Digital Commons Network^™

The Use Of A Non-Point Source Pollution Self-Assessment For Greenhouse And Nursery Operators In California, Diane Dejong, Kathleen Delate, Valerie J. Mellano, Karen L. Robb, David A. Shaw

Journal of Extension

Water quality rules adopted in 2001 in San Diego, California, created new requirements for greenhouse and plant nursery growers to manage surface run-off that could potentially affect drinking water, recreational locations, and wildlife habitat. A "Run-off and Non-Point Source Pollution Self-Assessment for Greenhouse and Container Nurseries" was developed as a series of worksheets that translated technical information for growers to meet legal requirements, maintain their property value, and enhance the quality of their environment. Self-assessment results determined a need for additional training on run-off management and prevention pollution through more site-specific fertilization and pest management techniques based on routine monitoring.

Assessing Volunteers' Needs And Interests To Inform Curriculum Development In 4-H, Martin Smith, C L. Meehan, H. Steve Dasher

Journal of Extension

4-H volunteers have the knowledge and experience to benefit the Youth Development Program by helping inform curriculum development. To capitalize on this, researchers at the University of California, Davis, used focus group interviews and a statewide survey to identify curriculum and programmatic needs in 4-H Animal and Veterinary Science from the perspectives of 4-H volunteers. Survey results and a review of subsequent curriculum development projects that were informed by the outcome data are discussed.

Development Of Interactive Multimedia Training Materials To Train Beef Packing Plant Workers In The Identification And Removal Of Specified Risk Materials, R. D. Dewell, I. N. Roman-Muniz, J. A. Scanga, A. D. Fails, L. R. Whalen, B. J. Mccarthy, T. W. Hoffman, D. R. Woerner, K. E. Belk, G. C. Smith, Mo Salman

Journal of Extension

The meat packing industry plays an essential role in preventing potential BSE-transmitting tissues from being included in the human food supply. As part of a project funded through USDA:CSREES, researchers at Colorado State University collaborated with the beef packing industry to create teaching materials to assist beef packers as they train workers in identification, proper removal and handling of SRM tissues. Materials include computerized interactive multimedia training modules, plastinated specimens, and a full color visual reference guide. Materials were designed to accommodate the diverse educational backgrounds of slaughter plant workers, who may have limited formal education and English language skills.

Integrated Pest Management And Protection Practices By Limited Resource Farmers, Nii O. Tackie, Louis E.N. Jackai, Ramble Ankumah, Beatrice N. Dingha, Abdul-Wahab Salifu, Oluwagbemiga Ojumu

Journal of Extension

This article focuses on the perceptions of limited resource farmers (LRFs) on integrated pest management (IPM) and protection practices. Data were collected from 90 LRFs in the Alabama Black Belt and analyzed by descriptive statistics. The results revealed that most farmers used pesticides and practiced crop rotation and other practices, yet a majority was not familiar or inadequately familiar with IPM. It is recommended that instituting a coordinated or seamless IPM education program on a long-term or continuing basis will enable the LRFs to be well familiar with and also practice IPM on a sustained basis.

Illinois State Alumni Magazine, February 2009, Illinois State University, University Marketing And Communications

State: The Magazine of Illinois State University (1999-present)

Illinois State University alumni magazine

Background Document For Lophelia Pertusa Reefs, Jm Hall-Spencer, K Stehfest

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

No abstract provided.

“Corrective” Surgery And The Americans With Disabilities Act, Jeannette Cox

San Diego Law Review

This Article challenges the assumption that the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires persons with disabilities to undergo corrective surgery as a precondition to membership in the ADA's protected class. This issue is ripe for discussion because current efforts to amend the ADA, although not focused on the corrective surgery issue, will unsettle the current doctrine underpinning many courts' conclusions that an individual's decision to forgo available medical technology bars her from relief under the ADA. The article aims to make two contributions. First, it argues that the ADA's focus on reshaping cultural responses to disability suggests that individuals need …

Photopatternable Polymeric Membranes For Optical Oxygen Sensors, Raghu Ambekar, Jongwon Park, David Henthorn, Chang-Soo Kim

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

A new class of optical oxygen sensor that can be photopatternable by traditional UV lithography is presented. They are fabricated using photopatternable spin-on silicone (polydimethylsiloxane, PDMS) with oxygen sensitive luminescent dyes. It has a good adhesion property and can be applied on glass or on photopolymer (SU-8) without any additional surface treatments. The optimum mixture composition for patternable oxygen sensitive membranes is investigated and its optical properties are characterized. Proof-of-concepts for two applications, intensity-based oxygen sensing with SU-8 based structure and self-calibration fluidic oxygen sensor, are described. These photopatternable optical membranes will find many applications wherever small patterns of oxygen …

