Digital Commons Network^™

Conservation Of A Dinosaur In Modern Times: South Carolina’S Alligator Management Program, Walter E. Rhodes

Wildlife Damage Management Conference

American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis) conservation is necessary given the animal's role in wetland ecosystems and its economic value. Although the alligator appears to be no longer threatened with extinction, the reptile’s perceived reputation and a burgeoning human population combine to create a management paradox. Alligator management in South Carolina consists of a Nuisance Control Program, a Private Lands Harvest Program, and public education. Annually, over 750 alligator complaints are received by the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR), and harvest averages about 250 animals. To address alligator/human interaction in rural habitats, a harvest on private lands was …

The Mass Media And Stakeholders' Beliefs About Suburban Wildlife, Cynthia A. Loker, James Shanahan, Daniel J. Decker

Wildlife Damage Management Conference

This study examines how suburban audiences obtain information about 3 species in New York State (whitetail deer [Odocoileus virginianus], beaver [Castor canadensis], and Canada goose [Branta canadensis]). Respondents in 3 suburban areas were surveyed on concerns and interests about a particular species in their area. Respondents also were surveyed about preferred sources for species information and actual source use. Finally, respondents were surveyed about general media use. “Uses-and-gratifications” theory was used to characterize respondents’ information behavior for species information. Specific recommendations for communication planning are offered.

Vertebrate Damage Management: The Future Of An Evolving Profession, Robert H. Giles Jr.

Wildlife Damage Management Conference

The author argues that an objective of a new group of people taking a systems approach to large wild animal problems should be to manage damage as a cost-reducing role within a total, profitable, long-term system, not necessarily to control the "pest." The needs are for well-grounded financial analyses both for customers, the public, the resources, and the well-being of the profession. A point of view is advanced for the need for evolving pest-related operations into a new, unique profession that is involved in a profound way as an element of a cost-effective total land and human resource production system.

Pesticide Use On Utah's Small Grain Crops, Howard Deer, Alan H. Roe

All Current Publications

Data from usable pesticide survey responses was entered in a computer database and checked for entry errors. A database record was stored for each unique combination of grower, crop, pesticide, and target pest(s). All character data (such as brand names) were standardized for consistent usage and spelling. Specific methods used to enter and standardize data and to perform calculations are described below:

Inventory Of Sensitive Species And Ecosystems In Utah, Utah Division Of Wildlife Resources

All U.S. Government Documents (Utah Regional Depository)

The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (Division), under an agreement with the U.S. Department of the Interior, began work in March 1994 to develop a study plan for a statewide inventory of sensitive species and ecosystems. Activities enumerated in the plan include (1) conducting an exhaustive literature review of vertebrate, invertebrate, and plant species, (2) conducting field studies on sensitive species identified in the plan, and (3) using information obtained from the literature review and field studies to enhance and upgrade the Division's central database. The Division's study plan was approved by the Utah Reclamation Mitigation and Conservation Commission (Mitigation …

The High-Low Mix: A New Concept In Military Space, Matt Bille, Robyn Kane

Small Satellite Conference

U.S. military forces are dependent on space systems for communications, navigation, and other critical support functions. As we learned in Desert Storm, however, the requirements for space capability are difficult to forecast and easy to underestimate. The current U.S. approach relies on high-capacity, high-orbit satellites. Such satellites are relatively cost-effective: the larger the satellite, the lower the cost per pound to orbit it, and the lower the cost per unit of capacity. However, cost-effectiveness is not always the appropriate standard for selecting military systems. Combat forces must be provided with the capability they need to operate and win. This paper …

Microsats For Environmental Monitoring - And Some Current Canadian Initiatives, Ron Buckingham

