Digital Commons Network^™

Currents, Eddies, And A "Fish Story" In The Southwestern Japan/East Sea, D. Randolph Watts, Mark Wimbush, Karen L. Tracey, William J. Teague, Jae-Hun Park, Douglas A. Mitchell, Jong-Hwan Yoon, Moon-Sik Suk, Kyung-Il Chang

Graduate School of Oceanography Faculty Publications

As part of the Japan/East Sea (JES) initiative supported by the U.S. Office of Naval Research, we conducted an observational experiment to understand the physics of the mesoscale circulation in the Ulleung Basin, located in the southwestern corner of the JES. The current passing through the Korea Strait divides upon entering the JES, with portions of the current flowing along the Korean and Japanese coasts. The variability of these currents is especially energetic in our study region. Our objectives were to measure the time-varying currents in the upper and deep levels of the JES. We relate the population density of …

Transmission Loss In Manatee Habitats, Jennifer L. Miksis-Olds, James H. Miller

Graduate School of Oceanography Faculty Publications

The Florida manatee is regularly exposed to high volumes of vessel traffic and other human-related noise because of its coastal distribution. Quantifying specific aspects of the manatee’s acoustic environment will allow for a better understanding of how these animals respond to both natural and human-induced changes in their environment. Transmission loss measurements were made in 24 sampling sites that were chosen based on the frequency of manatee presence. The Monterey-Miami Parabolic Equation model was used to relate environmental parameters to transmission loss in two extremely shallow water environments: seagrass beds and dredged habitats. Model accuracy was verified by field tests …

Uri Undergraduate And Graduate Course Catalog 2006-2007, University Of Rhode Island

URI Course Catalogs Archive

This is a digitized, downloadable version of the University of Rhode Island course catalog.

Consideration For The Impact Of Climate Change Information On Stated Preferences, Boaz Barak

Open Access Dissertations

This study identifies the effects of different types of climate change information on people's stated willingness to support public programs to reduce the impacts of climate change. The models developed in this research provide the Waquoit Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve with tools for evaluating outreach programs. By approaching the issue of information effects with environmental economic research methods, this study provides a multidisciplinary approach for designing informative programs that better achieve the goal of informed decision making by the local communities. Focus group findings guided the design of information treatments that address people's mental models for climate change. Two …

The Horror Of Looking: Lynching And The Empathetic Eye, Greta Methot

Open Access Dissertations

During the summer of 2000, the New York Historical Society enjoyed its "biggest continuing attendance of any exhibition in years," with a collection of photographs entitled, Without Sanctuary: Photographs and Postcards of Lynching in America (Valdez 88). The more than seventy images featured, all taken between 1880 and 1961, illustrate in gruesome detail, a vicious chapter in American history. This exhibit, which is still making the rounds at U.S. art museums and was reproduced on the Internet and in a $60 coffee-table book, offers tremendous opportunity for critical thinking about the intersections of race, spectatorship, and violence in America. My …

Objectification Or Liberation? Bisexual And Lesbian Women's Experiences With Physical Appearance, Amy Black

Open Access Dissertations

Using a multi-method qualitative design and analytic approaches derived from grounded theory, the current study examined the appearance standards within lesbian and bisexual communities and how these norms relate to lesbian and bisexual women's psychological experiences with physical appearance. The study investigated how the women's diverse social identities relate to these experiences. Participants consisted of a relatively diverse sample of 24 bisexual (n = 10) and lesbian (n = 14) women who took part in 1 of 4 focus groups. From this sample, 4 bisexual women and 6 lesbians were recruited to participate in in-depth interviews. Participants represented a broad …

"Man With Box", David D. Malley

Open Access Dissertations

Dating back to Edgar Allen Poe, short story criticism has pointed to the genre's ultimate and crucial goal of achieving an effect upon the reader. Indeed, a short story's effect upon the reader is integral to an explication of the story's themes. Further, the short story in its purest form visits upon the reader the effect of experiencing a perception of reality which lacks those psychic defense mechanisms that dominate our perceptions in everyday life. One can achieve the effect spoken of above in a number of ways. However, given my chosen themes in this collection of stories, the majority …

