Digital Commons Network^™

Water Scarcity And Fish Imperilment Driven By Beef Production, Brian D. Richter, Dominique Bartak, Peter Caldwell, Kyle Fankel Davis, Peter Debaere, Arjen Y. Hoekstra, Tianshu Li, Landon Marston, Ryan Mcmanamay, Mesfin Mekonnen, Benjamin L. Ruddell, Richard R. Rushforth, Tara J. Troy

Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute: Faculty Publications

Human consumption of freshwater is now approaching or surpassing the rate at which water sources are being naturally replenished in many regions, creating water shortage risks for people and ecosystems. Here we assess the impact of human water uses and their connection to water scarcity and ecological damage across the United States, identify primary causes of river dewatering and explore ways to ameliorate them. We find irrigation of cattle-feed crops to be the greatest consumer of river water in the western United States, implicating beef and dairy consumption as the leading driver of water shortages and fish imperilment in the …

Center For Grassland Studies, Volume 26, Issue 1, Spring 2020

Center for Grassland Studies: Newsletters

GPS Tracking to Understand Cattle Grazing

Director's Column

Listening Sessions Encourage Stakeholder Input

Sustaining Nebraska’s Grasslands

Cedar Management Meeting: April 3

Alumni Update: Ethan Freese, Master of Applied Science Candidate

Nebraska Grazing Conference: August 10-12, 2020

Students Test Prairie Restoration Methods for Joint Prairie Corridor Project

Nebraska Range Short Course: Register by May 15

Martin and Ruth Massengale Honored with Tribute Wall

Kenyan’s Tour Rangelands of Western Nebraska

GRLS Club Continues Growth

Range Club Earns Awards

Nebraska Ranch Practicum: Register by May 1

Opportunities Abound at PGA Merchandise Show

2019 Jones Cup Recap

Alumni Update: Austin Holliday, Manager, UNL Cow/Calf …

Nine-Mile Prairie Environs: Master Plan, April 2020, Center For Grassland Studies

Center for Grassland Studies: Newsletters

A red and white checkered water tower stands atop the hills on Lincoln’s northwest fringe. The tower sustains water pressure and is a waypoint finder for air traffic approaching the Lincoln airfield. In addition to these services, the tower’s checker pattern can symbolize the surrounding patchwork of native unplowed tallgrass prairie that comprises the Nine-Mile Prairie (NMP) Environs. At the core is NMP, a 230-acre public property full of tallgrass prairie biodiversity and Nebraska history. An area surrounding NMP, referred to as the “Environs” in the context of this strategic planning document, is almost entirely grassland or agricultural cropland. The …

Gamma Sigma Delta, Nebraska Chapter Newsletter, Issue #59 2020

Gamma Sigma Delta, Nebraska Chapter: Newsletters

In this issue:

Important dates

President's message, Paul Hay

2019 Nebraska Chapter awards: The Honor Society of Agriculture, Gamma Sigma Delta

Award of Merit recipients: Archie Clutter, Dave Vetter, Lena Luck, Suat Irmak, Angela Pannier, Sajjan Grover (Joe Louis), (Ethann Barnes, Jordan Reinders), Jayden Garrett (Daniel Gertner, Alexander Kemnitz, Trevin Ball, Kristi Patterson, Robert Gabel, Abigail Haworth), Abigail Haworth, Sydney Kimnach (Payton Flower, Kayla Johnson, Tori Pedersen).

