Digital Commons Network^™

How Low A Colorado River Flow To Go? Insights From Numerically Stabilizing Lake Powell And Lake Mead During Crisis, David Rosenberg, Anabelle Myers, Motasem Abualqumboz, Erik Porse

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

Colorado River users are now discussing dividing river flow on a percentage basis (Fleck, 2025; Hager, 2025, Winslow, 2025). This is an important step to managing a declining and more volatile supply. In our prior May 2025 post, we shared a strategy we have worked on for several years— division of river flow—as one of 13 reasons why we have hope for consensus on Colorado River management. In this post, we address the question: How extreme low river flow and reservoir storage should we plan for going forward (Figure 1)? We also share our insights from numerically stabilizing and recovering …

An Inexpensive, Open, And Extensible Hardware-In-The-Loop Cubesat Test And Simulation Infrastructure, Andrew Greenberg, Glenn Lebrasseur, Max Eltzroth, Rose Edington, Anna Meneely, Maxwell Millar

Small Satellite Conference

We have developed an inexpensive, open source, and extensible hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) test and simulation system to allow even small CubeSat teams to dramatically improve their testing infrastructure to increase reliability during flight.

Enhancements And Improvements Of The Radiation Probe - Compact Radiation Probe (Crp), Yihsuan Chou, Loren Chang, Yichung Chiu, Tzuwei Hung, Sinyu Tsui

Small Satellite Conference

As space missions venture beyond Earth's magnetic field, spacecraft face elevated risks from solar energetic particles (SEPs) and galactic cosmic rays (GCRs). Taiwan's first lunar payload—the Deep Space Radiation Probe (DSRP)—was developed to measure radiation dose, dose rate, and SEU rates during Earth–Moon transit. However, flight data revealed limitations in SEU detection and system operation. To address these issues and support CubeSat-class missions, the Compact Radiation Probe (CRP) was developed for the upcoming COSPAR-1 mission.

Northern Arizona Ecological Conservation: Assessing Quaking Aspen Health In Northern Arizona Using Earth Observations, Ikram Morso, Luke Collins, Margaret Cox, Melissa Schwan

Aspen Bibliography

Quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides) forests in Northern Arizona provide critical habitat for endangered bird species and support regional tourism and recreation. However, aspen populations are declining due to a combination of abiotic and biotic stressors. In response, land managers implemented strategies, such as ungulate exclusion fencing, prescribed burns, and stand thinning, but efforts are constrained by limited data on where and when to intervene. This project worked in collaboration with the U.S. Forest Service, the National Park Service, the Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management, and Northern Arizona University School of Forestry. The team utilized Earth observations …

Homologous And Heterologous Vaccination Regimens With Mrna And Rvsv Platforms Induce Potent Immune Responses Against Sftsv Glycoprotein, Tomaz B. Manzoni, Jonna B. Westover, Kendall A. Lundgreen, Philip D. Hicks, Raegan J. Petch, Jordan T. Ort, Drew Weissman, Steven H. Y. Fan, Scott E. Hensley, Norbert Pardi, Brian B. Gowen, Paul Bates

Animal, Dairy, and Veterinary Science Faculty Publications

Background: Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus (SFTSV) is a highly pathogenic bunyavirus with a high case-fatality ratio for which there is no approved vaccine. Studies have assessed different vaccine technologies. However, few studies have yet assessed the immunogenicity of heterologous prime-boost regimens. Methods: Here, we compare a lipid nanoparticle (LNP)-encapsulated nucleoside-modified mRNA-based vaccine encoding the SFTSV glycoproteins, Gn and Gc, to our recently described recombinant VSV SFTSV (rVSV-SFTSV) vaccine in single dose, homologous, and heterologous prime-boost regimens in mice. Results: We show that all regimens protect from pathogenic SFTSV challenge and elicit strong long-lasting antibody responses. Furthermore, strong cellular …

Evaluation Of Diet Quality, Physical Health, And Mental Health Baseline Data From A Wellness Intervention For Individuals Living In Transitional Housing, Callie Millward, Kyle Lyman, Soonwye Lucero, James D. Lecheminant, Cindy Jenkins, Kristi Strongo, Gregory Snow, Heidi Leblanc, Lea Palmer, Rickelle Richards

