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“Lead”Ing Industrial Science: Studying Occupational Lead Poisoning In The Early 20th Century, Rebekah E. Dreyer-Rowe

Master's Theses and Capstones

Lead was essential to the creation and coalescence of industrial hygiene as a discipline in the United States from its early days in the 1910s through the 1930s when the first professional associations of industrial hygiene were formed. In the early years, Alice Hamilton was central to the burgeoning field, and her seminal study on lead poisoning in Illinois industries thrust both her and her methods into the spotlight. Industrial hygienists of her generation followed her methods and came away with similar conclusions: that occupational diseases were rampant in the US, even if few people were studying them. In the …

Synthetic And Analytical Methods For Metal Targeting Peptides For The Sensing And Removal Of Metals Across Various Matrices, Emily Andrews

Doctoral Dissertations

Metal chelators developed from peptides boast favorable attributes such as low toxicity, ease of synthesis, and high tunabilty to the target metal ion. It is for these reasons that peptides are used for metal sensing and sequestration in the body and environment. Herein, two unique sets of metal targeting peptides are discussed: (1) bifunctional Szeto-Schiller and Kelley peptide probes to signal the presence of and remove labile iron (Fe2+ and Fe3+) in the mitochondria, to mitigate the progression of Ferroptosis and (2) Pb2+ targeting peptides designed to exist in aqueous environments for the removal of toxic lead ions from waterways. …

Multiscale Modeling And Analysis Of Biomedically Relevant Uhmwpe-Based Composite Materials, Stanislav Buklovskyi

Doctoral Dissertations

The development of ultra-high-molecular-weight-polyethylene (UHMWPE) based composite materials continues to present significant opportunities in biomedical engineering, particularly in joint arthroplasty and implant technologies. As applications expand, the need for accurate modeling of microstructure–property relationships to guide informed material design and manufacturing decisions is increasing. This dissertation presents a multiscale numerical modeling framework informed by X-ray micro-computed tomography (μCT) data to corelate the effective mechanical, thermal, and electrical properties of biomedically relevant composite systems with their microstructure.

Two material systems are considered: UHMWPE reinforced with conductive carbon black (CB) nanoparticles, and porous UHMWPE with two processes of pores generation. For CB/UHMWPE …

From Structure To Specificity: Biophysical Characterization Of Functional Interfaces In Protein Systems, Logan M. Brown

Doctoral Dissertations

Proteins are nature’s dynamic molecular machines, operating across a spectrum from highly ordered scaffolds to intrinsically disordered systems, and executing functions that depend on both precise structures and conformational flexibility. Yet, the mechanistic rules linking sequence, structure, and activity particularly in disordered proteins and specialized functional adaptations remain incompletely understood. This dissertation addresses that gap by integrating structural biology, biophysics, and protein engineering to dissect molecular recognition, stability, and function across three diverse yet thematically connected protein systems. Building on this understanding of protein structure and function, the following four projects apply these concepts to address diverse biological questions, ranging …

Evaluating The Effects Of Agricultural Management Practices On Beneficial Arthropod Communities, Isaac Newton Ativor

Doctoral Dissertations

Arthropods provide essential ecosystem services to our agricultural landscapes. These ecosystem services include biological control of pest organisms, including weed seeds, and plant pollination. Concerningly, however, there has been a global decline in insect populations over the last decade, a major cause of which is agricultural intensification. Previous research has demonstrated that agricultural management practices can strongly influence the species composition and abundance of arthropod communities, and therefore presumably the ecosystem services or disservices these organisms provide; however, our understanding of these interactions remains limited. I conducted three studies to investigate whether agricultural practices common in annual row crop (tillage …

Investigations Into Prior Knowledge And Self-Efficacy As Predictors Of Exam Performance In General Chemistry, And Student Interactions With Chemistry Textbooks, Gordon Hunter

Doctoral Dissertations

The first chapter addresses the validity and reliability of the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ) as a tool for chemistry education research. The study shows that the original MSLQ did not meet modern standards of reliability and presents a modified version that better captures self-efficacy in chemistry-specific contexts. The revised instrument shows improved model fit, reinforcing the importance of refining assessment tools for chemistry education research.The effects of prior knowledge and self-efficacy on student performance in a first-semester general chemistry course are investigated in the second chapter. Self-efficacy, defined as a learner's belief in their capability to successfully accomplish …

