Digital Commons Network^™

China And The Northeast Region: Agricultural Machinery, Kelsey White

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

Using Chinese government statistical data, relevant laws and policy regulations, and current market projections, this report aims to help new-to-market U.S. exporters understand the development of the agricultural machinery market in China and the Northeast region, identifying both challenges and opportunities.

With a vast land area and diverse topography, China is one of the world's top agricultural producers. Agriculture accounts for about 11% of China's GDP and more than 40% of China's employment. Over the past several years, China has been increasing its agricultural mechanization in an effort to move from traditional to modern farming. The central government has been …

A Review Of Apomixis And Differential Expression Analyses Using Microarrays, Jonathan Harris Cardwell

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

Apomixis is a complex trait of great interest to the agricultural community, as it has the potential to fix hybrid vigor in many agriculturally significant crops. Although apomixis has been studied extensively morphologically, the genetic and epigenetic factors responsible for apomixis are still very poorly understood. As no apomictic species has been sequenced and annotated, various low-cost tools and techniques are being utilized to begin profiling the trait. These include cross-species microarrays using probe masking, which deletes information from array probes that do not hybridize to the genomic DNA of the cross species. Despite their limitations, these tools are providing …

The Benefits Of Using Building Information Modeling In Structural Engineering, Cesar Augusto Hunt

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

This paper explores how the use of Building Information Modeling (BIM) can be a beneficial platform for structural engineers. The current state of BIM is analyzed, giving a general overview on how architectural; engineering and construction firms are applying it on their projects. The applicability of BIM to structural engineering is discussed, and how it impacts the structural design and its workflow. The benefits of using BIM in structural engineering are then analyzed, in the areas of productivity, coordination, and visualization, and a case study is developed to test the interoperability between BIM software and structural analysis software. The findings …

White-Tailed Deer (Odocoileus Virginianus) Positively Affect The Growth Of Mature Northern Red Oak (Quercus Rubra) Trees., R W. Lucas, R Salguero-Gomez, D B. Cobb, Bonnie G. Waring, F Anderson, W J. Mcshea, B B. Casper

Biology Faculty Publications

Understanding and predicting the effects of deer (Cervidae) on forest ecosystems present significant challenges in ecosystem ecology. Deer herbivory can cause large changes in the biomass and species composition of forest understory plant communities, including early life-cycle trees (i.e., seedlings and saplings). Such changes can impact juvenile to adult transitions and the future age structure and species composition of mature forests. Changes to understory vegetation also impact flow of energy and nutrients in forest ecosystems. Studies examining the influence of deer on mature trees, however, are rare and rely on extrapolating effects from early life cycle stages of trees. We …

Impacts Of Traditional Livestock Corrals On Woody Plant Communities In An East African Savanna, Kari E. Veblen

Wildland Resources Faculty Publications

In African savannas, humans and their livestock leave long-term legacies on the landscape in the form of abandoned livestock bomas (corrals). Once abandoned, bomas develop into nutrient-rich herbivore hotspots characterised by distinctive plant communities. Impacts of bomas, however, extend beyond the boundaries of the boma site itself. This is especially true for woody species which are intensively harvested for boma fencing material and fuel wood. Following boma abandonment, it is not clear how quickly, or to what extent, woody plant communities may change and develop over time. A chronosequence approach was used to investigate the effects of traditional livestock bomas …

Elk (Cervus Elaphus) Seasonal Habitat Selection In A Heterogeneous Forest Structure, Jesse N. Popp, David N.C. Mcgeachy, Josef Hamr

Aspen Bibliography

Seasonal habitat selection by the reintroduced Burwash elk population, approximately 30 km south of Sudbury, Ontario, has been analysed in order to assist in the development of future management. Twenty-five adult females were radio-collared and tracked 1–3 times a week for 3 years. The most prominent patterns included selection of intolerant hardwood forests (trembling aspen, white birch, and balsam poplar) during all seasons, while Great Lakes-St. Lawrence pines (white and red pine dominated stands) were used less than expected based on availability for all seasons. The selection patterns are likely associated with seasonal climatic conditions and forage preferences. Because the …

Volume 39, Issue 3 (2013) Summer 2013

Journal of Mormon History

ARTICLES

--Monogamy Underground: The Burial of Mormon Plural Marriage in the Graves of Joseph and Emma Smith, Lee Wiles, 1

