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Lake Mead National Recreation Area Monitoring And Evaluation Of Sensitive Wildlife: Quarterly Progress Report, Period Ending December 31, 2006, Margaret N. Rees

Wildlife Monitoring

• Research assistant hired for Relict Leopard Frog conservation project.
• High school minority intern hired to assist with research efforts.
• Nocturnal visual encounter surveys for Relict Leopard Frogs conducted at all established natural sites and at 6 of 7 translocation sites.
• Vegetation management conducted to decrease tamarisk cover along the stream at the Pupfish Refuge Spring – a Relict Leopard Frog translocation site.
• New draft guidelines and field count protocols developed for midwinter bald eagle count.
• Preliminary analysis and modeling of thrasher habitat selection conducted and sampling assessed
• Call-broadcast surveys for thrasher species conducted at 43 points countywide, focusing on vegetation …

Take Pride In America In Southern Nevada: Quarterly Progress Report, Period Ending December 31, 2006, Margaret N. Rees

Anti-littering Programs

• Don’t Trash Nevada roll-out event held on October 12, 2006.

• Program website launched.

• 74 people have taken the on-line anti-litter and dumping pledge.

• Public-private partnership with Republic Services of Southern Nevada generated $11,917.97 in donations to Don’t Trash Nevada.

• Conducted 3 volunteer and 1 alternative workforce clean-ups this quarter.

• Fulfilled deliverable of 12 clean-ups for 2006 (9 volunteer / 3 alternative workforce).

• 16 volunteer clean-ups scheduled for 2007. • Two tons of agency-generated paper recycled this quarter, saving 14,000 gallons of water, 34 trees, and almost 8 cubic yards of landfill space.

• …

Afci Quarterly Input – Unlv October 1 Through December 31, 2006, Harry Reid Center For Environmental Studies. Nuclear Science And Technology Division

Transmutation Research Program Reports (TRP)

Quarterly report highlighting research projects, activities and objectives of the Transmutation Research Program at the Nuclear Science & Technology Division, Harry Reid Research Center.

The University of Nevada, Las Vegas supports the AFCI through research and development of technologies for economic and environmentally sound refinement of spent nuclear fuel. The UNLV program has four components: infrastructure, international collaboration, student-based research, and management and program support.

Factors Contributing To Dust Emissions In Clark County, Nevada Annual Performance Report: Period Ending December 29, 2006, Margaret N. Rees

Dust Emissions from Public Lands

1. A comparison of actual accomplishments with the goals and objectives established for the period, the findings of the investigator, or both. Whenever appropriate and the output of programs and projects can be readily quantified, such quantitative data should be related to cost data for computation of unit costs.

• University of Nevada, Public Lands Institute has met the requirement of section III.A.1 of Task Agreement FAA010017 to recruit and hire a postdoctoral scholar (or equivalent position) with research expertise in dust management issues. Dr. Dirk Goossens has extensive and specific experience in dust emissions research and will begin work on January …

College Of Engineering Senior Design Competition Fall 2006, University Of Nevada, Las Vegas

Fred and Harriet Cox Senior Design Competition Projects

Part of every UNLV engineering student’s academic experience, the senior design project stimulates engineering innovation and entrepreneurship. Each student in their senior year chooses, plans, designs and prototypes a product in this required element of the curriculum. A capstone to the student’s educational career, the senior design project encourages the student to use everything learned in the engineering program to create a practical, real world solution to an engineering challenge.

The senior design competition helps to focus the senior students in increasing the quality and potential for commercial application for their design projects. Judges from local industry evaluate the projects …

Gsi: Geo Scene Investigation! Pre-Visit, Support Materials: Lake Mead Geologic Webquest (Grade 7), Discover Mojave: Forever Earth

Curriculum materials (FE)

Student worksheets and teacher rubric to accompany the Lake Mead Geologic WebQuest lesson.

A Fuzzy Logic Controller For Autonomous Wheeled Vehicles, Mohamed Trabia, Linda Z. Shi, Neil Eugene Hodge

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Research

Autonomous vehicles have potential applications in many fields, such as replacing humans in hazardous environments, conducting military missions, and performing routine tasks for industry. Driving ground vehicles is an area where human performance has proven to be reliable. Drivers typically respond quickly to sudden changes in their environment. While other control techniques may be used to control a vehicle, fuzzy logic has certain advantages in this area; one of them is its ability to incorporate human knowledge and experience, via language, into relationships among the given quantities. Fuzzy logic controllers for autonomous vehicles have been successfully applied to address various …

Inside Unlv, Diane Russell, Cate Weeks, Shane Bevell, Mamie Peers, Lori Bachand

Inside UNLV

No abstract provided.