Metabolic Activities In Deep Subseafloor Sediments, Guizhi Wang

Open Access Dissertations

Microbes in subseafloor sediments account for a significant fraction of the Earth's total biomass. It has been argued that these communities are sustained at extremely low respiration rates, based on estimates of sulfate reduction rates and cell abundances. It is conceivable, however, that respiration rates may be much higher due to iron reduction. Iron reduction is difficult to directly quantify due to the removal of dissolved Fe(II) from pore waters. Additionally, hypothetically competing respiration pathways have been suggested to co-occur in deep subseafloor sediments based on qualitative analysis of chemical profiles. Yet, the vertical distributions of these processes and the …

The Role Of Osmolyte Transporters And Heat Shock Proteins In Adaptation Of Atlantic Salmon To Selected Stressors, Jacques Zarate

Open Access Dissertations

The effects of hyperosmotic and husbandry related stress on Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) and the mechanisms employed in response were investigated. To assess the role of taurine and betaine transport proteins in contending with hyperosmotic stress, a cDNA encoding the salmon taurine transporter was cloned. Exposure of various isolated tissues to hyperosmotic stress led to a 2 to 5 fold increase in taurine transporter mRNA. The transfer of juvenile salmon to seawater in October elicited a similar response. Supplementation of culture media with taurine failed to reduce mortality or alleviate a hyperosmotic induced decrease in protein synthesis in isolated tissues. …

The Contributions Of Murine Kc And Mip-2 In Hemorrhage Induced Neutrophil Priming For Acute Lung Injury Following Subsequent Septic Challenge, Joanne Lomas-Neira

Open Access Dissertations

Trauma patients represent a significant risk for the development of ALI following exposure to a secondary infectious challenge. This risk is suggested to be associated with an event that "primes" certain members of the immune cell population such that a subsequent/secondary challenge elicits a dys-functional response. Characteristics of ALI are neutrophil sequestration in the lung, delayed neutrophil apoptosis and increased pro-inflammatory cytokines. Chemokines are proteins produced by immune and resident tissue cells in response to inflammation and function as regulators of neutrophil trafficking and cytolytic activity. Keratinocyte-derived chemokine (KC) and macrophage inflammatory protein-2 (MIP-2) are mouse homologues of human neutrophil …

Requirement Of Integrin α5β1 And Tyrosine Phosphorylation Of Shc For Prohb-Egf Release By Gpr30, A Seven Transmembrane Receptor For Estrogen, Jeffrey Alan Quinn

Open Access Dissertations

Estrogen acts via a seven transmembrane receptor (7TMR), GPR30, to stimulate an HB-EGF autocrine loop. Here, evidence is provided that integrin α5β1 is a necessary transmembrane signaling intermediary required for matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-mediated release of proHB-EGF by GPR30. Estrogen stimulation of human SKBR3 breast cancer cells, which lack ERα and ERβ, resulted in recruitment of integrin α5β1 to focal adhesions, formation of actin stress fibers, and assembly of fibronectin (FN) fibrils. Expression of a GPR30 mutant in SKBR3 cells selectively abrogated FN matrix assembly and EGFR tyrosine phosphorylation by estrogen. Disruption of cytoskeletal integrity or inhibition of integrin α5β1 with …

Identification And Minimization Of Protein Loss During The Manufacturing Of A Beta Domain Deleted Recombinant Human Factor Viii, Cyrus Agarabi

Open Access Master's Theses

Purpose: To identify factors affecting the concentration loss during the manufacturing process of Beta Domain Deleted Recombinant Human Factor VIII (BDDrFVIII SQ)

Methods: Lyophilization cycles were stopped after each stage to characterize the protein through the cycle. Three different types of glass tubing vials; untreated, silicon dioxide coated, and siliconized were evaluated. Two formulations of BDDrFVIII SQ were evaluated to determine the effects of a concentrated formula. Factor VIII concentration (μg/ml) was determined using an anion exchange high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) assay, with ultraviolet (UV) and fluorescence detection.