All Current Publications

Background/Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate baseline health measurements among transitional housing residents (n = 29) participating in an 8-week pilot wellness intervention. Methods: Researchers measured anthropometrics, body composition, muscular strength, cardiovascular indicators, physical activity, diet quality, and health-related perceptions. Researchers analyzed data using descriptive statistics and conventional content analysis. Results: Most participants were male, White, and food insecure. Mean BMI (31.8 ± 8.6 kg/m2 ), waist-to-hip ratio (1.0 ± 0.1 males, 0.9 ± 0.1 females), body fat percentage (25.8 ± 6.1% males, 40.5 ± 9.4% females), blood pressure (131.8 ± 17.9/85.2 ± 13.3 mmHg), and …

Opto-Mechanical Properties Of Monocrystalline Germanium, Phil Scott, Lennon Reinhart, Patrick Strong, Ryan Luder, Shayler Backlund, Trent Newswander

Space Dynamics Laboratory Publications

SDL Presentation on Opto-Mechanical Properties of Monocrystalline Germanium

Atmospheric Waves Experiment (Awe) Thermal Balance: Internal Characterization, Correlation, And Lessons Learned, Matt Ralphs, Mike Holt

Space Dynamics Laboratory Publications

The Atmospheric Waves Experiment (AWE) is providing the first global characterization of atmospheric waves that originate in Earth’s lower atmosphere and affect space weather. The instrument has been installed on the International Space Station’s (ISS) ExPRESS Logistics Carrier (ELC) site 1 since November 2023. The AWE flight thermal balance test at Space Dynamics Laboratory (SDL) was unique in that the radiation exchange from the radiators was not tested prior to flight. Instead, heaters were placed on the radiators to simulate environmental heat and control the boundary temperatures. Multi-layer insulation (MLI) was installed over the radiators and heat flow meters were …

Perspectives On Water Policies And Alternative Land Uses Among Alfalfa Farmers In The Great Salt Lake Basin, Bryn Watkins, Stacia Ryder

Publications

Climate change threatens many resources necessary for life. In arid and semiarid regions like Utah, water represents one of the key climate-related conflicts (1,2). In Utah, a changing climate paired with human overconsumption has contributed to the drying of the Great Salt Lake. Rising temperatures will lead to greater evapotranspiration and decreasing headwater streamflow and groundwater storage, resulting in increasing dryness in the Great Salt Lake Basin regardless of human water consumption (3). This in turn threatens the ecosystems, economies, and cultures of the Great Salt Lake Basin, accelerating the local impacts of climate change (4).

Community Organizations, Immigrants, And Air Pollution Risks In Utah, Nowrin Fatema, Kirsten Vinyeta, Erin Hofmann

Publications

Over the past 25 years, Utah’s Wasatch Front, a metropolitan region along the Western flanks of the Wasatch Mountain Range that includes Salt Lake City, has emerged as a new international immigrant gateway (1). While in Utah, immigrants may find economic opportunity and safety relative to their home countries, they may also experience notable life-altering disparities, including disproportionate exposure to the region’s worsening air pollution. As some of the first and few institutions interacting with newly arrived immigrants and refugees, non-governmental community organizations are well positioned to serve as information hubs regarding regional air pollution risk. Yet our research, in …

Utahns’ Understanding & Support Of Environmental Equity & Justice, Dallin Johnson, Jordan Rowley, Stacia Ryder, Jennifer E. Givens, Avery C. Edenfield, Harley Thomas

Utah People and Environment Poll (UPEP)

Utah faces its fair share of environmental problems. Top concerns among residents are issues of drought, air quality, and the drying of the Great Salt Lake (1). However, research suggests that the impacts of environmental issues like disasters, pollution, resource overuse and climate change are not shared equally across society (2). This is a challenge for environmental justice, which maintains the need for fair treatment and outcomes for all people, regardless of race, ethnicity, and class, with respect to the enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies (3). Put more simply, everyone is entitled to a clean and healthy environment …

Tremblings, August 2025, Western Aspen Alliance

Tremblings

Small-stand Challenges in the Northern Rockies

Brytten Steed, PhD, USFS Forest Entomologist (retired) Forest Health Protection - Missoula Field Office

