Digital Commons Network^™

Canal Lining, Charles M. Burt

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

Larry and I thought that some musings about canal lining might be of some interest for some of you USCID newsletter readers. As you know, there are many canal lining techniques – especially if one considers the wide assortment of internationally used lining methods.

The Effects Of Sexed Semen On Embryonic Development To The Blastocyst Stage, William E. Plummer, D. Beckett, A. Schaffner, B. Layport, J. Norman, C. Grimbleby, P. Wessinger, E. Pace, L. Kirscher, K. Matthews, T. Dorshorst

Animal Science

Sexed semen (SS) exhibits approximately 80% of the fertilizing ability of conventional semen (CS), and studies have shown that this continues through the 8-cell stage of bovine embryo development. At the time of this study, no information could be found that, when used for IVF and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) development, had been carried to the blastocyst stage. In addition, questions have arisen regarding which of the measured sperm parameters are responsible for the difference between the SS and CS and contribute to this decline in fertility. The goals of this project were to evaluate the effects of using sexed …

Development And Evaluation Of An Integrated Simulation Model For Assessing Smallholder Crop-Livestock Production In Yucatán, Mexico, David Parsons, Charles F. Nicholson, Robert W. Blake, Quirine M. Ketterings, Luis Ramírez-Aviles, Danny G. Fox, Luis O. Tedeschi, Jerome H. Cherney

Agribusiness

Mixed farming systems constitute a large proportion of agricultural production in the tropics, and provide multiple benefits for the world’s poor. However, our understanding of the functioning of these systems is limited. Modeling offers the best approach to quantify outcomes from many interacting causal variables in these systems. The objective of this study was to develop an integrated crop–livestock model to assess biophysical and economic consequences of farming practices exhibited in sheep systems of Yucatán state, Mexico. A Vensim™ dynamic stock-flow feedback model was developed to integrate scientific and practical knowledge of management, flock dynamics, sheep production, partitioning of nutrients, …

Microfluidic Paper-Based Analytical Devices: From Pocket To Paper-Based Elisa, Andres W. Martinez

Chemistry and Biochemistry

Microfluidic paper-based analytical devices (microPADs) began as a simple idea with an ambitious goal. The idea was to make microfluidic devices out of paper instead of plastic or glass. The goal was to develop low-cost and portable paper-based diagnostic devices to improve healthcare in developing countries. Over the past 6 years, many developments have been made in the emerging field of paper-based microfluidic devices. Reviewing the development of these devices in the Whitesides group at Harvard University (Cambridge, MA, USA) can provide some insight into the future of the field and encourage scientists from a variety of backgrounds to contribute …

An Unexpected Audience: Manner Manuals In Renaissance Europe, Jonathan Leece

The Forum: Journal of History

No abstract provided.

Application Of A Simulation Model For Assessing Integration Of Smallholder Shifting Cultivation And Sheep Production In Yucatán, Mexico, David Parsons, Charles Nicholson, Robert W. Blake, Quirine M. Ketterings, Luis Ramírez-Aviles, Jerome H. Cherney, Danny G. Fox

Agribusiness

Simulation models are effective tools to examine interactions between livestock, cropping systems, households, and natural resources. Our study objective was to use an integrated livestock and crop model to assess the outcomes from selected suites of management decisions observed in smallholder sheep-cropping systems of Yucatán, Mexico. The scenarios contrasted specialized systems versus mixed farming, and evaluated the outcomes of increased crop-livestock integration. Mixed enterprise scenarios involving sheep provided more income than specialized enterprises, and capitalized on a lower price of on-farm maize grain, efficient utilization of surplus labor, and availability of common land. Labor and management income was greatest for …

Profile: Make It Beautiful, Taylor Kilbride

Fresh Voices: Composition at Cal Poly

No abstract provided.

Snp-Based Mapping Of Crossover Recombination In Caenorhabditis Elegans, Grace C. Bazan, Kenneth J. Hillers

Biological Sciences

Caenorhabditis elegans is an important experimental organism for the study of recombination during meiosis. Here, we provide methods for the use of single-nucleotide polymorph isms (SNPs) for the study of crossing over in C. elegans.

The Irrigation Sector Shift From Construction To Modernization: What Is Required For Success?, Charles M. Burt

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

External pressures related to environmental protection, commodity prices, energy availability, larger populations, and climate change have combined to require an immediate and substantial improvement in agricultural irrigation performance. Worldwide progression towards modernized irrigation projects has been uneven and slower than desired, but decades of irrigation modernization development have clarified certain requirements for success, as well as illuminated indicators of project failure. Of particular importance are required shifts within the state and national irrigation bureaucracies, as well as universities.