Results: The freezing and annealing stages were found be critical aspects …

Economic-Ecological Relationships In Coastal Wetland Restoration, Gisele Marie Magnusson

Open Access Dissertations

Proactive coastal wetland restoration addresses historical losses and is not for compensatory regulation. Such restoration requires a net benefits economic framework. This dissertation, in three manuscripts, addresses three aspects necessary to implement this net benefits framework. The first manuscript used a dynamic analytical model to show that restoration should start at a high level and decline to take advantage of the natural maturity in wetland attributes. The model identifies needed information which is not currently available, including information on the maturity relationships between wetland attributes and wetland functions, the public's marginal values for wetland functions and the marginal costs of …

Functional Silane Based Polymers For Sensing And Separations, Aruna M. Velamakanni

Open Access Dissertations

The work reported in this dissertation has focused primarily on two areas: Synthesis of functional silane based polymers and application of these polymers for separations and sensing. In the first part we reported on the design of a library of silane based copolymers synthesized with various side groups and substitutions on phenyl ring and their characterization using FTIR, UV, H1NMR, TGA and DSC. In the second part of this work, we describe the self-assembly of the above mentioned copolymers into multilayer onto various substrates, characterization of the materials on layered substrates and finally application of these polymers as sensors. The …

The Sedimentary Environment Below Earth’S Polar Ice Cap As A Microbial Habitat, David C. Smith, Stephanie Forschner-Dancause, David C. Rowley, Steven D'Hondt

Graduate School of Oceanography Faculty Publications

University of Rhode Island faculty participated in drilling of the polar ice cap to study microbial diversity and adaptation to subsurface life under conditions that may mimic extraterrestrial subsurface conditions.

Docking-Based Substrate Recognition By The Catalytic Domain Of A Protein Tyrosine Kinase, C-Terminal Src Kinase (Csk), Sungsoo Lee, Marina K. Ayrapetov, David J. Kemble, Keykavous Parang, Gongqin Sun

Cell and Molecular Biology Faculty Publications

Protein tyrosine kinases are key enzymes of mammalian signal transduction. Substrate specificity is a fundamental property that determines the specificity and fidelity of signaling by protein tyrosine kinases. However, how protein tyrosine kinases recognize the protein substrates is not well understood. C-terminal Src kinase (Csk) specifically phosphorylates Src family kinases on a C-terminal Tyr residue, which down-regulates their activities. We have previously determined that Csk recognizes Src using a substrate-docking site away from the active site. In the current study, we identified the docking determinants in Src recognized by the Csk substrate-docking site and demonstrated an interaction between the docking …

Biological Control Of The Vernal Population Increase Of Calanus Finmarchicus On Georges Bank, Xingwen Li, Dennis J. Mcgillicuddy Jr., Edward G. Durbin, Peter H. Wiebe

Graduate School of Oceanography Faculty Publications

An adjoint data assimilation approach was used to quantify the physical and biological controls on Calanus finmarchicus N₃–C₆ stages on Georges Bank and its nearby environs. The mean seasonal cycle of vertically averaged distributions, from 5 years of the GLOBEC Georges Bank Broad-Scale Surveys between January and June, was assimilated into a physical–biological model based on the climatological circulation. Large seasonal and spatial variability is present in the inferred supply sources, mortality rates, computed molting fluxes, and physical transports. Estimated mortalities fall within the range of observed rates, and exhibit stage structure that is consistent with earlier …

Sexual Identity Construction Among Lesbian, Bisexual And Unlabeled Women, Kelly Brooks

Open Access Dissertations

Current research and theory regarding women's experience of sexuality depict more flexibility and variability in sexual identity development and self-labeling than generally accounted for in traditional sexual identity models. The present study examined lesbian and bisexual women's use of sexual identity labels, attitudes about sexual fluidity and self-labeling, and patterns associated with sexual identity processes. Two hundred nineteen women with same-sex attractions or experiences participated in the study, completing an anonymous online survey. The majority of participants (85.4%) identified as White, with ages ranging from 18 to 69. One hundred eighteen women identified as lesbian, 59 as bisexual, 5 as …

Microbiologically Influenced Corrosion And Titanate Conversion Coatings On Aluminum Alloy 2024-T3, Hong Cai