Aspen in the Northern Rocky Mountains exist more often as small, scattered patches or “stringers” than the iconic landscapes of aspen found elsewhere. Like early-season fireflies, they dot the landscape where moisture is present, ringing potholes, lining streams, or clinging to topographies rich in subsurface moisture. Their rarity belies their importance to wildlife, livestock, fire movement, and humans. Aspen are preferred browse for large herbivores, a hotspot for birds, and home to a diversity of plants. People, too, gravitate …

The Effects Of National Elite Signaling On Ranked Choice Voting In Utah, Mathew Woodman

All Graduate Reports and Creative Projects, Fall 2023 to Present

Ranked-Choice Voting (RCV) is a voting method used in few cities in the United States. There has recently been an increase in interest in adoption of the voting method in other cities using pilot programs, much like the one introduced in Utah. Ranked-Choice Voting has become a topic of contention with strong disapproval coming from opponents of the voting system. The questions are why there is disdain for Ranked-Choice Voting, and why such disdain seems to exist more heavily in Republican camps. Public opinion polling from “likely and confirmed Utah voters” in Salt Lake, Utah, and Grand Counties, conducted by …

A Study Of Complex Analysis After Whittaker And Watson, Crystal Steed

All Graduate Reports and Creative Projects, Fall 2023 to Present

The goal of this report is to provide solutions to the exercises found in chapter five of the book titled, A Course of Modern Analysis: An Introduction to the General Theory of Infinite Processes and of Analytic Functions with an Account of the Principal Transcendental Functions by E.T. Whittaker and G.N. Watson. The fifth chapter is titled, "The Fundamental Properties of Analytic Functions; Taylor's, Laurent's and Liouville's Theorems." This report solves the end-of-chapter exercises in addition to providing details for some in-chapter exercises, which are left to the reader. Many of these exercises are results from famous mathematicians.

The Final Girl Without The Slasher: Final Girls, Gender, And Community In Psych, Cassidy Crosby

All Graduate Reports and Creative Projects, Fall 2023 to Present

This thesis focuses on the “Final Girl” trope, a hallmark of slasher films of the 1970s and 1980s, as it appears in detective procedural television show Psych to analyze what changes in the trope’s usage says about broader changes in American culture. I engage with two key episodes, “Scary Sherry: Bianca’s Toast” and “Tuesday the 17^th,” which contain the program’s most direct engagements with the Final Girl trope. Ultimately, I conclude that Psych rejects the hyperindividualism embedded in the Final Girl and some of the trope’s more binary gender norms, while also failing to interrogate other aspects of …

"I Was In The Story": The Relationship Of Oral Storytelling With Student Hope, Narrative Transportation, And Religious Beliefs, Jacob B. Earnest

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

This study investigated the potential relationships with oral storytelling and student narrative transportation levels, student hope levels, and student religious beliefs. The Children’s Hope Scale and the Transportation Scale-Short Form were to assess hope levels and narrative transportation levels in participants. Results suggest that oral storytelling may have a strong relationship with narrative transportation. A relationship with oral storytelling and student religious beliefs is also suggested. Oral storytelling and student hope levels, and the possible connection between student narrative transportation levels and student hope levels, needs further research.

Selected Projects In Scenic Design And Technical Direction, Ky Trupp

All Graduate Reports and Creative Projects, Fall 2023 to Present

A selection of projects in scenic design and technical direction produced by Utah State Theater involving Ky Trupp and others. Each chapter studies the design process and production process of three individual shows where Ky was the Scenic Designer or Technical Director.

Do The Theoretical Frameworks Surrounding Union Wage Negotiations Align With Empirical Data?, Sajid Bin Hasnat

All Graduate Reports and Creative Projects, Fall 2023 to Present

This paper investigates whether the strategic bargaining models developed in game theory align with outcomes observed in laboratory and field settings. We aim to synthesize theoretical literature with experimental and field data to assess the predictive power of game-theoretic models in labor-union wage negotiation contexts. We analyze Rubinstein's bargaining model and its extensions, focusing on how relaxed assumptions affect equilibrium behavior, gains from trade, and dispute occurrence. The theoretical analysis reveals that many bargaining failures stem from asymmetric information between both parties, where delay, transaction costs, deadlines, and reputational effects lead to distinct equilibrium predictions. To test these theoretical predictions, …

