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Tools We Use: Evaluating Uav And Photogrammetry Workflows For Early-Stage Site Documentation; Comparative Analysis For Small Landscape Architecture Firms, Bryant Baugus Aug 2025

Tools We Use: Evaluating Uav And Photogrammetry Workflows For Early-Stage Site Documentation; Comparative Analysis For Small Landscape Architecture Firms, Bryant Baugus

Theses and Dissertations

Landscape architects utilize advanced technologies in the design process. Advancements in automation and data capture have opened up new opportunities for UAVs and photogrammetry to produce high-resolution imagery, contours, and 3D models. By leveraging UAVs early in the design process, landscape architects are able to maximize advantages: site analysis through computational software, 3D sectional information, and hydrology prediction. This research focuses specifically on the advantages UAVs offer compared to established workflow methods. It examines four unique workflows for early-stage site documentation: capturing the site with UAVs through photogrammetry, generating a site plan from publicly available GIS data, gathering information from …


Autonomous Generation Of Ids Rules From Threat Intelligence, Azim Bazarov Aug 2025

Autonomous Generation Of Ids Rules From Threat Intelligence, Azim Bazarov

Theses and Dissertations

Signature-based Intrusion Detection Systems (IDS) detect malicious activities by matching network or host activity against predefined rules. These rules are derived from Cyber Threat Intelligence (CTI), which includes attack signatures and behavioral patterns obtained through automated tools and manual threat analysis, such as sandboxing. The CTI is then transformed into actionable rules for the IDS engine, enabling real-time detection and prevention of threats. The constant evolution of cyber threats necessitates frequent rule updates, which delay deployment time and weaken overall security readiness. Recent advancements in autonomous agentic systems powered by Large Language Models (LLMs) offer the potential for automatic IDS …


Development And Application Of A Single Nucleotide Polymorphism Panel For Individual Identification And Population Genetic Assessment Of Swamp Rabbits, Chloe S. Beall Aug 2025

Development And Application Of A Single Nucleotide Polymorphism Panel For Individual Identification And Population Genetic Assessment Of Swamp Rabbits, Chloe S. Beall

Theses and Dissertations

Swamp rabbits (Sylvilagus aquaticus) are a potentially useful indicator species for bottomland hardwood forest ecosystem health and can be monitored using fecal pellet surveys. Advances in genetic sequencing technology have allowed researchers to obtain genetic information about wildlife using non-invasive sampling. Genotyping-in-thousands by sequencing (GT-seq) allows researchers to target specific genetic markers selected to meet their objectives, such as differentiating individuals. We investigated the utility of GT-seq for genotyping DNA derived from swamp rabbit fecal pellets. We designed a GT-seq panel for swamp rabbits, then tested the panel on fecal samples collected in the Mississippi Delta. We developed a real …


Effects Of Psychological Arousal And Relaxation On Muscle Performance, Activation, And Heart Rate Variability During Maximal Muscle Strength And Precision Tasks, Allison Ann Brown Aug 2025

Effects Of Psychological Arousal And Relaxation On Muscle Performance, Activation, And Heart Rate Variability During Maximal Muscle Strength And Precision Tasks, Allison Ann Brown

Theses and Dissertations

Psychological arousal plays a vital role in athletic performance, with the optimal point of arousal and performance level varying by task complexity. A common manipulator of arousal is music, which can produce multiple physiological effects. This study investigated whether unfamiliar arousing or relaxing music influences heart rate variability, muscle activation, maximal muscle strength, and muscle precision. Theoretically, if participants are found to have differing muscle performance responses as a result of differing music selections, this would further support the notion that the optimal point of arousal and performance is dependent upon the complexity of the task at hand. Thus, coaches …


Variables That Affect Designers’ Use Of Edible Planting In Residential Landscape Design, Emily Margaret Butler Aug 2025

Variables That Affect Designers’ Use Of Edible Planting In Residential Landscape Design, Emily Margaret Butler

Theses and Dissertations

Edible landscaping or “foodscaping” has had a resurgence into the mainstream. Though many trailblazers aim to encourage edible landscaping through homeowners and renters, there seems to be a lack of initiative from designers. To identify the variables that can affect a designer’s use of edible planting in the residential Southeastern United States, research and statistical methods were employed. Beyond interviewing an expert in the field of edible planting in the residential space, a survey consisting of both Likert and open-ended questions was sent to licensed landscape architects in the Southeastern U.S. The survey was conducted using Qualtrics and analyzed using …


