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A Chat With The New Editors Of The Maxwell Institute Journals

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

Accompanying this issue of Insights is volume 17 (combining numbers one and two) of the Journal of Book of Mormon Studies; however, readers will note that the Journal now carries a new name, the Journal of the Book of Mormon and Restoration Scripture. In connection with this change, the Institute asked Andrew H. Hedges, an associate professor of Church History and Doctrine at BYU, to become the new editor, replacing Professor S. Kent Brown, who served as editor and associate editor for many years, and who recently retired from the university. The new associate editors are Grant Hardy, professor of …

Full Issue

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Book Of Mormon Project Continues With New Volume

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

The Maxwell Institute and Brigham Young University are pleased to announce the release of part 5 of volume 4 of the Book of Mormon Critical Text Project, Analysis of Textual Variants of the Book of Mormon. Part 5 analyzes the text from Alma 56 through 3 Nephi 18.

Full Issue

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

No abstract provided.

The Joseph Smith Papers Project, Ronald K. Esplin

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

The Joseph Smith Papers Project seeks to do for Joseph Smith what has been done (and is being done) for George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin and other important early Americans: Make their papers easily accessible and more intelligible by publishing them in a carefully prepared, comprehensive scholarly edition. Historians rely on documents to gain insight into the facts, relationships, and other realities of the past, the raw materials from which they construct their narratives and interpretations. The task of scholars functioning as documentary editors is to help readers and other scholars understand the documents without getting too much in …

Full Issue

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Willes Center Awards Research Grants

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

The Laura F. Willes Center for Book of Mormon Studies announces five faculty research grants for the 2008–2009 academic year: Susan Easton Black and Andrew C. Skinner, “The Phrase ‘This Land’: Doctrinal and Geographical Implications for Latter-day Saints” (a book-length study).

Book Of Mormon Swords In Mesoamerican Antiquity, Matthew Roper

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

Swords are an important weapon in the Book of Mormon narrative. The prophet Ether reported that in the final battle of the Jaredites, King Coriantumr, with his sword, “smote off the head” of his relentless enemy Shiz (Ether 15:30). Swords were also used by the earliest Nephites (2 Nephi 5:14) and were among the deadly weapons with which that people were finally “hewn down” at Cumorah by their enemies (Mormon 6:9–10). While the text suggests that some Jaredites and early Nephites may have had metal weaponry (1 Nephi 4:9; 2 Nephi 5:14; Mosiah 8:10–11; Ether 7:9), references to metal weapons, …

Full Issue

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Institute Supports Graduates And Undergraduates

Insights: The Newsletter of the Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship

The Maxwell Institute continues to encourage and support the work of graduate and undergraduate students through two funds.

Mary Ann Shadd Cary And Kit Coleman: The Shifting Public Memory Of Canadian Female Journalism, Josie Smith

AWE (A Woman’s Experience)

Susa Young Gates Award Essay

Honorable Mention

On June 30, 1855, Mary Ann Shadd Cary, a free black woman from a prominent black family and editor of The Provincial Freeman (a black abolitionist newspaper printed in Chatham, Ontario, Canada) wrote the following to identify her own achievements in journalism: “To colored women, we have a word—we have broken the Editorial ice, whether willingly or not, for your class in America, so go to Editing as many of you as are willing and able.” Shadd Cary did indeed break the “Editorial ice” as the first black female newspaper editor in both …

Full Issue

AWE (A Woman’s Experience)

No abstract provided.

