Digital Commons Network^™

Teaching Children To Sacrifice: Mirrors To Windows, Duane E. Hiatt

Marriage and Families

No abstract provided.

Microcredit, Social Capital, And Politics: The Case Of A Small Rural Town—Gossas, Sendgal, Jainaba M. L. Kah, Dana L. Olds, Muhammadou M. O. Kah

Journal of Microfinance / ESR Review

Through an exploratory approach, we studied the evolution, sustainability, and management of ten microcredit institutions located in Gossas, a small town in Senegal, Sub-Saharan Africa. Prevailing ideas about social capital, in the form of social relationships within and between microcredit institutions and financing NGOs, donors, and governments, are examined using both rational choice and Marxist social capital theories to highlight the social struggles in social capital. This study goes beyond a microcredit impact analysis by including an exploratory institutional study to examine broader social and economic changes, including the new institutional changes brought about by neoliberal reforms, the emerging roles …

Determining The Optimum Number Of Increments In Composite Sampling, John Ellis Hathaway

Theses and Dissertations

Composite sampling can be more cost effective than simple random sampling. This paper considers how to determine the optimum number of increments to use in composite sampling. Composite sampling terminology and theory are outlined and a model is developed which accounts for different sources of variation in compositing and data analysis. This model is used to define and understand the process of determining the optimum number of increments that should be used in forming a composite. The blending variance is shown to have a smaller range of possible values than previously reported when estimating the number of increments in a …

Design, Development And Evaluation Of Chinese Radical And Character Tutorial By Hypermedia, Su-Ling Hsueh

Theses and Dissertations

This project report describes the instructional design, development and evaluation of the Chinese Radical and Character Tutorial (CRCT) project. The web-based CRCT project integrated hypermedia resources (audio, video, graphics, animation and hyperlinks) to teach undergraduate and graduate students basic Chinese radical and character recognition and writing. One-to-one test, expert review and small-group test were utilized in the formative evaluation. Statistical significance was found in the small-group test, which suggests that supplemental hypermedia material can effectively facilitate student learning of Chinese reading and writing outside of the classroom. Moreover, the qualitative data indicated that students enjoyed using CRCT's drills, feedback features …

Refugia From Browsing As Reference Sites For Restoration Planning, William J. Ripple, Robert L. Beschta

Western North American Naturalist

No abstract provided.

Competitive Interactions Between Endangered Kit Foxes And Nonnative Red Foxes, Howard O. Clark Jr., Gregory D. Warrick, Brian L. Cypher, Patrick A. Kelly, Daniel F. Williams, David E. Grubbs

Western North American Naturalist

We investigated interference and exploitative competition between endangered San Joaquin kit foxes (Vulpes macrotis mutica) and nonnative red foxes (V. vulpes). Seven kit foxes and 16 red foxes were radio-collared and tracked via radiotelemetry near Lost Hills, California. One kit fox was killed by a red fox. Home ranges of the 2 species did not overlap extensively. Although both species used similar habitats, they used different parcels of land. Kit foxes and red foxes primarily consumed rodents on the study site, and dietary overlap was considerable. Red foxes also may have been using dens formerly used …

Land Snail Diversity In Wind Cave National Park, South Dakota, Tamara K. Anderson

Western North American Naturalist

Eighty-two soil samples and additional hand-collection in Wind Cave National Park yielded over 2000 terrestrial gastropod specimens. The specimens represent 26 different species, including a South Dakota species of concern, Vertigo arthuri. New South Dakota state records for Gastrocopta pellucida and Vertigo tridentata were recorded. Samples from grassland habitats were less likely to contain snails and had lower species richness than samples from either forest or shrubland habitats. Canyons, creek beds, bases of limestone cliffs, and shrublands are important habitats for snails in the park.