Open Access Dissertations

Due to its poor corrosion resistance, Aluminum alloy 2024-T3 has been targeted to study corrosion mechanisms and protection strategies. The present study has two areas of focus: (1) the effects of aquatic microorganisms on corrosion, and (2) the surface-cleaning step in the conversion coating process. Microorganisms and biofilms on solid surface can be found almost in any natural aqueous environments. So far, microbiologically influenced corrosion (MIC), or biocorrosion, has been poorly understood. A comparative study on the corrosion of aluminum alloy 2024-T3 was conducted in either plain seawater or nutrient-rich ZoBell 2216 medium, and with or without the marine bacterium …

Exploring The Experiences Of Gay, Lesbian, And Bisexual Adolescents In School: Lessons For School Psychologists, Marjorie Cooper-Nicols

Open Access Dissertations

This study utilized modified grounded theory methodology with gay, lesbian, and bisexual (GLB) adolescents to explore three research questions: (1) How have schools responded to GLB youth? (2) What are some of the factors that help or hinder development of a healthy sexual identity for GLB adolescents? and (3) How does being involved in a community GLB youth organization impact GLB youth? Prior research has demonstrated that schools are often hostile environments for GLB youth. With little recognition and support, GLB adolescents are a group at risk for depression, suicide, substance abuse, violence, and school failure. Participants in this study …

Manatee Response To Environmental Noise, Jennifer L. Miksis-Olds

Open Access Dissertations

The most pressing concerns associated with conservation of the endangered Florida manatee (Trichechus manatus latirostris) include habitat alteration and mortality caused by humans. Whereas considerable research has focused on manatee mortality associated with watercraft collisions, little attention has been paid to the impacts of noise created by watercraft. Potential effects of environmental noise on the habitat selection, distribution, and behavior of manatees are the foci of this dissertation, the primary goal of which was to understand and predict manatee behavior patterns as a function of environmental noise levels in the Sarasota Bay area. Manatee behavior was examined in terms of: …

An Information Criterion For Use In Predictive Data Mining, Eric Kyper

Open Access Dissertations

This dissertation contains three manuscripts related to each other. The first manuscript is a review of existing data mining literature in the areas of: machine learning, rule induction, neural networks, case based reasoning, genetic algorithms, and rough sets. For each area a brief description of what the topic is, examples of applications in the area, current research, and directions for future research are provided. The second manuscript presents an information criterion for choosing between decision trees exhibiting different characteristics of accuracy and complexity. The information criterion allows decision-makers to choose between decision tree model subsets based on their preference for …

Youth At Risk For Alcohol Use And Smoking: A Longitudinal Examination Of Profiles Of Prevention, Andrea Eastwood Paiva

Open Access Dissertations

The current study was designed to examine the Profiles of Prevention among non-drinking and non-smoking adolescents. Research across age groups (elementary, middle and high school), populations (U.S., U.K., and Israel), and substances (tobacco, alcohol and other drugs) has consistently identified four profiles of non-users who vary in their risks for substance use: (1) Most Protected from substance use; (2) Most Tempted to use substances; (3) Most Negative about staying substance free; and (4) Least Positive about being substance free. These profiles have demonstrated both internal and external validity in cross-sectional data. This longitudinal research focuses on students who remain substance …

"Defining A New Normal": An Exploration Of Psychosocial Adjustment In Young Adult Survivors Of Adolescent Cancer, Kristen J. Quinlan

Open Access Dissertations

Psycho-oncology has been limited by inconsistent definitions of adjustment, leading to inconsistent information about the correlates of adjustment among adult survivors of pediatric cancer. Further, adolescent survivors are seldom broken out for special analysis, even though there are vast medical and developmental differences between those diagnosed during adolescence and those diagnosed at a younger age. The current study utilized a mixed method approach examine adjustment with 7 female and 5 male survivors of cancer who were diagnosed during adolescence. Thematic analysis revealed that adjustment is the process of changing one's perspective or redefining oneself as one works to determine a …

An Examination Of The Relationship Between Perceived Parental Involvement And Adolescent Eating And Exercise Habits, Pamela Lea Steadman

Open Access Dissertations

Pediatric obesity is a major public health concern with alarming increases in prevalence rates over the past three decades, despite improvements in treatment and prevention efforts. Much of the focus on pediatric obesity prevention has revolved around children; however, little attention has been targeted toward adolescents. The current study is the first to examine the contribution of parental and adolescent perceptions of parental involvement in adolescent eating and exercise habits. Forty-six adolescent-parent dyads completed measures of perceived parental concern, responsibility, control and pressure exerted over adolescent health behaviors (AHB). Adolescents completed measures of current physical activity, eating habits, weight control …

The Color Of Sympathy: Biology, Race, And Feeling In Republican And Antebellum Culture, Edward M. Williams Jr.