Effect Of Bacterial Adsorption On Low Frequency Electrical Properties Of Clean Quartz Sands And Iron-Oxide Coated Sands, Gamal Z. Abdel Aal, Estella A. Atekwana, Sylvia Radzikowski, Silvia Rossbach

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Low frequency electrical measurements (0.1-1000 Hz) were conducted to investigate the adsorption effect of Pseudomonas aeruginosa cells onto clean quartz sands and iron-oxide coated sands. The clean quartz sands showed a gradual increase in the microbial adsorption to mineral grains, concurrent with an increase of 13% in the imaginary conductivity component (σ″). However, iron-oxide coated sands (20-100% by weight) showed a rapid increase in microbial adsorption with σ″ reaching a maximum of 37% for the 80-100% iron coated sands. No significant changes were observed in the real conductivity component (σ′) due to microbial adsorption. A power law dependency was observed …

A Successful Interdisciplinary Course On Computational Intelligence, Ganesh K. Venayagamoorthy

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

This article presents experiences from the introduction of a new three hour interdisciplinary course on computational intelligence (CI) taught at the Missouri University of Science and Technology, USA at the undergraduate and graduate levels. This course is unique in the sense that it covers five main paradigms of CI and their integration to develop hybrid intelligent systems. The paradigms covered are artificial immune systems (AISs), evolutionary computing (EC), fuzzy systems (FSs), neural networks (NNs) and swarm intelligence (SI). While individual CI paradigms have been applied successfully to solve real-world problems, the current trend is to develop hybrids of these paradigms …

Genesis, Xinxin Su

Theses

Genesis is a feature-length science fiction/fantasy screenplay written for partial fulfillment of the requirements for the MFA degree in Imaging Arts/Film. The script tells the story of two parentless children and their rescuer as they journey across a barren landscape in a world disintegrating before an impending catastrophic event. Their goal is to reach a generation ship called Genesis designed to save only a portion of humankind. Along the way they encounter rebels and misfits who threaten and assist the three along their way. This submission includes: a thesis report which contains an analysis of the conception and writing process; …

Direct Occlusion Handling For High Level Image Processing Algorithms, Carl Ryan Kelso

Theses

Many high-level computer vision algorithms suffer in the presence of occlusions caused by multiple objects overlapping in a view. Occlusions remove the direct correspondence between visible areas of objects and the objects themselves by introducing ambiguity in the interpretation of the shape of the occluded object. Ignoring this ambiguity allows the perceived geometry of overlapping objects to be deformed or even fractured. Supplementing the raw image data with a vectorized structural representation which predicts object completions could stabilize high-level algorithms which currently disregard occlusions. Studies in the neuroscience community indicate that the feature points located at the intersection of junctions …

Face Recognition With Variation In Pose Angle Using Face Graphs, Sooraj Kumar

Theses

Automatic recognition of human faces is an important and growing field. Several real-world applications have started to rely on the accuracy of computer-based face recognition systems for their own performance in terms of efficiency, safety and reliability. Many algorithms have already been established in terms of frontal face recognition, where the person to be recognized is looking directly at the camera. More recently, methods for non-frontal face recognition have been proposed. These include work related to 3D rigid face models, component-based 3D morphable models, eigenfaces and elastic bunched graph matching (EBGM). This thesis extends recognition algorithm based on EBGM to …

Unintended Consequences Of Ethanol Production: Geospatial Lifecycle Analysis, Amanda Louise Malone

Theses

Ethanol use has been lauded as a way to provide a secure, diverse, environmentally friendly and economically beneficial energy supply for the US. However, along with this praise has been criticism due to potential unintended consequences that may arise from ethanol production and use. This thesis addresses one such unintended consequence: the displacement of emissions from downstream vehicle operation locations to upstream farming and production areas. The thesis uses the Upstream Ethanol Production (UEP) Model, a geospatial lifecycle model developed for analyzing spatial emissions inventories for ethanol production. The UEP model is based on the US GREET model – the …

Students Who Are Moms: How Do They Do It?, Rhianna Marie Derscheid

Dissertations and Theses

Women with children are the fastest growing population of students within higher education. Women with children attempt to obtain a college degree for varied reasons, including self-development, social mobility, and to be a good role model for their children. Student moms face several obstacles in their attempts to obtain a college degree including financial constraints, childcare issues, marginalization, time constraints, and isolation. There is a paucity of research on student moms and the factors that contribute to their successful completion of a college degree. More research is needed to understand student moms’ experiences and to develop effective support programs within …

Sexually Antagonistic Selection, Sexual Dimorphism, And The Resolution Of Intralocus Sexual Conflict, Robert M. Cox, Ryan Calsbeek

