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The Nebraska Bird Review (September 2024) 92(3), Whole Issue

Nebraska Bird Review

Summer Field Report, June–July 2024, by W. Ross Silcock

Correcting the Record: Subspecific Identification of Nebraska’s Lone Common Eider (Somateria mollissima), by Sam Manning, Joel G. Jorgensen, Stephen J. Brenner, and W. Ross Silcock

2023 (35th) Report of the NOU Records Committee, by Mark A. Brogie

Subscription and Organization Information

Summer Field Report, June–July 2024, W. Ross Silcock

Nebraska Bird Review

This was an intriguing summer in several ways. I am far from being a knowledgeable ecologist, but, like most of us, as a layman I wonder whether and how weather affects birds, and if and how local weather is reflecting the conventional wisdom of climate change. Climate change seems increasingly to be expressed as various extreme or rapidly changing weather events that have differing effects on vegetation and consequently insect and larger prey populations. Every species responds differently it seems, depending on its biological needs, but food supply is the most important issue for birds. It is tempting to assign …

Dirt/Μ: Automated Extraction Of Root Hair Traits Using Combinatorial Optimization, Peter Pietrzyk, Neen Phan-Udom, Chartinun Chutoe, Lise Pingault, Ankita Roy, Marc Libault, Patompong Johns Saengwilai, Alexander Bucksch

Department of Entomology: Faculty Publications

As with phenotyping of any microscopic appendages, such as cilia or antennae, phenotyping of root hairs has been a challenge due to their complex intersecting arrangements in two-dimensional images and the technical limitations of automated measurements. Digital Imaging of Root Traits at Microscale (DIRT/μ) is a newly developed algorithm that addresses this issue by computationally resolving intersections and extracting individual root hairs from two-dimensional microscopy images. This solution enables automatic and precise trait measurements of individual root hairs. DIRT/μ rigorously defines a set of rules to resolve intersecting root hairs and minimizes a newly designed cost function to combinatorically identify …

Imaging Photoinduced Dynamics In Gas-Phase Molecules Using Ultrafast Electron And X-Ray Diffraction, Sri Bhavya Muvva

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Investigating the ultrafast structural changes in photoexcited molecules provides essential information on their governing reaction mechanisms and product formation. Time-resolved electron and X-ray diffraction are crucial techniques for capturing the structural information of photoexcited molecules on femtosecond timescales. This thesis presents the investigations of photochemical reactions in gas-phase molecules using ultrafast electron and X-ray diffraction experiments.

Photoexcitation of conjugated diene molecules with ultraviolet (UV) laser pulses can lead to different reaction mechanisms, depending on their double bonds’ positions and molecular rigidity. Chapter 2 of this dissertation discusses the femtosecond time-resolved UV-induced excited-state structural dynamics of cis,cis-1,3-cyclooctadiene, an eight-membered cyclic conjugated …

Technical Note: Assessing Gps Sensor Accuracy Using Real-Time Kinematic Device For Livestock Tracking, Biquan Zhao, Rebecca Mcdermott, Galen E. Erickson, Yijie Xiong

Department of Animal Science: Faculty Publications

The technical aspects of global positioning system (GPS) sensors have been improved substantially over the years, making them valuable and popular tools for livestock tracking. Using GPS sensors allows producers and researchers to locate grazing livestock, monitor their behavior and distribution, and gather referencing information about the health status of the animals and pastures. However, interpreting the behavior of grazing livestock, such as cattle, from GPS data can be difficult due to positioning inaccuracies. Without knowing the positioning accuracy range of GPS sensors, achieving high-level confidence in determining grazing densities and identifying abnormal livestock movement patterns is challenging. …

Impact Of Partial Oil Removal On Energy Content Of Distillers Grains Plus Solubles For Finishing Cattle, Jordan E. Burhoop, J. L. Sperber, Curt J. Bittner, F. Henry Hilscher, J. C. Macdonald, Galen E. Erickson

Department of Animal Science: Faculty Publications

Two experiments evaluated the impact of the reduction in the percentage of corn oil remaining in distillers grains plus solubles (DGS) after the ethanol plant de-oiling process or by adding corn oil back to DGS following de-oiling on finishing cattle performance and nutrient digestion. Experiment 1 utilized 320 yearling steers (initial BW = 413 kg; SD = 25 kg) fed in 32 pens (10 steers/pen) and assigned to one of four treatments (n = 8 pens/treatment). The four treatments consisted of a blended DRC:HMC corn control diet (CON), de-oiled modified distillers grains plus solubles included at 40% of diet DM …