A Social And Environmental Restoration Plan For Warm Springs And North Gateway Parks In Salt Lake City, Utah, Bailey R. Guinn

All Graduate Reports and Creative Projects, Fall 2023 to Present

This research-based design thesis examines the historic and ecological significance of the combined 20-acre Warm Springs and North Gateway Parks in the Capitol Hill neighborhood on the north end of Salt Lake City. Distinguished by the natural hot springs in North Gateway Park, the area was formed through geological processes associated with the emergence of the Wasatch Mountains (Lutz, 2004) and holds a deep cultural history for indigenous peoples such as the Shoshone, Goshute, Southern Utes, and Northern Utes. These tribes historically used the springs for social bathing, healing, and wintering grounds until the arrival of settlers in 1847, which …

The Soldier Saint: Latter-Day Saint Veterans Of The Vietnam War, Cassie Evans

All Graduate Reports and Creative Projects, Fall 2023 to Present

This digital exhibit and accompanying paper explore the experiences and contributions of Latter-day Saint veterans during the Vietnam War, focusing on their role within both military and religious contexts. Despite representing only a small percentage of the American military forces in Vietnam, Latter-day Saints influenced the war's cultural and spiritual landscape. Through personal narratives, interviews, and historical analysis, the study sheds light on how these veterans navigated the complexities of their faith amidst the challenges of combat.

Additionally, it considers the relationship between military service and missionary efforts, highlighting how the presence of Latter-day Saint soldiers contributed to later religious …

Groundwater-Dependent Ecosystems In Southeastern Utah: An Integrated Analysis Of Hydrology, Ecology, And Landscape Change, Colten Lay

All Graduate Reports and Creative Projects, Fall 2023 to Present

In Southeastern Utah, springs play a critical role in sustaining groundwater-dependent ecosystems (GDEs) in a semi-arid environment. However, they remain understudied and face growing threats from climate change, land use modifications, and hydrologic alterations. This study addresses knowledge gaps in spring occurrence, hydrologic function, and ecological condition by integrating field surveys, remote sensing, and geospatial analysis across multiple spatial scales. It provides a comprehensive assessment of spring hydrology, water quality, and ecological conditions using field surveys, remote sensing, and GIS analysis to establish a foundational baseline of GDE resources in the region. I applied a multi-scale monitoring approach across the …

Professional Portfolio: Collaboration To Support Inclusion Of Students With Extensive Support Needs, Sasha A. Lockhart

All Graduate Reports and Creative Projects, Fall 2023 to Present

This project focuses on the importance of collaboration between the special education teacher and general education teacher to better support inclusive practices for students with extensive support needs. Inclusion is an important part of education for a student with disabilities. Research has indicated several benefits of inclusion. Inclusion of students with extensive support needs requires effective collaboration between special and general education teachers. This professional portfolio includes a review of the literature about collaboration to support inclusion of students with extensive support needs, as well as two reports. Report one focuses on the collaboration between special education teacher and general …

Warming Of The Southern Ocean During The Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum: Inferences From Foraminifera At Site U1580, Samina Anee

All Graduate Reports and Creative Projects, Fall 2023 to Present

The Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (PETM, ~56 million years ago) represents an ancient episode of rapid global warming, offering critical insights into climate dynamics and the Earth's response to increased greenhouse gases. This project aims to quantify the magnitude of warming across the PETM at newly recovered IODP Site U1580 (Agulhas Plateau, Southern Ocean) through the analysis of Mg/Ca and δ¹⁸O ratios of planktic foraminifera. Understanding the extent of warming at Site U1580 is crucial for comprehending past climate variability and improving future climate predictions. Site U1580 is particularly well-suited to foraminiferal geochemistry because of high carbonate content throughout …

Sustainable Master Planned Gateway Communities: The Kamas Valley Case, Zachary Sannar

All Graduate Reports and Creative Projects, Fall 2023 to Present

Gateway communities (towns and cities located near public lands and natural amenities) are experiencing significant and often disruptive change as they transition from economies historically rooted in natural resource extraction to those increasingly driven by tourism and amenity-based migration (Howe et al., 1997; Stoker et al., 2020).

In the Intermountain West, places like Jackson, Wyoming; Springdale, Utah; and West Yellowstone, Montana exemplify this trend, and Kamas Valley is emerging as part of this broader pattern.