Dartmouth Scholarship

Males and females share most of their genomes and express many of the same traits, yet the sexes often have markedly different selective optima for these shared traits. This sexually antagonistic (SA) selection generates intralocus sexual conflict that is thought to be resolved through the evolution of sexual dimorphism. However, we currently know little about the prevalence of SA selection, the components of fitness that generate sexual antagonism, or the relationship between sexual dimorphism and current SA selection. We reviewed published studies to address these questions, using 424 selection estimates representing 89 traits from 34 species. Males and females often …

Electro Hydrodynamic Manipulation Of The Process Of Self-Assembly Of Particles At Fluid-Fluid Interfaces, Muhammad Mansoor Janjua

Dissertations

This dissertation is divided into two parts, first deals with the numerical study of motion of dielectric particles subjected to nonuniform electric fields and second deals with the process of self-assembly of particles at fluid-fluid interfaces and subjected to uniform electric field normal to the interface. In the numerical study, the particles are moved using a direct simulation scheme (DNS) in which the fundamental equations of motion of fluid and solid particles are solved without the use of models. The motion of particles is tracked using a distributed Lagrange multiplier method (DLM) and the electric force acting on the particles …

Terahertz Response Of Microfluidic-Jetted Fabricated 3d Flexible Metamaterials, Yew Li Hor

Dissertations

Conventional materials exhibit some restrictions on their electromagnetic properties. Especially in terahertz region, for example, materials that exhibit magnetic response are far less common in nature than materials that exhibit electric response. However, materials can be designed, namely artificial man-made metamaterials that exhibit electromagnetic properties that are not found in natural materials by adjusting, for example, the dielectric, magnetic or structural parameters of the constituent elements.

This dissertation demonstrates the use of new fabrication techniques to construct metamaterials in THz range via a material deposition system. The metamaterials are fabricated by stacking alternative layers with conventional designs such as single …

Precipitation Of Micro/Nanoparticles In Enhanced High Energy Dissipation Mixing Systems, Giuseppe Di Benedetto

Dissertations

Crystallization is the most common unit operation used in the pharmaceutical industry to synthesize active ingredients. Rapid development of a drug candidate is dependent on the ability to produce a desired drug substance with consistent properties, These properties include stability and purity, which are directly affected by the crystallization process and which affect, in turn, bioavailability, drug dissolution rate, drug stability, and shelf life.

The objective of this work is to produce micro/nanoparticle crystals within existent glass-lined pharmaceutical stirred-tank reactors by modifying the current reactor configuration to include features that can increase the local rate of energy dissipation in the …

Experiment And Modeling : Ignition Of Aluminum Particles With A Co2 Laser, Salil Mohan

Dissertations

Aluminum is a promising ingredient for high energy density compositions used in propulsion systems, explosives, and pyrotechnics. Aluminum powder fuel additives enable one to achieve higher combustion enthalpies and reaction temperatures. Therefore, to develop aluminum based novel and customized high density energetic materials, understanding of ignition and combustion kinetics of aluminum powders is required. In most practical systems, metal ignition and combustion occur in environments with rapidly changing temperatures and gas compositions. The kinetics of exothermic reactions in related energetic materials is commonly characterized by thermal analysis, where the heating rates are very low, on the order of 1 -50 …

Phosphate And Thermal Stabilization Of Heavy Metals In Dredged Sediments, Peter Kuria Ndiba

Dissertations

Treatment and reuse of dredged harbor sediments in construction as an alternative to disposal reduces costs and conserves resources. This research focused on leachability of metal contaminants subsequent to phosphate addition and thermal treatment at 700 °C. X- ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) in combination with principal component analysis, target transformation, and linear combination revealed that in the untreated sediments Zn precipitated as the relatively soluble smithsonite (ZnCO₃) (67%) and adsorbed to hydrous iron oxides (15%) and hydrous manganese oxides (18%). Phosphate addition and calcination resulted in sparingly soluble phases, hopeite (Zn₃₍PO₄)₂.4H_{2 …}

Enhanced Fluidization Of Nanoparticle Agglomerates, Daniel Lepek

Dissertations

Gas fluidization of nanoparticle agglomerates has recently received much attention due to the excellent way in which these novel nanornaterials can be dispersed in a gaseous medium. Nanopowders have a very high surface area to volume ratio which allows them have unique chemical and physical properties especially at the surface. Fluidization is a popular technique for the continuous dispersal of solid materials in the fluidlike state.

