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Hypogene Speleogenesis In The Cerna River Basin, Sw Romania: A Sedimentological, Mineralogical, And Stable Isotopic Approach, Cristina Montana Puscas

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Ever since it was identified as a speleogenetic process in the Guadalupe Mountains of New Mexico, USA, hypogene speleogenesis has become the focus of numerous research projects aimed at discerning between classical epigene caves and sulfuric acid or thermal caves. The first distinguishing characteristics that were recognized for hypogene caves were passage and cave morphology. The following step was the identification of rare minerals, specific for processes associated to hypogene speleogenesis. One other important step was the recognition of the importance of stable isotopes - mainly of S - in tracing the source of S and the chemical processes affecting …

The Malthusian–Darwinian Dynamic And The Trajectory Of Civilization, Jeffrey C. Nekola, Craig D. Allen, James H. Brown, Joseph R. Burger, Ana D. Davidson, Trevor S. Fristoe, Marcus J. Hamilton, Sean T. Hammond, Astrid Kodric-Brown, Norman Mercado-Silva, Jordan G. Okie

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Two interacting forces influence all populations: the Malthusian dynamic of exponential growth until resource limits are reached, and the Darwinian dynamic of innovation and adaptation to circumvent these limits through biological and/or cultural evolution. The specific manifestations of these forces in modern human society provide an important context for determining how humans can establish a sustainable relationship with the finite Earth.

Development Of Micro Volume Dna And Rna Profiling Assays To Identify The Donor And Tissue Source Of Origin Of Trace Forensic Biological Evidence, Brittany Morgan

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In forensic casework analysis it is necessary to obtain genetic profiles from increasingly smaller amounts of biological material left behind by perpetrators of crime. The ability to obtain profiles from trace biological evidence is demonstrated with so-called ‘touch DNA evidence’ which is perceived to be the result of DNA obtained from shed skin cells transferred from donor to an object or person during physical contact. However, the current method of recovery of trace DNA involves cotton swabs or adhesive tape to sample an area of interest. This "blindswabbing" approach may result in the recovery of biological material from different individuals …

Deprivation And Hispanic Health Paradox: Neighborhood Effects On Children's Wheezing In El Paso, Texas, Young-An Kim

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This study examines the impact of hypothetical health determinants - including objective and relative economic deprivation, as well as foreign-born composition -at the neighborhood-level on respiratory wheezing among Hispanic children in El Paso, Texas while accounting for individual-level covariates based on hierarchical logistic modeling (HLM). Due to El Paso's majority Latino/a population, focus is placed on the so-called "Hispanic health paradox" through analysis of the impact of neighborhood foreign-born composition on Hispanic children's wheezing. Neighborhood-level variables at the census tract-level are derived from US Census data. The percent of families in poverty and the GINI coefficient for income (income inequality) …

Lead And Associated Heavy Metal Distribution In Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, Samia Elfituri Grimida

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Concern over the extent and sources of heavy metals exposure has arisen worldwide since their significant effects have been discovered in the environment. There is general agreement that research is needed to examine the residual lead and its association to heavy metals contamination in soil and quantify the health hazards. This research was directed to quantify and document the geographic distribution of lead and associated heavy metals concentration in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. Lead, cadmium, chromium, zinc, and copper were selected to analysis. The soil samples used in this research were collected during a previous Encountors Binational Community Lead Study (RO1ES …

Fact Sheet, Yale University Office Of Institutional Research

Fact Sheets

No abstract provided.