Education In The Environment: A Hands-On Student Research And Outdoor Learning Experience: Quarterly Progress Report: Period Ending November 30, 2006, Environmental Education Strategy For Nevada

Reports (PLI Education)

• Forever Earth was scheduled for 17 days and benefited 307 individuals.
• Technology was successfully tested aboard Forever Earth that may allow for distance education opportunities in Clark County School District classrooms.
• Secretary of Interior Dirk Kempthorne and Congressman Jon Porter were hosted by the National Park Service aboard Forever Earth on October 31, 2006.
• Training for Forever Earth program facilitators was conducted on November 20, 2006.
• Four Discover Mojave Outdoor World events were conducted. A partnership with the Big Brothers/Big Sisters organization is under development to increase participation in the program.
• Meeting held with Las Vegas developer Focus Property Group …

The Teaching American History Project: An Assessment Of Student Performance, Lewis Karstensson, James E. Davis

Molasky Family Department of Economics and Real Estate Faculty Research

This study examines selected effects of a teaching program in American history on fifth grade students in the Elk Grove (California) Unified School District.

Alien Invaders! Post-Visit Lessons, Support Materials (Grade 6), Discover Mojave: Forever Earth

Curriculum materials (FE)

Support material to enable students to write a public service announcement invasive species.

Alien Invaders! Pre-Visit, Support Materials: Water Characteristics (Grade 6), Discover Mojave: Forever Earth

Curriculum materials (FE)

Student worksheets about water quality and the effect invasive species have on it.

Inside Unlv, Cate Weeks, Brenda Griego, David Ashley, Mamie Peers, Shane Bevell, Gian Galassi

Inside UNLV

No abstract provided.

High Temperature Heat Exchanger Project: Quarterly Progress Report July 1, 2006 Through September 30, 2006, Anthony Hechanova

Publications (NSTD)

Hydrodynamics and thermal numerical modeling coupled with sulfur trioxide decomposition for the one channel geometry with three different channel configurations were performed. The results obtained from the numerical modeling were compared with the baseline design under the same boundary and operation conditions. The case with diamond shaped channels has the highest percentage of sulfuric acid decomposition. The baseline channel geometry has the lowest pressure drop compared with other cases.

Factors Contributing To Dust Emissions In Clark County, Nevada Quarterly Progress Report: Period Ending October 15, 2006, Margaret N. Rees

Dust Emissions from Public Lands

• Hiring of post-doctoral scholar completed.
• Modification to task agreement approved.

Red Rock Desert Learning Center Stakeholder Phasing Meeting: October 5, 2006, Red Rock Desert Learning Center

Reports (RRLC)

• Our goals for this meeting

• What does phasing offer us?

• Possible phasing scenados

• Where do we go from here?

• Other business regarding RRDLC

Procedure Models, C. F. Bartley, W. W. Watson

Publications (YM)

This procedure establishes the responsibilities and process for documenting activities that constitute scientific investigation modeling. Planning requirements for conducting modeling are contained in LP-2.29Q-BSC, Planning for Science Activities.

Science Education On The U.S./Mexico Border: Field-Based Studies For Future Teachers In Bilingual/Binational Schools, William H. Robertson, Judith H. Munter, Claudia Garcia

Journal of Praxis in Multicultural Education

The University of Texas at El Paso’s field-based program of studies for future teachers provides opportunities for powerful learning through a dialectical union of reflection and action. Methods courses in academic disciplines are linked with seminars and coursework on community partnerships, dual language education and culturally responsive education. This article illustrates the processes of planning, implementation and evaluation of this approach, highlighting the impacts of forging connections among schools, communities and university personnel to improve education on the U.S./Mexico border and in communities with culturally/linguistically diverse student populations. Parents, students and future teachers interact in bilingual workshops that center on …

Inside Unlv, Diane Russell, Shane Bevell, David Ashley, Cate Weeks, Jennifer Lawson

Inside UNLV

No abstract provided.

Connecting A Disconnected Youth To The Outdoor World, Daphne Sewing, Public Lands Institute

Presentations (DM)

• Understand the components of an effective program that connects youth to the natural world.
• Develop ideas for integrating these components into your existing programs.
• Program effectiveness.
• What we can do as environmental educators.

Women's Research Institute Of Nevada Newsletter, Joanne Goodwin, Women's Research Institute Of Nevada

Newsletters

No abstract provided.