Influence Of Grassland Type, Nest Type, And Shrub Encroachment On Predation Of Artificial Nests In Chihuahuan Desert Grasslands, Lisa C. Mason, Martha J. Desmond, M. Sofia Agudelo

Western North American Naturalist

Nest predation on artificial nests was examined in relation to nest type, grassland type, and shrub encroachment in Chihuahuan Desert grasslands in southern New Mexico. Open-cup ground, open-cup shrub, and spherical shrub nests (n = 210), mimicking Eastern Meadowlarks (Sturnella magna), Black-throated Sparrows (Amphispiza bilineata), and Cactus Wrens (Campylorhynchus brunneicapillus), were placed in 10 grasslands of tobosa (Pleuraphis mutica) and black grama (Bouteloua eripoda) with low and heavy levels of mesquite encroachment. Nest predation varied among nest types, grassland types, and shrub encroachment, with highest levels of predation occurring …

Fleas Associated With The Northern Pocket Gopher (Thomomys Talpoides) In Elbert County, Colorado, Helen K. Pigage, Jon C. Pigage, James F. Tillman

Western North American Naturalist

We collected 532 fleas, 526 of which were Foxella ignota ignota, from 247 northern pocket gophers, Thomomys talpoides, in Elbert County, Colorado, over 13 months. Other fleas included 1 Hystrichopsylla dippiei ssp., 3 Spicata rara, 1 Oropsylla idahoensis, and 1 female flea tentatively identified as Oropsylla (Opisocrostis) sp. These are new records for H. dippiei ssp. and S. rara in Elbert County. Fleas were cleared using standard methods and were placed on microscope slides in Canada balsam. The number of fleas per host ranged from 0 to 26. The highest median number of fleas per …

Distribution, Foraging Behavior, And Capture Results Of The Spotted Bat (Euderma Maculatum) In Central Oregon, Thomas J. Rodhouse, Maureen F. Mccaffrey, R. Gerald Wright

Western North American Naturalist

The spotted bat (Euderma maculatum) has been virtually unknown in Oregon despite the existence of potential habitat in many areas of the state. In 2002 and 2003 we searched for spotted bats along the John Day, Deschutes, and Crooked Rivers and at a remote dry canyon southeast of the city of Bend in central Oregon. The species was documented through the use of mist-nets, a bat detector, and recognition of audible spotted bat calls. Spotted bats were found at 11 locations in 6 Oregon counties. Nightly activity patterns of spotted bats were unpredictable. Spotted bats were found in …

Pilfering Of Stored Seeds And The Relative Costs Of Scatter-Hoarding Versus Larder-Hoarding In Yellow Pine Chipmunks, Stephen B. Vander Wall, Elaine C. H. Hager, Kellie M. Kuhn

Western North American Naturalist

Yellow pine chipmunks (Tamias amoenus) scatter-hoard food during summer and autumn but must form a larder as a winter food source before winter begins. Yellow pine chipmunks do not larder-hoard large quantities of food during the summer, apparently because a summer larder could not be defended from pilferers. We tested the assumption that the rate of pilferage from an unguarded larder would be significantly greater than the rate of pilferage from surface caches (which are also unguarded by yellow pine chipmunks) during the summer and autumn. Buried plastic buckets were used as artificial nests containing larders of 1000 …

Defense Of Pronghorn Fawns By Adult Male Pronghorn Against Coyotes, Kim Murray Berger

Western North American Naturalist

No abstract provided.

American Bison, A Natural History By Dale F. Lott, C. Riley Nelson

Western North American Naturalist

No abstract provided.

End Matter, Vol. 65 No. 2

Western North American Naturalist

No abstract provided.

Full Issue, Vol. 65 No. 2

Western North American Naturalist

No abstract provided.