Animal Science Stock Report: Spring 2011, Animal Science Department California Polytechnic University - San Luis Obispo

Stock Report

No abstract provided.

Physical Habitat And Social Conditions Across A Coral Reef Shape Spatial Patterns Of Intraspecific Behavioral Variation In A Demersal Fish, Meagan N. Schrandt, Kristin M. Hardy, Kaitlin M. Johnson, Sean C. Lema

Biological Sciences

As coral reef ecosystems decline in health worldwide, reef-associated fishes are being impacted by changes to their coral reef habitats. While previous studies have shown coral reef structure to affect the demography of reef fishes, changes in reef conditions may also impact the behavior of reef fishes as they cope with altered habitats. In this study, we examined spatial patterns of intraspecific behavioral variation in the bicolor damselfish (Stegastes partitus) across the fringing reefs of Curaçao (Caribbean Sea), and explored how this behavioral variation associated with physical and social conditions on the reef. Principal components analysis (PCA) condensed …

The Deadly Effects Of ‘‘Nonlethal’’ Predators, Shannon J. Mccauley, Locke Rowe, Marie-Josee Fortin

Biological Sciences

Nonconsumptive predator effects are widespread and include plasticity as well as general stress responses. Caged predators are often used to estimate nonconsumptive effects, and numerous studies have focused on the larval stages of animals with complex life cycles. However, few of these studies test whether nonconsumptive predator effects, including stress responses, are exclusively sublethal. Nor have they assessed whether these effects extend beyond the larval stage, affecting success during stressful life-history transitions such as metamorphosis. We conducted experiments with larvae of a dragonfly (Leucorrhinia intacta) that exhibits predator-induced plasticity to assess whether the mere presence of predators affects …

An Approach To Point Based Approximate Color Bleeding With Volumes, Christopher J. Gibson, Zoë J. Wood

Computer Science and Software Engineering

Achieving realistic or believable global illumination in scenes with participating media is expensive. Light interacts with the particles of a volume, creating complex radiance patterns. This paper introduces an explicit extension to the commonly used point-based color bleeding technique which allows fast, believable in- and out-scattering effects building on existing data structures and paradigms. The proposed method achieves results comparable to that of existing Monte Carlo integration methods, that is realistic looking renders of scenes which include volume data elements, obtaining render speeds between 10 and 36 times faster while keeping memory overhead under 5%.

Lichens Of The Callahan Mine, A Copper- And Zinc-Enriched Superfund Site In Brooksville, Maine, U.S.A., Nishanta Rajakaruna, Tanner B. Harris, Stephen R. Clayden, Alison C. Dibble, Fred C. Olday

Biological Sciences

Metal-enriched habitats often harbor physiologically distinct biotas able to tolerate and accumulate toxic metals. Plants and lichens that accumulate metals have served as effective indicators of ecosystem pollution. Whereas the diversity of metal-tolerant lichens has been well documented globally, the literature of metal-tolerant lichen communities for eastern North America is limited. We examined the lichen flora of the Callahan Mine, a Cu-, Pb-, and Zn-enriched superfund site in Brooksville, Hancock County, Maine, U.S.A. Through collections along transects across metal-contaminated areas of the mine, we documented 76 species of lichens and related fungi. Fifty species were saxicolous, 26 were terricolous. Forty-three …

Environmental Proteomics: Changes In The Proteome Of Marine Organisms In Response To Environmental Stress, Pollutants, Infection, Symbiosis, And Development, Lars Tomanek

Biological Sciences

Environmental proteomics, the study of changes in the abundance of proteins and their post-translational modifications, has become a powerful tool for generating hypotheses regarding how the environment affects the biology of marine organisms. Proteomics discovers hitherto unknown cellulareffects of environmental stressors such as changes in thermal, osmotic, and anaerobic conditions. Proteomic analyses have advanced the characterization of the biological effects of pollutants and identified comprehensive and pollutant-specific sets of biomarkers, especially those highlighting post-translational modifications. Proteomic analyses of infected organisms have highlighted the broader changes occurring during immune responses and how the same pathways are attenuated during the maintenance of …

Fresh Voices, Volume 4, Cal Poly English Department

Fresh Voices: Composition at Cal Poly

No abstract provided.

Rhetoric: Naturally Deceptive, John Larwood

Fresh Voices: Composition at Cal Poly

No abstract provided.