Coastal Fog Enhances Physiological Function Of Seaside Daisies (Erigeron Glaucus), Sarah E. Gomes, Sara A. Baguskas

Western North American Naturalist

Seaside daisy (Erigeron glaucus) is a plant native to fog-influenced coastal dune habitat in California. Seaside daisy is an important nectar plant to a variety of pollinators, especially butterflies, and is commonly used in coastal dune habitat restoration projects. In San Francisco, pollinator habitat restoration is critical for preserving species that would have otherwise been lost to urbanization. Advancing our basic understanding of how microclimate conditions (coastal fog in particular) impact the physiological function of the seaside daisy is an important first step to developing climate change–resilient habitat restoration plans. In semiarid Mediterranean ecosystems, coastal fog can augment …

From The Headlines: A Textual Analysis Of Social Polarization And Discord In Times Of Pandemic Across A Century In The United States, Alexa Demarco

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Within the past century, three major pandemics have affected the United States – the Spanish Flu, AIDS, and COVID-19. Each of these pandemics has tested the capabilities of the public health sector and the social resilience of the population. Scientists have studied the viruses and implemented public health measures to limit viral transmission, but the social responses to these preventative measures proved to be difficult to predict and control. The dissonance and polarization between the public health initiatives and the response of the general public in the most recent pandemic was apparent. Was this a pattern in other pandemics? Was …

Air Quality Impacts From Mineral Dust, Fireworks, And Urban Pollution Revealed By Trace Element Chemistry And Strontium Isotopes Ratios In The Wasatch Front, Utah, Usa, Micah J. Marcy

Theses and Dissertations

Airborne particulate matter (PM) in urban areas is derived from a combination of natural and anthropogenic sources. To identify PM sources and their effects on air quality, we collected PM using active filter samplers over a two-year period in the urban Wasatch Front, northern Utah, an area affected by multiple pollution sources. Filters from active samplers and other PM samples were analyzed for major and trace element concentrations and 87Sr/86Sr ratios. We identified wind-blown mineral dust from dry lake beds, winter inversions, and fireworks as primary PM sources affecting air quality in the Wasatch Front. Dust contributes Al, Be, Ca, …

Distribution, Ecology, Morphology, And Status Of The Inyo Mountains Salamander (Batrachoseps Campi), Christopher J. Norment

Western North American Naturalist

Between 2009 and 2019, I studied the distribution and ecology of the Inyo Mountains salamander (IMS; Batrachoseps campi). The IMS is a rarely studied species endemic to the Inyo Mountains of California, and 1 of only 2 extant salamanders whose range is restricted to desert ecosystems. I found 2 new localities, increasing the documented localities to 21. I calculated a minimum convex polygon distributional range size of 458 km2 and estimated that in the Inyo Mountains there are ca. 15,200 linear meters of IMS riparian habitat, the most common habitat for the species. IMS occurred across an elevation gradient …

An Exploration Of Factors That Impact Uptake Of Human Papillomavirus Vaccines, David Samuel Redd

Theses and Dissertations

Introduction The discovery and continued development of vaccines is arguably one of the most important innovations in human history. Vaccination greatly reduces the worldwide incidence and transmission of diseases, preventing permanent injury and premature death. Mass vaccination campaigns have led to the eradication or partial eradication of severe infectious such as smallpox and polio, have reduced childhood mortality, and has led to an overall increase in average health in the human population globally. Despite the documented benefits of vaccination, vaccine hesitancy is increasing, and the uptake of some vaccines is low. Vaccines have been so successful at preventing disease that …

Acceptance Finds A Way: How To Teach And Use Evolution's Explanatory Power, Daniel George Ferguson

Theses and Dissertations

The theory of evolution is the central combing theory that brings together all the tenets of biology that bring about a solid understanding of life. It is also one of the most controversial scientific theories of all time and is widely rejected by about 40% of the general public in the United States. One of the biggest reasons for low evolution acceptance is the perceived conflict between evolution and religious beliefs. Educators and researchers have been working hard to improve how we teach evolution in the classroom; some methods, such as focusing on evolution knowledge, have shown to be mixed. …

Researching Religion, Tourism, And Other Sundry Items, Daniel H. Olsen

BYU Research Development Office Research Networking Conference

Pilgrimage, Religious / spiritual tourism, Contested heritage tourism, Geography of religion, Tourism in peripheral areas, Tourism and disabilities