Small Satellite Conference

This paper examines the usefulness of microsats for environmental monitoring. It is based in part on a study done by Routes Incorporated for the Canadian Space Agency in 1995, plus more recent information. We define microsats and their instruments as missions whose overall payload, platform, launch, ground segment and operations costs is within a $2M to $ 10M range. The paper describes several types of environmental atmospheric and earth surface monitoring task that could be achieved with microsats, e.g. observation of atmospheric phenomena such as polar stratospheric clouds, gravity waves and ozone profiles. Compact, simple, low-cost imaging spectrographs are candidates …

Big Science On A Small Budget: A University Sounding Rocket, Ellen Riddle, Jennifer Owens

Small Satellite Conference

The High-altitude Ozone Measuring and Educational Rocket (HOMER), a pilot for the NASA Student Launch Program, was a suborbital rocket investigation conducted by the Colorado Space Grant Consortium (CSGC). The HOMER mission provided: a unique educational opportunity for hands-on involvement by students in colleges and universities throughout Colorado; measurements of ozone and atmospheric constituents which affect ozone in the Earth's atmosphere; a demonstration of advanced and low-cost technologies that enable these measurements; and an intercomparison of measurement techniques. HOMER was launched from Wallops Flight Facility in Wallops Island, Virginia on August 12, 1996. HOMER is a follow-on payload to two …

Proceedings From The 34th Marschall Italian And Specialty Cheese Seminar, Various Authors

Cheese Industry Conference

No abstract provided.

Seastar™ (Orbview-2) Flight Operations And Data Delivery, Patricia Leygraaf

Small Satellite Conference

SeaStar is the result of a ground-breaking arrangement between Orbital Sciences Corporation and NASA, in which the U.S. Government is procuring space-based environmental remote sensing data for research purposes from a commercial operator. The SeaStar system incorporates the Sea-viewing Wide Field-of-view Sensor (SeaWiFS), a visible to near-infrared, multi-spectral scanning radiometer developed by the Hughes Santa Barbara Research Center (SBRC). The ocean color data provided by this mission supports more efficient and profitable environmental monitoring and marine industries. The data purchase arrangement with NASA results in a unique mission operations scenario. Orbital is responsible for conducting full mission operations and maintaining …

David: A Multi Spectral High-Resolution Small Satellite, Amnon Ginati, Carsten Tobehn, Avi Blasberger, Jeremy Topaz, Amon Karnieli

Small Satellite Conference

DAVID is a small satellite for advanced remote sensing purposes - designed to meet the specific requirements of today's and tomorrow's Earth observation users in the fields of environmental monitoring, hazard warning and damage assessment. The development is a joint German-Israeli co-operative project. The satellite is designed to provide earth images with high spatial and spectral resolution and good radiometric sensitivity, despite its small size and low cost. It will have more spectral bands in the VIS/NIR range than sensors on most existing or planned multi-spectral high-resolution satellites and higher ground resolution than planned hyperspectral space sensors like LEWIS or …

Modification Of Flow Model And Optimal Pumping Strategies For Capturing Tce And Dce Plumes Near Mission Drive, Wurtsmith Air Force Base, Michigan: Feasibility Study, Alaa H. Aly, Richard C. Peralta

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

Utah State University (USU) and Parsons Engineering Science (PES) were tasked by the Air Force Center for Environmental Excellence to:

( 1) Modify the three-dimensional basewide ground-water flow model for Wurtsmith Air Force Base (WAFS), Michigan (PES, 1997) based on recent investigation by ICF Kaiser (ICF).

(2) Develop contaminant transport models for OT-24 area TCE and DCE plumes. These models will use the same parameters that were used by ICF in their feasibility study ..

