Digital Commons Network^™

Aloe Striata Plant Defense Compounds Produced In Response To Jasmonic Acid, Salicylic Acid, And Eriophyid Mite Salivary Extract Elicitor Compounds, Fritz Light

Master's Theses

Aloe mites are herbivores of the genus Aloe (ALOACEAE) and are associated with hyperplastic growth in various aloe species, but the biochemistry of this interaction is poorly understood. In an effort to characterize plant defense responses to herbivory in the genus Aloe, a salivary extract was isolated from aloe mites (Aceria aloinis Keifer) and its bioactivity was tested using a hypocotyl elongation assay. Subsequently, Aloe striata plants were treated with jasmonic acid (JA), salicylic acid (SA), and the mite salivary extract. Using water and methanol, compounds of different polarity were extracted from aloe tissues that had been frozen …

Beyond Suffering - Commentary On Clare Palmer, Gordon M. Burghardt

Between the Species

None needed?

Stressors And Threats To The Flora Of Acadia National Park, Maine: Current Knowledge, Information Gaps, And Future Directions, Tanner B. Harris, Nishanta Rajakaruna, Sarah J. Nelson, Peter D. Vaux

Biological Sciences

Acadia National Park is a center of plant diversity in northeastern North America. The Park's varied habitats and flora are sensitive to a number of natural and anthropogenic perturbations. Stressors such as invasive plants, pest and pathogens, ozone, acidic fog and sulfur deposition, nitrogen deposition, heavy metals, fire and fire suppression, over-browsing, visitor use, hurricanes, and climate change have all had effects on the Park's habitats and plant species at some point and it is unclear how many of these stressors are currently affecting the flora of Acadia National Park. We discuss the botanical diversity of Acadia, assess the natural …

Hypoxia-Sensitive Gene Expression In The Gastrocnemius Muscle Following Chronic Hind Limb Ischemia, Andrew Tilton

Biological Sciences

Chronic ischemia, caused by the formation atherosclerotic plaque occlusions in major conduit arteries, is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in western societies. Vascular remodeling can help compensate for the adverse effects of atherosclerotic plaque formation. Vascular remodeling relies heavily on vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), a critical protein that contributes to all forms of vascular formation and remodeling including angiogenesis, arteriogenesisand vasculogenesis. VEGF itself is up-regulated by the transcription factor, hypoxia inducible factor 1 alpha (HIF-1α), which becomes activated in low oxygen environments.

Through the use of animal chronic hindlimb ischemia models, these genes can be evaluated as …

Brain Recorder, Anthony M. Garcia

Computer Engineering

Electroencephalography (EEG) is the recording of electrical activity along the scalp. Our mind regulates its activities by means of electric waves which are registered in the brain, emitting tiny electrochemical impulses of varied frequencies, which can be registered by an electroencephalogram. These “brainwave” frequencies are split into different bands. There is ongoing research that attempts to correlate the frequencies in the different bands to different emotional states and levels of concentration. With the increase in availability of commercial EEG devices, such studies can be sped up by making the collection of data easier, faster, and mobile. Creating a mobile application …

Tissue Engineering A Blood Vessel Mimic While Monitoring Contamination Through Sterility Assurance Testing, Navid Djassemi

Master's Theses

Tissue Engineering A Blood Vessel Mimic While Monitoring Contamination Through Sterility Assurance Testing

Navid Djassemi

Tissue engineering blood vessel mimics has been proposed as a method to analyze the endothelial cell response to intravascular devices that are used in today’s clinical settings for the treatment of cardiovascular disease. Thus, the development of in vitro blood vessel mimics (BVMs) in Cal Poly’s Tissue Engineering Lab has introduced the possibility of assessing the characteristics of cellular response to past, present, and future intravascular devices that aim at treating coronary artery disease.

This thesis aimed at improving the methods and procedures utilized in …

The Spatial Distribution Of K-Factor Values Across A Toposequence And A Soil Survey Map Unit, Jacqueline Elizabeth Tilligkeit

Master's Theses

Rivers and streams are adversely affected by an increase in sedimentation in their waters from eroding land. High sediment loads in streams can bury fish eggs and prevent hatching, increasing nutrients in the water causing algae blooms, or even contaminating the water with heavy metals carried in or on the aggregates. The erodibility of soil is valuable knowledge to all land users so that we may predict soil loss and its potential to pollute streams. This is done by using the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE). By predicting soil loss from a given landscape, land managers can take mitigation …

