Digital Commons Network^™

Mutagenic And Tumor Suppressor Functions Of Dna Polymerase Iota In Mammalian Cells., Lindsey Jay Stallons 1983-

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Y family of DNA polymerases in higher eukaryotes contains at least four members which are implicated in potentially error-prone replication through unrepaired damage in the genome. These proteins are encoded by the REV1, POLH, POLI, and POLK genes. An inherited deficiency in one of these DNA polymerases (POL?) is the molecular defect in the cancer prone xeroderma pigmentosum (XP) variant syndrome, making POL? the most studied member of this family. However, there exist critical gaps in our knowledge on the function of the other known Y family members (POL I, POL K, and REV1). The goal of this proposal …

Evaluation Of Bone Quality Using Novel Image Analyses And Mechanical Testing Methods., Qian Xu

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Osteoporosis has become a growing health threat with rising social and economic consequences. The understanding of the relationship between bone mechanical strength and bone structural quality is important for the diagnosis of osteoporosis and the evaluation of osteoporosis treatments. A novel cancellous bone segmentation method was developed to separate cancellous bone from cortical bone automatically. The segmentation was based on the three-dimensional images. The basic idea of the method is that a contiguous three-dimensional non-bone region that is located inside the whole bone region of interest can be defined as the marrow region. Any bone material that is surrounded by …

Wavelet Analysis For Aboveground Biomass Estimate In Temperate Deciduous Forests, Xiaofang Wei

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The ever-increasing concentration of anthropogenic greenhouse gases (C02, CH4, and CFCs) has been identified as a likely (greater than 90% confidence) cause of the observed increase of global mean temperatures since the mid-20th century (IPCC, 2007). The effect of human-induced climate change could be unprecedented and far-reaching. Carbon sequestration into trees and forests is an effective and inexpensive way for mitigating the C02 level in the atmosphere. Hence, accurate measurement of biomass will be of great importance to global carbon cycle and climate change. This study performed a wavelet-based forest aboveground biomass estimation approach in a temperate deciduous forest, the …

The Culture Of Slow Food, Alice Frances Aldous-Worley

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

[to be added]

Colonialism, Natural Right, And The Problem Of Jurisdiction: Modern Natural Law Theory And Hegel's Critique, Chad Kautzer

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

[to be added]

The Regulatory Potentials Of Dynamic Electrical Muscle Simulation On Preventing Bone Loss And Muscle Atrophy, Hoyan Lam

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

[to be added]

Salivary Cortisol And Depression Risk: Relations With Child Temperament, Maternal History Of Depression, Parenting, And Life Stress, Lea Rose Dougherty

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

[to be added]

Dispersal, Kinship, And Genetic Structure Of An Endangered Madagascar Primate, Propithecus Edwardsi, Toni Lyn Morelli

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

[to be added]

Substrate Recognition By Bacterial Enoyl Reductases From Escherichia Coli And Mycobacterium Tuberculosis, Xujie Zhang

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

[to be added]

Sequential Frameworks For Statistics-Based Value Function Representation In Approximate Dynamic Programming, Huiyuan Fan

Industrial, Manufacturing, and Systems Engineering Dissertations - Archive

Dynamic programming (DP) was derived by Bellman in 1957 as a mathematical programming method to solve multistage decision problems. The DP concept has great potential, but it only can solve small problems exactly under very limiting restrictions such as linear dynamics, quadratic cost, Gaussian random variable, etc. With advances in computational power, a new family of dynamic programming known as approximate dynamic programming (ADP) has emerged. A real-world DP problem is often high-dimensional and stochastic with continuous state variables. To handle this type of problem, ADP methods discretize/sample the continuous state space and approximate the future value (or cost-to-go) function …

Patterns Of Petiole Abundance And Diversity In Bark Beetles (Scolytinae) Of Cecropia Trees In Monteverde, Costa Rica, August 2008, Sonali Gandhi

Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation

Cecropia trees regularly shed their woody, large petioles year round. This provides bark beetles from the family Scolytinae with a dependable and stable microhabitat. Bark beetles bore into the petioles, lay their eggs, and feed on the pith (Wood 1983). This study was conducted in Monteverde, Costa Rica. It examined the abundance and diversity of bark beetles between Cecropia polyphlebia in the Monteverde Cloud Forest (1550 meters) and an intermediary phenotype at Bajo del Tigre (1400 meters). It also investigated the percent of petioles colonized, species richness, evenness, and the influence of petiole moisture and length on the abundance and …

Macrofungal Community Richness At Different Distances From A Cloud Forest Stream, August 2008, Elizabeth Place

Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation

The purpose of this study was to examine macrofungal community richness at different distances from the Quebrada Máquina in the cloud forest of Monteverde, Costa Rica. Twenty transects no closer than ten meters apart were tested. Each transect contained a 1X 1 m2 plot positioned at zero, five, ten, fifteen, and twenty meters from the stream edge. Fungi were counted and photographed and weather and substrate type were recorded. I predicted to find more macrofungal richness closer to the river because of water and sunlight availability. However, using Friedman’s method for randomized blocks, I found a Chi squared value of …

Epiphyte Communities In Cupressus Lusitanica Windbreaks And Myrsine Coriacea, Monteverde, Costa Rica, August 2008, Casey Halstead

Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation

Monteverde, Costa Rica is home to a quintessential lower montane cloud forest that supports an amazing diversity of epiphytes. Windbreaks comprised of the exotic Cupressus lusitanica are common surrounding deforested areas. C. lusitanica appears to be poor epiphyte habitat when compared to a native species Myrsine coriacea. This survey was conducted using species richness and occurrence data collected using transparent acetates. This survey examines the idea that C. lusitanica supports reduced epiphyte diversity. The survey determined that the apparent difference in epiphyte richness and community composition is significant. ANCOVA analysis revealed several negative correlations for M. coriacea but not C. …

Activity Patterns Of Damselflies And Dragonflies (Odonata) In Monteverde, Costa Rica, August 2008, Jenny Gaynor

Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation

Daily periods of activity tend to vary across different species of dragonflies and damselflies of the order Odonata. The purpose of this study was to investigate the activity patterns of five different behaviors for five different species of odonates. Observations were made at the Estación Biológica de Monteverde over a weeklong period in late July. Results showed that there were variations in behavior compared with time both within and across the five species. However, each species did not display every behavior, and behaviors were not evenly distributed across different species. This may be a result of variance in population sizes …

Changes In Wormlion (Vermilionidae) Pit Construction In Response To Energy Inputs And Disturbances, August 2008, Luke Hillman

Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation

Wormlions are insects that, like antlions, are sit and wait predators in their larval stages, for whom optimizing energy expenditures is crucial because of potentially long periods of starvation. Initial pit depth and pit growth rates of antlions have been shown to decrease in response to limited food resources. Due to the similar foraging technique of worm and antlions, wormlions were hypothesized to show similar responses. Thirty-two wormlions were randomly divided into four treatments: fed-disturbed (FD), fed-undisturbed (FU), unfed-disturbed (UD) or unfed-undisturbed (UU). An aphid was dropped into wormlion pits of the FU and FD treatments, and pits in “disturbed” …

The Dynamics Of Prey Capture Of The Colonial, Orb-Weaving Spider Metabus Gravidus (Araneidae) In Monteverde, Costa Rica, August 2008, Signe Spencer

Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation

Prey capture dynamics of the colonial, orb-weaving spider Metabus gravidus (Araneidae) are based on individuals. It is possible that prey caught in certain locations of the web will stimulate more reactions, and that different types of prey will stimulate variable reactions. Since the members of the colony live close to one another, it is also possible that spiders exhibit competition over prey. Different insects were dropped into various locations of individual orbs in order to observe reactions. The spiders did not seem to prefer whether prey was dropped closer or further from the center of the web (Chisquared goodness of …