American Officer Administration Development And Its Effects On Conduct, 1900-1970, David R. Burford Aug 2025

American Officer Administration Development And Its Effects On Conduct, 1900-1970, David R. Burford

Theses and Dissertations

The 1970 U.S. Army War College Study on Military Professionalism concluded that officers were so obsessed with demonstrating loyalty, deference to authority, and promotion that they seemed to sacrifice their personal integrity. The findings shocked high-ranked Army officials. The detailed legislative history of Army officer administration from roughly 1900 to 1970 presented in this dissertation shows why and how these conditions came to exist. In nine chapters, the material revealed in magazines, periodicals, student research papers, statements at congressional debates, hearings and investigations, and various official and unofficial publications narrate the development of the post-World War II American officer governance …


Creating A Framework For Offering Alternative Credentials At Mississippi State University, Marian Montgomery Chancellor Aug 2025

Creating A Framework For Offering Alternative Credentials At Mississippi State University, Marian Montgomery Chancellor

Theses and Dissertations

As workforce demands evolve and learners seek more flexible, skills-focused education options, Mississippi State University’s College of Professional and Continuing Studies (CPCS) must innovate to remain responsive and competitive. This capstone project explores how MSU can design and implement a scalable framework for micro-credentials that align with employer needs, faculty expertise, and adult learner goals. Grounded in qualitative research, including interviews with faculty and industry leaders, the study identifies key workforce gaps—particularly in communication, leadership, and technical skills—and outlines a 6-stage development lifecycle for credential creation. Findings emphasize the importance of industry collaboration, applied learning, and policy support. The resulting …


Characterizing The Impact Of Cover Crop On Soil Microbiome Function Affecting C And N Inputs In Corn Production System, Durga Purushotham Mahesh Chinthalapudi Aug 2025

Characterizing The Impact Of Cover Crop On Soil Microbiome Function Affecting C And N Inputs In Corn Production System, Durga Purushotham Mahesh Chinthalapudi

Theses and Dissertations

Cover cropping (CC) is a widely adopted strategy to improve soil health and microbial diversity in agroecosystems. However, its influence on microbial community dynamics and ecosystem functions remains context-dependent, particularly under variable nitrogen (N) inputs. This dissertation integrates a three-year field study (2021-2024) in corn-based systems with a meta-analysis of 473 soil samples from diverse Mississippi cropping systems to evaluate CC effects on soil microbial structure, function, and ecosystem multifunctionality. In the field study, soil bacterial and fungal communities were profiled using high-throughput amplicon sequencing (16S rRNA for bacteria, ITS2 for fungi). Seven CC treatments ryegrass, balansa, radish, red clover, …


Improving Engagement Through Readers' Theater: A Systematic Literature Review And Teacher Process Portfolio With Program Proposal, Karen K. Crum Aug 2025

Improving Engagement Through Readers' Theater: A Systematic Literature Review And Teacher Process Portfolio With Program Proposal, Karen K. Crum

Theses and Dissertations

This project investigated the impact of Readers’ Theater on elementary students’ attitudes toward reading, the teacher’s perception of effectiveness of Readers’ Theater as a tool to improve reading comprehension, and students’ test-related anxiety, within the context of the Mississippi Academic Assessment Program (MAAP) mandated by the Literacy-Based Promotion Act. While existing literature has highlighted Readers’ Theater as an effective instructional strategy that engages reluctant readers and enhances both reading fluency and comprehension through repeated, performance-based readings, gaps in current research exist regarding Readers’ Theater effectiveness as an instructional strategy to mitigate reading- and test-anxiety. Through research questions focused on how …


Edna Surveillance And Population Genomics Of The Invasive Loaches Introduced To The United States, Tobin J. Davidson Aug 2025

Edna Surveillance And Population Genomics Of The Invasive Loaches Introduced To The United States, Tobin J. Davidson

Theses and Dissertations

Invasive species represent a growing threat to the ecosystems and economies of the United States. The southeastern United States is an aquatic biodiversity hotspot, and the decline of multiple native species already facing extinction is attributed to a rapidly growing number of nonindigenous freshwater fishes. Next-generation sequencing was used to analyze the population genomics of several populations of Pond Loach (Misgurnus anguillicaudatus) introduced to the United States. Three evolutionarily significant units of Misgurnus loaches were found, suggesting the invasion of multiple different species in the United States. Additionally, noninvasive environmental DNA (eDNA) protocol designed for early detection of invasive freshwater …