Parental Diet And Risk Of Retinoblastoma Resulting From New Germline Rb1 Mutation, Greta R. Bunin, Marilyn Tseng, Yimei Li, Anna T. Meadows, Arupa Ganguly

Kinesiology and Public Health

We conducted a case–control study of sporadic bilateral retinoblastoma, which results from a new germline RB1 mutation, to investigate the role of parents' diet before their child's conception. Parents of 206 cases from nine North American institutions and 269 controls participated; of these, fathers of 184 cases and 223 controls and mothers of 204 cases and 260 controls answered a food frequency questionnaire administered by phone about their diet in the year before the child's conception. Cases provided DNA for RB1 mutation testing. We assessed parents' diet by examining 19 food groups. Father's intake of dairy products and fruit was …

A Study Of Faculty Data Curation Behaviors And Attitudes At A Teaching-Centered University, Jeanine Marie Scaramozzino, Marisa L. Ramírez, Karen J. Mcgaughey

Library Scholarship

Academic libraries need reliable information on researcher data needs, data curation practices and attitudes in order to identify and craft appropriate services that support outreach and teaching. This paper describes information gathered from a survey distributed to the College of Science and Mathematics faculty at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo (Cal Poly), a Master’s-granting, teaching-centered institution. There was a 60%+ response rate to the survey. The survey results provided insight into the science researchers’ data curation awareness, behaviors and attitudes, and what needs they exhibited for services and education regarding maintenance and management of data. It is important …

Development Of In Vitro Tissue Engineered Blood Vessel Mimics In Complex Geometries For Coronary Stent Testing, Robert Dalton Chavez

Master's Theses

Coronary heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States and occurs when plaque occludes coronary arteries. Coronary stents, which may be used to treat coronary occlusions, are small metal tubes that are implanted in coronary arteries to restore blood flow. After stent implantation, endothelial cells grow over the stent so that blood contacts the endothelial cells instead of the stent surface; this event is known as re-endothelialization. Re-endothelialization prevents blood from clotting on the stent surface and is a good predictor of stent success. Blood vessel mimics (BVMs) are in vitro tissue engineered models of human …

Characterization Of Tight Junction Formation In An In-Vitro Model Of The Blood-Brain Barrier, Michael Robert Machado

Master's Theses

Active and passive transport of substances between the microcirculation in the brain and the central nervous system is regulated by the Blood-Brain Barrier (BBB). This barrier allows for chronic and acute modulation of the CNS microenvironment, and protects the brain from potentially noxious compounds carried in the circulatory system. In-vitro modeling of the BBB has become the target of much research over the past decade, as there are many unanswered questions regarding modulations in the permeability of this barrier. Additionally, the development of a practical and inexpensive model of the BBB would facilitate a much more efficient drug development process. …

Development And Characterization Of An In-House Custom Bioreactor For The Cultivation Of A Tissue Engineered Blood-Brain Barrier, Amin Hadi Mirzaaghaeian

Master's Theses

The development of treatments for neurological disorders such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease begins by understanding what these diseases affect and the consequences of further manifestation. One particular region where these diseases can produce substantial problems is the blood-brain barrier (BBB). The BBB is the selective diffusion barrier between the circulating blood and the brain. The barrier’s main function is to maintain CNS homeostasis and protect the brain from the extracellular environment. The progression of BBB research has advanced to the point where many have modeled the BBB in vitro with aims of further characterizing and testing the barrier. Particularly, …

Traffic Signal Optimization Using Ant Colony Algorithm, David Renfrew, Xiao-Hua Yu

Electrical Engineering

Traffic signal control is an effective way to improve the efficiency of traffic networks and reduce users’ delays. Ant Colony Optimization (ACO) is a meta-heuristic algorithm based on the behavior of ant colonies searching for food. ACO has successfully been employed to solve many complicated combinatorial optimization problems and its stochastic and decentralized nature fits well with traffic networks. This research investigates the application of the ant colony algorithm to minimize user delay at traffic intersections. Various ACO algorithms are discussed and a rolling horizon approach is also employed to achieve real-time adaptive control. Computer simulation results show that this …

Traversing Swanton Road, 9th Ed., James A. West

Academic, Government & Associated Organizational Research Resources

Situated at the northwest end of Santa Cruz County and occupying circa 30 square miles of sharply contrasted terrain, the Scott Creek Watershed concentrates within its geomorphological boundaries, at least 10-12% of California's flora, both native and introduced. Paradoxically, the use/abuse that the watershed has sustained over the past 140+ years, has not necessarily diminished the biodiversity and perhaps parallels the naturally disruptive but biologically energizing processes (fire, flooding, landslides and erosion), which have also been historically documented for the area for +60 years. This is an early edition of an extensive document by James A. West. Please visit the …