Spectral Analysis Of Randomly Generated Networks With Prescribed Degree Sequences, Clifford Davis Gaddy

Theses and Dissertations

Network science attempts to capture real-world phenomenon through mathematical models. The underlying model of a network relies on a mathematical structure called a graph. Having seen its early beginnings in the 1950's, the field has seen a surge of interest over the last two decades, attracting interest from a range of scientists including computer scientists, sociologists, biologists, physicists, and mathematicians. The field requires a delicate interplay between real-world modeling and theory, as it must develop accurate probabilistic models and then study these models from a mathematical perspective. In my thesis, we undertake a project involving computer programming in which we …

Instrument And Method Development For Single-Cell Classification Using Fluorescence Imaging Multivariate Optical Computing, Joseph Swanstrom

Theses and Dissertations

Multivariate optical computing (MOC) is an all-optical approach of predictive spectroscopy that utilizes multivariate calibration and spectral pattern recognition techniques while operating in a simple filter photometer instrument, removing the need for expensive instrumentation and post-processing of spectral data. This is accomplished with specially designed interference filters called multivariate optical elements (MOEs). MOC can provide analytical solutions for applications requiring low cost, rugged, and simple to operate instrumentation for use in remote and hazardous environments such as open ocean waters. These instrument specifications are central for developing a method for classifying phytoplankton in their natural environment. Phytoplankton are photosynthetic single …

A History Of Place: Using Phytolith Analysis To Discern Holocene Vegetation Change On Sanak Island, Western Gulf Of Alaska, Cricket C. Wilbur

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

This study investigated a terrestrial climate proxy, phytoliths, as a complimentary approach to documenting the dynamics of present and past vegetation on Sanak Island, the largest island in a small island group in the eastern Aleutian archipelago, and as a new basis by which to interpret Holocene environmental variability in Alaska. A phytolith reference collection was established from 59 selected plant species of maritime tundra belonging to 27 families. The grass species and a sedge species produced abundant phytolith forms whereas the majority of dicotyledons in this study were trace producers of phytoliths. A paleoenvironmental reconstruction from fossil phytoliths recovered …

Antifragility Analysis And Measurement Framework For Systems Of Systems, John Johnson, Adrian V. Gheorghe

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

The twenty-first century is defined by the social and technical hazards we face. A hazardous situation is a condition, or event, that threatens the well-being of people, organizations, societies, environments, and property. The most extreme of the hazards are considered X-Events and are an exogenous source of extreme stress to a system. X-Events can also be the unintended outputs of a system with both positive (serendipitous) and negative (catastrophic) consequences. Systems can vary in their ability to withstand these stress events. This ability exists on a continuum of fragility that ranges from fragile (degrading with stress), to robust (unchanged by …

Balancing Human And Machine Contributions In Human Computation Systems, R. Jordan Crouser, Alvitta Ottley, Remco Chang

Computer Science: Faculty Publications

Many interesting and successful human computation systems leverage the complementary computational strengths of both humans and machines to solve these problems. In this chapter, we examine Human Computation as a type of Human-Computer Collaboration—collaboration involving at least one human and at least one computational agent. We discuss recent advances in the open area of function allocation, and explore how to balance the contributions of humans and machines in computational systems. We then explore how human-computer collaborative strategies can be used to solve problems that are difficult or computationally infeasible for computers or humans alone.

Governing The Post-Socialist Transitional Commons: A Case From Rural China, Shitong Qiao

Faculty Scholarship

When the collective declines, who manages the collective-owned land? When the socialist state fails, who possesses the state-owned river? This Article concerns the governance of land and natural resources that are still owned by collectives or the state in rural China. No effective community governance has evolved in rural China to fill the authority vacuum left by the dissolution of the people’s commune system. As a result, such land and natural resources have become real commons. In describing these I use the term “transitional commons” to indicate both the crucial influence of the transitional political legal environment in their emergence …

A Study Of Traditional Activities In The Exit Glacier Area Of Kenai Fjords National Park, Douglas Deur, Karen Brewster, Rachel Mason

Anthropology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Kenai Fjords National Park (KEFJ) occupies roughly 1,760 square miles on the Kenai Peninsula in southcentral Alaska. Sitting adjacent to the community of Seward, the park was established in 1980 under the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act of 1980 (ANILCA). The central portion of the park contains the Harding Icefield, from which no fewer than 38 active glaciers exit into valleys and tidewater locations surrounding the park. Of these glaciers, Exit Glacier is the most publicly accessible, and the only park glacier with road access from the town of Seward. A number of individuals and families from the Seward …

Lead And Associated Heavy Metal Distribution In El Paso, Texas, Ali Ragab Elkekli

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Contamination by lead and other heavy metals is one of the most important environmental concerns of today, locally and globally. This issue has led scientists and researchers to study the effect of heavy metals and their distribution in the environment. The aim of the present research is to document the concentration and geographic distribution of heavy metals in El Paso.

