Digital Commons Network^™

Quantum Mechanical Studies Of Charge Assisted Hydrogen And Halogen Bonds, Binod Nepal

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Like cement bridges one brick to another, noncovalent forces also bridge two or more molecules together to form a molecular crystal or molecular cluster. Although weaker than the covalent bond, the existence of noncovalent forces can be seen everywhere from liquid water to construction of complex biomolecules like DNA, RNA, proteins etc. An introduction of suitable charge; positive or negative, on the binding units can increase the strength of noncovalent interaction by several orders of magnitude. The primary aim of this dissertation is to explore some fundamental properties of such charge assisted noncovalent interactions which will be helpful for the …

Identifying And Reducing Risk Of The Female Athlete Triad In Division I Athletes, Jennifer Day

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Physically active females, or female athletes, are at risk for the condition known as the female athlete triad (Triad). The Triad is made up of three components that are distinctly separate, but intertwined: consuming inadequate energy for how much they are exercising, poor bone health, and problems with their menstrual periods. When female athletes don’t consume enough energy for how much they exercise, there can be hormonal imbalances, causing the body to conserve energy from some important functions including menstruation, and increased bone turnover resulting in a higher risk of stress fractures and early osteoporosis. Female athletes at risk for …

Rhizosphere Interactions Between Copper Oxide Nanoparticles And Wheat Root Exudates In A Sand Matrix; Influences On Bioavailability And Uptake, Paul Mcmanus

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Copper oxide nanoparticles (CuO NPs) are extremely small particles (less than 1 nm in one or more dimension, or one billionth (10^-9) of a meter) used in a diverse range of industries. They have been shown to travel through water systems, and like pharmaceuticals, can end up in wastewater treatment plants and then be land applied as biosolids, where crops are grown for animal consumption, potentially leading to food chain accumulation.

Cu is an essential micronutrient for plants, but is phytotoxic at higher concentrations. CuO NPs present an increasingly real environmental threat to agriculture in soils treated with …

Heterogeneous And Homogeneous Nickel-Based Electrocatalysts For Oxygen Evolution And Carbon Dioxide Reduction, Meili Sheng

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The growing global energy demand and the increasing concentration of CO₂ in the atmosphere have encouraged the development of renewable energy to replace carbon-based fossil fuels. Electrocatalytic water splitting to form H₂ and O₂ and reduction of CO₂ to CO are appealing processes and we can be directly utilize H₂ and CO as fuels or commodity chemicals in mature industrial processes, which will not alter the current carbon cycle. However, the O₂ evolution reaction of water splitting is a reaction of four-proton and four-electron transfer process, whose kinetics is very sluggish under normal conditions. …

Family And Consumer Sciences Teacher Needs Assessment Of A Stem-Enhanced Food And Nutrition Sciences Curriculum, Cathy A. Merrill

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Career and Technical Education (CTE) has long taught abstract science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) concepts in contextualized settings. In 2014, a new CTE Food and Nutrition Sciences curriculum was written by a pilot group of CTE family and consumer sciences teachers, enhancing the STEM education teaching opportunities available in a food and nutrition course. This study is a teacher needs assessment of the implementation of the new STEM-enhanced curriculum.

The curriculum objectives were measured for perceived importance and self-perceived ability to teach by the teachers. Curriculum feedback, educational background and general demographics were also gathered. The curriculum objectives data …

The Bat And The Spider: A Folkloristic Analysis Of Comic Book Narratives, Wesley Colin Van De Water

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This thesis examines the folkloric evolution of superhero narratives over the past century. Utilizing theories from folklorists such as Lord Raglan, Vladimir Propp, Joseph Campbell, Barre Toelken, and Alan Dundes, it examines the core qualities prized by folklorists, and how these same elements can be found in superhero narratives, despite their mass produced nature and place amidst American popular culture. It examines classic hero tale structures, as well as the folkloric theories of dynamism and conservatism. The main argument is that these narratives are folkloric in nature, and that the discipline of folklore would benefit from their study.