The Amazing Library Race, Katherine O'Clair

Library Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Wireless Temperature Monitoring System For The Cal Poly Pilot Winery, Caitlin Devaney

Materials Engineering

This project, with an interdisciplinary group of two computer engineers and one materials engineer, was seeking to implement an automated temperature monitoring system which is affordable and easy to use, as well as adaptable to any arrangement and scale of a winemaker’s fermentation setup. My goal, as the materials engineer, was to design, fabricate, and test the enclosure, for the wireless nodes that are placed in the wine fermentation tanks, and the materials used for the node enclosure. For the enclosure of the system, materials selection was completed using CES software using limitations of only polymer materials which absorb less …

The Effects Of Biochar Age And Concentration On Soil Retention Of Phosphorus And Infiltration Rate, Emilie Schneider

Natural Resources Management and Environmental Sciences

Changes in land use and land management practices are regarded as one of the main factors in altering the hydrogeological system, causing changes in runoff, surface supply yields, and the quality of receiving water (Tong and Chen, 2002). Phosphorus is a significant contributor to accelerated eutrophication of fresh water and is largely sourced from agricultural runoff (Sharpley et al., 1994). The dominant processes controlling solution composition in agricultural soils are primarily ‘chemical’ for P (i.e. adsorption/desorption and dissolution/precipitation) (Edwards and Withers, 1998). Biochar has chemical characteristics that have the potential to adsorb P or influence precipitation of P insoluble pools …

A Demand Analysis For The New Dow Agrosciences Insecticide, Sulfoxaflor, Among California Pest Control Advisors, Andre Lima Alves

Agribusiness

No abstract provided.

Enhanced Hydrocarbon Biodegradation Using Bioaugmentation With Biowish™-Aqua Fog, Michael Robert Lehrer

Master's Theses

This study was done to determine the effectiveness of a commercially available bioaugmentation product, BiOWiSH^TM-Aqua FOG, for remediating petroleum-contaminated sandy soil. Biodegradation enhancement by BiOWiSH^TM-Aqua FOG was evaluated in laboratory microcosms by directly measuring total petroleum hydrocarbon (TPH) and indirectly using respirometry. Attempts were made to enrich hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria in BiOWiSH^TM-Aqua FOG, and the resulting enrichment cultures were screened using respirometry as well. Potential hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria in BiOWiSH^TM-Aqua FOG were isolated. Experiments were performed at bench-scale using microcosm bottles containing sand contaminated with either motor oil or No. 2 diesel fuel. The …

Effect Of Oxidation On Weld Strengthof Dissimilar Resistance Weld Interface Between 304 Stainless Steeland Near Equiatomic Austenitic Nitinol Guide Wire, Matthew Rudow

Master's Theses

Abbott Vascular encountered strength and variability issues when attempting to resistively weld 304 Stainless Steel to equiatomic Nitinol. Initial observations suggested that passivation layer (Cr₂O₃, TiO₂) formation affected the weld interface. One hundred 304 Stainless Steel/Nitinol pairs were allowed to oxidize in air at room temperature for allowed periods of time (.1, 1, 3, 5, 7, 12, 16, 24, 168, and 336 hours). Each pair was welded resistively with constant current. A Miyachi/Unitek Advanced Data Analysis Monitor (ADAM) recorded the peak resistance at the instance the weld was made. Resistances were compared to Instron …

Determining An Inorganic Mineralization Process To Inhibit Organic Degradation And Preserve The Dimensional Stability Of Bamboo, Eric Hahn

Materials Engineering

Bamboo is a renewable natural composite with potential as both a construction and synthesis material. The components of bamboo are cellulosic vascular bundles imbedded within a lignin matrix that create a porous hierarchical structure. This structure has low density while maintaining high strength, toughness, and elasticity, but is susceptible to organic decay. A study was performed to evaluate the effect of varying bamboo culm age (1-3 years) and density (0.72-1.05 g/cm³) on the ability to control inorganic mineral precipitation to prevent degradation and preserve dimensional stability of the organic matrix. Internodal culm samples were immersed in solutions of …

Modeling Glacial Termination, Michael Murphy

Natural Resources Management and Environmental Sciences

Examines possible cause of the glacial termination or ice age cycle using a numerical model created by Tziperman et al. Also explores possible physical mechanisms causing the observed cycle of slow cooling followed by rapid warming.