Ex Vivo Evaluation Of Polyethylene Cable Compared To Stainless Steel Cerclage Wire In A Canine Fracture Model, Seila Natasha Day Aug 2025

Ex Vivo Evaluation Of Polyethylene Cable Compared To Stainless Steel Cerclage Wire In A Canine Fracture Model, Seila Natasha Day

Theses and Dissertations

A long oblique osteotomy model was created using paired canine cadaveric femurs. The osteotomies were stabilized with either three ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) cables (n=10) or three 18 gauge stainless steel loop cerclage wires (n=10). Cyclic testing was performed in four-point bending by applying increasing force at 2 Hz until construct failure, defined as ≥2mm of actuator displacement. Data analyzed included cycles to failure, load at failure, and dynamic stiffness. There was no statistically significant difference in any of the outcomes tested between constructs. Visible loosening was noted in all loop cerclage constructs. No visible loosening of the UHMWPE …


Interspecific Competition Effects On Biomass Allocation In A Young, Fertilized Longleaf Pine Stand In Central Mississippi, Baylor Doughty Aug 2025

Interspecific Competition Effects On Biomass Allocation In A Young, Fertilized Longleaf Pine Stand In Central Mississippi, Baylor Doughty

Theses and Dissertations

Restoration of longleaf pine (Pinus palustris Mill.) can be challenging on sites with high densities of naturally regenerated loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.). This study aims to understand how interspecific competition impacts early establishment of planted longleaf pine. The study area was a complete block design to evaluate two different fertilization methods and application of diazotrophic endophytes. While the site was chemically prepared, high densities of loblolly pine established from adjacent stands. Measurements included survival, root collar diameter, height, and neighboring competition. Soil properties, including texture and nitrogen mineralization rates, were also evaluated. Results indicate that fertilization had a significant …


Evaluation Of Furrow-Irrigation And Agronomic Management In Mississippi Rice (Oryza Sativa L.), Thomas W. Eubank Iv Aug 2025

Evaluation Of Furrow-Irrigation And Agronomic Management In Mississippi Rice (Oryza Sativa L.), Thomas W. Eubank Iv

Theses and Dissertations

A new non-transgenic rice has been developed called ROXY, which is resistant to formulations of oxyfluorfen. Utilizing the ROXY rice production system in a furrow-irrigated system could help combat troublesome terrestrial weeds and be a viable option for producers. To evaluate the performance of oxyfluorfen in furrow-irrigated ROXY rice production system, two concurrent field studies were conducted at the Delta Research and Extension Center in Stoneville, MS, from 2022 to 2024. The first study evaluated residual grass and broadleaf weed control with oxyfluorfen applied delayed-preemergence (DPRE). Factor A was oxyfluorfen rates of 0, 700, and 981 g ai ha-1. Factor …


Measuring Emotional Biases In Attention And Memory In Individuals Who Fear Happiness, Michael R. Gallagher Aug 2025

Measuring Emotional Biases In Attention And Memory In Individuals Who Fear Happiness, Michael R. Gallagher

Theses and Dissertations

A central goal in contemporary clinical science is to measure emotionally driven factors of psychopathology through cognitive experimental methods. However, limitations in previous experimental paradigms have led to a lack of sensitivity and reliability in measuring the biased processing of positive and negative information. Additionally, these biases have not been investigated in individuals who fear happiness. Therefore, this study examined the unique relations between attention and memory biases of emotional stimuli and fear of happiness scores. A more sensitive experimental paradigm tracked eye positions while participants viewed faces over time to measure tendencies to attend to emotional content. A memory …


Regulating Artificial Intelligence In The U.S.: A Historical-Innovation-Inspired Framework, Di Kevin Gao Aug 2025

Regulating Artificial Intelligence In The U.S.: A Historical-Innovation-Inspired Framework, Di Kevin Gao

Theses and Dissertations

The emergence of OpenAI\textquotesingle s ChatGPT has marked the dawn of a new Artificial Intelligence (AI) era, unleashing a wave of user excitement, moral panic, and apocalyptic warnings. Yet, these concerns have done little to slow the breakneck pace of AI development and deployment. Should the United States adopt the European Union\textquotesingle s top-down, legislation-first approach, or follow the United Kingdom\textquotesingle s bottom-up, court-driven model? This research draws from historical legislative parallels in the U.S. By examining past regulatory frameworks for disruptive technologies, including electricity, automobiles, the telephone, broadband internet, nuclear technology, cryptocurrency, commodity futures, modern pharmaceuticals, and social media, …


