Digital Commons Network^™

Integrated Management Techniques Used For Cogongrass Control, Zackary B. Chesser

Theses and Dissertations

Invasive weeds are becoming a greater problem throughout the southeastern United States, which calls for drastic means of location, classification, and management in order to halt these undesirable invasions. Three experiments were initiated in 2005 and 2006, two of which were to examine the effects of additives, NIS, Dyne-a-Pak, AMS, and Valor used in cogongrass [Imperata cylindrica L. Beauve] control and the other to evaluate the effectiveness of a ropewick applicator applied to established cogongrass in juvenile longleaf pine stands. Through these experiments, it was found that Dyne-a-Pak can provide greater enhancement in cogongrass control compared to non ionic surfactant, …

Movement And Habitat Use Of Selected Nongame Fishes In A Minnesota Lake, Michael David Habrat

Theses and Dissertations

Aquatic vegetation provides important habitats for fish, but these habitats are increasingly being altered anthropogenically. My research evaluated the movement and habitat use of three small rare fish species, the blackchin shiner Notropis heterodon (BCS), blacknose shiner Notropis heterolepis (BNS), and banded killifish Fundulus diaphanous, in a Minnesota lake. BCS and BNS traveled farther in spring than summer, but selection of habitat based upon macrophyte biovolume did not explain these differences. All three fish species traveled long distances (> 1,800 m) and were capable of reaching all available habitats in Square Lake. Macrophyte species richness and prey (zooplankton) abundance were …

Postsecondary Transitions Of Mississippi Band Of Choctaw Indians Tribal Scholarship Program Students, Gregory A. Carlyle

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore the postsecondary education transition experiences of graduates of Choctaw Central High School (CCHS) who received support from the Tribal Scholarship Program (TSP) to better understand the barriers to successful postsecondary completion and the means to overcoming those barriers. Successful transitions are key for students to persist to academic completion. Studies show that American Indian students have low rates of college completion and experience a variety of factors attributed to withdrawal from college. This study provided insight into college success experienced by American Indian students and an understanding of the opportunities for a …

Purification And Structural Analysis Of Newcastle Disease Virus V Protein And Flowering Locus T (Ft) Protein, Swapna Jayapalan

Theses and Dissertations

Newcastle disease virus (NDV) is one of the paramyxovirus that has been studied at length since this virus infects the birds of all species. NDV is highly virulent in chickens and results in a high mortality rate because the V protein of NDV is found to inhibit the avian immune response system. No drugs are available for treating NDV therefore, determining the structure of V protein would help in developing a drug that can inactivate the V protein, thereby increasing the host immune response against viral infection. The research here is focused on purification and initial structural analysis of the …

Quantitative Genetic Analysis For Flowering Time In Primitive Upland Cotton, Gossypium Hirsutum L., And Chromosome Assignment Of Bac-Derived Ssr Markers, Yufang Guo

Theses and Dissertations

Cotton is a very important economical crop in the U.S. and throughout the world. The developments in molecular biology offer new and innovative approaches toward evaluating and understanding genetic mechanisms of important agronomical traits. Bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) libraries have rapidly become the preferred choice for physical mapping. BAC-derived microsatellite or simple sequence repeats (SSRs) markers facilitate the integration of physical and genetic recombination maps. The first objective in this research was to identify chromosome locations of a set of BAC-derived SSR markers in tetraploid cotton. A total of 192 SSR primer pairs were derived from BAC clones of an …

The Impact Of A Large Automotive Manufacturing Plant On Demographic Expansion And Educational Changes In A Mississippi School District, Ronnie Lynn Mcgehee

Theses and Dissertations

This study was designed to examine one school district’s response to the largest automobile plant in North America being built in its county. An economic development package worth in excess of one billion dollars would surely change the landscape of the community and the district for years to come, but how should the district respond? Nissan North America announced in November of 2000 that it would build the largest automobile plant in North America in Canton, Mississippi. This plant would employee over four thousand employees and thirteen suppliers to that plant that would employee another five to six thousand employees …

Traction-Induced Injury Of Rat Achilles' Tendon: New In Vivo Biomechanical Model For The Assessment Of Tendon Disease And Injury, Edward Brown Silverman

