Digital Commons Network^™

Distribution And First Reports Of Branchiobdellida (Annelida: Clitellata) On Crayfish In The Prairie Provinces Of Canada, Bronwyn W. Williams, Stuart R. Gelder, Heather Proctor

Western North American Naturalist

Orconectes virilis (northern crayfish) were collected from 67 sites in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and far-western Ontario, Canada, and yielded 2 species of branchiobdellidans, Cambarincola vitreus and Cambarincola chirocephalus. This is the first report of branchiobdellidans in the Prairie Provinces. Cambarincola vitreus was distributed across the study area, but C. chirocephalus appeared to be restricted to southeastern Saskatchewan, southern Manitoba, and the site in western Ontario. Neither branchiobdellidan species was observed on crayfish in the Beaver River or the South Saskatchewan River and associated tributaries upstream (west) of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, despite multiple sampling at these locations.

Front Matter, Vol. 69 No. 1

Western North American Naturalist

No abstract provided.

Sociological And Psychological Predispositions To Serial Murder, Katie Marie Krueger

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

This paper looks specifically at the true definition of a serial killer, attempting to clarify the misleading depiction that has come from the media influence. Twenty-one people, including infamous murderers such as Ted Bundy and Jeffrey Dahmer, as well as more obscure killers, such as Carl Panzram, were studied in depth. Data was gathered from a variety of published sources on each convicted serial killer focusing on his/her life prior to the beginning of the killing spree. Unlike previous research on the topic, this investigation looked at a larger sample of serial killers, as well as a more complete set …

Engineering An Anaerobic Derivative Of The Obligately Aerobic Thermophile Thermus Thermophilus Hb27 For The Purposes Of Studying Thermophilic Aerobic Respiratory Chain Proteins, Prajit Limsirichai

Biology Honors Theses

The thermophilic bacterium Thermus thermophilus (Tth) is an obligate aerobe with many important biotechnological applications and products. Thermostable proteins isolated from Thermus species have proven important in understanding adaptation to thermophilic environments. Thermophilic adaptations of respiratory electron transport chains (ETC) are not well characterized. Conventional homology-based, genetic, and biochemical techniques are limited in their ability to identify thermophilic Tth homologues of mesophilic respiratory ETC proteins due to the lack of a mutable facultative platform. We are attempting to generate this platform by increasing glycolytic flux through metabolic engineering techniques. Based on physiological studies, Tth HB27 demonstrates a low affinity for …

Central Florida Future, Vol. 41 No. 43, April 24, 2009

Central Florida Future

UnCover Fridays; Sexy safety; Plus: Future wrap up; Turn up the heat; STDs rising at UCF; Getting tested; Sexual health; Psych course teaches ins and outs of sexual behavior.

Herbaceous Succession After Burning Of Cut Western Juniper Trees, Jon D. Bates, Tony J. Svejcar

Western North American Naturalist

The expansion of western juniper (Juniperus occidentalis spp. occidentalis Hook.) in the northern Great Basin has resulted in the wide-scale conversion of sagebrush-steppe communities to juniper woodlands. Prescribed fire and mechanical cutting are the 2 main methods used to remove juniper and restore sagebrush steppe. Mechanical treatments commonly leave cut juniper on site. Disadvantages of leaving cut juniper are the increased fuel hazard and the potential for increased establishment and growth of invasive species. This study evaluated the response of herbaceous plants to winter burning of cut western juniper. Vegetation response was compared among 2 burning treatments (burning trees …

Multiple-Scale Roost Habitat Comparisons Of Female Merriam's Wild Turkeys In The Southern Black Hills, South Dakota, Daniel J. Thompson, Mark A. Rumble, Lester D. Flake, Chad P. Lehman

Western North American Naturalist

Because quantity and quality of roosting habitat can affect Merriam's Wild Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo merriami) distribution, we described habitat characteristics of Merriam's turkey roost sites in the southern Black Hills of South Dakota. Varying proportions of Merriam's turkeys in the southern Black Hills depended on supplemental feed from livestock operations during the 2 winters of our study, whereas the remainder wintered in forested habitat away from supplemental feed. We compared characteristics of roost habitat occupied by female turkeys from both groups. We located turkeys with radio-transmitters in the early morning and late evening to find roost sites. Female …

