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Protein Residue Analysis In Archaeology: A Geological Contamination Experiment, Theresa Popp

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

Protein residue analysis has been used by archaeologists for decades to explore ancient diets and hunting behaviors based on proteins deposited on tools and artifacts, however, protein contamination of buried artifacts has been assumed but lacked formal study. Through a contamination experiment testing different geological contexts (e.g. water movement and freeze-thaw), possible routes of protein contamination within soil were identified, adversely impacting protein residue analysis conducted on buried artifacts. Protein was found to move through soil in large enough concentrations to elicit positive protein residue results on sterile artifacts that never made direct contact with the protein source used in …

Anion–Anion Interactions In Aerogen-Bonded Complexes. Influence Of Solvent Environment, Anna Grabarz, Mariusz Michalczyk, Wiktor Zierkiewicz, Steve Scheiner

Chemistry and Biochemistry Faculty Publications

Ab initio calculations are applied to the question as to whether a AeX₅− anion (Ae = Kr, Xe) can engage in a stable complex with another anion: F−, Cl−, or CN−. The latter approaches the central Ae atom from above the molecular plane, along its C₅ axis. While the electrostatic repulsion between the two anions prevents their association in the gas phase, immersion of the system in a polar medium allows dimerization to proceed. The aerogen bond is a weak one, with binding energies less than 2 kcal/mol, even in highly polar aqueous solvent. The complexes are …

Characterization Of Biofilms In A Synthetic Rhizosphere Using Hollow Fiber Root-Mimetic Systems, Michelle Bonebrake

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The area around a plant’s roots hosts a complex and diverse microbial community. This environment can include a large number of bacteria that live on the surface of the root and benefit from the nutrients that the roots exude into the soil. These microbes can in turn be beneficial to the plant by protecting the roots from harmful fungi or stressful environmental conditions such as drought. In this thesis, several root-mimetic systems (RMSs) were developed for the study and growth of plant-beneficial bacteria in the laboratory environment. The RMS uses a porous hollow fiber used in hemodialysis as a surface …

Solvation Enhances The Distinction Between Carboxylated Armchair And Zigzag Single-Wall Carbon Nanotubes (Swnt-Cooh), Tapas Kar, Upendra Adhikari, Steve Scheiner, Ajit K. Roy, Renato L. T. Parreira, Pedro A. De S. Bergamo, Giovanni F. Caramori, Felipe S. S. Schneider

Chemistry and Biochemistry Faculty Publications

The effect of various solvents on the structures and properties of carboxylated SWNTs has been explored using the Same Level Different Basis Set approach (SLDB), where B3LYP functional of density functional theory (DFT) was applied. Armchair (4,4) and zigzag (8,0) and (9,0) tubes were considered as the test bed. In order to simulate varying concentration of –COOH groups, one to five acids groups were placed at one end of these tubes. These samples were placed in different solvents (namely, CS2, THF and water) with varying polarity and results were compared with gas-phase properties. Similar to the gas-phase, zigzag tubes also …

Matching Watershed And Otolith Chemistry To Establish Natal Origin Of An Endangered Desert Lake Sucker, Deanna Strohm

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Like many native endemic desert freshwater fish species, the June Sucker (Chasmistes liorus) is currently listed as endangered. Managers have increasingly turned to habitat restoration as a key component to recovery plans. For endangered species, one of the primary outcomes of habitat restoration is that it should result in successful reproduction and recruitment of individuals into the adult population. Confirmation of natural recruitment as a function of habitat restoration can only be achieved by establishing natal origins.

Recent research has proven the validity of otolith microchemistry, a technique that analyzes small quantities of elements, to trace potamodromous fish …

Determination Of Residue Levels Of Alpha-Chloralose In Duck Tissues, David A. Goldade, Randal S. Stahl, John. J. Johnston

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Alpha-chloralose (AC) is used to capture nuisance waterfowl so that they can be relocated. Concerns for food safety limit its use prior to or during the waterfowl hunting season. To determine its half-life in tissue, we administered AC to adult male (n = 7) and female (n = 5) mallard ducks (Anas platyrhynchos) via oral gavage. A gel capsule containing 100 μCi of radioactive AC (14C-AC) and sufficient nonlabeled AC to produce a dose of approximately 30 mg/kg was given to each duck.The ducks were euthanized at 2, 6, 10, and 18 hours postdosing …

Petrology Of Pliocene (?) Basalts Of Curlew Valley (Box Elder Co.), Utah, Steven Brent Kerr

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Basalt outcrops in Curlew Valley consist of several flow remnants and eruptive centers situated along the valley margins. Basalt is also found in association with salic rocks that erupted in the central portion of the valley. The basalts are of probable Pliocene age and were erupted during a period of active extensional tectonics. Since their emplacement, the basalts have been extensively eroded and downfaulted. The present morphology reflects the erosional and depositional processes of prehistoric Lake Bonneville.

Twelve samples were analyzed chemically for major oxides, trace elements, and rare-earth elements. The basalts form a hypersthene normative series ranging from olivine …

Reconnaissance Of Sediment-Phosphorus Relationships In Some Utah Reservoirs, Jay J. Messer, Jean M. Ihnat

Reports

Introduction: Phosphorus inputs to lakes and reservoirs from tributary streams and non-point sources are well-known contributors to nuisance algal growths that degrade water quality for potable and recreational uses in lakes and reservoirs. However, phosphours inputs to the euphotic zone may also occur from within the lake itself, as a result of releases from both oxic and anoxid sediments. Such releases may originate from phosphorus inputs to a lake or reservoir during high runoff periods in the previous winder or spring, or they may represent phosphorus trapped in the sediment many years earlier, when phosphorus contributions from natural or anthropogenic …

Buzzer 1978, Utah State University

USU Buzzer Yearbook

1978 yearbook for Utah State University. Published from 1909-1971 with single issues in 1978 and 1981.