Extreme Artifacts Removal With Curriculum Learning, Sushant Gautam Aug 2025

Extreme Artifacts Removal With Curriculum Learning, Sushant Gautam

Theses and Dissertations

Restoring severely blurred images remains a significant challenge in computer vision, impacting applications in autonomous driving, medical imaging, and photography. This thesis introduces a novel training strategy based on curriculum learning to improve the robustness of deep learning models for extreme image deblurring. Unlike conventional approaches that train on only low to moderate blur levels, this method progressively increases the difficulty by introducing images with higher blur severity over time, allowing the model to adapt incrementally. Additionally, perceptual loss and hinge loss were integrated during training to enhance fine detail restoration and improve training stability. Various curriculum learning strategies were …


Towards Applying Artificial Intelligence To Solve Np-Complete Problems Using Quantum Computing, Andrew Robert Haverly Aug 2025

Towards Applying Artificial Intelligence To Solve Np-Complete Problems Using Quantum Computing, Andrew Robert Haverly

Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation explores the methodology for more thoroughly entangling artificial intelligence and quantum computing. This is explored through a background search of problems solved using Grover’s quantum algorithm, a new quantum protein folding and drug discovery algorithm, using Grover’s algorithm to train quantum artificial neural networks, using quantum artificial neural networks for reinforcement learning, mapping classical assembly instructions to quantum circuits to make quantum programming easier, and using prompt engineering to get a classical artificial intelligence agent to solve an NP-Complete problem using a Grover’s algorithm. This method not only simplifies the creation of algorithms but also opens new avenues …


Harnessing The Potential Of Biostimulants To Mitigate Drought And Heat In Soybeans, Vijaykumar Hosahalli Aug 2025

Harnessing The Potential Of Biostimulants To Mitigate Drought And Heat In Soybeans, Vijaykumar Hosahalli

Theses and Dissertations

Drought and heat stresses during vegetative and reproductive stages cause yield losses up to 50% in soybeans. Biostimulants have potential to improve stress tolerance and enhance crop resilience, but selecting an effective product remains challenging due to the wide range of commercial options. This study aimed to identify suitable biostimulants that alleviate drought and heat stress during vegetative and reproductive stages. There was 64% and 76% reduction in stomatal conductance under vegetative and reproductive stage drought stress, respectively. Drought and heat stress during reproductive stages resulted in 44% and 36% reduction in total seed weight, respectively. Among biostimulants, treated check …


Topnet R1: A Multi-Stage Ai Framework For Topic Discovery In Scientific Abstracts, Md Elias Hossain Aug 2025

Topnet R1: A Multi-Stage Ai Framework For Topic Discovery In Scientific Abstracts, Md Elias Hossain

Theses and Dissertations

Scientific abstracts are rich sources of knowledge, yet extracting meaningful topics remains challenging due to limitations in existing topic modeling techniques. Traditional methods often struggle with interpretability, scalability, and contextual understanding. To overcome these issues, we introduce TopNet R1, a multi-stage ensemble framework that integrates traditional topic models with contextual embeddings from Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers (BERT) and Generative Pre-trained Transformer 4 (GPT-4) large language models (LLMs). Top- Net R1 operates in three phases: (1) topic generation using Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA), Non-Negative Matrix Factorization (NMF), Latent Semantic Analysis (LSA), and Hierarchical Dirichlet Process (HDP); (2) LLM-assisted pattern recognition …


Documenting Children’S Use, Physical Activity, And Social Play In Tom Lee Park’S Playscape, Laurel Kelton Aug 2025

Documenting Children’S Use, Physical Activity, And Social Play In Tom Lee Park’S Playscape, Laurel Kelton

Theses and Dissertations

The benefits of nature and physical activity on children’s health and development are well documented. However, many children lack access to nature and physical activity. Researchers have found that “innovative playgrounds” —which, by definition, are more likely to include natural elements that facilitate nature immersion— are associated with increased physical activity and duration of stay. This thesis is a case study of a public innovative playground at Tom Lee Park. It sought to understand the playground’s areas and physical characteristics that have higher levels of use, physical activity, and social play and longer durations of stay. Data was collected over …