Theses and Dissertations

The goal of this project is to advance the understanding of tendon disease and injury through the design and validation of a new model of tendon injury. Controlled, mechanically-induced traction injury was created in rat Achilles’ tendons with a tensioning apparatus through a minimally invasive surgical approach. Tendons were tensioned to subailure loads. Assessments of damage to tendons included gross morphology, evaluation of biomechanical of load strain curves, histopathology under light microscopy (H&E), collagen fibril structure and disruption under scanning electron microscopy, and immunohistochemical study of MMP-13 expression under confocal laser microscopy. Tendon injuries were found to be more severe …

Subcanopy Response To Variable-Density Thinning In Second Growth Forests Of The Pacific Northwest, Emily Julia Comfort

Theses and Dissertations

Variable-density thinning (VDT) is a management option designed to increase structural heterogeneity in second-growth conifer stands. This study examined subcanopy tree growth response to two variations of VDT. At the Forest Ecosystem Study in western Washington, thinning intensity was found to have a significant effect on height growth of Douglasir (Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco) seedlings which established following the thinning. At the Olympic Habitat Development Study in western Washington, basal area growth response was examined for residual midcanopy western hemlock (Tsuga heterophylla (Raf.) Sarg.) and western redcedar (Thuja plicata ex. D. Don). Both species retained the ability to respond to …

Predicting Student Perceptions Of School Connectedness: The Contributions Of Parent Attachment And Peer Attachment, Jennifer Anne Dixon

Open Access Dissertations

This study explored the relationship between attachment quality and school connectedness in a high school sample of adolescents. Although there is a literature related to adolescent attachment quality and its effects on adjustment and development, relatively little attention has been paid to the relationship between parent and peer attachment and school connectedness. Further, these attachments and connections have yet to be examined among general and special education populations. Attachment quality has been correlated with identity development, self-esteem, competence, and psychopathology and has been investigated as a mediator in the relation between risk and resilience. School connectedness centers around the theory …

Sexual Selection And Larval Performance Of Two Species Of Red-Eyed Treefrogs, Agalychnis Callidryas And A. Moreletii Of The Chiquibul Forest Reserve, Belize., Venetia S. Briggs

Open Access Dissertations

In species where males do not provide immediate benefits to females in the form of resources or parental care to offspring, adaptive mate choice may be maintained by selection because preferred males sire offspring that are genetically superior. I test the hypothesis that female mating preferences result in enhanced performance of their larvae, owing to genetic variation among sires in two species of red-eyed treefrogs. This variation in males may be manifested as body size or in advertisement call parameters. I examined natural pairing patterns and found that both species display a size-based mating pattern with substantial seasonal effects. In …

Regulation Of The Lactoperoxidase System In The Airway, Miryam A. Fragoso

Open Access Dissertations

The lactoperoxidase (LPO) antimicrobial system has been shown to play an important role in maintaining sterile conditions in several tissues including the mammary gland, the salivary gland, and the airway. The LPO system in the airway consists of the enzyme LPO and its substrates hydrogen peroxide and an anion. LPO catalyzes the oxidation of a halide or pseudohalide ion for example SCN-or I- by hydrogen peroxide producing a product, OSCN- or OI- which have antibacterial, antifungal, and antiviral properties. In order to have a functional antimicrobial system all the components need to be present at appropriate concentrations. The LPO system …

Volume 43 - Issue 11 - Friday, December 14, 2007, Rose Thorn Staff

The Rose Thorn Archive

The Rose Thorn, Rose-Hulman's independent student newspaper.

Fall Commencement [Program], December 15, 2007, University Of Northern Iowa

UNI Commencement Programs

The program of the commencement ceremonies, including a list of institutional leadership, a list of the departments by college, awards given at the ceremonies, and a list of undergraduate and graduate degree candidates.

Reporter - December 14th 2007, Rit Reporter Staff

University Publications

The Budget; Community watch program; Forecast; SG weekly update; Tiger tracks train show; Mike DeStefano; Reviews; At your leisure; More than winter blues; A Compromising position; That guy; Avoiding financial armageddon; Sports desk; Sports beat; RIT rings; Views

2007 Fall Engr333/Biol354 Project Final Report, 2007 Fall Engr333, 2007 Fall Biol354

ENGR 333

The students of Calvin College’s Engineering 333 and Biology 354 classes were given the task of determining “What would it take to make Calvin College Carbon Neutral?” At first glance, it would not appear that classes on Advanced Thermal System Design and Investigations in Plant Ecology would have much in common. However, the biology and engineering students comprising these classes banded together to tackle the problem. Coming to a satisfactory conclusion would require:

• Creating an inventory of Green House Gas (GHG) emissions and sequestration potential
• Coming up with detailed solutions to achieve Carbon Neutrality
• Working out a practical schedule to …

2007 Fall Commencement Program: Winona State University, Winona State University

WSU Commencement Programs

This is the Winona State University Fall 2007 commencement program. Commencement was on Friday, December 14, 2007.