The Proteomic Response Of Sea Squirts (Genus Ciona Congeners) To Heat Stress: Evidence For Differential Thermal Sensitivities, Loredana Serafini

Master's Theses

The sea squirts Ciona intestinalis and C. savignyi have disparate distribution patterns, which may result from differences in their thermal tolerance limits. Because C. intestinalis, an almost cosmopolitan species, has a more widespread distribution, it is thought that it is better adapted to endure a wide range of temperatures. In order to compare the heat stress response between these two congeners, we studied global changes in protein expression, using a proteomics approach. To characterize the response to extreme heat stress, animals of both species were exposed to temperatures of 22°C, 25°C, and 28°C for 6 h, and then were …

Agricultural Safety Consulting Firm Business Plan, Michael Portugal

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

No abstract provided.

Profile: A Person Who Changed His Fate, Van Anh Ho

Fresh Voices: Composition at Cal Poly

No abstract provided.

Wildlife Deterrent System: The "Scare Wave" Audio Deterrent System, Ferdd Mari C. Lansang, Kevin Wong

Electrical Engineering

The “Wildlife Deterrent System – The “SCARE WAVE” Audio Deterrent System” project involved working with a client, Mr. Robert Alberti, who requested the production of a device that would be used to scare away wildlife around his property, namely the Acorn Woodpecker. It was specified that this device be weatherproof and able to produce a 75 dB gunshot sound, when remotely triggered, which would cover a 30 ft radius circle of area. However, we have taken these specifications and went above and beyond with the final product. Our final product is weatherproofed and able to produce four user-specifiable, via provided …

Intelligent Software For Ecological Building Design, Jens G. Pohl, Hisham Assal, Kym Jason Pohl

Architecture

Building design is a complex process because of the number of elements and issues involved and the number of relationships that exist among them. Adding sustainability issues to the list increases the complexity of design by an order of magnitude. There is a need for computer assistance to manage the increased complexity of design and to provide intelligent collaboration in formulating acceptable design solutions. Software development technology today offers opportunities to design and build an intelligent software system environment that can serve as a reliable intelligent partner to the human designer. In this paper the authors discuss the requirements for …

Traditional Chinese And Indian Architecture Compared: Black And White Or Shades Of Gray?, Christopher Yip

Architecture

How should one conceptually distinguish traditional Chinese from traditional Indian architecture? The late Nelson Wu posed a China/India dichotomy as a way of clarifying one’s thinking about traditional architecture in China and India in his essay length book, Chinese and Indian Architecture. His position has remained a major lens for understanding the difference between these two great poles of Asian architecture. This paper will examine and assess his view of the subject, arguing that it’s a useful framework upon which to build.

Application Of Communication Concepts And Variables To Event Coordination: Flavor Of Slo, Sarah Hedayati

Communication Studies

No abstract provided.

Arteriogenesis And Ischemia Impair Functional Vasodilation In Resistance Arteries, Trevor Cardinal, Joseph S. Zhu, Kyle R. Struthers, Thomas J. Kesler, Matthew D. Yocum

Biomedical Engineering

No abstract provided.

Addressing Contemporary Concerns

Fresh Voices: Composition at Cal Poly

No abstract provided.

Alumni Newsletter, 2010-2011, Political Science Department

Political Science Department Newsletter

No abstract provided.

Igniting A Global Change With The Innovated Eco-Behavioral Model, Colby B. Kuvara

Social Sciences

My senior project paper is an analysis of the impact of Global Climate Change on modern social behaviors of rural communities, society at large, and international aid relations between developed and underdeveloped countries. I propose that it is possible that the most effective solutions to the environmental crisis actually focus on social problems, and most importantly, should place special emphasis on women in rural communities. The three primary areas for solutions to address are the implementation of improved technology, investment of financial capital, and fostering an attitude of Global Solidarity/New Humanism. While the first two elements are not foreign concepts …

Print Magazines: Linking To The Digital World, Stephanie Swartzlander

Graphic Communication

This study will show how magazines and their advertisers are using print to send their readers to digital sources of information. Placing URLs, QR codes, promoting Facebook/Twitter and mobile/iPad apps are becoming very popular ways to advertise products and services. Print magazines are utilizing these trends to link their readers from the print to the digital world and are reaping the benefits.

Seven different magazines were analyzed in this study. In studying the trends from 2008 to 2011, it is obvious that magazines and their advertisers want readers to expand their scope of knowledge by visiting their digital counterparts for …

"The Doctor In Spite Of Himself" By Molière. Translated By Brett B. Bodemer, Brett B. Bodemer

Library Scholarship

2011 American translation of Jean Baptiste Poquelin’s comedy Le Médecin malgré lui. Some liberties taken to convey analogous colloquialisms, and to transform exclamatory oaths into something less alien to American speech patterns of the early twenty‐first century.