Digital Commons Network^™

Psychobiology Of Ingestive Behavior Of Herbivores, Juan J. Villalba

Wildland Resources Faculty Publications

This article describes the process of food selection and consumption in herbivores based on smell, taste, and touch.

Why I Do What I Do, Matthew Wappett

Blog Posts

Blog post about the author's decision to work at the CPD.

The Utah Statesman, April 17, 2017, Utah State University

The Utah Statesman

Weekly student newspaper of Utah State University in Logan.

Harvest And Disposal Of Hazardous Algal Blooms, Bethany A. Jensen, Kyle M. Hillman

Student Research Symposium

Utah Lake, a major source of recreation and farmland irrigation in the Provo area, was closed to all use and access in the summer of 2016. There was a toxic blue-green algae (cyanobacteria) outbreak, which resulted in microcystin concentrations over eight times the recreational water threshold limit (20 ug/L threshold and 176 ug/L detection). The ability to harvest and dispose of these toxic algae before contamination of the lake occurs is important to ensure protection of human and animal health and the environment, and more hazardous algae blooms (HABs) are anticipated in the future.

The Central Valley Water Reclamation Facility …

The Age Of Robotic Milk: Data Output Analysis Of Lely Astronaut Computer Program, Jessica R. Christensen

Student Research Symposium

LELY is one of the major companies in the world that manufactures robotic dairy milkers. While Lely is a worldwide company based in Holland, It entered the United States market only within the past few years. Dairy robotics is a new field that has great potential for innovation, but it still has relatively unknown effects on dairy farms, dairy production, and dairy farmers. During the summer of 2016, the research conducted centered on a data output analysis of the LELY Astronaut computer program. Data reports from the robotic milkers were collected and analyzed, and the information was examined to determine …

Overview Of Event Based Resources On Facebook And Twitter: Fort Mcmurray Wildfire, May 2016, Apoorva Chauhan, Amanda Lee Hughes

Student Research Symposium

Event Based Resources (EBR) are the web resources, named after an event. In this study, we focus on Facebook and Twitter EBRs created around the 2016 Fort McMurray wildfire. We determine the time when different EBRs were created, and were closed (if closed). We also determine if the content posted by these EBRs were relevant to the Fort McMurray wildfire. We categorize these EBRs, on the basis of their social media profile and the content posted by them, into different categories. We take a closer look at the accounts that were most well-received by the public to see if their …

Integrating A Traditional 4-H Youth Program With Stem Programming Using Market Show Hog Dna To Evaluate Meat Quality, Denton Perkins, Joshua Dallin

Student Research Symposium

Junior livestock projects provide excellent opportunities for education and positive agricultural experiences for 4-H youth. As genetic testing advances become widely available to livestock producers, youth benefit by learning the benefits and applications of genetic testing. Porcine stress syndrome (PSS), which springs from the HAL gene, is an inherited neuromuscular disorder in pigs that is triggered by stressful situations, such as exercise, fighting, marketing, vaccination, castration, parturition, hot weather, etc. The symptoms exhibited by pigs experiencing PSS include muscle and tail tremors, labored and irregular breathing, blanching and reddening of the skin, rapid rise in body temperature, collapse, muscle rigidity …

The Utah Statesman, April 13, 2017, Utah State University

The Utah Statesman

Weekly student newspaper of Utah State University in Logan.

An Adaptive Threshold Determination Method Of Feature Screening For Genomic Selection, Matthew D. Meng, Gang Wang, Aaron R. Brough

Mathematics and Statistics Faculty Publications

Background
Although the dimension of the entire genome can be extremely large, only a parsimonious set of influential SNPs are correlated with a particular complex trait and are important to the prediction of the trait. Efficiently and accurately selecting these influential SNPs from millions of candidates is in high demand, but poses challenges. We propose a backward elimination iterative distance correlation (BE-IDC) procedure to select the smallest subset of SNPs that guarantees sufficient prediction accuracy, while also solving the unclear threshold issue for traditional feature screening approaches.

Results
Verified through six simulations, the adaptive threshold estimated by the BE-IDC performed …

Estimating Utilization Distributions From Fitted Step-Selectionfunctions, Johannes Signer, John Fieberg, Tal Avgar

Wildland Resources Faculty Publications

Habitat-selection analyses are often used to link environmental covariates, measured within some spatial domain of assumed availability, to animal location data that are assumed to be independent. Step-selection functions (SSFs) relax this independence assumption, by using a conditional model that explicitly acknowledges the spatiotemporal dynamics of the availability domain and hence the temporal dependence among successive locations. However, it is not clear how to produce an SSF-based map of the expected utilization distribution. Here, we used SSFs to analyze virtual animal movement data generated at a fine spatiotemporal scale and then rarefied to emulate realistic telemetry data. We then compared …

Should We Avoid Or Engage Moral Dilemmas?, Rachel Robinson-Greene

Languages, Philosophy, and Communication Studies Faculty Publications

It is common for parents to teach their children to avoid moral danger. Parental advice includes avoiding certain peer groups, adhering to a curfew, and ensuring that responsible adult supervision is always present. Parents tend to think that these kinds of policies make it more likely that their children won’t encounter situations in which they might make bad decisions.