Planning Responses To Drinking Water System Emergencies, Jingyan Huang

Doctoral Dissertations

Despite extensive efforts to ensure clean and safe drinking water, drinking water contamination emergencies remain a persistent challenge in the United States. These events can result in widespread public health impacts, economic losses, and long-term environmental damage, particularly when triggered by hazardous chemical releases. Effective management of such crises requires a dual focus on both technical preparedness and human decision-making. This dissertation addresses these challenges through a two-part investigation that bridges pre-incident planning and post-incident response. It is guided by two core research objectives: (1) to evaluate commonly applied emergency countermeasures from both resilience and sustainability perspectives; and (2) to …

Missing Child Incidents Resulting In Death: Distinguishing Features Between False Allegations, Wander-Offs, And True Child Abductions, Madison N. Sundberg-Alley

Doctoral Dissertations

Children are reported missing in the United States for a multitude of reasons every year. Often, law enforcement is tasked with investigating these disappearances and recovering the missing child. In some instances, determining the reason why a child is missing can be challenging. This study focuses on three types of missing child episodes that result in fatality: child abduction homicides (CAH), false allegations of child disappearance (FACD), and wander-offs (WO). This exploratory analysis contributes to a gap in the literature by identifying some possible differences between case types that may assist police in determining the likely explanation for the disappearance. …

Counting Kelp: Development And Assessment Of Modelling Approaches To Improve Understanding Of Kelp Bed Abundance And Resilience In The Gulf Of Maine, Constance N. Tyler

Doctoral Dissertations

Kelp habitats in the Gulf of Maine are threatened by rising ocean temperatures and marine invasions. The replacement of kelps with red turf macroalgae fundamentally alters these habitats and disrupts the ecosystem services they provide. Thorough assessment and monitoring of kelp habitats is needed for proper conservation of these habitats, but most long-term monitoring is performed using traditional survey methods that are restricted in the amount of space they can cover. Habitat modelling approaches are required to expand our knowledge of Gulf of Maine kelp habitats, and to better understand the interactions between kelp and red turf habitats across the …

Bio-Acoustical Statistical Signal Processing For Detection, Classification, And Population Estimation In Wildlife Monitoring, Yue Liang

Doctoral Dissertations

Sound is a primary way for many animal species to communicate, forage, navigate, and assess their environment. As a result, passive acoustic monitoring (PAM), the recording and analysis of animal vocalizations, has become a valuable, non-invasive alternative to visual surveys. However, the massive volume of acoustic data generated annually, often reaching hundreds of terabytes, presents a significant challenge for efficient analysis. Since manual inspection of every frame in such data is infeasible, it is essential to develop automated detection and classification tools.

This thesis investigates and develops several statistical signal processing and machine learning techniques to address this challenge. The …

Eastern Oyster, Crassostrea Virginica, Genomics In A Well-Mixed Estuarine System: Examining Population Structure, Viability, And Response To Stressors, Alyssa Strickland

Doctoral Dissertations

Eastern oysters, Crassostrea virginica, are foundational estuarine species that contribute to a variety of ecosystem services including water filtration, nutrient cycling, habitat creation, and shoreline protection. However, populations have declined due to disease, overharvesting, habitat loss, and climate change, especially in northern systems such as New Hampshire’s Great Bay Estuary (GBE), located in the Gulf of Maine, one of the world’s fastest warming waters. This dissertation uses genomic and transcriptomic approaches to understand the drivers of population structure, decline, and resilience in GBE oyster populations, aiming to aid restoration and aquaculture. Chapter 1 used low-coverage whole-genome sequencing to understand population …

Uncovering The Plant-Microbe-Permafrost Paradigm As It Relates To Soil Priming And Arctic Carbon Cycles, Sean Robert Schaefer

Doctoral Dissertations

Permafrost, or perennially frozen soil, covers approximately 25% of the northern hemisphere and contains over half of the world’s soil organic carbon stocks. Permafrost-affected regions are rapidly warming, resulting in ecosystem changes including permafrost thaw and a shift from sedge-dominated to shrub-dominated plant communities. As permafrost thaws, it releases previously unavailable compounds to plants and microorganisms. Plant root inputs can then stimulate the decomposition of thawed permafrost, increasing greenhouse gas emissions in a process called priming. Permafrost thaw increases the decomposition of previously frozen soil organic matter (SOM); however, the extent of decomposition is highly dependent on plants and their …

Addressing Economic Valuation Issues Of Outdoor Recreation: Case Studies Of Lake Michigan Invasive Carp And Plum Island Visits, Iris Tryfoni