Teacher Attitudes And Perceptions Of Low And High Socioeconomic Status Students, Patty C. Norman

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In this qualitative study, the author explored the perceptions of 10 middle-class, teachers regarding the socioeconomic class of both impoverished and advantaged students with whom they worked. Teachers in two public elementary schools from one Intermountain West school district participated; one school generally served children living in poverty and the other generally served affluent children. Through analysis of surveys, interviews, teacher journals, and researcher journal, the complex and often times contradictory feelings these teachers had about the socioeconomic class of students were revealed.

Literature in class, socioeconomic class, deficit thinking, race and whiteness, and identity and multiple identities situated the …

Production Of Synthetic Spider Silk Fibers, Cameron G. Copeland

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Dragline spider silk is among the strongest known biomaterials. It is the silk used for the framework of the web and it is used to catch the spider if it falls. As such, it is stronger and much more flexible than KEVLAR©. Studies show that dragline silk is made of two proteins, Major Ampullate Spider Proteins 1 and 2 (MaSp1 and MaSp2). Due to its incredible mechanical properties, spider silk is being considered for use as a new biomaterial for drug delivery and tendon and ligament replacement/repair, as well as athletic gear, military applications, airbags, and tire cords. However, spiders …

Impulsive Choice, Alcohol Self-Administration, And Pre-Exposure To Reward Delay, Jeffrey S. Stein

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Prior research indicates that drug dependence is associated with a tendency to discount the future. For instance, compared to control participants, drug-dependent participants more strongly prefer small, immediate rewards (e.g., $10 now) over larger, delayed rewards (e.g., $100 in 6 months). Similarly, in animal models of addiction, impulsive preference for small, immediate over larger, delayed food rewards in rats is associated with greater consumption of a number of drugs of abuse, including alcohol, cocaine, and nicotine. These and other findings suggest that this form of impulsive choice plays a causal role in addiction; however, this account has not been tested …

Emerging Technology To Exclude Wildlife From Roads: Electrified Pavement And Deer Guards In Utah, Usa, Joseph P. Flower

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Vehicle collisions with large wild animals threaten public safety, can harm wildlife populations, and often result in substantial property damage. The most effective
way to reduce these collisions is to install wildlife fencing along the roadway and provide structures that enable wildlife to cross roads safely. However, if access roads that bisect fencing do not include barriers to deter animals from entering the highway, these measures can become ineffective. The purpose of my research was to: 1) evaluate the effectiveness of barriers currently used to exclude wildlife from highways, and 2) determine whether cattle guards augmented with segments of electrified …

Douglas-Fir Beetle Mediated Changes To Fuel Complexes, Foliar Moisture Content And Terpenes In Interior Douglas-Fir Forests Of The Central Rocky Mountains, Andrew D. Giunta

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Bark beetle outbreaks have affected millions of hectares of forests across western North America and are a major concern for forest managers. Aside from causing extensive tree mortality, other associated changes include alterations to forest structure in terms of modifications of surface and aerial fuels, which have led to concerns about overall forest health and wildfire risk. The majority of research into the interactions between bark beetles, fuels, and wildfire, has focused on upper elevation forests primarily in lodgepole pine and Engelmann spruce. Little research has been led in lower to middle montane forests which typically are more structurally and …

An Analysis Of The Feasibility Of Anaerobic Digestion On Small-Scale Dairies In Utah, Steven Chans Lund

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

With an ever increasing concern for the environment, different methods of managing organic waste on dairy farms have been explored and analyzed. Anaerobic digestion has long been a popular method of managing organic waste. Its popularity stems from the potential to decrease greenhouse gases, improve air quality and provide a source of additional revenue for the farm. Problems with implementing anaerobic digestion arise from high failure rates, high start-up costs and continuous maintenance and equipment replacement.

