Digital Commons Network^™

Flying In The Face Of Uncertainty: Human Risk In Space Activities, Molly K. Macauley

Chicago Journal of International Law

Although the idea remains exceedingly controversial, momentum is building in the US space program for an ever-increasing role of humans in space. This momentum is evident in the renewed emphasis on human exploration of the moon and Mars. It is also evident in the private sector's growing interest in space tourism. Even if the move to greater involvement of humans in space is gradual, space exploration and tourism are attracting the government and private funding necessary to underwrite initial steps in this direction. The largely overlooked public policy issue of managing human risk in space is an important aspect of …

Duty In Tort Law: An Economic Approach, Keith N. Hylton

Fordham Law Review

No abstract provided.

Water Quality Issues In The Illinois River Watershed: A Proposal For New Voluntary Incentives, Tory B. Hodges, Jennie S. Popp

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

Concerns about water quality degradation exist in Northwest Arkansas. The purpose of this study was to analyze the potential usefulness of U.S. conservation programs in addressing water quality concerns on farms in the Illinois River watershed as well as greater Washington County, Arkansas. It was hypothesized that neither the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) nor the Conservation Security Program (CSP) in their current forms effectively assists farmers in meeting water-quality management goals. That hypothesis was tested by 1) examining agricultural characteristics of the watershed, 2) actual adoption of EQIP and CSP in Washington County and Arkansas, and, 3) identifying factors …

Volume Visualization Of Time-Varying Data Using Parallel, Multiresolution And Adaptive-Resolution Techniques, Sadaf Shams

Master's Theses and Capstones

This paper presents a parallel rendering approach that allows high-quality visualization of large time-varying volume datasets. Multiresolution and adaptive-resolution techniques are also incorporated to improve the efficiency of the rendering. Three basic steps are needed to implement this kind of an application. First we divide the task through decomposition of data. This decomposition can be either temporal or spatial or a mix of both. After data has been divided, each of the data portions is rendered by a separate processor to create sub-images or frames. Finally these sub-images or frames are assembled together into a final image or animation. After …

Native Gastropods And Introduced Crabs: Shell Morphology And Resistance To Predation In The New England Rocky Intertidal Zone, Sarah Joanne Teck

Master's Theses and Capstones

The impact of non-native species is one of the most critical issues facing management and conservation today. When these invaders are generalist predators, their impacts on native communities can be a major restructuring force for ecosystems. A new voracious predator the Asian crab, Hemigrapsus sanguineus , joins another non-native established species, Carcinus maenas, along the majority of the New England coastline. What remains poorly understood is how the two introduced predators may modify local communities, especially considering their impact on native prey, such as the rough periwinkle snail, Littorina saxatilis. The goal of this research is to investigate the vulnerability …

The Effects Of Photoperiod And Water Temperature On The Reproductive Development Of Black Sea Bass, Centropristis Striata, Katie Strait

Master's Theses and Capstones

Black sea bass are a potential candidate for marine aquaculture due to their high market value, high demand, and limited seasonal supply. One of the most significant impediments to commercial production of black sea bass is the lack of a year-round supply of eggs and larvae. Further, control of reproductive development is poorly understood in this species. Black sea bass are protogynous hermaphrodites that change sex between 2-5 years of age. It is unclear why adult black sea bass undergo sex change in the wild. Therefore, the first part of study sought to determine if density is involved in sex …

Analysis Of Adc2 And Samdc1 Expression And The Effects Of Transgenic Manipulation Of Polyamine Biosynthesis On Flower Development In Arabidopsis, Vasavi Rani Challa

Master's Theses and Capstones

Polyamines are low molecular weight, aliphatic cationic molecules playing a vital role in all cellular and physiological processes such as cell growth, differentiation, abiotic stress, and somatic embryogenesis. The present study is aimed at unraveling their role during floral development in Arabidopsis thaliana by studying the temporal and spatial expression of ADC2 and SAMDC1 genes by promoter-reporter fusion analysis, and by the transgenic expression of mouse ODC and carrot SAMDC under tissue specific promoters AP1 and AP3, respectively. The expression of SAMDC1 was found to be prominent during different stages of development and in different whorls of flowers whereas ADC2 …

The Development And Utilization Of Est (Expressed Sequence Tag) Resources In The Diploid Strawberry Model System, Robin Leigh Brese

Master's Theses and Capstones

Enhancement of genomic resources is needed for the cultivated octoploid strawberry Fragaria x ananassa (2n=8x=56). A diploid (2n=2x=14) relative, Fragaria vesca, has been used as a model system for strawberry genomics because of its small (~200 Mb) basic genome size, ancestry to the octoploid strawberries and availability of inbred lines, among other favorable features.