Doctoral Dissertations

Environmental valuation is the process of assigning monetary value on environmental goods and services, which do not easily have market prices. It is, however, possible to over- or underestimate the economic valuation of outdoor recreation issues, specifically (1) recreational fishing and (2) beach recreation. Despite their different focuses, both case studies share a common objective of refining methodologies to better understand and address complex environmental issues from an economic perspective. Traditional recreation valuation techniques often lack explicit connection to ecology, which can be impacted by various factors. Addressing this gap, in the first part of my dissertation, I propose a …

Temporal Variability In The Bulk Nutritional Quality Of Estuarine Plankton, Marley Gonsalves

Master's Theses and Capstones

The temporal variability of plankton is well documented, particularly in constantly changing tidal systems such as estuaries, but the extent to which this variability applies to plankton nutritional quality is less well known. As the base of the aquatic food web, variation in phytoplankton nutritional quality stands to constrain fishery production, particularly of filter-feeders. Here, community and nutritional data was collected from Great Bay, NH, a model estuary, over seasonal, tidal, and daily time scales to identify the range and variability of nutritional quality in plankton. Bulk spectrophotometric neutral lipid and protein measurements were compared to plankton community composition data …

Effects Of Gibberellic Acid (Ga3) And Cluster Thinning On Fruit Quality, Cluster Quality And Yield In Seedless Table Grape Cultivars, Radhika Rani

Master's Theses and Capstones

Seedless table grape production in cool-climate regions like the Northeastern U.S. is limited by cold temperatures, short growing season, and relatively few adapted cultivars. American species (Vitis labrusca) or interspecific hybrids offer more disease and cold resistance as compared to European species (V. vinifera), however, small berry size, lower yields, and low fruit quality have been some of the limitations for these cultivars. This study evaluated the effects of gibberellic acid (GA3) and cluster thinning under different training systems to improve cluster and berry quality in seedless table grape cultivars. The first experiment focused on ‘Concord Seedless’, examining the effects …

Modeling Ungulate Population Parameters Across Human-Modified Landscapes, Sarah Richard

Master's Theses and Capstones

As human activity and development continue to alter natural landscapes, large ungulates are increasingly exposed to changing habitat structures, altered mortality risks, and climate-related stressors. These ecological shifts can influence their survival, behavior, and population dynamics. Understanding how such complex and evolving conditions shape demographic trends in these species is critical for effective management. In this thesis, I examined two ecologically and culturally important ungulate species, white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) and moose (Alces alces), across human-modified environments. Specifically, I analyzed how intrinsic factors, behavioral development, and landscape composition influence stage-specific mortality in deer neonates and population parameters in moose in …

A Geoacoustic Bayesian Inversion For Large Calibrated Singlebeam Echosounder And Ground Truth Datasets, Andrew Paul Niedbla

Master's Theses and Capstones

This thesis describes the development of a geoacoustic inversion technique to estimate seafloor sediment characteristics that is designed for use with existing fisheries survey single beam echosounder (SBES) datasets. The geoacoustic inversion technique consists of a forward model and inversion algorithm. The forward model is a high frequency, physics-based, near normal incidence acoustic backscatter model enhanced with a density depth gradient model and geoacoustic sediment regressions. The inversion algorithm is a parallel tempered Markov-chain Monte Carlo Bayesian inversion. The geoacoustic inversion produces posterior probability distributions for mean grain size, density, porosity, sound speed, seafloor roughness characterization, and sediment volume scattering …

Analysis Of Nutrient Accumulation Within A Bioretention System, Amina Halim Nefic

Master's Theses and Capstones

Bioretention systems are widely used in stormwater management to mitigate nutrient pollution, particularly nitrogen and phosphorus. Over time, these systems undergo changes in nutrient retention efficiency due to organic matter accumulation and biogeochemical transformations. This study examines the distribution and long-term retention of total nitrogen (TN), total Kjeldahl nitrogen (TKN), nitrate (NO3-), total phosphorus (TP), and orthophosphate (PO43-) within a 16-year-old bioretention system. A combination of k-means clustering and non-parametric statistical tests (Kruskal-Wallis and Wilcoxon rank-sum tests) were employed to analyze nutrient concentrations across different soil depths and media types. Results indicate that TN and TKN are concentrated in the …

Beech Bark Disease Agent Responses To Exogenous Application Of Tree Defense Inducing Phytohormones, Erin Reilly