--William Smith’s Patriarchal Blessings and Contested Authority in the Post-Martyrdom Church Christine, Elyse Blythe, 60

--When Mormonism Mattered Less in Presidential Politics: George Romney’s 1968 Window of Possibilities, J. B. Haws, 96

--“Prepared to Abide the Penalty”: Latter-day Saints and Civil Disobedience, J. David Pulsipher, 131

--Almon W. Babbitt, Joseph E. Johnson, and the Western Bugle: An LDS Frontier Newspaper at Kanesville, Nicholas D. Harmon, Michael S. Huefner, and Shauna C. Anderson Young, 163

--Into the Fray: Sam Houston’s …

The Distribution Of Fruit And Seed Toxicity During Development For Eleven Neotropical Trees And Vines, Noelle G. Beckman

Biology Faculty Publications

Secondary compounds in fruit mediate interactions with natural enemies and seed dispersers, influencing plant survival and species distributions. The functions of secondary metabolites in plant defenses have been well-studied in green tissues, but not in reproductive structures of plants. In this study, the distribution of toxicity within plants was quantified and its influence on seed survival was determined in Central Panama. To investigate patterns of allocation to chemical defenses and shifts in allocation with fruit development, I quantified variation in toxicity between immature and mature fruit and between the seed and pericarp for eleven species. Toxicity of seed and pericarp …

Climate Change And Plant Demography In The Sagebrush Steppe, Aldo Compagnoni

Green Canyon Environmental Research Area, Logan Utah

No abstract provided.

Liberalis, Summer 2013, Utah State University

Liberalis

Freedom to Think, Discover, and Create. The alumni magazine for the College of Humanities and Social Sciences at Utah State University.

Quantified Recess: Design Of An Activity For Elementary Students Involving Analyses Of Their Own Movement Data, Victor R. Lee, Joel R. Drake

Instructional Technology and Learning Sciences Faculty Publications

Recess is often a time for children in school to engage recreationally in physically demanding and highly interactive activities with their peers. This paper describes a design effort to encourage fifth-grade students to examine sensitivities associated with different measures of center by having them analyze activities during recess using over the course of a week using Fitbit activity trackers and TinkerPlots data visualization software. We describe the activity structure some observed student behaviors during the activity. We also provide a descriptive account, based on video records and transcripts, of two students who engaged thoughtfully with their recess data and developed …

Ringtails (Bassariscus Astutus), S. Nicole Frey, Heather Godding

All Current Publications

One of the more elusive animals in the desert, ringtails are small unique mammals, native to the American west and southwest, Central and South America (Poglayen-Neuwall & Toweill, 1988). Although seldom seen ringtails populations are not considered threatened in Utah or elsewhere in the United States.

Introducing A Rigid Loop Structure From Deer Into Mouse Prion Protein Increases Its Propensity For Misfolding In Vitro, Leah Kyle, Theodore R. John, Hermann M. Schätzl, Randolph V. Lewis

Biology Faculty Publications

Prion diseases are fatal neurodegenerative disorders characterized by misfolding of the cellular prion protein (PrPc) into the disease-associated isoform (PrPSc) that has increased β-sheet content and partial resistance to proteolytic digestion. Prion diseases from different mammalian species have varying propensities for transmission upon exposure of an uninfected host to the infectious agent. Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) is a highly transmissible prion disease that affects free ranging and farmed populations of cervids including deer, elk and moose, as well as other mammals in experimental settings. The molecular mechanisms allowing CWD to maintain comparatively high transmission rates have not been determined. Previous …

Rodent-Mediated Interactions Among Seed Species Of Differing Quality In A Shrubsteppe Ecosystem, Karen H. Beard, Craig A. Faulhaber, Frank P. Howe, Thomas C. Edwards Jr.