The Utah Statesman, April 3, 2017, Utah State University

The Utah Statesman

Weekly student newspaper of Utah State University in Logan.

Accounting For Variability In Mother-Child Play, David F. Lancy

Sociology, Social Work and Anthropology Faculty Publications

This paper highlights contrasting perspectives in the study of mother-child play. One contrast emerges as we look at the phenomenon using the lens offered by anthropology as opposed to the more commonly used lens of psychology. A second contrast is apparent from on-the-ground descriptions of childhood in the ethnographic record compared to observations of children in the upper strata of modern society. Psychologists and those public agents who adopt their perspective see mother-child play—from infancy—as both necessary for normal development and an unlimited good. Its self-evident value should be impressed upon those who are as yet, unenlightened. Anthropologists not only …

Utah State Magazine, Spring 2017, Utah State University

Utah State Magazine

The quarterly magazine for friends and alumni of Utah State University.

Consumer Sensory Evaluation And Chemical Composition Of Beef Gluteus Medius And Triceps Brachii Steaks From Cattle Finished On Forage Or Concentrate Diets, A. Chail, Jerrad F. Legako, L. R. Pitcher, Robert E. Ward, Silvana Martini, Jennifer W. Macadam

Animal, Dairy, and Veterinary Science Faculty Publications

The objective of this study was to assess the impact of cattle finishing diet and muscle type on meat quality. Consumer sensory response, proximate composition, Warner–Bratzler shear force (WBSF), fatty acid composition, and volatile compounds were assessed from the gluteus medius (GM) and triceps brachii (TB) muscles of cattle (n = 6 per diet) which were grain-finished (USUGrain) on conventional feedlot or 2 forage diets, a perennial legume, birdsfoot trefoil-fin-ished (USUBFT; Lotus corniculatus), and grass-finished (USUGrass; Bromus riparius). Diet had an interacting effect with muscle for all sensory attributes (P ≤ 0.002), except aroma and flavor (P ≥ 0.078). In …

China: Avoiding Impediments To Successful Climate Change Mitigation, Molly Rose Van Engelenhoven

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

This paper uses the Cultural Topography (CTOPs) methodology, an intelligence community standard which is used to avoid ethnocentric analysis and the dangerous practice of mirror imaging--projecting US culture on to another country rather than viewing the costs and benefits they face through their own cultural lens. CTOPs assess a country’s culture by examining four components of culture: identity, values, norms, and perceptual lens of an actor in conjunction with a specific issue of concern. This paper examines the internal culture of China, with the Chinese government as the key actor, to discover how to build effective policy to regulate air …

Electrospun Spiderskin Bandage For Epidermal Protection And Recovery, Michael David Paskett

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

Spider silk is one of nature's most promising biomaterial s for a variety of applications, however, due to the inability to farm spiders, transgenic hosts are required for large-scale production. With the unique combination of strength, elasticity, and biocompatibility, spider silk has an incredible potential for use in the human body. This study was conducted to merge two major applications of spider silk for the creation of a novel bandaging product. Electrospinning technology was utilized to create a spider silk/polymer bandage matrix to be applied with an aqueous spider silk skin adhesive.

In designing the bandaging matrix , the mechanical …

Amending Phb With Algal Biomass To Enhance Biodegradability, Amanda R. Stoudt

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

Pollution due to petroleum-based plastic is a growing problem all over the world. Petroleum-based plastics that fill landfills and oceans take hundreds of years to degrade. One possible solution to this growing problem is to increase the use of bioplastics. Polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) is a widely studied bioplastic that is biodegradable in both soil and marine environments. However, PHB use is limited due to its poor mechanical properties. Past researchers have investigated the use of natural additives, primarily different types of plant fibers, to enhance both the mechanical properties and degradation rates of bioplastics. The purpose of this project was to …

Extension Education Symposium: Getting The Most Out Of Your Extension Appointment And Still Having A Life, W. Powers, Noelle E. Cockett, Gregory P. Lardy

Animal, Dairy, and Veterinary Science Faculty Publications

Managing the demands of an academic appointment in extension can be a challenging task. Demands from constituent groups, expectations of supervisors, and rigors of promotion and tenure processes can create pressures that young faculty did not expect. Throw in spousal and family duties and you have created a situation that many will find hard to navigate. However, there are ways to cope and, even better news, there are ways to excel in meeting the demands of an academic appointment and enjoying life. Because many new extension faculty members do not have prior experience in extension, best practices in documenting programs …

The Importance Of Increasing Milk Quality By Deceasing The Somatic Cell Count (Scc), Kelci Dalton, C. Israelsen, A.J. Young

All Current Publications

No abstract provided.