Comparative Susceptibility Of Conifers To Knobcone Pine Dwarf Mistletoe, Robert L. Mathiasen

Western North American Naturalist

Seventeen mixed conifer stands infested with knobcone pine dwarf mistletoe (Arceuthobium siskiyouense) were sampled to evaluate host susceptibility to this parasitic plant. Temporary circular plots (radius 6 m) were established around dominant, severely infected knobcone pines (Pinus attenuata). Within plots, species, diameter at breast height, and dwarf mistletoe rating (6-class system) were determined for each live tree taller than 1.4 m. More than 2000 trees were sampled in 140 plots. Based on the incidence of infection, tree species were assigned to host-susceptibility classes. Although Jeffrey pine (Pinus jeffreyi) and shore pine (Pinus contorta …

Rediscovered Population Of Mexican Plateau Spotted Whiptail Lizard, Aspidoscelis Septemvittata (Teiidae), From México, D.F., Oswaldo Hernández-Gallegos, Felipe De Jesús Rodríguez-Romero, Petra Sánchez-Nava, Fausto R. Méndez

Western North American Naturalist

Multiple surveys carried out by herpetologists in México, D.F., during the 1980s failed to find specimens of Aspidoscelis septemvitatta (Squamata: Teiidae). However, 10 specimens were recently collected to the east of México, D.F., inside a protected area, Sierra de Santa Catarina. The Sierra de Santa Catarina has been heavily modified by human activity and habitation. Morphological and natural history information about the specimens are presented, as well as notes on locality.

Effects Of Elevation And Genetic Introgression On Growth Of Colorado River Cutthroat Trout, Mark C. Belk, Michael N. Mcgee, Dennis K. Shiozawa

Western North American Naturalist

Inland populations of cutthroat trout have suffered dramatic declines and some subspecies are considered threatened or endangered. Understanding patterns of variation and factors that influence life history in populations is important for conservation and management. We determined effects of elevation, sex, and genetic introgression (with Yellowstone cutthroat trout, Oncorhynchus clarkii lewisi, and rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss) on growth rates of Colorado River cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii pleuriticus) in the Sheep Creek drainage in the Uinta Mountains of Utah. In this high-elevation system, native trout grew slowly and matured relatively late. Elevation, sex, and genetic introgression all …

Assessing Cheatgrass (Bromus Tectorum) Genetic Diversity And Population Structure Using Rapd And Microsatellite Molecular Markers, Michael C. Ashley, William S. Longland

Western North American Naturalist

Two molecular marker systems, random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) and microsatellites, were used to evaluate population diversity and differentiation in 4 northern Nevada Bromus tectorum populations. From 80 RAPD primers, we found 16 (20%) that yielded 165 strong repeatable bands. Of those bands, 60 (35.8%) were polymorphic. Of those, 21 met data-pruning guidelines for final analysis. RAPD variation was moderate (x̄ = 0.363, s_x̄ = 0.022), ranging from 0.312 to 0.404. Microsatellite variation was similar (x̄ = 0.234, s_x̄ = 0.051) but varied more widely, ranging from 0.009 to 0.551. All populations were out of Hardy-Weinberg …

Relationship Between Cheatgrass Coverage And The Relative Abundance Of Snakes On Antelope Island, Utah, Lucas K. Hall, John F. Mull, John F. Cavitt

Western North American Naturalist

Cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) is an invasive annual known to negatively impact many shrub-dependent organisms; however, relatively little research has examined how it affects snake communities. Bromus tectorum is abundant at Antelope Island State Park, Davis County, Utah, and could be a possible threat to snake populations. Study sites representing different B. tectorum coverage percentages were established to measure relative abundance of snakes. Snakes were captured from June to September 2005 primarily by using funnel traps attached to drift-fence arrays. Linear regression revealed a negative relationship between B. tectorum coverage (%) and the relative abundance of the Great Basin …

Home-Range Size And Overlap Of Sympatric Male Mule And White-Tailed Deer In Texas, Kristina J. Brunjes, Warren B. Ballard, Mary H. Humphrey, Fielding Harwell, Nancy E. Mcintyre, Paul R. Krausman, Mark C. Wallace