Groundwater Modeling Of The Ogallala Aquifer: Use Of Machine Learning For Model Parameterization And Sustainability Assessment, Tewodros Aboret Tilahun

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Addressing groundwater depletion problems in heterogeneous aquifer systems is a challenge. The heterogeneous Ogallala Aquifer, a critical source of groundwater in the central United States, has undergone decades of decline in water levels due to pumping. This project aims to build a robust groundwater model to evaluate optimal scenarios for sustainable use of the groundwater resource within a section of the Ogallala aquifer located in the Middle Republican Natural Resources District (MRNRD). This study follows a comprehensive approach involving parameterization, construction, and optimization. The model is parametrized using hydraulic conductivity and recharge values obtained from a random forest-based machine learning …

Homocopris Burmeister, 1846 (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae): Lectotype Designation For Copris Torulosus Eschscholtz, 1822, And Correction On The Geographic Distribution Of The Two Chilean Species, José Mondaca, Fernando Z. Vaz-De-Mello

Insecta Mundi

Homocopris Burmeister, 1846 (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) is a small genus of South American dung beetles composed of four species distributed in Argentina, Brazil, and Chile. Recently, a neotype was designated for Copris torulosus Eschscholtz, 1822 (currently H. torulosus) based on the assumption that the original type series had been lost. However, this designation is invalid for failing to comply with articles 75.2, 75.3, 75.3.1, and 75.3.4. of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature. Furthermore, even if it had been nomenclaturally valid, the neotype now loses its type status because we found a syntype in the material of the Johann …

New Species, New Combinations, Synonymies, And Nomenclatural Discussion For Hispaniolan Longhorned Beetles (Coleoptera: Disteniidae, Cerambycidae), Steven W. Lingafelter, Norman E. Woodley

Insecta Mundi

Fifteen new species of longhorned beetles (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae, Disteniidae) from Hispaniola (the Dominican Republic and Haiti) are diagnosed, described, and illustrated: Novantinoe pilithorax Lingafelter, new species (Disteniini); Eburiola ciferrii Lingafelter, new species (Eburiini), Eburiola konstantinovi Lingafelter, new species (Eburiini), Elaphidion jaragua Lingafelter, new species (Elaphidiini), Linsleyonides guerreroi Lingafelter, new species (Elaphidiini), Compsibidion iviei Lingafelter, new species (Tropidini: Subtribe Neoibidionina), Hormathus albisetosus Lingafelter, new species (Tropidini: Subtribe Compsina), Trichrous eryphoides Lingafelter, new species (Dichophyiini), Plectrocerum woodruffi Lingafelter, new species (Dichophyiini), Oreodera nearnsi Lingafelter, new species (Acrocinini/Acanthoderini), Acrepidopterum fuscum Lingafelter, new species (Apomecynini), Acrepidopterum giesberti Lingafelter, new species (Apomecynini), Estola touroulti Lingafelter, …

A Measurement Of The Differential Drell-Yan Cross Section As A Function Of Invariant Mass In Proton–Proton Collisions At √ S = 13 Tev, William Robert Tabb

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

The Drell-Yan process, a crucial mechanism for producing lepton pairs in highenergy hadron collisions, serves as an essential probe for testing the Standard Model of particle physics. This dissertation presents a comprehensive measurement of the differential cross section with respect to the invariant mass of the lepton pairs, utilizing data collected by the CMS experiment at CERN from 2016 to 2018. Cross sections are essential for refining our understanding of parton distribution functions and the underlying quantum chromodynamics processes, thereby providing constraints on theoretical predictions. In this analysis, the cross sections are compared to theoretical models and simulations, offering new …

Online Course Development With University Extension And Industry Experts, Kelsey L. Mccullough

Applied Science Program: Theses

Project Background

While pursuing my college degrees, the highest impact classes have been filled with applications that I understood as being relevant at the time and have used within my career, had hands-on experiences, and included influential interactions with professionals. Taking this idea forward to course development as an online instructor, I know that creating and adapting college classes to be centered on key aspects of the agricultural industry will add to the education quality of the program and the college experience. This paper will describe my first attempt at this model of partnering with academic and industry experts to …