New members inducted into the Nebraska Chapter

Gamma Sigma Delta committees 2020 (Executive: President: Paul Hay, President-Elect: TBD, Secretary/Treasurer: Dennis Brink, Membership Coordinator: Bob Wright, Historian Dana W. R. Boden, Past-President: Gary Brewer) …

Exact Distribution Of Linkage Disequilibrium In The Presence Of Mutation, Selection, Or Minor Allele Frequency Filtering, Jiayi Qu, Stephen D. Kachman, Dorian Garrick, Rohan L. Fernando, Hao Cheng

Department of Statistics: Faculty Publications

Linkage disequilibrium (LD), often expressed in terms of the squared correlation (r2) between allelic values at two loci, is an important concept in many branches of genetics and genomics. Genetic drift and recombination have opposite effects on LD, and thus r2 will keep changing until the effects of these two forces are counterbalanced. Several approximations have been used to determine the expected value of r2 at equilibrium in the presence or absence of mutation. In this paper, we propose a probability-based approach to compute the exact distribution of allele frequencies at two loci in a finite population at any generation …

Alexithymia Symptoms Are Not Associated With Childhood Trauma Or Crhr1 Rs110402 Genotype, Emily Wiatr, Grace Sullivan, Scott Stoltenberg

Center for Brain, Biology, and Behavior: Faculty Publications

Alexithymia is associated with difficulties in emotional self-regulation, and alexithymia is specifically associated with an absence of emotional experience and cognition of emotion. Past research has indicated a potential association between alexithymia and the CRHR1 gene . Situational factors may also impact the expression of the CRHR1 gene within an individual. Berenbaum (1996) found associations between PTSD/childhood trauma and alexithymia. This study examined these associations using the Online Alexithymia Questionnaire-G2 (OAQ-G2) as well as DNA samples gathered from 657 participants at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (72% women; 78.6% white; mean age= 20.34; standard deviation of 2.6). It was hypothesized that …

Got Science? Club, Nora Husein, Randa Ismail

Honors Program: Expanded Learning Clubs

Got Science? Club allows students to learn about the science that can be found in our daily lives using everyday items such as food and school supplies. Students will learn about these sciences through hands-on experiments, allowing them to truly experience the science around them.

Periodic Table Club, Makayla Gill, Kailynn Jensen

Honors Program: Expanded Learning Clubs

This club is dedicated to teaching the generation of future scientists the periodic table. This is designed to be a unique take on a STEM club that uses the periodic table as a backbone for a solid foundation in chemistry.

Fish & Wildlife News: Spring 2020, Matt Trott

Fish and Wildlife News

No abstract provided.

Cultural And Reproductive Success And The Causes Of War: A Yanomamö Perspective, Raymond B. Hames

Department of Anthropology: Faculty Publications

Inter-group competition including warfare is posited to be a key force in human evolution (Alexander, 1990; Choi & Bowles, 2007; Wrangham, 1999). Chagnon's research on the Yanomamö is seminal to understanding warfare in the types of societies characteristic of human evolutionary history. Chagnon's empirical analyses of the hypothesis that competition for status or cultural success is linked to reproduction (Irons, 1979) and warfare attracted considerable controversy. Potential causal factors include “blood revenge”, mate competition, resource shortages or inequality, and peace-making institutions (Boehm, 1984; Keeley's (1997); Meggitt, 1977; Wiessner and Pupu, 2012; Wrangham et al., 2006). Here we highlight Chagnon's contributions …

An Annotated Bibliography Of Archaeoentomology, Diana Gallagher

Department of Entomology: Distance Master of Science Projects

For my Master’s Degree Project, I have undertaken to compile an annotated bibliography of a selection of the current literature on archaeoentomology. While not exhaustive by any means, it is designed to cover the main topics of interest to entomologists and archaeologists working in this odd, dark corner at the intersection of these two disciplines. I have found many obscure works but some publications are not available without a trip to the Royal Society’s library in London or the expenditure of far more funds than I can justify. Still, the goal is to provide in one place, a list, as …

Brain Activation For Cochlear Implant Users: A Pilot Fnirs Study, Makayla Gill, Ceceli Bonitto, Bailey Heaton, Yingying Wang

