Digital Commons Network^™

The Utah Statesman, April 1, 2024, Utah State University

The Utah Statesman

Weekly student newspaper of Utah State University in Logan.

The First Variational Formula, The Phase Space Of Solutions, And The Ostrogradsky Formalism, Matthew Pontius, Drew Watson

Physics Capstone Projects

We consider Lagrangians for classical mechanics which depend upon an arbitrary number of time derivatives of the configuration variables. From the boundary term in the first variation of the Lagrangian we derive the Ostrogradsky formulas which define the Hamiltonian formulation of mechanical systems.

Utah Lake Paleoecology Study Report To Deq, April 2024, J. Brahney, L. King, M. Devey, M. Carter, G. Carling, S. Brothers, A. Provard, B. Young, R. West

Watershed Sciences Faculty Publications

Utah Lake is a large shallow eutrophic lake located in north central Utah. In recent years, the occurrence of frequent and sometimes toxic algal blooms has brought new urgency in understanding the cause and effects of eutrophication in Utah Lake. The drainage basin of Utah Lake is dominated by carbonate sedimentary materials and small pockets of phosphate rock occur. Given the bedrock geology and shallow nature of the lake, there has been uncertainty as to the natural trophic status and ecology of the lake prior to the settlement of Utah Valley. Thus, defining historical nutrient concentrations and sources in the …

Faculty Senate Minutes April 1, 2024, Utah State University

Faculty Senate & Faculty Senate Executive Committee

No abstract provided.

Providing Pest Management Education For Home Gardeners In Utah, Nick Volesky, Marion Murray

Outcomes and Impact Quarterly

In January 2024, Utah State University (USU) Extension's Integrated Pest Management (IPM) program launched a three-part class series targeting Utah's home gardeners. The goal was to enhance their abilities in identifying and managing insect and plant diseases. With over 200 participants, the series notably increased the knowledge of attendees. This initiative aligns with the USU Extension IPM program's mission to promote sustainable pest management practices across Utah, evidencing its commitment to environmental stewardship and community education.

Rethinking Behavior - Spring 2024, Midwest Symposium For Leadership In Behavior Disorders

ReThinking Behavior Magazine

A magazine for professionals serving children and youth with behavioral needs.

Spring 2024, Volume 7, Issue 3

Outcomes Of Virtual Diabetes Cook Along Classes, April Litchford, Jenna Dyckman, Cindy Jenkins, Andrea Schmutz, Carrie Durward

Outcomes and Impact Quarterly

USU Extension Diabetes Cook Along classes provide diabetes education to the public while removing barriers to participation. These classes teach relevant topics through hands-on activities to increase participants’ ability to effectively self-manage their diabetes symptoms. Evaluation results show that participants experienced high satisfaction (86%) and substantial knowledge gain (92%) after the classes.

Nourishtank: An Innovative Program On Solving Hunger, Palak Gupta, Ashley Sullivan, Kristin Hoch, Lea Palmer, Jocelin Gibson, Mateja Savoie-Roskos, Heidi Leblanc

Outcomes and Impact Quarterly

NourishTank, a Shark Tank-style event, saw students propose food and nutrition insecurity solutions. Twenty-eight students formed 11 teams, promoting interdisciplinary collaboration. The winning idea, 'Farm2Fork Gone Mobile,' earned $1,000 toward their proposed project. NourishTank, through partnerships and media, highlights student-driven efforts combating food insecurity and raising awareness.

Assessing Parent And Guardian Outcomes For The Be Epic, Escape The Vape Program In Rural Southeast Utah, Ashley C. Yaugher, Christina Pay, Josie Hatch, Cris Meier

Outcomes and Impact Quarterly

Be Epic is a multi-component youth vape prevention program for rural youth, teachers, and parents. Annual parent/guardian events provide vape prevention education during a single session. Evaluation results showed that the program led to an increase in parents' knowledge and intention to talk with their youth about e-cigarettes.