Optimization Of Solar-Coal Hybridization For Low Solar Augmentation, Aaron T. Bame, Joseph Furner, Ian Hoag, Kasra Mohammadi, Kody Powell, Brian D. Iverson

Faculty Publications

This work presents a process to determine the preliminary optimal configuration of a concentrating solar power-coal hybrid power plant with low solar augmentation, and is demonstrated on a regenerative steam Rankine cycle coal power plant in Castle Dale, UT, USA (average DNI of 542 W m⁻²). A representative plant model is developed and validated against published data for a coal power plant. The simplifications that lead to the representative model from a coal power plant model include combining multiple feedwater heaters, combining turbines, and using a mass-average calculation for extraction steam properties. Comparing net power generation and boiler …

Using Narrative Cycles To Advance Teacher Educators’ Emotional Work And Practice In An Era Of Affective Polarization, Ramona Maile Cutri, Eric Ruiz Bybee, Erin Feinauer Whiting

Faculty Publications

‘Affective polarization’ refers to the amount of negativity that people feel for those who belong to a political party other than their own. This self-study reports on our particular use of a narrative cycle model and documents its validity as a tool for doing the emotional work of exploring contradictions in one’s practice without the pressure of engaging in public emotional discourses. We focused on the contra- diction between our intention to teach anti-oppressive teacher edu- cation and inadvertently silencing students who exhibited affective polarization. Our narrative inquiry analysis documented patterns of our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that we assert …

Advancing Gpr Interpretations By The Use Of Multi-Agent Systems And Intelligent Data Analysis For Water Distribution Health Asset Assessment, David Ayala-Cabrera, Gemma Stanton, Sotudeh Hoseini-Ghafari, Joaquín Izquierdo

International Congress on Environmental Modelling and Software

The provision of reliable, safe, affordable and continuously supplied drinking water is essential in the development of cities. To ensure sustainability, efficient use of water resources, and health assessment of such critical infrastructures as water distribution networks (WDNs), the improvement of monitoring/verification systems with the collection of reliable data at a reasonable cost is an impending priority. This paper seeks to facilitate the health assessment of WDNs assets, using the ground penetrating radar (GPR) as a reliable and powerful non-destructive method for capturing information (radargrams) from the subsoil, and through improved interpretation of those images. This paper uses a multi-agent-based …

Study On The Relationship Between Air Quality And Mortality Due To Respiratory Diseases At Global Level, Margarita Espinós Torredemer, Karina Gibert Oliveras, Miquel Sànchez-Marrè

International Congress on Environmental Modelling and Software

The aim of this study is to bring new knowledge and verify some assumptions about how different environmental and socio-economic conditions affect mortality worldwide. From the three main causes of mortality, only one mortality due to join effects of household and ambient air pollution is analysed in this work. The study is carried out for a selection of 165 countries. Open data from several sources (the United Nations, The World Bank, Science Direct and Expansión datos macro) is combined bringing together information about geography, demography, socio-economy, environment (including conditions, emissions and natural resources), energy, education, standard of living, health and …

Agent-Based Modelling Of Space-Time Activity For Assessment Of Personal Exposures To Ambient Air Pollution In Nationwide Health Cohorts, Oliver Schmitz

International Congress on Environmental Modelling and Software

Not avalible

Centrality And City Size Effects On No2 Ground And Tropospheric Concentrations Within European Cities, Yufei Wei, Geoffrey Caruso, Rémi Lemoy

International Congress on Environmental Modelling and Software

Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) has been one of the constant health threats of urban citizens. But how the NO2 levels change across European cities, relate to urban population size is still unclear. Meanwhile, a theory shows that traffic-induced air pollution (e.g. NO2) decreases with the distance to the city center. But among empirical studies, whether this centrality effect is prevalent in NO2 pollution in European cities is still unknown. We therefore investigate 378 European cities to quantify the effects of centrality and population size using NO2 data from monitoring stations and the satellite Sentinel-5P. We confirm the centrality effect proposed by …