Wildland Resources Faculty Publications

Interactions among seeds, mediated by granivorous rodents, are likely to play a strong role in shrubsteppe ecosystem restoration. Past studies typically consider only pairwise interactions between preferred and less preferred seed species, whereas rangeland seedings are likely to contain more than 2 seed species, potentially leading to complex interactions. We examined how the relative proportion of seeds in a 3-species polyculture changes rodent seed selectivity (i.e., removal) and indirect interactions among seeds. We presented 2 rodent species, Peromyscus maniculatus (deer mice) andPerognathus parvus (pocket mice), in arenas with 3-species seed mixtures that varied in the proportion of a highly preferred, …

Choosing Actions, David A. Rosenbaum, Kate M. Chapman, Chase J. Coelho, Lanyun Gong, Breanna E. Studenka

Kinesiology and Health Science Faculty Publications

Actions that are chosen have properties that distinguish them from actions that are not. Of the nearly infinite possible actions that can achieve any given task, many of the unchosen actions are irrelevant, incorrect, or inappropriate. Others are relevant, correct, or appropriate but are disfavored for other reasons. Our research focuses on the question of what distinguishes actions that are chosen from actions that are possible but are not. We review studies that use simple preference methods to identify factors that contribute to action choices, especially for object-manipulation tasks. We can determine which factors are especially important through simple behavioral …

2012 Annual Report, Various Authors

Annual Reports

No abstract provided.

Introduction To Asian Culture(S) And Globalization, I-Chun Wang, Li Guo

Languages, Philosophy, and Communication Studies Faculty Publications

Marshall McLuhan coined the term "the global village" associating globalized human experiences in an electronic age (4). Although transnational relations existed for many centuries, McLuhan predicted in the 1960s that new technologies not only facilitate the growth of international interconnectedness, cross-border exchanges, as well as trans-cultural phenomena, but also help foster cultural transactions. Referring to the dramatic and unprecedented break between the past and the present, tradition and modernity, Arjun Appadurai argues that media and migration have been two major forces impelling the circulation of world cultures (3). In the phenomenon of globalization, people from every part of the world …

Photosynthetic Characteristics Of Veratrum Californicum In Varied Greenhouse Environments, Youping Sun, Sarah A. White, David Mann, Jeffery Adelberg

Plants, Soils, and Climate Faculty Publications

Corn lily or California false hellebore (Veratrum californicum Durand), a perennial species native to the western United States, produces several alkaloid compounds. A derivative of these alkaloid compounds, primarily veratramine and cyclopamine, shows promise as a therapeutic agent for treatment of a variety of tumor types. Here we report the first study of corn lily cultivated in greenhouse. Growth response of corn lily was examined under two light levels (ambient and supplemental), two fertilization types (20 N-4.4 P-16.6 K Peat-lite special and 15N-2.2P-12.5K CalMag special) at 100-mg·L-1 total nitrogen, and three irrigation cycles [sub-irrigation every day (wet), every third day …

General Catalog 2013-2014 (Summer, Fall 2013), Utah State University

University Catalogs

This catalog contains information on the Academic Departments and Programs as well as Course Descriptions for the above school year at Utah State University. To avoid large file downloads, the Academic Departments and Programs information is located in this file. The Course Description information is located in the secondary file.

Preventing Deer Damage To Your Trees And Shrubs, Megan Schwender, Michael R. Kuhns

All Current Publications

Deer/human conflicts have increased due to growing deer populations, limited resources and suburban development in deer habitat. In winter, deer often browse in residential landscapes. This can be reduced by selecting unpalatable plants, protecting woody plants with burlap or trunk protectors, and using deer repellent. In extreme cases, deer can be completely excluded with a fence.

Marek's Disease (Md, Range Paralysis, Gray Eye), David D. Frame, Sarah Tilley, Mark C. Bland

All Current Publications

This fact sheet describes one of the most commonly diagnosed diseases of backyard chickens. The clinical signs of Marek's Disease are descriptively illustrated, and an objective plan for diagnosis and control are discussed in a format understandable to the general small flock and/or backyard chicken owner.

Megaherbivores And Cattle Alter Edge Effects Around Ecosystem Hotspots In An African Savanna, Lauren M. Porensky, Solveig Franziska Bucher, Kari E. Veblen, Anna C. Treydte, Truman P. Young

Wildland Resources Faculty Publications

Wild mammalian herbivores and cattle are fundamental drivers of African savanna ecosystems and have strong impacts on woody vegetation. However, few experimental studies have investigated the separate and combined influences of different large herbivores on spatial vegetation patterning. In East Africa, temporary cattle corrals (bomas) develop after abandonment into productive, treeless 'glades' that attract both domestic and wild herbivores. Edges of glades exhibit unusually high densities of large trees. We used a long-term, broad-scale manipulative experiment to test whether megaherbivores (elephants and giraffes), wild meso-herbivores (15–1000kg), or cattle caused shifts in woody plant abundances in glate edges. We also examined …