(3) Use the flow and transport models to develop optimal pumping strategies to achieve cleanup and capture of the plumes

Draft Environmental Impact Statement, Wasatch Front Regional Council

Elusive Documents

Based upon coordination with public and government agencies, combined with evaluation of technical considerations, Wasatch Front Regional Council has identified a light rail transit (LRT system as the preferred alternative to serve the University-Downtown-Airport Transportation Corridor of Salt Lake City, Utah. The 10.9 mile East-West Corridor will be constructed from the University of Utah Health Sciences Center, through the Central Business District (CBD) to Salt Lake City International Airport. It will interface with the existing north-south LRT line at 400 South and Main Street, and at South Temple and 400 West. The East-West LRT project will fulfill the following objectives: …

1997 Calibration Of Flow Model And Optimal Pumping Strategies To Capture Tce Plume At Travis Afb, Ca, Richard C. Peralta, A. H. Aly, J. Atkinson, J. Williams

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

The objective of this study was to develop a ground-water model that can be used in conjunction with an optimization model to optimize the containment and remediation of ground water contaminated with organic compounds at Travis AFB, California (TAFB). Based on studies by WESTON (Roy F. Weston, Inc.), RADIAN (Radian Corporation), and others, the major ground-water quality problem is a plume of TCE that originates at the Oil Spill Area (OSA) and bas migrated to the south and east under the runway. The immediate remediation objective is to stop the movement of the plume.

Time-Based Clustering And Its Relationship With Mutual Information Theory, Charles R. Tolle

Utah Space Grant Consortium

This paper re-introduces the concepts of TimeBased Clustering (TBC). Also, the ideas of oversampling and embedding time are introduced in connection with mutual information theory. These concepts are then extended through the use of the Time-Based Clustering (TBC) problem. Mutual information curves for the Rössler system are shown to match a slice through the rich cost function space spanned by the Time-Based Clustering (TBC) solution. In closing, some possible repercussions of this find are discussed.

Microgravity Effects On Water Flow And Distribution In Unsaturated Porous Media, Scott B. Jones, Dani Or

Utah Space Grant Consortium

Several aspects of the physical processes of liquid flow and distribution within partially saturated porous media are altered in the reduced gravity conditions (microgravity) of orbiting spacecraft. The objectives of this study were to simulate and test measured flow and distribution in porous media from a microgravity environment using conventional capillary flow theory. Two past microgravity experiments studying water supply and uptake in porous media took place on a U.S. space shuttle, titled ASC-1, and on the Russian space station Mir, titled Greenhouse-2. Data from microgravity and ground experiments were simulated using similar physical flow models by elimination of the …

Insights, Spring, 1997, Utah State University

Discovery Magazine

Bi-annual alumni, newsletter for the College of Science of Utah State University in Logan.

The Role Of Alfalfa Weevil Larvae As Prey In Adult Maintenance And Reproduction By Two Ladybird Beetle Species, Douglas R. Richards

Biology

Ladybird beetles (Coccinella spp.) are important predators of pea aphids (Acyrthosiphon pisum) in alfalfa. Adult ladybird beetles also consume alternative foods such as alfalfa weevil larvae (Hypera postica) and nectar. I compared egg production and ovariole condition of Coccinella septempunctata (an Old World species introduced to North America) and Coccinella transversoguttata (an indigenous North American species) that were maintained on diets of pea aphids, alfalfa weevil larvae, sugar water ("artificial nectar"), or various combinations of these foods. In the first experiment, gravid females of both species continued to lay many eggs and had large ovarioles …

Results And Analyses Of A Landscape Scale Random Point Avian Census, Eric R. Cannon

Biology

We conducted an avian census at 897 random points documenting the presence and relative abundance of breeding bird species across 11 cover types in the Manti-La Sal National Forest. We detected 85 bird species varying in abundance from Dark-eyed Juncos (Junco hyemalis) encountered at 33% of the points to 11 species that were detected only once. Relative abundances of all species by cover type were reported. We found a significant linear relationship between MacArthur's alpha diversity (species number) and the structural complexity of the cover types. However, we failed to find a relationship between sampling effort and the …

Isolation And Characterization Of Four Linear Plasmids In Ascosphaera Aggregata, Dakun Xu