UCARE: Research Products

Cochlear implants (CIs) have become a widespread device for individuals with severe-to-profound sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) to regain hearing ability and improve quality of life. However, the brain needs to adapt to this bionic device and relearn the function of hearing, especially for speech sounds. Because the auditory inputs through a CI are not the same as those heard by individuals with typical hearing, aural rehabilitation takes time. The goal of this study is to examine neural bases of speech perception in adult CI users using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). Two adults with bilateral SNHL and CI(s) were fitted with …

“Gobabygo!” Rehab Engineering To Make Children Mobile, Connor Albin, Chase M. Pfeifer

UCARE: Research Products

GoBabyGo! is a project to give children with movement difficulties a chance to move on their own. GoBabyGo! conducts community builds of modified ride-on-cars for these children and grants them mobility. Once issue is that once children have cars, there is no feedback to improve future builds. This project "“GoBabyGo!” – Rehab Engineering to Make Children Mobile," wishes to collect quantifiable data on how these cars are being used and how they can be improved. This project aims to do this by collecting surveys from caretakers and through a programmed module to be installed in cars. The installed car module …

Impacts Of Human Recreation On Nutrient Availability And Periphyton Abundance On The Niobrara River, Matthew Chen, Jessica Corman, Sydney Kimnach, Kayla Vondracek

UCARE: Research Products

In freshwater ecosystems, eutrophication can create many problems. Excess nutrients, like nitrogen or phosphorus, promote algal or cyanobacterial growth. This growth also leads to increased organic matter production and decomposition, a process that can reduce oxygen concentration in the water. When this happens, species diversity declines, transparency of the water declines, and anoxia may lead to fish kills . Of particular concern is the possibility of cyanobacteria blooms that create compounds toxic for humans. Many of the waters across Nebraska receive excessive nutrients from human activities, largely related to agriculture (Dickey 1982). However, there is one river, the Niobrara River, …

An Investigation Of The Operational And Design Characteristics Of Circadian Lighting Systems, Aaron Adams, Iason Konstantzos

UCARE: Research Products

This report investigates the operation of circadian lighting systems to gain an understanding of the main design and control characteristics and to promote different objectives for use. Research is guided by asking how color intensity, color temperature and their temporal characteristics are related to the circadian response, and how this knowledge can be utilized when designing and operating lighting systems for indoor environments. This report features an extensive literature review and case study application cut short by the impact of the novel coronavirus. Future investigation and implementation is encouraged.

Modeling Predator–Prey Interaction In A Two Patch System, Marc Wade

UCARE: Research Products

In this study we examine predator-prey relationships in the context of a two patch system. What is meant by a two patch system is that prey live in a habitat that consists of type 1 patches with an abundance of food and type 2 patches with no food. In our study, we will be assuming that predators cannot enter the first type of patch. We combine three well-established ecological theories: migration theory, optimal foraging theory, and the standard predator-prey model in order to answer the motivating question: "Under what environmental conditions is a predator population stable when predation can only …

Program And Proceedings: Nebraska Academy Of Sciences 1880–2020, 140th Anniversary Year, One Hundred-Thirtieth Annual Meeting

Nebraska Academy of Sciences: Programs and Proceedings

No abstract provided.

A Phenotypic Comparison Of Regional Populations Of Hemileuca Maia (Drury, 1773) With Designations Of New Subspecies (Bombycoidea, Saturniidae, Hemileucinae), Harry Pavulaan

The Taxonomic Report of the International Lepidoptera Survey

Following refinement of the type locality of Hemileuca maia to the Long Island Pine Barrens of New York State by the author (Pavulaan, 2020), an evaluation of phenotypic characters of regional populations of H. maia is presented. The Long Island population is the nominotypical subspecies. Populations in southeastern coastal New England and offshore islands are presently considered nominotypical maia. However, several continental inland populations show evidence of subspecific variation. Four new subspecies are designated. Detailed phenotypic information of other interior regions is lacking.