Identifying Genes Linked To Variation In Metabolic And Whole Plant Phenotypes Using Data From Genome Resequencing, Transcriptomics, And Metabolic Profiling Of A Field-Grown Maize Diversity Panel, Ramesh Kanna Mathivanan

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Maize metabolism is highly complex and influenced by genetic variation, yet the specific genes contributing to this variation and their links to non-metabolic traits remain less understood. To address this knowledge gap, we identified genes involved in maize metabolic variation and linked them to non-metabolic traits. We utilized a quadruplicate dataset of whole genome resequencing, transcriptomic, metabolic, and whole plant phenotype data from a single common field experiment of 660 diverse maize inbred lines. Leaf samples were collected shortly before flowering and analyzed using GC-MS for 26 metabolites. A Resampling Model Inclusion Probability Genome-Wide Association Study (RMIPGWAS) of approximately 2.6 …

Real-Time Cerebral Oximetry During Cognition, Sensorimotor Control, And Pneumotactile Perception In Neurotypical Adults, David J. Sanchez

College of Education and Human Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Continuous-wave functional near-infrared spectroscopy (cw-fNIRS) is a non-invasive brain imaging methodology designed to measure neural activity by detecting hemodynamic responses i.e., adjustments in blood flow and oxygenation to meet the brain’s metabolic needs. Findings on the use of cw-fNIRS by speech-language pathologists (SLP) and neuroscientists to assess cerebral hemodynamic responses during communication assessment and treatment are limited. This study aims to explore the brain’s metabolic response to various sensory processing tasks in neurotypical adults.

This research examines the relationship between cognitive load, sensorimotor control, and somatosensory processing, and hemodynamic modulation in the prefrontal cortex of 18 right-handed neurotypical adults. The …

The Effect Of Fat Content On The Inactivation And Recovery Of Listeria Spp. In Ready-To-Eat Foods After High Pressure Processing, Yhuliana Kattalina Niño Fuerte

Department of Food Science and Technology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

High-pressure processing (HPP) is recognized by the United States Department of Agriculture Food Safety and Inspection Service (USDA FSIS) as a post-lethality treatment to control Listeria monocytogenes in ready-to-eat (RTE) meat and poultry products. A scoping review of 603 journal articles, which ultimately was narrowed down to 16 articles, revealed that the efficacy of HPP varies with fat content. The studies demonstrated that L. monocytogenes inactivation by HPP tends to be lower in RTE meats with greater than 5% fat content, compared to products with lower than 5% fat. The wide range of HPP parameters used in these studies …

Transforming Grassland Conservation: Challenges And Opportunities Across Law, Policy, And Human Dimensions, Conor D. Barnes

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Great Plains social-ecological systems are facing growing pressure from complex, ‘wicked’ problems. Addressing these problems will require integrating ecological resilience and complex systems thinking concepts into our legal framework in order to better reflect the changing ecological reality of the Great Plains and promote flexibility and adaptability in the face of that change. In this dissertation, I examine how past and present policy priorities have affected social-ecological systems on the Great Plains, and how ecological resilience and complex systems thinking might be applied to grassland management policy. In Chapter 2, I examine the rapid progress made in the adoption of …

The Value Of Knowledge And Its Problems, Kevin Patton

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

This dissertation answers the three value problems in epistemology. These three problems require an answer as to how knowledge is more valuable 1) than mere true belief, 2) any of the proper subsets of knowledge, and 3) in kind than that which falls short of knowledge. The methodology used to provide an answer to these problems relies on the arguments put forth in a rarely discussed paper from Ward Jones. In short, the Jonesian approach can be summed up as the view that epistemic axiology and analysis ought to be kept separate. The Jonesian framework instead looks outside of the …

Long Term Ultrasonic Monitoring And Machine Learning Investigation Of Micro-Crack Damaged Concrete, Yalei Tang

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

The thermal modulation method is a recently developed nonlinear ultrasonic technique for evaluating material damage. This method utilizes thermal strain changes resulting from temperature variations to excite the nonlinear behavior of materials and modulate high-frequency ultrasonic waves within them. Its working principle suggests significant potential for application in large-scale concrete structures and in-situ monitoring of real structures. Despite numerous laboratory demonstrations of its effectiveness, several gaps remain before it can be applied to in-service large concrete structures.