Subsidies for the initial investment and improved technology have increased the possibility of large-scale dairy farms to adopt anaerobic digestion. Due to economies of …

Accumulation And Release Of Trace Inorganic Contaminants From Biofilm Matrices Produced And Challenged Under Drinking Water Distribution System Conditions, William W. Kent

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Drinking water distribution systems (DWDS) are used to transport drinking water from the place of treatment to your home. DWDS are made of many types of pipe materials and have the potential to accumulate materials such as iron and manganese oxides and biofilms that serve as reservoirs for toxic trace inorganic contaminants (TICs) such as thallium, arsenic, and lead. These materials can be stable, but changes in water quality or a physical disturbance such as road construction or water use changes may result in a TIC release, causing water quality degradation. This study used glass columns filled with glass beads …

Structural And Biochemical Characterization Of The Frequency-Interacting Rna Helicase Frh, Jacqueline M. Johnson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Cells function through a variety of regulatory pathways intricately communicating with one another. These pathways ensure that cellular functions happen at the appropriate times and keep the natural balance within the cell. When pathways do not communicate appropriately, this can lead to disease states and cell death. Two such connected pathways in Neurospora crassa involve the regulation of RNA levels and the circadian rhythms essential for these cells to maintain homeostasis. These pathways are connected by a unique helicase called the Frequency-interacting RNA Helicase (FRH), named for its discovery with the frequency protein involved in the circadian oscillation of the …

Engineering Of Polyketide Biosynthetic Pathways For Bioactive Molecules, Siyuan Wang

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This study is focused on engineering of natural product biosynthetic pathways for efficient production of pharmaceutically important molecules or generation of new bioactive molecules for drug development.

Plant natural products are an important source of therapeutics, such as paclitaxel (anticancer) and artemisinin (anti-malarial). Production of plant natural products relies on conventional plant cultivation and solvent extraction, which is time-consuming and cost-ineffective. This work built a biosynthetic platform in Escherichia coli using seven biosynthetic genes from plants and bacteria, which were used to make valuable compounds such as the strong antioxidant resveratrol and anti-inflammatory agent curcuminoids. Through different combinations of these …

Perceived Alzheimer's Disease Threat As A Predictor Of Behavior Change To Lower Disease Risk: The Gray Matters Study, Christine Clark

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Alzheimer’s disease is a growing public health concern with an estimated five million Americans currently afflicted. That number is projected to triple by 2050 as the baby boomer generation approaches age 65, the most common age where people begin to show symptoms of cognitive decline stemming from changes in the brain related to Alzheimer’s. Since there is currently no cure or preventive pharmacological treatment, AD prevention research is now recognized as an important enterprise. Modifiable lifestyle factors that can reduce AD risk or delay its onset have been identified as reasonable targets for behavioral intervention, including increased physical activity, healthier …

Staff Interactions And Affect In Persons With Dementia: An Observational Study Of A Memory Care Unit, Keirstin V. Meyer

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

It is estimated that the number of people in the United States living with dementia in 2015 will nearly triple by the year 2050. With no cure for dementia, we are faced with providing care in a way that maximizes well-being. The majority of prior research focused on the best ways to reduce behavioral problems and mood disorders, such as depression and anxiety. The objective of this study was to increase knowledge about the social influences on well-being in persons with dementia, particularly from staff in residential memory care units. This study found that the most common interaction type from …

Comparing Conventional And Noninvasive Monitoring Techniques For Assessing Cougar Population Size In The Southern Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, Peter D. Alexander

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Determining the abundance or density of wildlife populations is needed for informed decision-making by wildlife biologists. Cougars (Puma concolor), however, are a highly secretive species occurring at very low densities across the landscape, and thus their populations are difficult for biologists to accurately assess. The conventional, and most trusted, method entails physically trapping and radio-collaring as many cougars as possible in a population, and then performing a simple count to determine a minimum population size. While accurate, this method is prohibitively expensive, logistically challenging, and behaviorally disruptive to the study animal. Many noninvasive surveying techniques, such as camera …

Anaerobic Hydrogen And Methane Production From Dairy Processing Waste: Experiment And Modeling, Jianming Zhong