In this study, a cDNA library was constructed from developing flower buds of Fragaria vesca ssp. vesca cv. 'Yellow Wonder'. A cDNA library of 7680 clones was created using the CLONTECH SMART cDNA Library Construction kit. Sequencing and bioinformatic analyses of 3298 clones resulted in 2717 …

Optimization Of Pcb Dechlorination With Palladized Magnesium In Marine And Freshwater Sediments, Irina Calante

Master's Theses and Capstones

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are one of the most persistent and toxic pollutants in our environment today. Many rivers and lakes were heavily polluted with PCBs during the 1970s when their use and production was at their highest demand. Today, more than 30 years after they have been banned from production they continue to be one of the top priority contaminants. Their characteristic stability has made them very recalcitrant to physical, chemical and biological degradation. Remediation in soils and sediments are particularly more difficult due to the variability in the soil and sediment characteristics that affect how strongly PCBs are sorbed. …

Microvascular Endothelial Cells Of The Bovine Corpus Luteum: A Comparative Study Of The Estrous Cycle And Pregnancy, Jessica A. Cherry

Master's Theses and Capstones

Endothelial cells derived from the corpus luteum (CLENDOs) exhibit a diverse array of characteristics that seemingly complement their wide-ranging properties in luteal function and fate. Reproductive status of the animal (i.e., non-pregnant vs. pregnant) may contribute to the phenotypic/physiologic diversity of microvascular endothelial cells, but information in this regard is limited. Here, structural and functional attributes of CLENDOs derived from the estrous cycle (Days 9-12) were compared with those of pregnancy (Day 60). Initially, lectin binding properties were examined in the cells. Using fluorescent-tagged lectins for Bandeiraea simplicifolia I or concanavalin A, flow cytometric analysis indicated that lectin-binding on CLENDOs …

Transesterification Of Triolein By Solid Catalysts, Robert Coggon

Master's Theses and Capstones

In this thesis, biodiesel was produced by the transesterification of triolein. Initially a method utilizing gas chromatography was developed to monitor the Novozym 435 catalyzed transesterification. After the procedure was established, experiments were conducted to determine the effect and existence of interactions between reaction parameters including catalyst mass, agitation speed, methanol to triolein ratio, and temperature on yield. A split plot design showed that all single parameters were significant except methanol to triolein ratio. Several two way interactions were found including temperature over ratio, temperature over catalyst mass, and extent of agitation over catalyst mass. The extent of agitation over …

Effects Of Essential Oil Supplementation Of A Corn Silage Based Diet Fed To Lactating Holstein Dairy Cows, Carly Ann Crawford

Master's Theses and Capstones

Thirty multiparous early lactation Holstein cows were used in a randomized complete block design to determine whether the addition of VERTAN (a specific blend of essential oils, major components: thymol, eugenol, vanillin and limonene) to corn silage based diet would increase alter protein metabolism in the rumen and increase milk yield and alter milk composition. Dietary treatments were 0 (control) and 0.08% VERTAN in diet DM. The pretreatment diet (fed 0 to 20 DIM) contained (DM basis) 32.1% corn silage, 14% grass silage, 7.7% alfalfa hay, 0.53% grass hay, 19.4% finely-ground corn, 1.8% beet pulp, 1.8% citrus pulp, 3.6% soybean …

Effects Of Stz Induced Hyperglycemia And Hyperlipemia On Ppargamma And Abca1 In A Hamster Model Of Atherogenesis, Craig Lamarca

Master's Theses and Capstones

Diabetes mellitus accelerates atherogenesis, but the exact mechanisms involved are unknown. This study examined the effects of hyperglycemia on the inflammatory transcription factor peroxisome proliferator activated receptor gamma (PPARgamma), known to be involved in atherogenesis, and the ATP binding cassette A1 (ABCA1) protein that is a downstream product of PPARgamma. ABCA1 is a membrane bound transporter that is involved in reverse cholesterol transport via high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C). Hamsters were divided into two groups; hyperlipemic animals fed a high fat/high cholesterol control diet (C) and hyperlipemic/hyperglycemic animals that received the high fat diet and were administered streptozotocin. Half of …