This study investigates the potential of the thermal modulation technique for evaluating concrete structures in ambient conditions, addressing key uncertainties for practical implementation. …

Three Essentials Of Private Property In Kant, Lauren Michelle Kashi

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

There are three principles of public right describing a civil condition and a citizenry that Kant offers: freedom, equality, and independence. I argue that these three principles offer further justification for both protection of property rights and enforcement of redistributive taxation than Kant’s Universal Law of Right and principles of property acquisition alone can. In a civil condition with legitimized laws protecting private property, citizens enjoy maximal freedom from interference, dependence, and inequality. Indeed, the purpose of the civil condition for Kant is to create such freedoms, which are made manifest by laws enforcing private ownership as well as redistribution …

Sensitivity Of Present And Future Seasonal Precipitation Over Central United States To The Representation Of Rocky Mountain Topography, Ranasinghe Disanayakalage Sherly Shelton Ranathunga

Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Precipitation change across the Central United States (USA) is of great interest to the research community. Studies using global climate simulations suggest that the “100^th-Meridian”, which separates the “dry west” from the “moist east” will shift to the east as the climate responds to future emissions pathways. However, these simulations are run at relatively coarse resolutions, which do not accurately represent topography. Here, we perform regional simulations using the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model to explore the sensitivity of present and future precipitation patterns across the central USA to the representation of the Rocky Mountains (RM). We …

The Use Of Fourier-Transformed Infrared Spectroscopy With An Infrared Biotyper To Establish Classifiers For Major Serogroups Of Moraxella Bovis Based On Spectral Profiles, Jordyn Bailey Schommer

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

A classifier tool was created to identify major serogroups of Moraxella bovis based on spectral profiles collected from bacterial cells through the use of Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy. M. bovis strains were selected from a group of previously sequenced and genotyped isolates, which provided the pilin sequence type for each isolate. The obtained spectroscopic profiles were analyzed through artificial neural networks to create a classifier tool that could identify the PilA type for unknown strains. Once a sufficient spectral library was obtained, the isolates were split into a training and a validation group, each containing spectra from isolates of five …

Ultrashort Pulsed Laser Treatment Is Effective At Sterilizing Metal Surfaces For Planetary Protection, Kaleb Mcquillan

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

To prevent forward contamination from microbes aboard spacecraft intended for exploration of solar system bodies there is a need for effective sterilization methods. However, current techniques are both time-consuming and expensive. For example, dry heat sterilization requires removal from the assembly site and several days of treatment. Furthermore, some components such as optics and electronics are not compatible with current sterilization techniques. In this thesis, a novel femtosecond laser surface processing technique for the rapid sterilization of spacecraft hardware is reported. Femtosecond lasers produce extremely high photon fluxes (10²⁹ photons/s*cm², ~0.03 J/cm²) in extremely short …

Preschool Executive Control And Adolescent Dietary Outcomes: Highlighting The Role Of Context, Marla Lopez

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Research has identified executive control (EC) as an important predictor of dietary outcomes among youth. Executive control in preschool age has been shown to predict important outcomes across development for youth, indicating that good, foundational EC abilities are associated with successful development in later life. Dietary outcomes across adolescence, an important transitional period for establishing healthy eating behaviors, are understudied. Therefore, the current study sought to link two critical developmental periods, examining how preschool EC is associated with dietary trajectories across adolescence. Further, the study aimed to identify how contextual factors, specifically indices of socio-economic status and the home and …

Optimizing Scalability For Formal Analysis With Evolutionary Algorithm, Jianghao Wang

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Predominantly employed to tackle hardware validation challenges in the early years, formal methods have since expanded to software engineering, introducing a significant level of rigor and precision to software analysis. Its use of mathematical notations and logical reasoning allows for abstract modeling of programs, enabling researchers and engineers to perform a multitude of analysis tasks to verify system dependability and rigorously prove the correctness of system properties. Despite the availability of many automated analysis tools including those considered lightweight, the practical adoption of formal methods in software development has been limited due to scalability concerns, especially when applied to large …