Canopy Reflectance Estimation Of Wheat Nitrogen Content For Grain Protein Management, Dennis L. Wright, V. Philip Rasmussen, R. Douglas Ramsey, Doran J. Baker, Jason W. Ellsworth

Wildland Resources Faculty Publications

The objective of this study is to evaluate remote sensing as a tool for measuring wheat nitrogen (N) content and then demonstrate how that information may be used by crop managers to improve grain protein content. Remote sensing data from aerial and satellite platforms were collected and compared with flag leaf N concentrations. Flag leaf N was significantly correlated with reflectance (r² = 0.52-0.80) during 2002 and 2003. A mid-season application of N increased grain protein in every treatment, but most significantly in the N-stressed treatments. Using remote sensing as a tool, wheat growers can estimate N stress …

Beef Production & Consumption: Sustainable Alternatives, Jennifer Macadam

Agriculture

No abstract provided.

Churn Management Optimization With Controllable Marketing Variables And Associated Management Costs, Yong Seog Kim, Hyeson Lee, John D. Johnson

Data Analytics & Information Systems Faculty Publications

In this paper, we propose a churn management model based on a partial least square (PLS) optimization method that explicitly considers the management costs of controllable marketing variables for a success- ful churn management program. A PLS prediction model is first calibrated to estimate the churn proba- bilities of customers. Then this PLS prediction model is transformed into a control model after relative management costs of controllable marketing variables are estimated through a triangulation method. Finally, a PLS optimization model with marketing objectives and constraints are specified and solved via a sequential quadratic programming method. In our experiments, we observe …

Utah State University Commencement, 2013 – Main Campus, Utah State University

Commencement Programs

126^th Annual Commencement of Utah State University.

Factors Affecting The Oxidative Stability Of Foods-Interesterified Soybean Oil With High Intensity Ultrasound Treatment And Trona Mineral In Packaged Fresh Meats, Jiwon Lee

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Oxidation leads to rancid flavors or odors in oils and meat and causes discoloration in muscle foods. There is a great concern about economic loss when oxidation is not effectively controlled. Novel processing and storage methods such as ultrasound, interesterification, or gas emitter sachet in meat packaging have been studied to provide desirable quality properties of oils and meat products. However, there are not enough studies to explain their effect on oxidative stability. Better understanding of new techniques is required to manage the oxidative stability and even other quality properties.

High intensity ultrasound is an effective method to improve physical …

Peach Fruit Quality Analysis In Relation To Organic And Conventional Cultivation Techniques, Varun Chandra Koneru

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The USA is the third major world producer of peaches but consumption has decreased over the last two decades. Consumers have cited mealy texture, fruit browning and lack of sweetness as some undesirable characteristics in peaches, which may be related to the decline. The focus of this study was to evaluate the effect of farm management practices on fruit quality. Physical parameters (color, firmness and size), volatiles and metabolite data was collected.
Sensory evaluation indicated transitional organic peaches were liked the best and organically grown peaches were least liked. All the treatments were significantly different from each other and consumers …

Care And Feeding: An Exploration Of How Archaeology Site Stewardship Program Volunteers And Managers Define Priorities, Britt Mcnamara

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

State and federal agencies increasingly rely on site stewardship programs to protect archaeological resources, and site stewardship programs rely on volunteers to do this work. Given the importance of volunteers to site stewardship programs, especially in the wake of budget cuts and “sequesters,” this paper asks: how do managers and volunteers define site stewardship program priorities and how do differences in their opinions impact program success? In this paper, I briefly review the literature on site stewardship programs and volunteerism and present the results of my exploratory ethnographic research on this question. I close with a discussion about how differing …

The Micronutrient Profile Of The Typical American Diet Enhances Colorectal Carcinogenesis, Stephany Del Carmen Perez Monsanto

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The typical Western dietary pattern is characterized by the consumption of energy-dense, nutrient-poor foods and has been linked to increased risk of colorectal cancer (CRC). Our research group previously developed the total Western diet (TWD) that emulates typical human dietary intakes of macro- (carbohydrates, proteins, and fats) and micronutrients (vitamins and minerals) on an energy density basis for rodents. In the present study, we sought to determine the impact of TWD on biomarkers of metabolic syndrome and obesity in comparison to a commercial 45% fat diet used for models of diet-induced obesity (DIO diet) and the standard basal AIN93G diet, …