic matter breakdown as microorganisms break down the cellulose in the strips causing them to lose mass and tensile …

Disentangling Drivers Of Metacommunity Structure For Small Mammals Throughout Paraguay, William T. Szromba

DePaul Discoveries

Paraguay is home to a unique precipitation gradient, receiving progressively more precipitation from east to west. It has previously been suggested that metacommunity structures for order Chiroptera assemble along precipitation gradients such as this one. Metacommunities have also been shown to assemble along other bioclimatic gradients such as temperature. This study seeks to expand upon other findings by using a larger dataset, partitioned bioclimatic variables, and more mammalian orders. It also seeks to determine how metacommunities assemble along this gradient in Paraguay, investigate the differences between different ecological metacommunity assemblages, and to further understand which bioclimatic variables have the greatest …

Trec Ikat 2023: A Test Collection For Evaluating Conversational And Interactive Knowledge Assistants, Mohammad Aliannejadi, Zahra Abbasiantaeb, Shubham Chatterjee, Jeffrey Dalton, Leif Azzopardi

Computer Science Faculty Research & Creative Works

Conversational information seeking has evolved rapidly in the last few years with the development of Large Language Models (LLMs), providing the basis for interpreting and responding in a naturalistic manner to user requests. The extended TREC Interactive Knowledge Assistance Track (iKAT) collection aims to enable researchers to test and evaluate their Conversational Search Agent (CSA). The collection contains a set of 36 personalized dialogues over 20 different topics each coupled with a Personal Text Knowledge Base (PTKB) that defines the bespoke user personas. A total of 344 turns with approximately 26,000 passages are provided as assessments on relevance, as well …

Gnss And Insar Observations Of Vertical Motion In The Valles Caldera, Nm, Savannah Chase Devine

Earth and Planetary Sciences ETDs

The Valles caldera is a rhyolitic “supervolcano” formed 1.231 Ma. An understanding of whether Valles caldera is currently deforming is needed to inform volcanic hazard estimates for northern New Mexico and will allow for a better understanding of the hazards presented by other rhyolitic caldera systems. Here, we present an InSAR time series of the Valles Caldera using 37 interferograms, spanning 2014 to 2022, which show a small but consistent signal of broad pattern subsidence/yr. We also present GNSS observations from a survey conducted in October 2022 and compare the results to surveys in 2002 and 2003 to estimate the …

Controlling Adversarial Pheromone-Based Infections Via Quarantine Strategies In Foraging Robot Swarms, Ryan Luna, Qi Lu

Computer Science Faculty Publications

Virtual pheromone trails that facilitate efficient and adaptable coordination among foraging robot swarms are vulnerable to threats that exploit stigmergic communication. This study investigates the impact of a fake resource attack on the performance of a pheromone-based foraging algorithm and demonstrates the effectiveness of a “quarantine strategy” in mitigating the attack. The study simulates the fake resources and examines the swarm's behavior as robots are attracted to these fake resource locations. To prevent access to fake resources, circular quarantine regions are deployed, and a distance-based merging algorithm is implemented to reduce storage require-ments. The experiments are conducted with varying numbers …