Aggregational Behavior And Nest Ownership Of Crawfodapis Luctuosa (Diphaglossinae: Apidae), August 2008, Nathan J. Spaht

Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation

Crawfordapis luctuosa is a large, black, diurnal bee found in aggregations on exposed clay sites above 1500m in elevation from the highlands of Mexico to Panama. Many past studies have attempted to classify the exact sociality and nest ownership of this species; this study follows their examples in an attempt to better define these behaviors. Data was gathered on nest usage, visitation behavior as well as aggressive and non-aggressive interactions. This study reaches no definite conclusions as to the patterns of nest ownership in the five days of observation. Individuals consistently visited more than one nest and up to seven …

Distribution And Abundance Of Prosapia (Homoptera: Cercopidae) In Monteverde-Area Farms, August 2008, Ryan Brower

Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation

Prosapia spp. commonly known as spittle bugs, froghoppers, or “la Prosapia”, are pasture pests for dairy farmers in the Monteverde region of Costa Rica. The adults eat pasture grass, disturb plant growth, as well as reduce nutritional and palatability values of the pasture grass for dairy cattle, and are responsible “froghopper burn”. This study examined the relationship between altitude and Prosapia abundance in cattle pastures of farms surrounding Monteverde in Costa Rica. It was hypothesized that abundance will differ with altitude. A total of 11 farms in the Monteverde region of Costa Rica ranging from 825 m to 1510 m …

Extended Visions, July/August 2008

Extended Visions Newsletter (ARDC)

Contents:
ARDC FEATURE UNIT - Agrometeorology Laboratory
About the People
Automated Weather Data Network
Carbon Sequestration Program
History of the Agrometeorology Laboratory
Precipitation Chemistry Studies
Ultraviolet-B (UVB) Radiation Monitoring
Area Youth Participate in Extensive Babysitting Training
Asia Sabatka Serves as Extension Intern
Calendar of Events
Dairy Education Day and Open House - August 4
Duncan Recognized for Service to ARDC
Field Days Offered At Various Locations Throughout the State
Governor Heineman and European Ag Leader Visit ARDC
Midsummer and Late Season Crop Clinics Offered
Saunders County Fair 4-H Program

Graduate Connections- August 2008

Graduate Connections: A Newsletter for UNL Graduate Students

In This Issue:

Click on links to navigate the newsletter

Navigating Graduate School......1

Success in Graduate School

18th Annual Campuswide TA Workshops

New Student Welcome

Barbara Lovitts Seminars

Stay Connected

38 Strategies for Completing Your Dissertation

Good Practices in Graduate

Education....................................4

Academic Integrity: A Letter to My Students

Essential Connections..................7

A Timeless and Solitary Page

Teaching Tip .................................8

Ten Things to Do the First Day of Class

Professional Development...........9

Think “Next Stage”

Interactions.................................10

Graduate Student Association News

Funding Opportunities...............11

Resources for Researchers........12

NURAMP Workshops

Responsible Conduct of Research

Human and Animal Subjects

Announcements..........................13

Software Workshops

Online Graduate Bulletin

Call for …

Indiana Wildlife Disease News, Volume 3, Issue 3 - August 2008

Indiana Wildlife Disease News

Inside this issue:
Cautionary tale about rabies
USGS Disease Manual
Newcastle disease in MN
69th Midwest Fish and Wildlife Conference
CWD in captive deer in Michigan
Midwest Wildlife Disease Update

Special points of interest:
• Newcastle disease
• Botulism
• Michigan Wildlife Disease Manual
• 69th Midwest Fish and Wildlife Conference
• Newcastle disease in Minnesota cormorants
• First case of CWD in a captive Michigan deer herd