The Value Of Knowledge And Its Problems, Kevin Patton

Department of Philosophy: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This dissertation answers the three value problems in epistemology. These three problems require an answer as to how knowledge is more valuable 1) than mere true belief, 2) any of the proper subsets of knowledge, and 3) in kind than that which falls short of knowledge. The methodology used to provide an answer to these problems relies on the arguments put forth in a rarely discussed paper from Ward Jones. In short, the Jonesian approach can be summed up as the view that epistemic axiology and analysis ought to be kept separate. The Jonesian framework instead looks outside of the …

Making Sandwiches: A Novel Invariant In D-Module Theory, David Lieberman

Department of Mathematics: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Say I hand you a shape, any shape. It could be a line, it could be a crinkled sheet, it could even be a the intersection of a cone with a 6-dimensional hypersurface embedded in a 7-dimensional space. Your job is to tell me about the pointy bits. This task is easier when you can draw the shape; you can you just point at them. When things get more complicated, we need a bigger hammer.

In a sense, that “bigger hammer” is what the ring of differential operators is to an algebraist. Then we will say some things and stuff …

Smart Automatic Modal Hammer Predictor–Corrector Approach For Accurate Excitation Of Dynamical Systems, Mohammad Nasr

Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This research introduces an innovative solution that revolutionizes the study of linear and nonlinear dynamical systems—a smart automatic modal hammer. With its affordability and intelligent capabilities, this automatic modal hammer becomes an invaluable tool for research and industry, enabling repeatable strikes with precise force control. This system's significance becomes particularly evident when studying nonlinear systems, which heavily rely on the excitation level for their dynamics. By offering a cost-effective design this proposed system proves to be robust in accelerating research on nonlinear dynamics, providing researchers with an efficient and accessible means to delve deeper into these complex systems. The proposed …

Ultrasonic Nondestructive Quantification Of Case Depth In Railroad Bearing Components, Trevor K. Adelung

Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

While in service, railroad bearings must withstand large loads to ensure smooth operation. These large loads can lead to failure due to rolling contact fatigue (RCF), for which small cracks initiate just beneath the surface of the components. As a preventative measure, bearings are manufactured with a hardened surface layer called the effective case depth (ECD). Current methods in industry use destructive hardness testing to quantify the ECD. While accurate, this method is costly and time consuming. Ultrasonic nondestructive testing would provide a more efficient and cost-effective method to determine ECD. In this thesis, diffuse ultrasonic shear backscatter was used …

Combined Academic And Behavioral Supports For Struggling Readers With Emotional/Behavioral Disorders, Danika Helen Lang

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

The present study aims to examine the effects of a combination of academic and behavioral supports on students with emotional/behavioral disorders (EBD) who are also struggling readers. A multiple baseline across participants single case design was used to measure the impact of an evidence-based systematic phonics program, in combination with instruction in self-monitoring and self-evaluation via goal setting, on students’ word identification/decoding skills, oral reading fluency, and on-task behavior. Curriculum-based progress monitoring measures in nonsense word fluency and oral reading fluency were used to assess participants’ progress in reading. Momentary time sampling was the behavior recording method used to measure …

Search For Physics Beyond The Standard Model In Top Quark Production With Additional Leptons In The Context Of Effective Field Theory, Furong Yan

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

The dissertation presents a search for new physics impacting top quark productions within the framework of effective field theory (EFT). Potential new physics effects are parameterized in terms of 26 dimension-six EFT operators into the event yields of six distinct top production processes in the detector level. The analysis targets multilepton final states consisting of two leptons of the same charge, three leptons and four leptons. The events are further categorized and binned in terms of kinematic distributions in order to gain sensitivity to the new physics effects. A likelihood function is formulated based on the predicted distribution in each …

Computational Studies Of Charge-Transfer Mechanisms In Electrochemical Materials, Mohammadreza Reza Nouri

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Understanding charge transfer mechanisms of electrochemical reactions is critical for advancing a variety of electrochemical energy storage and conversion technologies such as water electrolysis, fuel cells, and batteries. (Photo)electrochemical water splitting, involving OER at the anode and HER at the cathode, presents an environmentally friendly way of storing energy from renewable sources in the form of pure hydrogen. While a lot of emphasis has been placed on developing highly active and stable OER/HER catalysts, our atomic-level understanding of the underlying charge transfer mechanisms falls behind.

In this work, we focus on both Faradaic and non-Faradaic charge transfer mechanisms to investigate …