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Dairy processing waste (DPW) is the waste produced from manufacturing dairy products: cheese, yogurt, ice cream, milk, butter, etc. DPW is high in chemical oxygen demand (COD) due to its lactose, fat and protein content, and therefore needs to be appropriately treated. An investigation was conducted to produce energy (hydrogen and methane) from DPW by anaerobic digestion. This project developed an effective engineering method for stable methane production from DPW without adding pH control chemicals. This study also explored the optimal operational condition for hydrogen production from DPW. We further built a mathematical model to help us monitor and predict …

Greater Sage-Grouse Vital Rate And Habitat Use Response To Landscape Scale Habitat Manipulations And Vegetation Micro-Sites In Northwestern Utah, Charles P. Sandford

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus; sage-grouse) has been a species of conservation concern since the early 20^th century. The decline of populations has largely been attributed to loss and degradation of sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) habitats. To contribute to the knowledge of sage-grouse ecology and quantify the effectiveness of landscape scale habitat manipulations intended to benefit sage-grouse, I monitored habitat use and vital-rates (i.e., nest and brood success) of 45 sage-grouse females in the Box Ender Sage-Grouse Management Area (SGMA) in northwestern Utah. Using telemetry locations of sage-grouse females with known nest and brood fates, I generated …

Investigation Of The Tailoring Steps In Pradimicin Biosynthesis, Kandy L. Napan

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This research focused on the investigation of the late steps in the biosynthetic pathway of the novel antifungal and antiviral pradimicins A-C. Pradimicins were first isolated from the soil bacterium Actinomadura hibisca. These bioactive molecules are assembled by a type II polyketide biosynthetic pathway. Although the biosynthetic gene cluster of pradimicin has been identified, the functions of the biosynthetic genes and how they work collaboratively to form the final structures of pradimicins remain unknown. This research aims to functionally characterize the enzymes involved in the late steps of the biosynthetic route.

The early biosynthetic steps of pradimicins have been …

Atp Usage In The Dark-Operative Protochlorophyllide Oxidoreductase, Mark S. Soffe

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Chlorophylls are essential pigment molecules that function in photosynthesis, and serve to aid in utilizing energy from sunlight to power cellular processes in plants, and other organisms. To make chlorophyll, photosynthetic organisms devote an abundance of resources and energy to ensure their appropriate construction. This process of making chlorophylls is highlighted by the penultimate step in the pathway—the conversion of protochlorophyllide (Pchlide) to chlorophyllide a (Chlide).

This conversion can be mediated in two different ways, depending on the type of organism. The first method incorporates the use of a light-activated system called the light-dependent protochlorophyllide oxidoreductase (LPOR). This system, as …

The Relationship Between Adolescents' Use Of Internet-Enabled Mobile Devices And Engaging In Problematic Digital Behaviors, Ryan Atwood

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between teenagers’ use of mobile Internet devices and their involvement in risky digital behaviors, including problematic Internet use, exposure to pornography, and participation in sexting. A sample of teens between the ages of 13-18 was used for this study.

It was found that teens who used smartphones as their primary source of Internet access were most likely to receive sexting requests, while teens using computers to access the Internet were most likely to intentionally view pornography. Additionally, teens who used multiple mobile devices to connect to the Internet and teens …

Modulation Of The Nutritional Context And Early Experience As New Tools To Increase The Use Of Medusahead (Taeniatherum Caput-Medusae Ssp. Asperum) By Grazing Sheep, Juan J. Montes

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Medusahead is an invasive weed that reduces wildlife habitat and biodiversity as well as commercial and recreational value of land. Grazing represents a sustainable method for its control but stakeholders claim that livestock will not eat medusahead because of its low feed value. This research explored a supplementation program, along with experiences early in life with mother to enhance use of medusahead by sheep. Results showed that an energy supplement did not enhance medusahead use by sheep but that early experience with mother influenced yearlings to use the weed more evenly across days. When availability of the weed was low …