Biology

Four extrachromosomal DNA plasmids were isolated from the entomopathogenic fungus Ascosphaera aggregata and named as pAaL10, pAaL8, pAaL2.8, and pAaL2.6 based on their host, morphology and size. DNA hybridization results suggested that pAaL10, pAaL8, pAaL2.8, and pAaL2.6 are not homologous with pAaL, a plasmid isolated from Ascosphaera apis. Extraction of DNA from intact mitochondria followed by gel electrophoretic analysis suggests pAaL10, pAaL8, pAaL2.8, and pAaL2.6 are located within the mitochondria. From hybridization results it was concluded that each of pAaL10, pAaL8, pAaL2.8, and pAaL2.6 is not homologous to mitochondrial DNA. This implies that these plasmids are all self-replicating. Restriction …

The Behavior Of Dippers (Family Cinclidae) In Relation To Food Acquisition, Roarke E. Donnelly

Biology

Individuals and populations are likely to optimize methods of food harvest and synchronize reproduction with local peaks in food supply, because animals exhibiting greater efficiency at acquiring energy or energy intensive tasks will often achieve greater survival, growth, and reproduction. Although this statement implies that foraging efficiency is optimized by selection for better foragers and optimal foraging theory owes much of its development and refinement to studies of free-living birds, the positive association of foraging proficiency and fitness has not been documented for free-ranging birds. Furthermore, the synchrony of reproduction and the peak in food resources has been examined within …

Discovery, Identification, And Evaluation Of Antifungal Compounds Produced By Pseudomonas Syringae, Kevin N. Sorensen

Biology

New antifungal agents are needed to combat the increasing incidence of fungal diseases. Strains of Pseudomonas syringae produce cyclic lipodepsinonapeptides (CLPs) such as syringomycin, syringostatin, and syringotoxin, which could be developed as therapeutic antifungal agents. Of these CLPs, syringostatin has been difficult to produce in vitro. Syringostatin production was achieved using syringomycin minimal medium supplemented with arbutin and D-fructose, and a high cell density. Syringostatin A (SS-A) was purified in quantities sufficient to evaluate its antifungal activities. The antifungal activities and erythrocyte toxicities of syringomycin E (SR-E), SS-A, and syringotoxin B (ST-B) were evaluated. All showed fungicidal activities against most …

Fourth Siam Conference On Applications Of Dynamical Systems, Siam Activity Group On Dynamical Systems

All U.S. Government Documents (Utah Regional Depository)

No abstract provided.

Wildfire Case Study: Butte City Fire, Southeastern Idaho, July 1, 1994, Bret W. Butler, Timothy D. Reynolds, United States Department Of Agriculture, Forest Service, Intermountain Research Station

All U.S. Government Documents (Utah Regional Depository)

The Butte City Fire occurred on July 1, 1994, west of Idaho Falls, ID. Ignited from a burning flat tire, the blaze was driven by high winds that caused it to cover over 20,500 acres in just over 6.5 hours. Sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata ssp. wyomingensis) is the principal shrub species of this high dese~t rangeland. With the absence of vegetation after the fire, erosion increased tremendously. Because the fire occurred on the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory, researchers were able to gather weather information from remote meteorological stations positioned on and around the site.

A Study Of The Immune Effects Of Orally Ingested Ginseng Combined With Moderate High-Intensity Exercise In Mouse And Human Subjects, Gordon Hunter Pedersen

Biology

Ginseng, an extract of the Panax ginseng plant, and exercise producing a heart rate of 82.5% of maximum were studied alone and in combination for effects on certain immune parameters in mice and young adult humans, and on development of cytomegalovirus (CMV) disease in mice. A motorized treadmill was used in the mouse experiments, with a clinical pulse oximeter adapted to monitor heart rates and arterial oxygen saturation (SaO₂). Compared to infected controls whose death rate was 60%, orally administered ginseng (250 mg/kg/day) beginning 48 hours pre-CMV inoculation caused a 25% survivor increase. Exercise (six repetitions of running …