Master's Theses and Capstones

Pathogens and insects face several barriers to successful infection and colonization of a host plant, including a range of physical and chemical defenses, some of which are inducible (modified or initiated by attack or infection). These interactions can be complex and are influenced by environmental conditions, tree physiological status, host age, and timing of attack. Non-native pathogens and insects can have an advantage against a plant’s evolved chemical defenses, but they are also subject to abiotic stressors and conditions. In North America, beech bark disease (BBD) is a disease complex where the beech (Fagus grandifolia) host is subject to concurrent …

Evaluating Unoccupied Aerial Systems (Uass) For The Monitoring Of Unmarked Moose In New Hampshire, Usa, Lily Hall

Master's Theses and Capstones

Accurate estimates of wildlife densities are important for understanding population dynamics and informing management decisions. Recent technological developments such as improvements of unoccupied aerial systems (UASs) and sensors provide novel pathways to estimate wildlife densities. However, these methods require critical evaluation of efficacy. In this research, we evaluated the capability of UASs to predict moose (Alces alces) density across a large landscape (~12,000 km2) in northern New Hampshire, USA using longwave infrared imagery via UAS sampling. In Chapter 1, our objective was to account for imperfect detection by creating a sightability model for unmarked moose that includes covariates expected to …

A Mixed-Methods Approach To Describe Typologies And Fiber Consumption Patterns Of Hispanic/Latino Adults Grouped Using Cluster Analysis, Nicholas Clarke

Master's Theses and Capstones

AbstractBackground: Hispanic/Latino adults in the United States experience disproportionate rates of obesity and diet-related chronic diseases yet remain underrepresented in obesity research. Traditional “one-size-fits-all” nutrition interventions have demonstrated limited effectiveness in this population, largely due to substantial heterogeneity in cultural, socioeconomic, and behavioral factors that influence dietary patterns. Objectives: The overarching goal of this project was to further characterize previously identified subgroups within the Hispanic/Latino population to provide a foundation for future tailored interventions that address the specific needs and preferences of these subpopulations. Specific aims were to: 1. Describe cluster typologies using a virtual nominal group technique (vNGT) with …

Wildlife Connectivity And Its Relationship With Vehicle Collision Hotspots Across New Hampshire, Clara Dawson

Master's Theses and Capstones

Chp. 1: Road networks fragment wildlife habitat and impede wildlife connectivity, which leads to elevated wildlife-vehicle collision (WVC) risk and increased danger to humans and wildlife. Habitat connectivity has been linked to WVC hotspot location and intensity, but this relationship likely depends on landscape context and road characteristics, which may be nonlinear due to varying habitat availability. Our objective was to evaluate factors affecting WVC location and intensity across New Hampshire, USA, with a focus on habitat connectivity. We assessed the relationship between WVCs and five connectivity models using generalized additive models and compared connectivity effects to road and land …

Toxin-Producing Cyanobacteria In Green Manure Microbiomes, Alyssa Nicole Daigle

Master's Theses and Capstones

The increasing reliance on inefficient synthetic fertilizers, which readily leach from soils and contribute to downstream pollution, underscores the urgent need for more sustainable nutrient sources, such as green manures (GMs). Floating aquatic plants like duckweeds are particularly promising candidates due to their natural abundance, rapid growth rates, and ability to efficiently uptake nutrients. However, the presence of toxin-producing cyanobacteria in duckweed microbiomes raises concerns about the potential for toxin accumulation, like microcystins (MCs), both in the GM biomass and in the edible crops to which it is applied. To evaluate the suitability and safety of duckweed-based GMs, we conducted …

Evaluating The Influence Of Landscape Structure On Blanding’S Turtle (Emydoidea Blandingii) Home Range Size, Maeve Grace Kelley

Master's Theses and Capstones

Freshwater turtles are increasingly threatened by anthropogenic activities that fragment critical habitats and impede movement across the landscape. The Blanding’s turtle (Emydoidea blandingii), a species that undergoes frequent interwetland movements, is particularly vulnerable to road mortality when natural habitats are disturbed or converted. Understanding the spatial ecology of this species is essential to inform effective conservation and management strategies. This study examined how landscape structure (composition and configuration) influences Blanding’s turtle home range size. Home range and core areas were modeled during the active season and separately for two distinct activity periods (nesting and post-nesting) using radio-telemetry data collected across …

Host Evolutionary History As A Predictor Of Microbiome Breeding Success, Ciana Lazu