Digestibility, Nitrogen Balance, And Blood Metabolites In Llama And Alpaca Fed Barley And Barley Alfalfa Forages., Heather Loree Davies

Theses and Dissertations

These projects were conducted to determine the digestibility of forage diets with differing CP levels in llamas and alpacas. The Utah study was designed to compare llama and alpaca nutritional parameters to determine if nutritional recommendations for llamas can be directly extrapolated to alpacas. The first study evaluated the effects of forage quality on blood metabolites and nitrogen balance in mature, intact male llamas (n = 4, 36 ± 4.4 months, 87 ± 17 kg) at high altitude in Letanias, Bolivia (4,267 m = aprox.14,000 ft above sea level). A second experiment was conducted with eight adult gelded camelids (n …

Improving And Extending Behavioral Animation Through Machine Learning, Jonathan J. Dinerstein

Theses and Dissertations

Behavioral animation has become popular for creating virtual characters that are autonomous agents and thus self-animating. This is useful for lessening the workload of human animators, populating virtual environments with interactive agents, etc. Unfortunately, current behavioral animation techniques suffer from three key problems: (1) deliberative behavioral models (i.e., cognitive models) are slow to execute; (2) interactive virtual characters cannot adapt online due to interaction with a human user; (3) programming of behavioral models is a difficult and time-intensive process. This dissertation presents a collection of papers that seek to overcome each of these problems. Specifically, these issues are alleviated …

T-Spline Merging, Heather Ipson

Theses and Dissertations

Geometric models, such as for use in CAD/CAM or animation, are often constructed in a piece-wise fashion. Historically, these models have been made of NURBS surfaces. For various reasons it is problematic and often times mathematically impossible to combine several NURBS models into one continuous surface. The recent invention of a surface type called T-splines has made the combining of NURBS surfaces into a single continuous surface possible, but much of the mathematics has yet to be explored. This thesis explores the mathematics and algorithms necessary to merge multiple NURBS, T-spline, or T-NURCC surfaces into a single continuous surface. This …

January: Search Based On Social Insect Behavior, Peter C. Lamborn

Theses and Dissertations

January is a group of interacting stateless model checkers. Each agent functions on a processor located on a super computer or a network of workstations (NOW). The agent's search pattern is a semi-random walk based on the behavior of the grey field slug (Agriolimax reticulatus), the house fly (Musca domestica), and the black ant (Lassius niger). The agents communicate to lessen the amount of duplicate work being done. Every algorithm has a memory threshold above which they search efficiently. This threshold varies not only by model but also by algorithm. Janaury's threshold is lower than the thresholds of other algorithms …

Steven A. Leblanc. Constant Battles: The Myth Of The Peaceful, Noble Savage. Matt Ridley. The Red Queen, Sex And The Evolution Of Human Nature, Laina Farhat-Holzman

Comparative Civilizations Review

No abstract provided.

Cholera And Its Impact On Nineteenth-Centry Mormon Migration, Patricia Rushton

BYU Studies

Nineteenth-century migrants traveling across America suffered from many diseases as they journeyed to new homes in the West. The disease that was most common and caused the highest rate of illness and death was cholera. Historian Robert Carter notes, "It was a disease with which people were... familiar, yet it was little understood. It would strike suddenly, with no warning, often killing the victim within hours of the first symptoms. It was so uncontrollable that often entire families, even whole emigrating companies, would be wiped out." While cholera was not always fatal, it brought fear and suffering into the lives …

Setting A Standard In Lds Art: Four Illustrators Of The Mid-Twentieth Century, Robert T. Barrett, Susan Easton Black

BYU Studies

Prints of paintings of Christ and other people from the scriptures and Church history are displayed in Latter-day Saint meetinghouses, visitors' centers, and temples throughout the world and are used in Church magazines and manuals. Many of these artworks were created in the 1950s and 1960s by American illustrators Arnold Friberg, Harry Anderson, Tom Lovell, and Ken Riley. While the religious works of these illustrators are familiar, less known are the career paths these artists took and the other works of art they created. This article aims to acquaint the reader with the lives of these illustrators and the circumstances …

Reverence: Renewing A Forgotten Virtue By Paul Woodruff, George Bennion

BYU Studies

Paul Woodruff. Reverence: Renewing a Forgotten Virtue. New York: Oxford University Press, 2001

The African World And The Japanese Spirit: Cultural Dynamics In The Writings Of Wole Soyinka Dn Watsuji Tetsurô, David Gordon

Comparative Civilizations Review

No abstract provided.