Recently it has been found that nanoparticles exist in a highly agglomerate state which allow them to become fluidizable. The fluidization behavior of the nanopowders is dependent on the bulk and material properties of …

Characterization Of Natural Organic Matter And Precursors To Trihalomethanes Using Spectral Flourescence Signatures, Krit Punburananon

Dissertations

Disinfection is an essential process to kill pathogens (i.e., disease causing organisms) in source water during the production of drinking water. Chlorine is most widely used disinfectant because it is effective, affordable, and also provides chlorine residual to ensure that the water is safe through the distribution system. Nonetheless, chlorine reacts with Natural Organic Matter (NOM) and forms potentially carcinogenic Disinfection By-products (DBPs). The major chlorination DBPs are dominantly Trihalomethanes (THMs). However, not all organic compounds are equally reactive to THMs formation.

NOM in water samples collected from the Delaware & Raritan Canal and its tributaries (Central New Jersey) was …

Loss Of Synchrony In An Inhibitory Network Of Type-I Oscillators, Myongkeun Oh

Dissertations

Synchronization of excitable cells coupled by reciprocal inhibition is a topic of significant interest due to the important role that inhibitory synaptic interaction plays in the generation and regulation of coherent rhythmic activity in a variety of neural systems. While recent work revealed the synchronizing influence of inhibitory coupling on the dynamics of many networks, it is known that strong coupling can destabilize phase-locked firing. Here we examine the loss of synchrony caused by an increase in inhibitory coupling in networks of type-I Morris-Lecar model oscillators, which is characterized by a period-doubling cascade and leads to mode-locked states with alternation …

The University Of San Francisco Fact Book And Almanac 2008, University Of San Francisco Office Of Institutional Research

USF Fact Book and Almanac

No abstract provided.

Evaluation Of Medical Alarm Sounds, Elizbha Philip

Theses

Auditory alarms in medical equipments perform considerably below their optimal level. Concern has been expressed about the quality of medical alarms by a large number of researchers in recent years. A detailed literature survey on the medical alarm related problems has been carried out. Hospital visits were made to obtain real life information and data of alarm sounds in various type of monitors used in OR and ICU. A laboratory experiment has been conducted on selected melodic alarm sounds. These melodic alarm sounds are being implemented in medical equipments and the idea of design is proposed in ISO / IEC …

Aptamer-Based Nano-Scale Dielectric Sensor For Protein Detection, Teena James

Theses

The specific detection and precise quantification of protein molecules play an essential role in basic discovery research as well as in clinical practice. In this research work, a novel protein detection mechanism based on nanoscale dielectric sensor functionalized with aptamer probes is developed. This work has been done in collaboration with Rational Affinity Devices LLC. The use of aptamer based detection offers several advantages over the traditional labor intensive antibody based immunosensing. In the initial phase of the work, the binding affinities of rationally designed oligomers towards a specific protein molecule (IgG) was studied and optimized under varying conditions of …

Preparation Of Nanovehicles For Targeted Drug Delivery, Anagha Avinash Bhakay

Theses

Application of nanotechnology in pharmaceutical research has opened new frontiers for drug development and its efficient delivery. In recent years, the focus of the research has been on the engineering of nano/micro-particulate structures for efficient and targeted delivery of drugs for selective and enhanced absorption. This work throws light on the preparation of biodegradable and non-toxic nanoparticulate systems for targeted drug delivery. The drug vehicles were made by two different processes namely electrostatic interactions and desolvation process. The drug carriers made by these processes were found to be in the size range of 150-200nm which is necessary for cellular uptake …

Deciphering The Biology Of Axon Stretch-Growth, Joseph R. Loverde

Theses

Traditional nerve regeneration strategies focus on growth cone-mediated growth, a form of nerve growth that occurs primarily during embryogenesis. Early axons continue to grow from the end distal to the soma, seeking targets on which to synapse. It is believed that once the axons synapse, stretch-growth takes over and is responsible for the great lengths achieved by nerves of the central and peripheral nervous systems. Recent work has demonstrated stretch-growth in vitro resulting in dramatically increased growth rates compared to the growth cone. Here, the aim was to decipher the underlying biology associated with axon stretch-growth using two approaches. First, …

Nano-Structured Platforms As A Spectroscopic Tool, Ruiqiong Li

Theses

Nano-structured platforms have been studied for the purpose of enhancing weak fluorescence signals. Each platform was constructed as a thin oxide layer on top of a metal (aluminum) The oxide was perforated with hexagonal array of nano-holes. The pitch of the array was much smaller than the optical wavelengths used. Surface charge waves (Surface Plasmons) could be excited when the platform was oriented at specific direction with respect to the incident optical beam. At this point one can demonstrate that fluorescence signals could be amplified. Since the oxide (alumina) is bio-compatible, one can envision using such platforms in the study …