Understanding Pollinator-Forb Interactions And Evaluating Trapping Methods For Pollinator Monitoring In Lawns Of The Southeastern United States, Sara Rose Kirby Aug 2025

Understanding Pollinator-Forb Interactions And Evaluating Trapping Methods For Pollinator Monitoring In Lawns Of The Southeastern United States, Sara Rose Kirby

Theses and Dissertations

Urban turfgrass landscapes are widespread across the southeastern United States but offer limited ecological value under conventional management. This thesis evaluates the pollinator support potential of ten forb species commonly found in low-maintenance lawns and assesses the effectiveness of two insect sampling methods, sweep netting and pan trapping. Over two years of field surveys, native forbs such as Symphyotrichum divaricatum and Claytonia virginica supported significantly greater insect abundance and diversity than introduced species. Network and modularity analyses revealed that native plants facilitated more specialized pollinator interactions, including those involving oligolectic bee species. In a complementary study, pan traps effectively sampled …


Impact Of Buffered Dry Vinegar And Fermented Onion Juice On The Quality And Shelf-Life Of Fresh Pork Breakfast Sausage, Emily M. Little Aug 2025

Impact Of Buffered Dry Vinegar And Fermented Onion Juice On The Quality And Shelf-Life Of Fresh Pork Breakfast Sausage, Emily M. Little

Theses and Dissertations

The demand for clean-label meat products has increased interest in natural alternatives to synthetic antioxidants and antimicrobials. This study evaluated the effects of buffered dry vinegar (BDV), fermented onion juice (FOJ), and their combination (CMB) on microbial stability and sensory quality of pork sausage during 9 days of refrigerated storage. Sausages were assigned to control, FOJ (0.5%), BDV (0.5%), or CMB (0.25% each) treatments. BDV and CMB significantly reduced aerobic and psychrotrophic counts by days 7-9, while yeast increased across all treatments over time, reaching ~7 Log CFU/g by day 9. Sensory analysis revealed lower oxidation and off-note intensity in …


Evaluating The Dietary Supplementation Of Soy Lecithin For Channel Catfish (Ictalurus Punctatus), Crystal Lodi Conde Aug 2025

Evaluating The Dietary Supplementation Of Soy Lecithin For Channel Catfish (Ictalurus Punctatus), Crystal Lodi Conde

Theses and Dissertations

Soy lecithin (SL), a phospholipid rich ingredient derived from soybeans, was tested to evaluate the effects on channel catfish growth and physiological responses. In Trial 1, formulated diets with gradual SL levels were tested. Fish fed 1.5% SL had improved feed efficiency, while 0.5% SL enhanced protein conversion efficiency. The SL influenced cortisol levels during recovery from air exposure stress and improved survival after bacterial challenge. The Trial 2 tested three different lipid sources: Soybean oil (SBO; control), 1% SL + SBO, and catfish oil (CFO). The SL-fed fish also presented improved feed efficiency compared to the SBO group. There …


Finite Element Modeling Of Plasma Membrane Injury From Mechanical Stress: A Combined Finite Element And Machine Learning Approach, Eric Flynn Mabowitz Aug 2025

Finite Element Modeling Of Plasma Membrane Injury From Mechanical Stress: A Combined Finite Element And Machine Learning Approach, Eric Flynn Mabowitz

Theses and Dissertations

Low back pain is a leading cause of disability across a wide range of occupations and environments. Exposure to whole-body vibration (WBV) has been linked to an increased prevalence of low back pain, as well as certain neurophysiological complications. While current understanding of WBV effects is largely based on tissue- and whole-body-level studies, a significant gap remains in knowledge regarding how vibrational forces propagate through individual cells. This knowledge gap limits a comprehensive understanding of how these forces affect the human body at the microscopic level. To address this, the present study employs both two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) finite …


Exploring The Use Of A Random Forest In Correcting Gfs Tropical Cyclone Landfall Errors, Victoria Grace Maxwell Aug 2025

Exploring The Use Of A Random Forest In Correcting Gfs Tropical Cyclone Landfall Errors, Victoria Grace Maxwell

Theses and Dissertations

While Tropical Cyclone (TC) track forecasting has improved over the years it has been slow. These improvements can be attributed to increased computer capability and better model inputs. Machine learning has been used for forecasting different TC track and intensity. The study here looks to use a Random Forest to predict the TC latitude/longitude “landfall” at 72-hr and quantify improvements to the GFS forecast. Principal Component Analysis was used to reduce the dimensionality of the meteorological variables. Stepwise regression was used to determine the principal components that were important for forecasting landfall. These variables were then tested with a multivariate …