Balancing Agriculture And Wildlife: The Impact Of Elk And Deer Grazing On Farming And Ranching Lands, Ethan Gilliam, Anna Gilliam, Jody Gale

Outcomes and Impact Quarterly

This article examines producers' perceptions of elk and deer grazing on their lands through a survey conducted at the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) National Conference. With 140 complete responses, the study underscores the varying impacts of elk/deer grazing. The findings emphasize the need for enhanced collaboration between agricultural stakeholders and wildlife management authorities to address wildlife grazing impacts effectively. These findings also address the critical opinion of producers toward wildlife inside and outside of their private operations, as well as the interactions between producers and wildlife authorities.

Exploring Practical Measures As An Approach For Measuring Elementary Students’ Attitudes Towards Computer Science, Umar Shehzad, Mimi M. Recker, Jody E. Clarke-Midura

Publications

This paper presents a novel approach for predicting the outcomes of elementary students’ participation in computer science (CS) instruction by using exit tickets, a type of practical measure, where students provide rapid feedback on their instructional experiences. Such feedback can help teachers to inform ongoing teaching and instructional practices. We fit a Structural Equation Model to examine whether students' perceptions of enjoyment, ease, and connections between mathematics and CS in an integrated lesson predicted their affective outcomes in self-efficacy, interest, and CS identity, collected in a pre- post- survey. We found that practical measures can validly measure student experiences.

Establishing The Temporal Relationship Between Religious Commitment, Sexual Identity Struggles, And Religious Struggles Among Sexual Minorities, G. Tyler Lefevor, Samuel J. Skidmore

Psychology Faculty Publications

Objective: Conclusions about the temporal relationship between religiousness and both religious and sexual identity struggles are frequently made in the absence of longitudinal data. The present study examines the temporal relationship between religious identification, sexual identity struggles, and religious struggles.

Methods: Participants were 132 Latter-day Saint sexual minorities who provided data at two timepoints, two years apart. We employed two cross-lagged panel models, one focusing on religious struggles and religious commitment and the other focusing on sexual identity struggles and religious commitment, to understand the temporal relationships between these variables.

Results: Cross-lagged panel models suggested that interpersonal religious struggles and …

A Review On Recent Deep Learning-Based Semantic Segmentation For Urban Greenness Measurement, Doo Hong Lee, Hye Yeon Park, Joonwhoan Lee

Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning Student Research

Accurate urban green space (UGS) measurement has become crucial for landscape analysis. This paper reviews the recent technological breakthroughs in deep learning (DL)-based semantic segmentation, emphasizing efficient landscape analysis, and integrating greenness measurements. It explores quantitative greenness measures applied through semantic segmentation, categorized into the plan view- and the perspective view-based methods, like the Land Class Classification (LCC) with green objects and the Green View Index (GVI) based on street photographs. This review navigates from traditional to modern DL-based semantic segmentation models, illuminating the evolution of the urban greenness measures and segmentation tasks for advanced landscape analysis. It also presents …

Curriculum Subcommittee Agenda April 4, 2024, Utah State University

Educational Policies Committee

• Approval of Minutes – March 7, 2024
• Program Proposals
• Semester Course Approval Reviews: https://usu.curriculog.com/
• Other Business
• Adjourn: 2:30 pm

Educational Policies Committee Agenda April 4, 2024, Utah State University

Educational Policies Committee

• Approval of Minutes – March 7, 2024
• Subcommittee Reports
• Curriculum Subcommittee (Chad Simon)
• Academic Standards Subcommittee (Renee Galliher)
• General Education Subcommittee (Matt Sanders)
• Other Business
• Adjourn: 3:00 pm

Slr Practitioner Needs, Daniella Hirschfeld, Kelli Archie, Emilio Mateo, James C. Arnott, Julie A. Vano

Browse all Datasets

As sea levels continue to rise, practitioners at the local and regional scale are under increased pressure to reduce risks to people and property posed by the threats of sea-level rise (SLR) and associated impacts. To achieve this, a transdisciplinary approach that integrates data-driven research with local knowledge and community engagement is necessary. As such, it is imperative the science community understands the needs of practitioners. However, there has been little qualitative assessment of adaptation practice in coastal areas, especially with a focus on the needs of practitioners in making use of current SLR science. Our mixed-methods approach began with …

Bear Lake Session, Lawrence Culver, Ben Shaw, Wesley Matthis, Mario Harper

Spring Runoff Conference

No abstract provided.