Visualizing Abm Submodels To Promote Stakeholder Participation: A Look Into Sustainable Forest Operations, Zenith Arnejo, Benoit Gaudou, Nathaniel Bantayan, Leonardo Barua

International Congress on Environmental Modelling and Software

Over the years, there has been an accumulation of different agent-based models (ABM) dedicated to forest resource management. However, only a few have been used in the implementation of real-world decision-making applications. One reason for this is the low level of stakeholder engagement in model development. There is still a significant gap between the stakeholders' understanding of the socioecological system and its corresponding representation as a process in a simulation model. In order to bridge this gap, it is necessary to communicate to the stakeholders the actual processes taking place in the simulation model. In this study, we developed an …

Integrating Equity Considerations Into Agent-Based Modeling: A Conceptual Framework And Practical Guidance, Tim G. Williams, Daniel G. Brown, Seth G. Guikema, Tom M. Logan

International Congress on Environmental Modelling and Software

Advancing equity is a multi-dimensional challenge for society, science, and policy. Agent-based models are increasingly used as scientific tools to advance system understanding, inform decision-making, and share knowledge. Yet, equity has not received due attention within the agent-based modeling (ABM) literature. In this work, we develop a conceptual framework and provide guidance for integrating equity considerations into ABM research and good modeling practice. The framework describes ABM as interfacing with equity outcomes at two levels: the science-society interface and within the model itself. The framework identifies the modeler as a filter and lens that projects knowledge between the target system …

Space Matters: Spatial Effects, Maup, And Spatial Statistics In The Analysis Of Environmental Change In The Oil Sands Region Of Alberta (Canada), Bahareh Fallah, Isabelle Couloigner, Alison Hanes, Mojgan Mirzaei

International Congress on Environmental Modelling and Software

The oil sands zone (OSZ) is a vast area (142,200 km2) of northern Canada, best known for oil and gas extraction, and characterized by a delicate natural and human environment, owing to its diverse flora and fauna, as well as its cultural diversity, indigenous population, and resource economy. A spatio-temporal study is conducted to detect environmental changes in OSZ, based on DEM input and Landsat composites every fifth year between 2000 and 2020. Once changes are identified, statistical models will be implemented to probabilistically assess the association of disturbances with specific process categories, i.e., natural vs. anthropogenic. Spatial data, including …

A Web-Based Grid Generation And Conversion Method For Open Geographic Model Integration Applications, Yuanqing He, Min Chen, Yongning Wen, Songshan Yue

International Congress on Environmental Modelling and Software

Integrated application of geo-analysis models is critical for geo-process research. Due to the continuity of the real world, the geo-analysis model cannot be applied immediately over the entire space. To date, the method of regrading space as a sequence of computing units (i.e., a grid) has been widely used in geographic study. However, the model's variances in division algorithms result in distinct grid data structures. First, researchers must install and setup the various software to generate the structure-specific grid data required by the models. This method of localized processing is inconvenient and inefficient. Second, in order to integrate the models …

Strategies To Improve The Groundwater Representation Of Hydrological Models, The Case Of Hype Model, Befekadu Taddesse Woldegiorgis, Helen Baulch, Martyn Clark

International Congress on Environmental Modelling and Software

Although the importance of errors introduced by inappropriate numerical schemes is well recognized in the literature, several commonly used hydrological models continue to calculate concurrent fluxes sequentially. Here, two versions of the HYPE model (HYPE and H-HYPE) with different model structures were used in two case study basins to investigate the impacts of sequential calculations on groundwater representation. Implicit Euler (IE) solutions of the continuous state-space formulation for two HYPE versions (IE-HYPE and IE-H-HYPE) were developed to help provide more robust solutions. In contrast to IE-HYPE, results show that HYPE typically simulated no interflow when soil moisture levels exceeded the …