Winter Commencement: December 14, 2007, University Of North Dakota

UND Commencement Programs

UND Winter Commencement program from December 14, 2007.

Study Of The Reproducibility Of Proteomics Methods And Variability Of Fruit Fly Proteomes., Thomas Franklin Culwell

Theses and Dissertations

The reliability of biomarker discovery by means of proteomics has been called into question. It was speculated that "background noise" variation resulting from differences in preparation and handling of samples and proteome dynamics may mask subtle, yet important, differences due to the biological condition. Little is understood about complex proteomes and their variability. A critical aspect of proteomic biomarker research that is largely unexplored is the comparative reproducibility of certain methods such as two-dimensional gel electrophoresis and liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry. In particular, with liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry, it is not known whether variability in peptide quantitation is dependent on any of …

Bacterial Auto-Aggregation And Co-Aggregation In Activated Sludge, Fei Chen

All Theses

Microbial auto-aggregation and co-aggregation, leading to biofilm or floc formation, widely occur in natural systems. This study was conducted to investigate the extent of bacterial auto-aggregation and co-aggregation in activated sludge and their contributions in activated sludge floc formation. In this study, an activated sludge sample was separated into a supernatant part (planktonic community) and a sediment part (floc community) by centrifugation at 650_g for 2 minutes. 197 strains were isolated from both communities. These isolates belong to 18 phylotypes based on molecular identifications. Similar phylogenetic distributions of these isolates were observed in planktonic and floc communities, suggesting a similar …

Metalloporphyrin Catalyzed Degradation Of Pce: Effects Of Reductants, Buffers And Cosolvent Concentration, Sowmya Suryanarayanan

All Theses

Reductive dechlorination of chlorinated organic contaminants using metalloporphyrins as catalysts may be an effective approach to treat widespread contamination. However, most previous studies have examined water-soluble rather than insoluble metalloporphyrins despite the fact that the latter category makes up the largest fraction found in nature. Recent studies have shown that addition of different cosolvents to water can activate otherwise non-reactive metalloporphyrin catalysts and facilitate the reduction of tetrachloroethylene (PCE), presumably by the mere process of making the otherwise insoluble metalloporphyrins dissolve in solution. Therefore, solubility has been advanced as a key factor in the ability of metalloporphyrins to catalyze organic …

Emotional Intelligence, Joan Giesecke

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries: Faculty Publications

Emotional intelligence, as backed by the research on this important aspect of ourselves, helps leaders move beyond basic “people skills” to understanding how one’s own reactions and feelings impact how one is perceived by others. Leaders and managers need to understand their own emotions and recognize and understand the feelings of those around them. Leaders are more successful when they pay attention to their social interactions with others in the workplace and the impact they as leaders have on those around them. It is also important for leaders to understand the impact that others’ emotions have on them. When leaders …

Wmu Board Of Trustees Formal Session December 14, 2007, Wmu Board Of Trustees

WMU Board of Trustees Meetings

• Living Wage Policy
• Gift Report
• Personnel Report
• M.U.S.I.C. (Michigan Universities Self-Insurance Corporation)

Fall Commencement Ceremonies, University Of North Florida

Commencement Printed Materials

Program for the Fall Commencement ceremonies.

Thermodynamic Evidence That Ganglioside-Mediated Insertion Of Botulinum A Into The Cholinergic Nerve Ending May Precede Endocytosis And Acidification: A Langmuir Film Study, Bradley Adam Strongin

Theses and Dissertations

Botulinum Neurotoxin (BoNT) is one of the most potent toxins known to human kind. The Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) was employed to investigate the conditions under which BoNT type A heavy chain would bind and/or insert into mica supported dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC) lipid bilayers. As an alternate technique, DPPC/GT1b or total ganglioside extract (80:20) monolayers of a Langmuir Blodgett (LB) Trough were adapted to be artificial membrane models for toxin insertion studies. We conclude that LB monolayer studies are a promising candidate for BoNT/A membrane insertion investigation. Botulinum neurotoxin serotype A insertions into the LB monolayers in the presence of BoNT/A …

N-Glycan Modification In Aspergillus Species, Elke Kainz, Andreas Gallmetzer, Christian Hatzl, Juergen H. Nett, Huijuan Li, Thorsten Schinko, Robert Pachlinger, Harald Berger, Yazmid Reyes-Dominguez, Andreas Bernreiter, Tillmann Gerngross, Stefan Wildt, Joseph Strauss