The selected heavy metals in the El Paso soil are lead, cadmium, chromium, zinc, antimony and copper. The soil sample for the study was collected during a previous community lead study (RO1 ESO11367; 2001-2006). 500 superficial soils samples were collected …

The Relationship Between The Meaning Of Water And Sense Of Place : A Grounded Theory Study From Northern Thailand, Katesuda Sitthisuntikul

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The literature suggests that a subtle relationship exists for communities between the meaning of water and sense of place, making fertile ground for systematic investigation. The relationship has obvious importance in today’s world, where people’s reliance on water, and the need for reliable supplies, form part of a common discourse in natural resource management. Yet, there has been much less discussion of what water means to people, how it connects with peoples’ sense of place, and what that might mean for the way people interact with their surroundings. The methodology of constructivist grounded theory was therefore appropriate to investigate this …

A Modular Mind? A Test Using Individual Data From Seven Primate Species, Federica Amici, Bradley Barney, Valen E. Johnson, Josep Call, Filippo Aureli

Faculty Articles

It has long been debated whether the mind consists of specialized and independently evolving modules, or whether and to what extent a general factor accounts for the variance in performance across different cognitive domains. In this study, we used a hierarchical Bayesian model to re-analyse individual level data collected on seven primate species (chimpanzees, bonobos, orangutans, gorillas, spider monkeys, brown capuchin monkeys and long-tailed macaques) across 17 tasks within four domains (inhibition, memory, transposition and support). Our modelling approach evidenced the existence of both a domain-specific factor and a species factor, each accounting for the same amount (17%) of the …

Water Consumption In Southern Nevada, Paul Conyers

Anthropology 100: Feast and Famine In a Global World Poster Assignment

With its massive hotels, casinos, restaurants, and dramatic architecture it can be easy to forget that Las Vegas resides in the middle of a desert receiving just 4.5 inches of rain per year. Its population has grown immensely to nearly 2 million as of 2012 and that is without including the more than 30 million tourists visiting every year. With this growth more and more water is needed to keep yards and golf courses green, to keep the fountains of Bellagio flowing, to support the habitats of Mandalay Bay and the Flamingo, and to allow Las Vegas to maintain its …

Life Cafe: Food Conservation And Health, Michelle Panko

Anthropology 100: Feast and Famine In a Global World Poster Assignment

Challenges of Health and Conservation in Las Vegas

• Las Vegas is a very large and busy city, with locals operating on a very hectic agenda often times resulting with a need for instant gratification.
• Because of this, many food industries in Las Vegas tend to distribute unhealthy foods in large Quantities.
• According to the Springs preserve NV blog, Las wastes produces 9,000 tons of trash a day.

Prehistoric Human Ecodynamics In The Rub Al-Khali Desert: Results Of Remote Sensing And Excavations In Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Jason T. Herrmann

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Archaeological investigations in the Emirate of Dubai, UAE conducted by the Dubai Department of Archaeology and the University of Arkansas demonstrate that the desert inland of the Oman Peninsula was occupied not only during the Arabian Neolithic (8000-4400 BC), when the region experienced a moist period referred to as the Holocene Climatic Optimum (HCO), but also during the more arid millennia following the decline of the HCO into the Christian Era. During this period, desert settlement clustered near a band of oases, in contrast to the more widespread spatial distribution of remains of nomadic pastoralists from the Neolithic. Excavations at …

Acknowledgements, The Mcnair Team

McNair Scholars Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Full Issue, The Mcnair Team

McNair Scholars Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Friends Of The Library Mcnair Awards, The Mcnair Team

McNair Scholars Research Journal

No abstract provided.