Western North American Naturalist

Information about the ecology of sympatric male deer is limited, which may influence management strategies for these species. We estimated home-range and core-area sizes and overlap, and survival of sympatric male desert mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus eremicus) and white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) in west central Texas. We captured 18 males of each species, fitted them with radio-collars, and monitored them for mortality from 2000 through 2003. We calculated home ranges for 7 males of each species in 2001 and 2002. Home-range sizes of mule deer (8.8 km²) and white-tailed deer (7.4 km²) …

New Distribution Record For The Social Parasitic Ant Anergates Atratulus (Schenck, 1852) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae): An Icun Red-Listed Species, Shawn T. Dash, Leticia Sanchez

Western North American Naturalist

The International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources red-lists a number of ant species. One species is Anergates atratulus (Schenck, 1852), a rarely collected social parasite introduced from Europe. The known distribution in North America is along the Atlantic seaboard. This note reports a huge range expansion in North America, to include Colorado. This finding is important because it provides useful information about the conservation and dispersal patterns of a rare, introduced, socially parasitic ant species.

Condors In Canyon Country: The Return Of The California Condor To The Grand Canyon Region By Sophie A. H. Osborn, Howard O. Clark

Western North American Naturalist

No abstract provided.

The Gentle Subversive: Rachel Carson And The Rise Of The Environmental Movement By Mark H. Lytle, John D. Rothlisberger

Western North American Naturalist

No abstract provided.

End Matter, Vol. 69 No. 1

Western North American Naturalist

No abstract provided.

A Comparison Of The Discriminative Stimulus Properties Of The Atypical Antipsychotic Clozapine And The Glutamate Agonist N-Methyl D-Aspartate In C57bl/6 Mice., Sarah A. Vunck

Theses and Dissertations

The glutamate system dysfunctions present in schizophrenia raise new questions about possible glutamatergic actions of the atypical antipsychotic clozapine. While clozapine has been shown to partially substitute for the discriminative stimulus of the glutamate agonist N-methyl D-aspartate (NMDA) in rats, NMDA discrimination has not previously been established in mice. The present study was designed to explore the possible role of NMDA activity in clozapine’s discriminative stimulus. Two groups of C57BL/6 mice were trained to discriminate either 2.5 mg/kg CLZ from vehicle or 30 mg/kg NMDA from vehicle in a standard two-lever drug discrimination task. NMDA drug discrimination was successfully established …

Influence Of Salinity Variations On The Desorption And Lability Of Soil Organic Carbon Associated With Tidal Freshwater Marshes, Lindsey Michelle Koren

Theses and Dissertations

Tidal freshwater marshes (TFMs) are unique ecosystems that bridge the gap between terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems and are important in the sequestration of soil organic carbon. With the ever changing global climate, TFMs are left vulnerable to downstream effects of rising sea level and salt water intrusion due to increases in flooding by saline waters. These changes often act over large spatial and temporal scales resulting in significant impacts to local and regional environments. This multidisciplinary study assessed the amount and lability of desorbed organic carbon in tidal freshwater marsh soils from the Waccamaw River Marsh, South Carolina and Sweet …

A Parallel Molecular Dynamics Program For Simulation Of Water In Ion Channels, Laxmi Mullapudi

Theses and Dissertations

With a modest beginning from developing a model of dynamics of hard liquid spheres (Alder et al., 1957), molecular dynamics (MD) simulations have come to a point where complex biomolecules can be simulated with precision close to reality (Noskov et al., 2007). In this context, a parallel molecular dynamics program for simulation of ion channels associated with cellular membranes has been developed. The parallel MD code developed is simple, efficient, and easily coupled to other codes such as the hybrid molecular dynamics/ brownian dynamics (MD/BD) code developed for the study of protein interactions (Ying et al., 2005). The Atom Decomposition …

Obesity, Adiposity, And Satiety In Mouse Models Of Smith-Magenis Syndrome And Dup(17)(P11.2) Syndrome, Brooke Burns