The Biophysics Of Voltage-Gated Skeletal Muscle Sodium Channels And Muscle Excitability, David E. Featherstone

Biology

Voltage-gated skeletal muscle sodium channels are large transmembrane proteins that are responsible for the initiation and propagation of skeletal muscle action potentials. Sodium channels undergo three kinetically and pharmacologically distinct processes: activation/deactivation, fast inactivation, and slow inactivation. The work in this dissertation characterized each of these processes in heterologously expressed voltage-gated skeletal muscle sodium channels, then examined biophysical changes in mutant sodium channels responsible for paramyotonia congenita, an inherited human disease of muscle hyperexcitability. All sodium channel kinetic processes were studied, with particular emphasis on slow inactivation, which had not previously been well characterized. Paramyotonia congenita appears to result from …

Patterns Of Root Colonization By The Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungus Glomus Intraradices And Host Plant Responses, Kristopher A. Blee

Biology

Mycorrhizal hyphae were directed in their growth pattern in roots. Arbuscules produced by a single isolate of Glomus intraradices Schenck & Smith in roots of corn, wheat, carrot, clover, mung bean, and bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) were consistently limited to cortical cells immediately adjacent to the endodermis. Two hypotheses for controlled growth of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in plants were examined: (1) activation of plant defenses by the fungus, and (2) availability of host-derived carbon to the fungus. Accumulations of mRNAs for the defense-related genes phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL), chalcone synthase, chitinase (CHT), glucanese, and hydroxyproline-rich glycoprotein were examined in the …

Studies Of Dictyostelium Discoideum Plasmid Ddp6 And On The Mechanism Of Action Of Rep Proteins From The Ddp2 Plasmid Family, Iman M. Shammat

Biology

Dictyostelium discoideum plasmid Ddp6 from the wild strain NC47.2 is a 5257 bp nuclear plasmid with a copy number of 200-300 per cell. Analysis of the nucleotide sequence and structural organization of the Ddp6 plasmid has identified it as a new member of the Ddp2 plasmid family. Ddp6 contains a single gene that is homologous to the rep gene of Ddp2. As with Ddp2, a single constitutively expressed transcript of 3.3 kb was detected from the rep gene. The Ddp6 Rep open reading frame of 2.8 kb encodes a protein of 932 amino acids. A set of 10 conserved peptide …

Polar Distribution Of Neurofilaments In A Nonspiking Central Nervous System Neuron, David Dale Cole

Biology

Immunolabelling of phosphorylated and nonphosphorylated neurofilaments in teleost retinal horizontal cells, which are nonspiking neurons, is described. Light microscopy (postembedding immunolabelling) of retinal tissue sections revealed nonphosphorylated neurofilaments localized to regions where horizontal cell axon terminals, dendrites, and somata are located. In contrast, phosphoneurofilaments were localized to regions where axons and axon terminals of various retinal neurons, including horizontal cells, are found, as in typical spiking central nervous system neurons. Electron microscopy (preembedding immunolabelling) demonstrated that phosphoneurofilaments were localized to cone horizontal cell axons and axon terminals. Immunolabelling of primary cell cultures, however, revealed that axon-specific distribution of phosphoneurofilaments in …

Foraging Strategies Of Migrant Bald Eagles Exploiting A Seasonally Concentrated Food Source, Marco Restani

Biology

Generalizations regarding the relationship between age and foraging proficiency in birds may be incomplete and potentially misleading because most were formulated from studies of seabirds and shorebirds. Therefore, I examined three aspects of Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) foraging behavior: numerical and functional responses, patch residence time, and producing-scrounging behavior. The study was conducted during autumn migration when hundreds of eagles congregate at Hauser Reservoir, Montana, to feed on spawning kokanee salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka). I determined eagle numerical and functional responses from 1991-1995. Eagles tracked the number of salmon during four of five autumns, and immigration and …