Open Access Dissertations

This dissertation explores the relation between sentimentality, racial essentialism, and abolition. In the introduction, I explore how contemporary theories of sentimentalism and liberalism have served to prevent contemporary literary scholars from 'seeing' the particular ways in which the assumption of 'Negro racial difference' anchored the sentimental condemnation of 'Negro slavery.' In chapter one, I argue that Thomas Jefferson considered the institution of 'Negro slavery' as an affront to the 'moral sentiments' not because it refused to acknowledge the essential equality of 'Negro slaves,' but because it refused to acknowledge that 'Negro slaves' are 'biologically inferior human beings' endowed with certain …

Particle Dynamics And Shelf-Basin Interactions In The Western Arctic Ocean Investigated Using Radiochemical Tracers, Kate Hagstrom

Open Access Dissertations

A fundamental question in Arctic carbon cycling is the extent to which particulate organic carbon produced over the shelves is exported to the slope and interior basins. In this dissertation, the particle-reactive radionuclides 234Th (t1/2 = 24.1 d), 228Th (t1/2 = 1.9 y), and 210Pb (t1/2 = 22.3 y) were used as tracers of particulate organic carbon (POC) export fluxes, rates of particle aggregation, and sediment focusing. Samples were collected as part of the Shelf-Basin Interactions (SBI) Phase II field program in the shelf-slope region of the Chukchi Sea along a series of shelf-basin transects during the spring and summer …

Late Holocene Climate Variability As Preserved In High-Resolution Estuarine And Lacustrine Sediment Archives, Jeremiah Bradford Hubeny

Open Access Dissertations

Concern regarding human-induced environmental and climate changes is becoming higher-profile. Aquatic sediment that is preserved at the bottom of a lake, estuary, or ocean provide high-quality proxy records of environmental and climate conditions that extend past the instrumental period. This dissertation performs high-resolution proxy analyses from annually resolved sediment records in Rhode Island and central New York State to interpret the natural and anthropogenically induced changes that have occurred over the Late Holocene. The Pettaquamscutt River Estuary's Lower Basin was studied and the post-glacial stratigraphy was interpreted. High-productivity lacustrine sedimentation started at ca. 15,500 cal BP and density-stratified estuarine conditions …

Self, Other And The Sociopolitical In Politically Active Women Survivors Of Domestic Violence, Molly Ann Hedrick

Open Access Dissertations

This research examined experiences with interpersonal, intrapersonal, and structural violence in politically active women survivors of domestic violence. This study also explored how (if at all) these women described processes which Freire (2003) called critical consciousness and liberating action, and what these women can tell us about the processes of change. Participants were 16 survivors of domestic violence recruited from Sisters Overcoming Abusive Relationships (SOAR) in Rhode Island. SOAR is an organization run entirely by survivors of domestic violence and provides political activism with the goal of ending domestic violence. I utilized a mixed-methods, transformative and social constructivist concurrent design. …

Interannual And Seasonal Phytoplankton Variability In Massachusetts Bay From Remote And In Situ Measurements, Kimberly Joy Whitman Hyde

Open Access Dissertations

This study investigated the feasibility of augmenting monitoring data collected in Massachusetts Bay with satellite ocean color data to increase the spatial and temporal resolution of quantitative phytoplankton measurements. In coastal regions such as Massachusetts Bay ocean color remote sensing can be complicated by in-water constituents whose quantities vary independently of phytoplankton and by inaccurate modeling of absorbing aerosols. An evaluation of in situ and SeaWiFS measurements demonstrated that SeaWiFS overestimated chlorophyll a mainly due to atmospheric correction errors that were amplified by absorption from elevated concentrations of chlorophyll a and color dissolved organic matter. A regional empirical algorithm was …