Cooperative Conservation: Increasing Capacity Through Community Partnerships - Interagency Volunteer Program: Quarterly Progress Report, Period Ending September 30, 2006, Margaret N. Rees

Get Outdoors Nevada

• Volunteer database increased 9.5% over last quarter. Database now contains 2,698 records.
• Website activity decreased, recording an average of 42,488 hits per month, with an average of 4,435 pages viewed per month (3.6% decrease in pages viewed).
• Volunteer recognition ceremony scheduled for November 4 at the Renaissance Hotel, Las Vegas.
• Fall 2006 volunteer training schedule finalized.
• National Public Lands Day volunteer projects successfully executed at Red Rock Canyon NCA and Lake Mead NRA, with a total of 232 community volunteers contributing more than 1,000 hours toward clean-up and restoration of Southern Nevada’s public lands.
• Team charter presented to the federal …

Interagency Science And Research: Quarterly Progress Report, Period Ending September 30, 2006, Margaret N. Rees

Interagency Science and Research Strategy

• Desert Research Institute completed two Mojave Desert Ecosystem Health Assessment (i.e., Vital Signs) workshops in August 2006. Public Lands Institute assisted in preparing the workshop opening presentation on behalf of the interagency team.
• Round 7 beta-test of the Phase I strategy delayed to the next quarter.

Lake Mead National Recreation Area Vegetation Monitoring And Management: Final Close-Out Report, Time Period: October 1, 2005 To September 30, 2006, Margaret N. Rees

Vegetation Monitoring

The National Park Service (NPS) at Lake Mead National Recreation Area (LAME) entered into a cooperative agreement with the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) to accomplish vegetation monitoring and management activities. This report summarizes activities that took place by UNLV under this task agreement between October 1, 2005, and September 30, 2006. The activities included:

• Weed Sentry mapping and treating incipient populations of exotic invasive plants throughout Clark County, including along shorelines of Lakes Mead and Mohave;
• Monitoring of targeted rare native plant species;
• Sahara mustard research; and
• Providing technical assistance upon request to the NPS vegetation manager.

In …

Lake Mead National Recreation Area National Park Service: Final Progress Report, Period Ending September 30, 2006, Margaret N. Rees

Wildlife Monitoring

This task agreement was awarded by the National Park Service (NPS), Lake Mead National Recreation Area (LAME), to the Public Lands Institute (PLI) at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) on October 1, 2005. This monitoring, research, and management project consisted of several project elements focused on: bald eagles, peregrine falcons, rare songbird species (including southwest willow flycatcher); aquatic birds, relict leopard frog, desert tortoise, and bighorn sheep. In general, actions associated with this project focused on the development and implementation of inventory and monitoring programs to determine the distribution, status, abundance, trends, and potential threats to these animals, …

Take Pride In America In Southern Nevada: Quarterly Progress Report, Period Ending September 30, 2006, Margaret N. Rees

Anti-littering Programs

• Team members have been meeting regularly with other interagency teams to plan for the upcoming messaging campaign roll-out event, set for October 12, 2006.

• The Interagency Anti-Litter Team recycled over a ton of paper this quarter.

• A task order modification request was completed, submitted, and approved this quarter. The request will make more funds available for the messaging campaign.

• A multi-pronged media buy for the messaging campaign has been planned this quarter and will be initiated in October.

• The Anti-Litter Team worked with the Nevada Division of Forestry to complete Phase Two of a clean-up …

Afci Quarterly Input – Unlv July 1 Through September 30, 2006, Harry Reid Center For Environmental Studies. Nuclear Science And Technology Division

Transmutation Research Program Reports (TRP)

Quarterly report highlighting research projects, activities and objectives of the Transmutation Research Program at the Nuclear Science & Technology Division, Harry Reid Research Center.

The University of Nevada, Las Vegas supports the AFCI through research and development of technologies for economic and environmentally sound refinement of spent nuclear fuel. The UNLV program has four components: infrastructure, international collaboration, student-based research, and management and program support.

Precarious Rock Methodology For Seismic Hazard: Physical Testing, Numerical Modeling, And Coherence Studies, Rasool Anooshehpoor, James N. Brune, Amy J. Smiecinski, Raymond E. Keeler

Publications (YM)

The precarious rock methodology used for seismic hazard assessment includes location, age dating, field measurements of the quasi-static toppling acceleration of balanced rocks, and study of their dynamic response to realistic strong motion seismograms using numerical modeling. The work scope is contained in the task description issued by the DOE to the Seismology Laboratory of the University of Nevada, Reno and is itemized in section 2.3 below. In addition, measurement of the coherence of seismic energy at high frequencies, critical to the understanding of the variability of high frequency ground motions at the repository level, will be estimated based on …

Don’T Trash Nevada: An Anti-Litter Strategy For Southern Nevada, Public Lands Institute

Anti-littering Presentations

• Increase public awareness about the desert dumping and urban littering.
• Increase the media’s awareness of the dumping and littering problem.
• Over the life of the campaign, modify behavior to reduce littering and dumping by Clark County residents and visitors.

Community Engagement, Education & Research, Public Lands Institute

Presentations (PLI)

The Public Lands Institute is dedicated to strengthening the national fabric that is essential for the protection, conservation, and management of public lands.