Theses and Dissertations

Smith-Magenis syndrome (SMS) is a complex disorder caused by haploinsufficiency of RAI1 and characterized by sleep disturbances, behavioral abnormalities, mental retardation, and obesity in teens and adults. Rai1+/- mice are obese after 20 weeks. Dup(17)(p11.2) syndrome is a complex disorder associated with overexpression of RAI1. A transgenic mouse model of dup(17)(p11.2) syndrome overexpresses Rai1 and results in a mouse that is growth delayed. In order to characterize the obese phenotypes of mouse models of SMS and the role of RAI1 in obesity, daily food intake and serum levels of insulin, glucose, PPY, and leptin were measured; adiposity was studied by …

Swaying The Masses: The Effect Of Argument Strength And Linguistic Abstractness On Attitudes, Jessica Barber

Theses and Dissertations

Two studies were conducted to investigate how the use of different types of language affects attitudes. Participants scrutinized arguments supporting a hypothetical toothpaste that differed in terms of argument strength (strong versus weak) and linguistic abstractness (abstract versus concrete) and subsequently evaluated the toothpaste. In addition, half of the participants in the second study were subjected to a cognitive load manipulation (i.e., rehearsing a ten-digit number) in order to limit their level of cognitive elaboration. Results indicated that strong arguments and those containing concrete descriptions led to more positive attitudes about the toothpaste, whereas weak messages comprised of abstract terms …

Thermodynamics Of Hydration Across Multiple Length Scales, Pablo Debenedetti

Amgen Seminar Series in Chemical Engineering

Confining geometries that contain thin water films are ubiquitous in nature, materials science and engineering. Examples include ion channels, zeolites, mineral inclusions, and mesoscopic surfactant assemblies. Understanding the influence of the confining surfaces on the structure, dynamics and thermodynamics of water is therefore of interest in applications such as corrosion inhibition, the design of super-hydrophobic surfaces and heterogeneous catalysis. I will discuss recent computational studies of hydration phenomena in which the characteristic length scale of the problem is of the order of a few nanometers. Specific problems to be addressed include water structure on surfaces with patterned hydrophobicity and hydrophilicity, …

04-23-2009 Swosu Receives Grants To Purchase Classroom Equipment, Southwestern Oklahoma State University

THE BARK ARCHIVE 2009

Southwestern Oklahoma State University in Weatherford has received two additional grant awards in the amounts of $35,000 and $15,000 from the Oklahoma IDeA Network of Biomedical Research Excellence (OK-INBRE) funded by the National Institutes of Health.

April 23, 2009, James Madison University

The Breeze, 2000-2009

The Breeze is the student newspaper of James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia.

Antiestrogens From The Cloudforest: Inhibition Of Aromatase By Plant Extracts And Essential Oils From Monteverde, Costa Rica, Brittany R. Agius

Honors Capstone Projects and Theses

No abstract provided.

Program And Abstracts Celebration Of Student Scholarship, 2009, Office Of Research And Sponsored Programs. Morehead State University.

Office of Research and Sponsored Programs Reports and Publications

Program and Abstracts from the Celebration of Student Scholarship on April 23, 2009.

The Minutes Of The Marshall University Faculty Senate Meeting, April 23, 2009, Marshall University Faculty Senate

Faculty Senate Minutes

No abstract provided.

Ua12/2/1 College Heights Herald, Vol. 84, No. 48, Wku Student Affairs

WKU Administration Documents

WKU campus newspaper reporting campus, athletic and Bowling Green, Kentucky news. Articles:

• Hale, Marianne. Student Government Association Negotiates Change to $30 Student Fee Proposal
• McCrarey, Magen. Movie Theaters Provide Temporary Relief – Economics
• Ulber, Emily. Landlords Look for Innovative Ways o Attract, Entice Student Tenants – Economics
• McLaughlin, Ariana. A Thousand Words – Spoon Man, Panhandling
• Moore, Josh. Sustainability Contest Winners Announced – Ryan McPeak, Chase Goff, Tom Cannon, Beth Meyer
• Domestic Partners Deserve Benefits Too – Health Insurance
• Erskine, Anne. Editorial Cartoon re: Vandalized Sculptures
• Gilley, Regan & Kevin Smiley. Student Government Association Works to Answer Students’ Concerns
• Schwab, …

Washington University Record, April 23, 2009

Washington University Record

No abstract provided.