Master's Theses and Capstones

Microbial inoculants present a potential alternative to artificial fertilizers and other chemical products in agriculture, yet microbial products derived from non-native microbes may pose ecological risks or fail to thrive. On the other hand, creating microbial inoculants from local microbes via “microbiome breeding” can be unpredictable. Here, the aquatic plant Lemna minor (duckweed), microbes isolated from duckweed, and microbes isolated from other, co-occurring aquatic plants was used to evaluate if the evolutionary distance between hosts from which microbes are sourced is a predictor of the success in “breeding” locally derived microbiomes to promote duckweed growth. “Microbiome breeding” was performed on …

Laying The Foundation For A Tartary Buckwheat Breeding Program For The Northeast: Phenotypic Characterization Of Seedling Traits And Hybridization Techniques, Julia Oliveira Barreiro De Jesus

Master's Theses and Capstones

Tartary buckwheat (Fagopyrum tataricum) is an underutilized crop with the potential to address key challenges in modern agriculture, including food security in the context of climate change and growing resource scarcity. It is valued for its tolerance to abiotic stresses such as drought, cold, and marginal soils, making it a promising candidate for cultivation in the Northeastern United States, a region where average temperatures have risen by approximately 0.25 °C per decade since 1970. These climatic shifts have led to changes in snow-to-rain ratios, earlier phenological events, and increased intensity of precipitation events, particularly in spring, posing challenges for early …

Investigating The Offsets Between The Clumped Isotope Signatures Of Various Species Of Benthic Foraminifera, Ceara Hogan Yourell

Master's Theses and Capstones

For much of the last half century, the primary tool for reconstructing ancient ocean temperatures was the oxygen isotope paleothermometer. However, this method is fundamentally limited by its reliance on assumptions about the δ¹⁸O value of seawater, which introduces uncertainty into paleotemperature estimates. The clumped isotope paleothermometer (Δ47) offers a promising alternative by directly measuring the stochastic "clumping" of heavy isotopes (¹³C and ¹⁸O) within the carbonate lattice—a process governed solely by temperature and independent of seawater isotopic composition (Ghosh et al., 2006; Eiler, 2007). While Δ47 paleothermometry has been applied successfully in diverse contexts, including reconstructing extinct animal body …

Pre-Production Plastic Pellets (Pppp) Virtual Webinar, Coastal Response Research Center

Coastal Response Research Center

The Coastal Response Research Center (CRRC) organized and facilitated a virtual webinar on “Pre-Production Plastic Pellets (PPPP)”. The webinar was held in collaboration with NOAA’s Office of Response & Restoration (OR&R) and a steering committee comprised of representatives from federal agencies and other stakeholders. It was held on June 3 & 4, 2025. This was the second program CRRC and OR&R conducted on PPPP. The first was an in-person workshop in 2023.

Specific Objectives:

1. Improve and enhance collaboration among responders and researchers for PPPP incidents;
2. Evaluate recent (since 2023 workshop) PPPP case studies for challenges and lessons learned;
3. Explore operational …

Ocean And Coastal Acidification Monitoring Priorities For The Northeast Us And Eastern Canada, Christopher Hunt, Austin Pugh, Jake Kritzer, Samantha Siedlecki, Kumiko Azetsu-Scott, Parker Gassett, Diane Lavoie, Adam Pimenta, Amy Trice, Elizabeth Turner

Faculty Publications

The Interagency Working Group on Ocean Acidification Monitoring Prioritization Plan 2024 calls for Coastal Acidification Networks to identify the ocean and coastal acidification (OCA) monitoring needs most important for their regions. The Northeast Coastal Acidification Network (NECAN) organized a webinar series to study regional needs, which culminated with a workshop in November 2023. This workshop led to the identification of six priority new Monitoring Needs in addition to the maintenance of current monitoring efforts:

• Improve spatial and temporal scale of monitoring co-located OCA variables and biological measurements to better resolve variability of acidification dynamics in concert with biological processes …

A Meta-Analysis Of Historic Drinking Water Emergency Events Reported In News Articles, Victor Yu, Haiying Wang, Weiwei Mo

Faculty Publications

This study seeks to investigate historical drinking water contamination events that reported by news media to find the key determinants of their outcomes, including the duration and economic cost, and to quantitatively describe the characteristics of past contamination events. ProQuest Global Newsstream and Regional Business News were used to identify an initial list of events and supplemented by additional search on specific information including the response actions, economic cost, and more. These events were analyzed using descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, and regression modeling. Smaller community water systems were found to be more frequently impacted by contamination events. Use restrictions, except …