Developing A Method For Quantifying Nitrogen Transformation Rates Using In Situ Benthic Chambers Dosed With Isotopically Labeled Nitrate, Chelsea A. Stewardson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Nitrogen, a nutrient required for biological growth, is a common water quality parameter of concern as too much nitrogen can cause a strain on aquatic environments and even death of plants and animals. One way high levels of nitrogen are introduced into aquatic systems is by anthropogenic sources such as effluent from water reclamation facilities. A method was designed to observe the fate of nitrogen and measure the rates of its transformation into different nitrogen species within a stream receiving the effluent from the Silver Creek Water Reclamation Facility in Park City, Utah.

Sealed chambers were designed and installed along …

Anthropogenic And Natural Stressors And Their Effect On Immunity, Reproduction, And The Stress Response, Lorin A. Neuman-Lee

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Animals must be able to cope with many natural and human-made stressors in order to successfully survive and reproduce. These stressors can come in many forms and are increasing as human activities become more and more prevalent across the globe. In order to cope with these stressors, organisms must allocate limited energy away from processes such as reproduction to mount a stress response. This stress response involves the activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and results in a cascade of hormones and down-stream effects, such as changes in reproduction and immune function. In order to understand how reptiles and amphibians cope …

Establishment And Trends In Persistence Of Selected Perennial Cool-Season Grasses, Craig W. Rigby

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The choice of plant materials is an important factor in restoration or revegetation of disturbed rangelands. To better identify plant materials that could be adapted to increased competition from invasive grasses and fluctuations in temperature and precipitation, there is a need to understand potential seedling establishment, plant persistence, and dry-matter yield (DMY) as a measure of plant vigor in the newly developed varieties across a wide range of environmental conditions. Experiments were conducted on four semiarid range sites to compare these traits in 14 perennial cool-season grass species currently used for revegetation in the Western U.S.A. There were location differences, …

Utah Lotus: North American Legume For Possible Use In Rangeland Revegetation In The Southern Great Basin Of The Western United States, Jason M. Stettler

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This thesis project explored the production and forage quality characteristics of Utah lotus (Lotus utahensis Ottley) and scrub lotus (L. wrightii (A. Gray) Greene) seed collections during a two-year period. The variation of 14 Utah lotus and five scrub lotus seed collections was evaluated by measuring important plant characteristics at three common garden sites in northern Utah. In addition, the genetic structure of the collections was determined by molecular biological techniques. Large variation was observed among collections for all phenotypic traits measured, with Utah lotus and scrub lotus being phenotypically quite different. Two collections of Utah lotus (LU-5 …

Structural Insights Into The Regulation Of Electron Transfer In Nitrogenase, And Modulating The Reactivity Of The Isolated Iron Molybdenum Cofactor, Andrew J. Rasmussen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

One of the most important scientific advances in the last century was the Haber-Bosch process, the industrial process of fixing nitrogen from the atmosphere to ammonia. This allowed for the commercial production and sale of nitrogen for important uses such as fertilizer for farming. The Haber-Bosch process is partially credited with the population boom that has been seen in the last century and has greatly increased the standard of living in the developed world today. While this was a great scientific breakthrough, the cost of producing the required ammonia is high, and roughly 2% of worldwide energy is used annually …

Spatial Ecology And Captive Behavior Of Rehabilitated Black Bears In Utah, Patrick J. Myers

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Animal movements and space use are fundamental components of life and play integral roles in organismal fitness, population dynamics, and the ecology and evolution of species. The heterogeneous distribution of resources and the movement required to access them, results in ecology being a fundamentally spatial concept. Thus, elucidating animal-habitat relationships is a central focus of wildlife ecology and conservation. I utilized GPS technology, resource selection functions, and generalized linear mixed models, to investigate the immediate post-release movements, denning chronology, release-site fidelity, and season-delineated movements, home ranges, and resource use for six, orphaned and rehabilitated black bears (Ursus americanus). …