Dartmouth Scholarship

The production by filamentous fungi of therapeutic glycoproteins intended for use in mammals is held back by the inherent difference in protein N-glycosylation and by the inability of the fungal cell to modify proteins with mammalian glycosylation structures. Here, we report protein N-glycan engineering in two Aspergillus species. We functionally expressed in the fungal hosts heterologous chimeric fusion proteins containing different localization peptides and catalytic domains. . This strategy allowed the isolation of a strain with a functional -1,2-mannosidase producing increased amounts of N-glycans of the Man 5 GlcNAc 2 type. This strain was further engineered by the introduction of …

E. B. White’S Environmental Web, Lynn Overholt Wake

Department of English: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

E. B. White called Walden his favorite book and found in it “an invitation to life’s dance.” To read White ecocritically is to accept a similar invitation to broaden our environmental imagination. Although one or two of his essays are often anthologized as nature writing, critics have not read White environmentally. While emphasizing White’s three books for children, this dissertation reads across genre lines to examine his lifelong work. Drawing on Laurence Buell’s prismatic term, the study explores how White’s engagement with the natural world contributes to the renewal of our collective environmental imagination. Examining White’s affinity for animals, evident …

Neochetina Species And Arthropod Communities In Water-Hyacinth Rafts In South Carolina, Benjamin Powell

All Theses

Arthropod communities inhabiting feral water-hyacinth rafts were surveyed monthly in South Carolina's Coastal Plain from March 2005 through February 2006. Special attention was given to the chevroned waterhyacinth weevil [Neochetina bruchi (Hustache)], the mottled waterhyacinth weevil [N. eichhorniae (Warner)] (both Coleoptera: Curculionidae), and the waterhyacinth moth [Niphograpta albiguttalis (Warren)] (Lepidoptera: Crambidae), which were imported into North America to control water-hyacinth. Communities of arthropods are compared among sites, flow regimes (lentic, lotic, and tidal), and months of the year. The arthropod communities in waterhyacinth rafts in South Carolina are more diverse than previously reported. Rafts in each of …

Fish Gelatin-Nanoclay Composite Film. Mechanical And Physical Properties, Effect Of Enzyme Cross-Linking, And As A Functional Film Layer, Hojae Bae

All Dissertations

The effect of clay content, homogenization RPM, and pH on the mechanical and barrier properties of fish gelatin/nanoclay composite films was investigated. The addition of clay increased the tensile strength (TS) from 30.31±2.37 MPa to 40.71±3.30 MPa. The nanoclay composite film had improved oxygen and water barrier properties when compared to neat fish gelatin film. Oxygen permeability decreased from 0.0004028±0.0000007 gm/m2dayatm to 0.0001144±0.0000162 gm/m2dayatm and the water vapor permeability decreased from 0.0312±0.0016 ngm/m2sPa to 0.0081±0.0001 ngm/m2sPa. The Small angle x-ray scattering (SAXS) and Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) observations confirmed that the ultrasonification treatment (30 min at 40% output) resulted in …

The 2006 Nescent Phyloinformatics Hackathon: A Field Report, Hilmar Lapp, Sendu Bala, James P. Balhoff, Amy Bouck, Naohisa Goto, Mark Holder, Richard Holland, Alisha Holloway, Toshiaki Katayama, Paul O. Lewis, Aaron J. Mackey, Brian I. Osborne, William H. Piel, Sergei L. Kosakovsky Pond, Art F.Y. Poon, Wei-Gang Qiu, Jason E. Stajich, Arlin Stoltzfus, Tobias Thierer, Albert J. Vilella

Publications and Research

In December, 2006, a group of 26 software developers from some of the most widely used life science programming toolkits and phylogenetic software projects converged on Durham, North Carolina, for a Phyloinformatics Hackathon, an intense five-day collaborative software coding event sponsored by the National Evolutionary Synthesis Center (NESCent). The goal was to help researchers to integrate multiple phylogenetic software tools into automated workflows. Participants addressed deficiencies in interoperability between programs by implementing “glue code” and improving support for phylogenetic data exchange standards (particularly NEXUS) across the toolkits. The work was guided by use-cases compiled in advance by both developers and …

12/13/2007 - Eiu Fall Commencement Ceremonies Set For Saturday, Dec. 15, University Marketing And Communications

2007

No abstract provided.