Educational Policies Committee Program Proposal, College Of Agriculture And Applied Sciences, March 31, 2017 - Master Of Public Health, Utah State University

Educational Policies Committee

Utah State University requests approval to offer the following Master's degree(s): Master of Public Health effective Fall 2017.

Educational Policies Committee Program Proposal, College Of Science, March 31, 2017, Utah State University

Educational Policies Committee

Utah State University requests approval to offer the following Master's degree(s): Master of Public Health effective Fall 2017.

Educational Policies Committee Program Proposal, Emma Eccles Jones College Of Education And Human Services, March 31, 2017 – Master Of Public Health, Utah State University

Educational Policies Committee

Utah State University requests approval to offer the following Master's degree(s): Master of Public Health effective Fall 2017.

Amplify Your Teaching Impact: Capitalizing On 1-On-1 Instruction, Abby D. Benninghoff

Journal on Empowering Teaching Excellence

The objective of this essay, which is based on a keynote presentation delivered at the 2016 Empowering Teaching Excellence Conference at Utah State University, is to address this central question: how faculty can make a positive, substantive impact on students through 1-on-1 instruction? The consensus answer derived from experiences and anecdotes offered by this author, her colleagues, and students is to be deliberate in 1-on-1 interactions with students. This simple message is expanded through discussion of 10 key concepts that can help faculty amplify their teaching impact: 1) be available, 2) help students feel comfortable, 3) be a model, 4) …

Full Issue: Journal On Empowering Teaching Excellence, Volume 1, Issue 1

Journal on Empowering Teaching Excellence

For our inaugural issue, we reviewed the feedback from our 2016 ETE faculty conference—an event for USU faculty hosted every August on the USU main campus. We identified several of the presenters who received high marks in post-session surveys and invited them to submit a proceedings paper for their presentation. Many responded, and their papers now comprise the majority of this issue. Because most of the articles began as stand-up presentations for a conference, several adopt a first-person narrative style in which the authors share examples of things they have tried in their teaching that have worked. In the process …

Five Ways Consortia Can Catalyze Open Science, Joel Cutcher-Gershenfeld, Karen S. Baker, Nicholas Berente, Courtney G. Flint, Gabriel Gershenfeld, Brandon Grant, Michael Haberman, John Leslie King, Christine Kirkpatrick, Barbara Lawrence, Spenser Lewis, W. Christopher Lenhardt, Matthew Mayernik, Charles Mcelroy, Barbara Mittleman, Namchul Shin, Shelley Stall, Susan Winter, Et Al

Sociology, Social Work and Anthropology Faculty Publications

An analysis of more than 50 collaborations shows the secrets of success, write Joel Cutcher-Gershenfeld and colleagues from the Stakeholder Alignment Collaborative.

Global Analysis Of Population Growth And Decline, Mark Sneddon, William D. Pearse

Biology Posters

Species of plants and animals have populations that are declining at a rapid rate and possibly face extinction. To combat this decline, we must first understand where and why species are declining. We compared known species population growth rates in the COMPADRE (7024 different plant populations) and COMADRE (1927 different animal populations) databases to a variety of possible factors and other databases.

Generation Of Polyclonal Rabbit Antisera Specific To The Zika Virus Capsid Protein, Michael C. Berentzen, Jordan C. Frank, Sang-Im Yun, Byung-Hak Song, Young-Min Lee

Biology Posters

Zika virus (ZIKV), a mosquito-borne flavivirus, is an emerging zoonotic pathogen closely related to Japanese encephalitis virus, West Nile virus, dengue virus, and yellow fever virus. Although ZIKV infection generally produces only mild symptoms in some infected individuals, it has recently been associated with a growing number of neurological diseases, including Guillain-Barré syndrome in ZIKV-infected adults and microcephaly in infants born to ZIKV-infected women. Like all flaviviruses, ZIKV has a plus-strand RNA genome encoding ten functional proteins (designated C, prM, E, NS1, NS2A, NS2B, NS3, NS4A, NS4B, and NS5). Of these ten, the C (capsid) protein is an essential structural …

Internship At Zootah At Willow Park, Tyler Kron, Troy Cooper, Kim Sullivan

Biology Posters

Project: Creation of a quick and cost effective feed system for the animals. Reason: Regular feed is expensive ($5- $10 per 50lbs) About $80 - $160 per month for one type of feed (I.E. Wheat).

Genotypic Analysis Of The Canine Multidrug Resistance 1 (Abcb1) Gene In Miniature American And Australian Shephards, Arieanna White, Lee F. Rickords, Miriam Laker

Biology Posters

Canine breeders who are breeding to improve genetics often utilize the ability to test breeding stock for deleterious alleles. A DNA sample, such as a cheek swab or blood sample, is sent to laboratory where they determine genotypes that the owner has requested to know. Once the breeder receives results, they are better able to plan crosses or decide if a dog should be castrated to avoid the inheritance of unwanted diseases. This is particularly important with purebred dogs due to the high ratio of homozygous alleles. I will be using canine DNA for the gene ABCB1 or Multidrug Resistance …