Journal Of The National Collegiate Honors Council, Vol. 21, No. 1 (Spring/Summer 2020)

Journal of the National Collegiate Honors Council Online Archive

Contents

Call for Papers . v

Editorial Policy, Deadlines, and Submission Guidelines . vi

Dedication to Rae Rosenthal . vii

Editor’s Introduction ix — Ada Long

Forum essays on “The Professionalization of Honors”

The Professionalization of Honors Education 3 — Patricia J. Smith

Honors, Professionalism, and Teaching and Learning: A Response to Certification 19 — John Zubizarreta

The Body of Honors: Certification as an Expression of Disciplinary Power 25 — Richard Badenhausen

A Requiem for Certification, A Song of Honors 33 — Jeffrey A. Portnoy

Swan Song 45 — Joan Digby

A Different Kind of Agitation . …

Motivations And Obstacles Influencing Faculty Engagement In Adopting Teaching Innovations, Wayne Jacobson, Renee Cole

To Improve the Academy: A Journal of Educational Development

Significant progress has been made in understanding science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education and ways it can be improved, but propagation of change remains a challenge. This study presents an analysis of STEM faculty responses to open-text survey questions that asked them to identify motivations and obstacles to making changes in their teaching. Responses reveal wide variability among faculty perceptions, conceptualizations of change, and understandings of evidence. These findings suggest reasons faculty are not uniformly receptive to calls for change and challenge educational developers and advocates of STEM education reform to be explicit about their own understandings of meaningful …

A Global Perspective On Sustainable Intensification Research, Kenneth Cassman, Patricio Grassini

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Despite general agreement that meeting food demand without further loss of natural ecosystems requires sustainable intensification, there is little dialogue about the research agenda needed to achieve it. To that end, we evaluate current trajectories towards sustainable intensification, review published research on the topic, identify missing links, and propose a prioritization framework to fill gaps. Although progress towards sustainable intensification is behind schedule, we are optimistic that current trends can get back on course assuming a well-prioritized and adequately funded research portfolio and appropriate policies and institutions to support it.

Unl Emeriti And Retirees Association Newsletter, Spring 2020

UNL Emeriti and Retirees Association: Newsletters and Other Materials

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Emeriti and Retirees Association Newsletter, Spring 2020

Understanding Sportsperson Retention And Reactivation Through License Purchasing Behavior, Matthew P. Hinrichs, Nathaniel B. Price, Matthew P. Gruntorad, Kevin L. Pope, Joseph J. Fontaine, Christopher J. Chizinski

Nebraska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit: Staff Publications

Most state and provincial fish and wildlife agencies have access to important information about patterns in sportsperson participation through their license databases. Using transaction data from Nebraska Game and Parks Commission’s electronic hunting and fishing license system, we tracked license purchases of Nebraska, USA, resident license holders in 2010 through 2017. We categorized sportspersons by gender and yearly purchases as hunting only (Hunter), fishing only (Angler), a combination of hunting and fishing (Hunter–Angler), or no purchases (Inactive). The probability of movement among active sportsperson groups was limited and varied little based on initial group participation. The Angler group had the …

Stunting And Infectious Disease In Ethiopian And Zambian Children, Alyssa Arndt

NUTR/GLST 498b: Global Research Experiences in Nutrition and Health

PURPOSE: To evaluate whether children who are malnourished/stunted are more likely to have experienced infectious disease.

METHODS: 6th and 7th students (n=546) were interviewed about health history and assessed using anthropometry.

RESULTS: Children who are short for their age also have higher rates of stunting. Malaria is the most experienced infectious disease.

CONCLUSIONS: Given that malaria was the most common infectious disease experience listed among middle school children, and that those who have experienced disease are more likely to be stunted, increased malaria prevention methods may improve the long-term health of Ethiopian and Zambian schoolchildren.