Although these communities share a deep cultural and economic connection to their landscapes, they now face mounting pressures from population growth, changing land uses, and …

Validation Of Head Above And Head Submerged Hydrostatic Weighing Equations And Air Displacement Plethysmography, Axel M. Miller

All Graduate Reports and Creative Projects, Fall 2023 to Present

Traditional hydrostatic weighing (HW) involves full body submersion at residual volume (RV), which may be uncomfortable. Thus, the purpose of this study was to investigate a more comfortable way to perform this method. HW with the head above water (HW_HAW) was compared to the traditional method of HW with head below water (HW_HBW) and to another method that also measures density by displacement, air displacement plethysmography (ADP). Equivalence was tested by comparing the body fat percentage (BF%), body volume (Vb), and body density (Db) of 27 subjects (15 M, 12 F) between the three methods. Results …

Challenging The Gaze: A Feminist Interpretation Of The S.M.S. Mail Art Collection, Karissa A. Krievins

All Graduate Reports and Creative Projects, Fall 2023 to Present

In the late 1960s, many people called for radical, immediate change to America’s political, societal, and cultural structures. The artistic practices of the time reflected the social and political realities of the moment and played a crucial role in advocating for change. The title of the 1968 S.M.S. (Shit Must Stop) subscription art portfolios was a bold and urgent call for action, challenging artists and audiences alike to confront the pressing injustices of the era and inspire a collective awakening to the necessity of transformative change across the United States. Despite a fifty-six-year gap, today we are …

Drawing On The Past: Understanding Japanese American Internment Through Camp Newspaper Comics, Rory Olsen

All Graduate Reports and Creative Projects, Fall 2023 to Present

When studying the past, what artifacts are left behind for us to study? In understanding Japanese American internment in the United States during WWII, camp newspapers help give a look at the reality of camp life, which included the ongoing issues of a lack of supplies,, the generational divide between older and younger Japanese Americans, and even the racist leanings of some members of the camp. With a balance of humor and seriousness, as well as reality and the abstract, three artists - Roy Kawamoto, Harry Kuwada, and Michiko "Rosie" Arima - who were interred in Camp Jerome (located near …

Dream Pilot Project: Analysis Of Groundwater Development At Six Villages In Ethiopia, Lindsay K. Gordon

All Graduate Reports and Creative Projects, Fall 2023 to Present

This study presents a hydrogeologic assessment of the Distributed Renewable Energy Agriculture Modalities (DREAM) pilot project, an ongoing groundwater development initiative in rural Ethiopia. This project integrates solar-powered groundwater infrastructure across six villages to improve water access, agricultural productivity, and economic stability.

Fourteen production wells were installed at Murche, four at Dalle, and additional test wells at Murche, Dalle, Chefe Kora, and Huluku. Transmissivity values and the number of wells at Murche suggest that local water needs are currently being met. In contrast, fewer wells were drilled at Dalle. This reflects the high cost of well construction relative to yield, …

The Effects Of Temperature And Cardiotonic Steroids On Cardiac Function And Metabolism In Snakes, Hannah Wilson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

The function of the heart provides a window into the physiology of vertebrates and a means of evaluating their response to the stresses imposed by diverse activities. I developed a miniaturized instrument to record electrocardiograms (ECGs), using open-source Arduino technology, that a snake can wear as a backpack. The backpack can also be used when the snake is in a metabolic chamber, to record the metabolic rate and ECG simultaneously. I first used the ECG backpack to record the physiology of snakes under different temperature conditions, to verify that the system worked as expected. the backpack was then used on …

Pressure Recovery Analysis Downstream Of Valves And Meters: An Experimental And Numerical Investigation, Stephen J. Sanders

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

In pressurized water systems, flow control devices such as valves and meters cause pressure losses that can affect energy efficiency and measurement accuracy. Industry standards assume that all devices recover within the same distance downstream, but this may not be true for all device types. In this study we used laboratory testing and computer modeling to determine how far downstream pressure stabilizes after flowing through various valves and meters. Devices like Venturi meters recovered pressure quickly, while orifice plates required longer distances and resulted in greater permanent energy loss. In most cases, pressure recovered within four to six pipe diameters. …