The Conservation Biology And Ecology Of The African Leopard Panthera Pardus Pardus, Ross Tyzack Pitman

The Plymouth Student Scientist

The African leopard Panthera pardus pardus is an apex predator, and a reliable indicator of a healthy ecosystem. Currently assessed as ‗near threatened‘ by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, leopards are exposed to a range of threats that include: habitat loss and/or degradation, depletion of natural prey, conflict with people, consumptive- and non-consumptive practices, and the illegal trade of leopard products. Leopards have disappeared from 37% of their historical range, and are continuing to decline. Leopards have been extirpated across many areas of Africa, especially where people are densely populated, which has left patchily distributed leopard populations throughout …

Insights From Characterizing Extinct Human Gut Microbiomes, Raul Y. Tito, Dan Knights, Jessica Metcalf, Alexandra J. Obregon-Tito, Lauren Cleeland, Fares Najar, Bruce Roe, Karl Reinhard, Kristin Sobolik, Samuel Belknap, Morris Foster, Paul Spicer, Rob Knight, Cecil M. Lewis, Jr.

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

In an effort to better understand the ancestral state of the human distal gut microbiome, we examine feces retrieved from archaeological contexts (coprolites). To accomplish this, we pyrosequenced the 16S rDNA V3 region from duplicate coprolite samples recovered from three archaeological sites, each representing a different depositional environment: Hinds Cave (~8000 years B.P.) in the southern United States, Caserones (1600 years B.P.) in northern Chile, and Rio Zape in northern Mexico (1400 years B.P.). Clustering algorithms grouped samples from the same site. Phyletic representation was more similar within sites than between them. A Bayesian approach to source-tracking was used to …

The Fierce Green Fire: Vol. 3 Issue 9, Wofford College Environmental Studies Program

The Fierce Green Fire

No abstract provided.

Sigma Gamma Epsilon Undergraduate Research Poster Session, Erika Elswick

The Compass: Earth Science Journal of Sigma Gamma Epsilon

The Sigma Gamma Epsilon undergraduate research poster session will highlight recent and on-going student research. Abstracts for poster presentations will be available in the Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs, 2012 Annual Meeting, Charlotte, North Carolina, 4-7 November 2012.

Transition In The Fractal Geometry Of Arctic Melt Ponds, C. Hohenegger, B. Alali, K. R. Steffen, D. K. Perovich, K. M. Golden

Dartmouth Scholarship

During the Arctic melt season, the sea ice surface undergoes a remarkable transformation from vast expanses of snow covered ice to complex mosaics of ice and melt ponds. Sea ice albedo, a key parameter in climate modeling, is determined by the complex evolution of melt pond configurations. In fact, ice–albedo feedback has played a major role in the recent declines of the summer Arctic sea ice pack. However, understanding melt pond evolution remains a significant challenge to improving climate projections. By analyzing area–perimeter data from hundreds of thousands of melt ponds, we find here an unexpected separation of scales, where …

2011-2012 Hccp Year-End Summary, Kristen S. Cloutier

Year-end Summaries

No abstract provided.

The Impact Of Income Generating Programs At Tarangire National Park, Tanzania, Dylan Mcdowell

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Tarangire National Park (TAR) is Tanzanian’s third largest grossing park, and is surrounded by 42 villages in five districts. The park’s single Outreach Warden has undertaken many projects since the park’s creation in 1970 to engage the villagers in natural resource conservation, including wildlife. The newest pilot project at TAR is Income Generating Programs (IGP) where community groups organize themselves around an activity that earns income. From September 24-29, 2012, TAR selected 10 members from three groups in the park’s northern end and 15 members from two groups in the park’s southern end to attend an all-expenses paid business class …

Geogram 2012, David J. Keeling, Wku Department Of Geography And Geology

Earth, Environmental, and Atmospheric Sciences Publications

No abstract provided.