Conservation Of Bta-Mir-29b And Its Effect On Human Gene Expression, Anna Barent, Katie Meinders, Daniel Gutzmann, Audrey L. Atkin

UCARE: Research Products

The purposeof this work was to examine conservation of miR-29b and its binding sites in target mRNAs as well as co-expression of bta-miR-29b in bovine milk exosomes and its target mRNAs in HEK293 cells

•miRNAs are often highly conserved across species and bind to target mRNAs resulting in decreased gene expression. •Bovine milk exosomes contain miRNAs and most of these miRNAs are identical to human miRNAs. •Because these miRNAs are so conserved, it is hypothesized that bovine miRNAs can regulate gene expression and be linked to disease risk.

•miR-29b is highly conserved. •Identified 17 experimentally validated miR-29b target mRNAs. •The …

Herbicide Injury From Dicamba And 2,4-D: How Much Is Too Much In Lettuce?, Xinzheng Chen, Amit J. Jhala, Stevan Z. Knezevic, Samuel E. Wortman

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

Off-target herbicide injury from dicamba and 2,4-D is an increasingly common problem for specialty crop growers in the Midwest United States. Lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) is a common specialty crops grown in Nebraska, but proximity to corn and soybean production leaves growers vulnerable to crop injury and significant economic loss. The goal of this study was to quantify crop injury and yield loss in greenhouse grown lettuce after exposure to simulated sub-lethal drift rates of 2,4-D and dicamba. Sublethal doses were determined based on a percentage of the maximum labeled rate and ranged from 25% to 0.01%. Tested lettuce …

A Half Century Of Yield Growth Along The Forty-First Parallel Of The Great Plains: Factor Intensification, Irrigation, Weather, And Technical Change, Federico J. Trindade, Lilyan E. Fulginiti, Richard Perrin

Department of Agricultural Economics: Faculty Publications

In this study, we explain a half-century of crop yield growth along an 800-mile transect of the forty-first parallel North in the U.S. Great Plains. Using 101 county-level observations from 1960-2008 we jointly estimate a biomass production function with cost shares for fertilizer and chemicals while controlling for environmental factors. The main contributors to yield increases in this region were non-specific technical change +62%, irrigation +17%, fertilizer +13% and chemicals +11%. Environmental changes had a minor impact on regional yield changes. The wide range of agroclimatic conditions present along this transect produced significant sub-regional deviations from the aggregate estimates. While …

Spring Meadow Management Practices: What’S A Rancher To Do?, Tara M. Harms, Jerry D. Volesky, Mitchell B. Stephenson

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

Subirrigated meadows are a valuable forage resource to ranching operations in the Nebraska Sandhills, being used for both hay production and livestock grazing.

The water table of these meadows is within one meter of the soil surface during the growing season.

In some years, wet conditions hinder meadow utilization, resulting in a buildup of standing dead and litter plant material which can lower forage production.

Investigate if burning and mowing are effective strategies to remove dead plant material from meadows • Determine if burning or mowing interact with grazing to influence end of season forage production

Burning or mowing effectively …

Characteristics That Motivate A Volunteer Workforce: A Case Study Of One Of America’S Largest Volunteer Organizations, Jono Anzalone

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

A vast amount of research exists on organizational development and leadership theory targeted for organizations with a paid workforce as well as literature that discusses volunteer motivation and management. However, existing literature fails to address leadership theory, practices in organizational development, and performance improvement for a volunteer-led workforce, one in which both volunteer and paid staff compose the workforce. A bridge of the gap in literature is needed to help inform training and development practices of the American Red Cross and other non-governmental organizations. In addition, high volunteer turnover and low satisfaction has a costly impact on organizations critical …

An Investigation Of The Operational And Design Characteristics Of Circadian Lighting Systems, Aaron Adams

Durham School of Architectural Engineering and Construction: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This report investigates the operation of circadian lighting systems to gain an understanding of the main design and control characteristics and to promote different objectives for use. Research is guided by asking how color intensity, color temperature and their temporal characteristics are related to the circadian response, and how this knowledge can be utilized when designing and operating lighting systems for indoor environments. This report consists of an extensive literature review and case study application cut short by the impact of the novel coronavirus. The case study takes place in an office space housed on the UNMC campus featuring an …