Sustainability Practices For Special Events On The Central Coast Of California, Cara Richards

Recreation, Parks, and Tourism Administration

With the ever growing number of planned events around the world and the vast number of attendees, comes the potential to negatively impact the environment. The event industry is perfectly suited to reduce this environmental impact by incorporating sustainable practices into their special events. The purpose of this study was to assess the use of sustainable practices by event planners on the Central Coast of California. This study was conducted through the online survey application Zoomerang.com. The results of this survey indicate that 80% of respondents understand the importance of sustainability and15% were uncertain if sustainability is an important factor …

An Analysis Of Change Of Major Behavior Of Cal Poly Students, Logan Lossing

Statistics

No abstract provided.

Discrepant Visual Speech Faciliates Covert Selective Listening In "Cocktail Party" Conditions, Jason A. Williams

Psychology and Child Development

The presence of congruent visual speech information facilitates the identification of auditory speech, while the addition of incongruent visual speech information often impairs accuracy. This latter arrangement occurs naturally when one is being directly addressed in conversation but listens to a different speaker. Under these conditions, performance may diminish since: (a) one is bereft of the facilitative effects of the corresponding lip motion and (b) one becomes subject to visual distortion by incongruent visual speech; by contrast, speech intelligibility may be improved due to (c) bimodal localization of the central unattended stimulus. Participants were exposed to centrally presented visual and …

Evaluation Of Corrosion Properties For Use Of Az31b In Bioabsorbable Stents And In Vivo Corrosion Rate Prediction Using Fea, Jared Vidales, Austin Schader, Jenna Jerman, Michael Turovskiy

Materials Engineering

AZ31B was heat treated to evoke more controlled and uniform corrosion. 1/16” diameter AZ31B wire was cut into six samples each 1” long. The samples underwent heat treatments following ASTM B661-06. Samples were weighed and placed into three different in vitro environments. In the first scenario two samples of each heat treatment were individually placed in 50 ml of saline solution at 0.9% sodium, in a static test tube at 37°C temperature. Two samples were placed in 100 ml of 0.9% saline solution in a 250 ml stirring beaker with an average whirlpool depth of 1”. Two of each sample …

The Characterization And Comparison Of Biochar Produced From A Decentralized Reactor Using Forced Air And Natural Draft Pyrolysis, Leah Herbert, Ian Hosek, Rishi Kripalani

Materials Engineering

The soil additive properties of biochar have proven both effective and globally beneficial, but depend heavily on feedstock used and process conditions. This study characterizes how forced and natural draft air flows affect the biochar’s soil amendment potential. Biochars manufactured from two pine species of feedstock, in timber and pellet form, were compared against a designer biochar. The designer biochar held the lowest C:N ratio (57.43), followed by the natural draft pellets (199.5), forced air timber (282.5), forced air pellets (422.7), and natural draft timber (503.7). The designer char had the largest cation exchange capacity at 138.5 cmolc/kg; the decentralized …

Artificial Alveolar-Capillary Membrane On A Microchip, Keith Male

Materials Engineering

A microfluidic device was synthesized out of polydimethyl siloxane (PDMS) to simulate the structure of the alveolar-capillary interface of the human lung. Soft lithography techniques were used to build a mold structure out of SU-8 epoxy at heights ranging from 30µm to 110 µm on a silicon substrate, with the 70 µm structure working the best. A mixture of 10:1 Sylgard 184 elastomer was then cast using the mold, and cured at a temperature of 80^oC. For the porous membrane, the PDMS was spun on at 6000rpm for 30 seconds using a spin coater to produce a membrane …

The Mitigation Of Eutrophication Using Microporous Polymer Membranes To Control Algae Growth, Christopher R. Riley

Materials Engineering

A system was designed to mitigate the accelerated process of anthropogenic eutrophication. This system aimed to contain Chlorella Vulgaris microalgae cells within an enclosed polymer membrane pouch while allowing for water and nutrients to diffuse through the pouch. As a test model, a 10 gallon aquarium was partitioned into three sections using polycarbonate membranes with 1 micron pore diameters. Each section was then gradually filled with a deionized water and Bristol solution recommended for microalgae growth. Phosphate and nitrate were added to Section A of the aquarium and allowed to diffuse throughout the tank. A water pump was used to …

Digital Holography And Applications In Microscopic Interferometry, Cody Jenkins

Physics

In this project I demonstrate recording holograms using an electronic camera as the photosensitive element and subsequent numerical reconstruction in a digital computer. The technique is employed to show extended depth of field imaging as well as phase contrast imaging via microscopic interferometry.