Synthetic Mrna Induced Tf1.17-Specific Antibody Response Against Tritrichomonas Foetus For Preputial Delivery In Bulls, Kenzie Mcatee Aug 2025

Synthetic Mrna Induced Tf1.17-Specific Antibody Response Against Tritrichomonas Foetus For Preputial Delivery In Bulls, Kenzie Mcatee

Theses and Dissertations

Bovine trichomoniasis, caused by Tritrichomonas foetus, remains a persistent reproductive disease in cattle due to asymptomatic carriage in bulls and lack of effective treatments. This thesis evaluated the use of synthetic mRNA to drive expression of TF1.17- specific antibodies, targeting a conserved surface adhesin essential for parasite colonization. Membrane-anchored and secreted IgG1 constructs were transfected into bovine kidney cells, resulting in time-dependent antibody expression verified via NanoLuc luminescence. In vivo, aerosolized mRNA administration to bull calves led to localized antibody expression in preputial secretions. Although immunofluorescence assays detected fluorescence signal, high background limited interpretation of specific binding to T. foetus. …


Family Matters: How Caregiver Influence And Internal Locus Of Control Relate To Academics, Maia Mclin Aug 2025

Family Matters: How Caregiver Influence And Internal Locus Of Control Relate To Academics, Maia Mclin

Theses and Dissertations

Academics in college predicts life outcomes; students from lower socioeconomic status (SES) backgrounds often face greater challenges. One such population, consisting of many individuals from marginalized backgrounds, are those raised by nontraditional parents. This study investigated predictors of academics among 357 college students, examining authoritative parenting style, intrinsic motivation, academic locus of control (LoC), SES, and caregiver type (parental vs. non-traditional). Academics was assessed using two composite scores: 'academic knowledge' (GPA/ACT) and 'compensatory attention' (working memory via n-back task accuracy and attention/concentration via SMALSI-C). Hierarchical regressions revealed that higher authoritative parenting, higher SES, and being raised by biological parents significantly …


Native Bee Communities Within Restored Montane Longleaf Pine Ecosystems, Mary Mcteague Aug 2025

Native Bee Communities Within Restored Montane Longleaf Pine Ecosystems, Mary Mcteague

Theses and Dissertations

Montane longleaf pine ecosystems are remarkably biodiverse and highly understudied. Like other longleaf pine ecosystems, montane longleaf pine forests have faced declines. These ecosystems have been undergoing restoration efforts to reestablish floral understories. Flourishing pollinator communities are essential to successful restoration efforts. This study seeks to understand the influence of site history and characteristics on native bee communities in restored montane longleaf pine ecosystems, and to establish a methodology for creating pollination networks in these ecosystems by using DNA metabarcoding to analyze bee-collected pollen. Our results showed that community composition varied based on month and site history. Site history impacted …


Investigation Of Guayule Resin As An Oil-Based Wood Treatment, Jordan Miller Aug 2025

Investigation Of Guayule Resin As An Oil-Based Wood Treatment, Jordan Miller

Theses and Dissertations

Development of alternative treatments for wood product protection is an ongoing focus throughout the wood products industries. All manufacturers hope to increase the use life of their products, while ensuring that their products do not have a harmful impact on their surrounding environment. One way of approaching this is to source potential components from other agricultural sources. Guayule resin is produced as a by-product of rubber extraction from the guayule plant (Parthenium argentatum). The resin has been reported to have insecticidal and microbial properties, but there are numerous problems with utilization, including how to extract it and apply it due …


Sweetpotato Insect Pests: Virus Vector Management And Rearing, Rachel Emily Morrison Aug 2025

Sweetpotato Insect Pests: Virus Vector Management And Rearing, Rachel Emily Morrison

Theses and Dissertations

Sweetpotatoes (Ipomoea batatas) are vegetatively propagated through slips, making them prone to viral buildup. Aphids are insect pests known for transmitting viruses to crops, which reduces yield. This study examined different options for aphid management to reduce the spread of potyviruses: crop borders, crop oils, and insecticides. However, the results of this research showed that treatments were not successful at reducing the spread of the four potyviruses tested. An additional objective was to establish a colony of banded cucumber beetles (Diabrotica balteata) in the laboratory. These beetles are a leaf-feeding and root-feeding pest of sweet potatoes. Two colonies of banded …