Temporal Expression Of Protein Mediators During Pgf2alpha-Induced Luteolysis In Sheep, Bryon F. Ricketts

Master's Theses and Capstones

To study dynamic in vivo biochemical changes within the corpus luteum (CL) during luteolysis, a physiological model mimicking the onset of natural luteolysis was established, in which sheep received sequential systemic pulses of PGF2alpha (20ug/min/lhr) at mid-luteal phase of the estrous cycle. We previously demonstrated that after one pulse of PGF2alpha, the protein levels of extracellular matrix (ECM) regulators, tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinases (TIMPs) -1 and -2 decreased dramatically within one hour of PGF2alpha infusion, while matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2 activity increased 4 hrs post infusion. In summary, the early and dramatic decrease in TIMP-1 and TIMP-2 proteins, accompanied by an …

Evaluation Of Characterization Techniques For Beneficial Use Of Underutilized Slag Materials, Thomas Sandy Weymouth

Master's Theses and Capstones

Wisely using byproduct materials in beneficial use applications such as highway construction is becoming more important in the United States as virgin materials are depleted and landfill capacity declines. Slags are byproducts of the steel and iron industries found in the Midwestern United States. Historically, many of these materials have historically been used in construction applications, but methods for characterizing their environmental risk are limited. This research considers a series of steps used to identify whether a particular slag poses an environmental or human health risk. The first step involves identifying the appropriate use of the material. The second step …

Calcium-Dependent Protein Kinases In Physcomitrella Patens, Kathryn Chervincky

Master's Theses and Capstones

Calcium-dependent protein kinases (CDPKs) are a group of plant serine-threonine kinases that are stimulated in response to increases in intracellular calcium concentrations. Physcomitrella patens is a moss and a member of the bryophyte family. Physcomitrella has gained popularity as a model research organism due to the simple morphology of the plant as well as many other desirable characteristics. My research utilized Physcomitrella to accomplish four goals. The first goal was to identify and obtain sequence for as many CDPKs as possible in Physcomitrella. The second goal was to confirm the calcium-activated protein kinase activity of the identified CDPKs. The third …

Use Of Epa's Industrial Waste Management Evaluation Model (Iwem) To Support Beneficial Use Determinations, Jason D. Fopiano

Master's Theses and Capstones

As of now, the beneficial-use (recycling) of secondary materials (e.g. coal-fly ash) in highway construction is limited. In 1998 and 1999, the Association of State and Territorial Solid Waste Management Officials (ASTSWMO) conducted a Beneficial-Use Survey to determine the issues that states face when evaluating potential beneficial-use applications for recycled/secondary materials. The report identified the largest obstacle as the lack of good information for use in evaluating potential risks to human health and the environment (i.e. soil and groundwater contamination) from beneficial-use applications. The absence of such data has resulted in reluctance in the beneficial-use of such materials causing them …

Correlating Sea Otter Density And Behavior To Habitat Attributes In Prince William Sound, Alaska: A Model For Prediction, Heather A. Coletti

Master's Theses and Capstones

As a benthic foraging marine mammal, sea otters ( Enhydra lutris) present a unique opportunity for conducting a quantitative assessment of behavior based on habitat use as well as developing a habitat based density model using GIS because of the sea otter's well defined habitat requirements. Several studies have documented sea otter behavior but none have calculated the probability of occurrence of a particular behavior based on habitat attributes. Previous predictive models of sea otter density have been constructed, however these models have excluded offshore habitat. Seven aerial surveys, that included offshore habitats, were conducted between 1995 and 2005 in …

Environmental Effects On Early Life Stages Of American Shad (Alosa Sapidissima) And Rainbow Smelt (Osmerus Mordax ), Kristen Fuda

Master's Theses and Capstones

Recruitment of American shad (Alosa sapidissima) and rainbow smelt (Osmerus mordax) has steadily declined over the last few decades, possibly due to the construction of physical impediments to migration and increases in anthropogenic pollution. In order to elucidate environmental parameters influencing early life stages of anadromous fish, both laboratory and field studies were conducted. The effects of abiotic factors, including dissolved oxygen (DO), pH, salinity, nitrate, and phosphate, on hatch and survival of larval and juvenile American shad and rainbow smelt were examined in laboratory studies. Field studies on shad emigration were conducted in the Exeter River, and studies on …