Eurasian Aspen (Populus Tremula L.): Central Europe's Keystone Species 'Hiding In Plain Sight', Antonín Kusbach, Jan Šebesta, Robert Hruban, Pavel Peška, Paul C. Rogers

Aspen Bibliography

Knowledge of Eurasian aspen’s (Populus tremula L.) ecological and growth characteristics is of high importance to plant and wildlife community ecology, and noncommercial forest ecosystem services. This research assessed these characteristics, identified aspen’s habitat optimum, and examined causality of its current scarce distribution in central Europe. We analyzed a robust database of field measurements (4,656,130 stands) for forest management planning over 78,000 km² of the Czech territory. Our analysis we used GIS techniques, with basic and multivariate statistics such as general linear models, ordination, and classification. Results describe a species of broad ecological amplitude that has heretofore attracted …

Faculty Senate Agenda April 1, 2024, Utah State University

Faculty Senate & Faculty Senate Executive Committee

• 3:00 Call to Order
• Approval of Minutes – March 4, 2024
• 3:05 University Business
• 3:30 Faculty Senate Business
• 3:40 Information
• 4:00 Reports
• 4:05 Old Business
• 4:10 New Business
• Adjourn: 4:30 pm

Suggested Vegetable Planting Dates: Grand And San Juan Counties, Reagan Wytsalucy, Cory Farnsworth, Dan Drost

All Current Publications

This fact sheet addresses vegetable planting dates in Grand and San Juan counties in Utah. “When should I plant?” and “What should I plant?” are two of the more common questions received from Utah gardeners. To answer the “When” question, you need to know something about the climate where you live. Vegetable plants vary in their response to temperature and are grouped by how they cope with cold or hot conditions. There are four (4) vegetable groups, which include the hardy, half-hardy, tender, or very tender crops. These groups are also referred to as the cool season (hardy or half-hardy) …

The Utah Statesman, March 25, 2024, Utah State University

The Utah Statesman

Weekly student newspaper of Utah State University in Logan.

Sophomore Recital - Jessie Bladen, Jessica Bladen

All Music Department Programs

This recital is in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance and Pedagogy.

Investigating Channel Narrowing And Nonnative Vegetation Encroachment In Three Dryland Rivers, Casey Pennock, Benjamin Miller, Phaedra Budy

Browse all Datasets

Water development and the proliferation of invasive riparian vegetation has led to widespread habitat loss and simplification of rivers in the western United States, contributing to the imperilment of native fishes. Here, we quantify channel narrowing and vegetation encroachment, which are conspicuous indicators of riverine habitat degradation, along approximately 400 km of three dryland tributaries of the upper Colorado River. To accomplish this, we conducted a comparative analysis of aerial photographs from historical (1930s) and contemporary (2010s or 2020s) time periods and utilized Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) data and Object-Based Image Analysis (OBIA) to determine contemporary canopy cover of …

Using Nonnative Vegetation To Enhance In-Stream Habitat For Native Fishes, Casey Pennock, Benjamin Miller, Phaedra Budy

Browse all Datasets

Flow alteration and riparian vegetation encroachment are causing habitat simplification with severe consequences for native fishes. To assess the effectiveness of enhancing simplified habitat in a large dryland river, we experimentally added invasive wood at 19 paired treatment and reference (no wood added) subreaches (50 - 100m) within the main channel of the San Juan River. Using a before-after-control-impact design, we sampled fishes and macroinvertebrates, and quantified habitat complexity. After wood addition, total native fish densities were 2.2x higher in treatments compared to references, whereas total nonnative fish densities exhibited no response. Macroinvertebrate densities were 6.8x higher, and habitat complexity …