Alterations In Uterine And Placental Sodium Pump Abundance May Contribute To The Onset Of Mouse Labor, Carlos Jacob Vance

Theses and Dissertations

Objective: Reductions in sodium pump (SP) abundance can give rise to increases in contractile force in uterine and vascular smooth muscle as well as an increased secretion in secretory cells, including potentially those of the placenta. To determine whether the mouse might serve as a model for human pregnancy in terms of the SP and to determine whether changes in SP abundance anticipate or follow labor, we studied pregnant mice over the final trimester of their pregnancy.

Study Design: C57Bl6 dams (n=46) were bred and studied during their pregnancy. Animals (n=4) were sacrificed at specific gestational time points. Other mice …

Not Quite "Purported": Revisiting The Bombing Accounts Of The Hawaii Temple, December 7th, 1941

Mormon Pacific Historical Society

One of the most wide-spread religious legends207 thought to have been laid to rest by historians is the account of the protection by miraculous forces of the of the La'ie Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from damage or destruction by a Japanese pilot following the attack on Pearl Harbor December 7, 1941.

Descendants Of Israel: Intimate Interactions Between The New Zealand Maori And The Mormon Missionaries

Mormon Pacific Historical Society

Since the first Maori to be taught the gospel from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in the early 1880's, countless have become converted. Most of which were baptized only within the span of a few years of receiving the gospel. It is evident that the early Mormon missionaries clearly demonstrated a dramatic impact upon the indigenous tribes of Maori of New Zealand. However, what were the differentiating factors about Latter Day-Saint missionaries that set them apart from other missionaries, whom of which had already been in the country for roughly sixty-five years!? The course of this research …

Phylogenetic Relationship Of Forest Spiny Pocket Mice (Genus Heteromys) Inferred From Mitochondrial And Nuclear Markers With Implications For Species Boundaries, Malinda Wallentine Gonzalez

Theses and Dissertations

I constructed a best estimate phylogeny based on congruence of multiple data sources. In recent years molecular data has been used both to construct phylogenies of taxonomic groups and to aid in the delimitation of new species. I generated and analyzed sequence data for forest spiny pocket mice (Genus Heteromys) for the mitochondrial gene cyt b (1143 bp) and two nuclear gene segments MYH2 (252 bp) and EN2 (189 bp). I used maximum parsimony and Bayesian analyses to infer relationships among species and to provide a framework for using a species delimitation method to investigate the possibility of multiple …

The Byronic Myth In Brazil: Cultural Perspectives On Lord Byron's Image In Brazilian Romanticism, Matthew Lorin Squires

Theses and Dissertations

Byron's reception in one of the nineteenth century's largest and most culturally significant post-colonial outposts, Brazil, has been virtually ignored in English studies. The implications of Lord Byron's influence in Brazil are extensive since he was overwhelmingly popular among poets but also subversive to the nationalistic aims of Brazilian Romanticism. Nearly all of the well known Brazilian Romantics were not only influenced by him, but translated him. Their notion of what it meant to be "Byronic," however, differed from ideas held in Europe. The Brazilian Byronic hero was more extreme, macabre, and sentimental, lonelier, darker, and deadlier. Byron had various …

Differences In Maximal Speed Running Between Baseball Players And Sprinters, Erin Kathleen Robinson

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the differences in technique between sprinters and baseball players while running at maximal speeds. 20 male NCAA Division I athletes participated; ten members of the track and field team specializing in the 100 m or 200 m sprint or the 100 m hurdles and ten members of the baseball team. Each subject performed a maximal effort 80 m sprint while their sprint times were recorded every 10 m starting at the 20 m mark. Each subject was filmed at they ran through a set10 m marking that included where they reached their …