Patterns Of Body And Tail Length And Body Mass In Sciuridae, Virginia Hayssen

Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

For squirrels, physical size varies with ancestry, locomotion, and sex. Body length has little variation associated with subfamilies or tribes but varies significantly among genera within tribes. Thus, patterns in body size among genera represent more recent evolutionary pressures. Flying squirrels weigh less than similarly sized tree or ground squirrels but ecological profile and ancestry are confounded for flying squirrels. Tail length has clear relationships with ecological profile in squirrels. Tail length is shorter in ground squirrels, longer in tree squirrels, and longest in flying squirrels. In addition, in arboreal squirrels, females have longer tails, relative to body length, than …

Life Cycle Assessment Of Bio-Material Stabilized Expansive Soils, Ranjith Samuel Rosenberk

Civil Engineering Dissertations - Archive

Pavement cracking is one of the major maintenance works that requires millions of dollars in repair costs annually. Pavement cracks are formed due to moisture and temperature fluctuations in the soil. Stabilization of pavement shoulder subsoil with the addition of compost material was studied for preventing pavement cracks. Eight different compost materials with three major feed stock sources such as biosolids, wood waste, and animal manure were investigated in this research. Compost treatment studies were performed at four different test sites located in various regions of the state of Texas. Laboratory experiments were conducted completed compost manufactured topsoil's (CMTs) to …

Pages News, Volume 16, No. 3, August 2008, Dominik Fleltmann, Christoph Spotl, Louise Newman

PAGES

Contents: Editorial: Advances in Speleothem Research -- Inside PAGES -- PAGES calendar -- PAGES OSM and YSM announcement -- National PAGES: Serbia -- Science Highlight: Open Section -- Absolute chronologies from the ocean -- On the abyssal circulation in the Atlantic basin at the Last Glacial -- Special Section: Advances in Speleothem Research -- Science Highlights: - Climate variability recorded in tropical and sub-tropical speleothems -- Paleotemperature reconstruction using noble gas concentrations -- Paleotemperatures from fluid inclusion liquid-vapor homogenization -- Cave monitoring and calibration of a δ18O-climate transfer function -- Understanding climate proxies in southwest-Australian speleothems -- Temperature and precipitation …

The Role Of Plant-Bird Interactions In The Invasion Of Juniperus Bermudiana In Hawaii: Integrating Experiments, Behavior, And Models, Eliza Woo

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

[to be added]

Biopolitics And Cinema: Practices, Representations, And The Moulding Of The Socialist Subject In China, 1949-1966, Xiaoning Lu

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

[to be added]

Toward Understanding The Biological Role Of The Conserved H-Nox Domain In Bacteria, Matthew D. Christiansen

Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions)

[to be added]

Estimating Species Trees Using Multiple-Allele Dna Sequence Data, Liang Liu, Dennis K. Pearl, Robb T. Brumfield, Scott V. Edwards

Faculty Publications

Several techniques, such as concatenation and consensus methods, are available for combining data from multiple loci to produce a single statement of phylogenetic relationships. However, when multiple alleles are sampled from individual species, it becomes more challenging to estimate relationships at the level of species, either because concatenation becomes inappropriate due to conflicts among individual gene trees, or because the species from which multiple alleles have been sampled may not form monophyletic groups in the estimated tree. We propose a Bayesian hierarchical model to reconstruct species trees from multiple-allele, multilocus sequence data, building on a recently proposed method for estimating …

Designing Compelling Interfaces: An Exploration Of The Artist Book And How Its Unique Interactive Experience Can Influence The Graphical User Interface., Alison Boncha

Theses

Traditional art forms have contributed greatly to the interactive design industry and many designers still gain inspiration from painting, carving, weaving, photography, and other various arts. The artist book, which is a fairly new art form, is a mixture of old and new concepts but different from other art forms in that part of the viewer’s experience is made up by physically interacting with the book. To draw a modern day comparison, this interaction of the viewer to the book, is similar to the interaction of a user to a flash site. The goal of this interactive project is to …

Global Counterinsurgency: Strategic Clarity For The Long War, Daniel S. Roper

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

No abstract provided.