An Experimental Approach To Understanding The Impact Of Vernal Pool Buffer Size On Wood Frogs (Rana Sylvatica), Nicole Alexis Freidenfelds

Master's Theses and Capstones

Strategies to conserve vernal pool-dependent amphibians emphasize the maintenance of adequate areas (buffers) of terrestrial habitat surrounding the pool. I conducted a large-scale field study that specifically examined the effects of buffer width manipulation on adult and metamorph wood frogs at eleven vernal pools in a managed forest in central Maine. Buffer width treatments were 30 m or 100 m forest buffer surrounded by a 100 m clearcut, or no cut (reference). I encircled pools with drift fences and monitored wood frogs from April--November, 2004 and 2005 using pitfall traps and radio-telemetry. Buffer width had no effect on the number …

Evaluating Goldberg And Zipursky's Civil Recourse Theory, Jane Stapleton

Fordham Law Review

No abstract provided.

Change In Family And Peer Adverse Life Circumstances In Relation To Juvenile Firesetting, Patrick A. Roberts

Master's Theses and Capstones

Juvenile firesetting is a major problem causing millions of dollars worth of damage each year, and yet there is very little know about it. In order to address this lack of knowledge the present study examined the relationship between adverse life events and juvenile firesetting behavior. This relationship was examined using a sample of students from 17 public and 10 private schools in Southern Australia (2105 males, 1629 females). Data were collected from the students during grade 8 (mean age of 13) using the Youth Assessment Checklist, and again during grades 9 and 10.

Adverse life events were found to …

Power And Punishment In Nietzsche, Jacob Skinner

Master's Theses and Capstones

Nietzsche appears to hold contradictory views about punishment. Uncompromising in his commitment to noble ideals, Nietzsche often decries punishment as small-minded resentfulness and implores readers to look away. Though at times he describes it as an exalted flexing of the will, making the case that punishment plays a necessary role in social life. This paper argues that Nietzsche's views are not incompatible and that he holds a coherent theory of punishment which permits these clashing positions.

I argue that Nietzsche's theory of punishment is predicated as follows. Power is the objective measure of value. The single justification for punishing is …

Contents, Discovery Editors

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

No abstract provided.

Bloggers And The Workplace: The Search For A Legal Solution To The Conflict Between Employee Blogging And Employers, Henry Hoang Pham

Loyola of Los Angeles Entertainment Law Review

No abstract provided.

How Much Intellectual Property Protection Do The Newest (And Coolest) Biotechnologies Get Internationally?, Alix Weisfeld

Chicago Journal of International Law

Since the completion of the Human Genome Project in 2000, we are already seeing changes in health care. As we better understand the genetic basis of disease, we are able to target therapies to these root causes of disease. This paper will consider how two nascent areas of genetic medicine, pharmacogenetics and biologics, interact with international intellectual property ("IP") law. Neither of these areas fits comfortably in the traditional intellectual property model we use for pharmaceuticals. Due to their growing importance, however, the implications for international law concerning these advances are great. The first section of the paper will give …

Is There A Political Tilt To "Juristocracy"?, Carol Nackenoff

Political Science Faculty Works

No abstract provided.

Annual Report Of External Funded Grants And Contracts From July 1, 2005 To June 30, 2006, Office Of Research And Sponsored Programs. Morehead State University.

Office of Research and Sponsored Programs Reports and Publications

Annual Report of Externally Funded Grants and Contracts from July 1, 2005 - June 30, 2006.

Land, Labor, And Colonial Economics In Thomas Morton's "New English Canaan", Michelle Burnham

English

As long as critics have written about it, Thomas Morton's New English Canaan has been positioned as a counterhistory to William Brad ford's canonical Of Plymouth Plantation. One vein of critical reception has dismissed Morton's text as a flawed literary anomaly, effectively re peating Bradford's own befuddled and anxious response to Morton's aes thetics.1 A smaller but impassioned vein of literary criticism has, in turn, elevated Morton over Bradford on the basis of his egalitarianism, proto environmentalism, or multiculturalism avant la lettre?essentially cele brating Morton as a more laudable expression of individualism and free dom than that represented by the …

The Resolution Trust Corporation And Congress, 1989 – 1993. Part Ii: 1991 – 1993, Lee Davison

Documents

No abstract provided.