Buckets Of Fun: Impacts Of Fraction Ball Activities On Students' Math-Related Emotions, Siling Guo, Drew H. Bailey, Katherine Rhodes, Kreshnik Nasi Begolli, Vanessa N. Bermudez, Luettamae Lawrence, Daniela Alvarez-Vargas, Lourdes M. Acevedo-Farag, June Ahn, Andres S. Bustamante, Lindsey E. Richland

Instructional Technology and Learning Sciences Faculty Publications

Rational number learning can cause frustration and negative emotions for elementary school students. Fraction Ball, a play-based math intervention, allows students to actively learn rational numbers through engaging and interactive activities. Based on a cluster-randomized trial with 16 teachers and 360 students, our pre-registered analyses showed moderate positive impacts of Fraction Ball on overall students' self-reported math-related emotions. Exploratory analyses indicated that students with higher negative emotions at pretest showed larger experimental impacts on decreasing negative emotions at posttest. Finally, we found that Fraction Ball evidenced no trade-off between rational number learning and emotional outcomes at the classroom block level, …

Effects Of Stroboscopic Vision On Depth Jump Motor Control: A Biomechanical Analysis, Kenneth D. Harrison, Christopher J. Dakin, Anne Z. Beethe, Talin Louder

Kinesiology and Health Science Faculty Publications

Researchers commonly use the 'free-fall' paradigm to investigate motor control during landing impacts, particularly in drop landings and depth jumps (DJ). While recent studies have focused on the impact of vision on landing motor control, previous research fully removed continuous visual input, limiting ecological validity. The aim of this investigation was to evaluate the effects of stroboscopic vision on depth jump (DJ) motor control. Ground reaction forces (GRF) and lower-extremity surface electromyography (EMG) were collected for 20 young adults (11 male; 9 female) performing six depth jumps (0.51 m drop height) in each of two visual conditions (full vision vs. …

K-12 Initiatives: Research Summary, Susan R. Madsen

Marketing and Strategy Faculty Publications

During the fall of 2023, Utah Women & Leadership Project (UWLP) researchers conducted a statewide study to establish a baseline for public perceptions related to the awareness, understanding, and attitudes about challenges that Utah women and girls face (see Background & Methods for details). The study was created to support the work of 18 areas of focus (spokes) within the movement called A Bolder Way Forward, which is dedicated to helping more Utah girls and women thrive. One of the 18 areas of focus is K-12 initiatives, and this summary shares findings that illuminate present circumstances and establishes a baseline …

Higher Education Attainment: Research Summary, Susan R. Madsen

Marketing and Strategy Faculty Publications

During the fall of 2023, Utah Women & Leadership Project (UWLP) researchers conducted a statewide study to establish a baseline for public perceptions related to the awareness, understanding, and attitudes about challenges that Utah women and girls face (see Background & Methods for details). The study was created to support the work of 18 areas of focus (spokes) within the movement called A Bolder Way Forward, which is dedicated to helping more Utah girls and women thrive. One of the 18 areas of focus is higher education attainment, and this summary shares findings that illuminate present circumstances and establishes a …

Organizational Strategies & Workplace Culture: Research Summary, Susan R. Madsen

Marketing and Strategy Faculty Publications

During the fall of 2023, Utah Women & Leadership Project (UWLP) researchers conducted a statewide study to establish a baseline for public perceptions related to the awareness, understanding, and attitudes about challenges that Utah women and girls face (see Background & Methods for details). The study was created to support the work of 18 areas of focus (spokes) within the movement called A Bolder Way Forward, which is dedicated to helping more Utah girls and women thrive. One of the 18 areas of focus is organizational strategies and workplace culture, and this summary shares findings that illuminate present circumstances and …

Faculty Senate Executive Committee Agenda March 18, 2024, Utah State University

Faculty Senate & Faculty Senate Executive Committee

• 3:30 Call to Order
• 3:35 University Business
• 3:55 Faculty Senate Business
• 4:10 Information
• Education Policies Committee
• Presidential Investiture
• Limited English Proficiency (LEP)
• 4:20 Reports
• 4:20 Old Business
• 4:25 New Business
• Administrator Evaluation Discussion
• Faculty Code 409 & 410
• Faculty Senate President Elect
• Adjourn: 5:00 pm