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The Effects Of Salinity On Nitrogen Cycling In Wetland Soils And Sediments Of The Breton Sound Estuary, La, Brett Whitfield Marks

LSU Master's Theses

Wetlands in the coastal zone are slowly becoming more saline under rising sea level over the long-term. However, there are a number of events in the coastal environment which lead to quick and temporary changes in the salinity of coastal marshes. Seawater driven inland from storm surge can significantly increase salinity in oligohaline wetlands over the short-term (weeks). Recent large-scale efforts to restore coastal wetlands in Louisiana have utilized Mississippi River surface water diversions to re-introduce freshwater into coastal marshes, decreasing the salinity of coastal marshes. We examined the effect of salinity changes on two important nitrogen cycling processes, potential …

Quantum Light For Quantum Technologies, William Nicholas Plick

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

In this thesis we will theoretically investigate three potentially useful physical systems, after first developing the theoretical framework necessary for studying them. First, we will study the multiphoton absorption properties of maximally path entangled number (N00N) states. This is directly relevant to quantum lithography, and beating the Rayleigh diffraction limit. Next, we will develop a new scheme for quantum interferometry: dubbed coherent-light boosted super-sensitive quantum interferometry, which has the potential to reach below the shot noise limit for high photon fluxes, and requires no esoteric detection protocol, or technological elements that have yet to be developed. Finally we propose a …

Carbohydrate Sources And Maximizing The Use Of Supplemental Amino Acids In Diets For Weanling Pigs, Victor D. Naranjo

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The objectives of this research were 1) to determine the effect of replacing dried whey (DW) with milk chocolate product (MCP), dried whey permeate (DWP) with candy oats (CO), and spray-dried plasma protein (SDPP) with a novel swine nutritional supplement (SNS) on growth performance of weanling pigs, and 2) to determine the maximum level of supplemental L-Lys, along with DL-Met, L-Thr, and L-Trp that can be added in diets for 6- to 12 and 13- to 23-kg pigs. Three experiments were conducted to compare the feeding value of MCP (20% lactose and 60% sugars) and DW (70% lactose). Results from …

Value Of Clearfield Rice: An Agronomic And Economic Approach, Tyler Paul Carlson

LSU Master's Theses

Field studies were conducted in Crowley, Louisiana and Stoneville, Mississippi in drill seeded rice to evaluate weed control, yield, and economical returns with imazethapyr programs. Red rice (Oryza sativa) and barnyardgrass (Echinochloa crus-galli) was evaluated with imazethapyr applied alone at various rates and application timings. Imazethapyr, averaged across rate, controlled red rice 89% and barnyardgrass 90% when the initial application of imazethapyr was applied at emergence followed by (fb) a second application of imazethapyr two weeks after the initial application. While imazethapyr, averaged across timing, showed no differences for red rice and barnyardgrass control. Yield and economical returns were maximized …

Computer Simulation Of Ion-Induced Nucleation In The Presence Of Single Ions And Ion Pairs, Samuel Keasler

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Atmospheric aerosol particles play an important role in climate and human health. Despite their importance, the mechanisms of their formation are still poorly understood. Ion-induced nucleation may play a role in the process, but details are lacking about how the nucleation rate depends on the size, charge, and number of ions in the cluster. In order to better understand the role that ions might play in new particle formation, we have performed a series of AVUS-HR simulations of the water nucleation in the presence of both single ions and ion pairs. These simulations have shown that the location of the …

Cross-Race Advising Relationships: The Role Of Race In Advising Relationships Between Black Doctoral Student Protégés And Their White Faculty Advisors, Marco Javon Barker

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to examine the role of race in cross-race advising relationships between White faculty advisors and their Black doctoral student protégés. I examined the racial context of doctoral education experiences and relationships between doctoral students and faculty. Blacks with doctoral degrees comprise only 0.3% of those 18 years and older and only 3.5% of those with doctoral degrees (U.S. Census, 2000). Although there has been an increase in the number of Blacks enrolling in doctoral programs (Cook & Cordova, 2006), Nettles and Millett (2006) found that Blacks and Latin Americans have higher attrition rates …

Three Essays On The Role Of Amenities As An Economic Development Strategy, Junpyo Hong

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

It is well known that an amenity is a key driving engine to regional economic growth. However, the site-specific nature of an amenity can characterize them as public goods. Due to this characteristic, local governments have difficulty optimally supplying amenities. This dissertation tries to find relationships between an amenity and economic growth. Three empirical papers comprise the original research in this dissertation. The findings of the meta-analysis in the first essay suggest little methodological diversity exists among researchers linking amenities to economic growth., I do find that employment growth is more likely related to man-made amenities even in research on …

Chemistry Of Rhenium(I) Tricarbonyl Complexes Of Biomedical Relevance, Theshini Perera

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

fac-[Re^I(CO)₃L]ⁿ complexes serve as models for short-lived fac-[^99mTc^I(CO)₃L] imaging tracers. Dangling groups on L, needed to achieve desirable biodistribution, complicate the NMR spectra, which are not readily understood. In fac-[Re^I(CO)₃L]⁺ with less complicated L, NH groups (exo-NH) projecting toward the L face sometimes showed an upfield shift attributable to steric shielding of the exo-NH group from the solvent by the chelate rings. To investigate whether exo-NH groups in six-membered rings exhibit the same effect and whether the …

Modeling The Impacts Of Pulsed Riverine Inflows On Hydrodynamics And Water Quality In The Barataria Bay Estuary, Anindita Das

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Eutrophication and coastal wetland loss are the major environmental problems affecting estuaries around the world. In Louisiana, controlled diversions of the Mississippi River water back into coastal wetlands are thought to be an important engineering solution that could reverse coastal land loss. There are concerns, however, that freshwater diversions may increase nutrient inputs and create severe eutrophication problems in estuaries and wetlands adjacent to the diversion sites. My dissertation research concerns modeling the effects of the observed and hypothetical freshwater diversion discharges on the hydrodynamics, salinity and water quality in the Barataria estuary, a deltaic estuary in south Louisiana. This …

Developing Tools To Identify Factors That Limit Production In Coastal Marshes, Vanessa Danielle Tobias

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Marsh loss is a problem in many areas around the world. In Louisiana’s coastal marshes, where Spartina patens is the most common plant, restoration and management seek to slow wetland loss rates that average approximately 77.4 km2/year. To combat the problem, scientists and managers require tools to determine local causes and evaluate the effectiveness of management techniques. Current methods for identifying factors that limit productivity in marshes are too time-consuming or expensive for wide-spread, regular use. Critical values of elemental concentrations in plant tissue are widely used to diagnose mineral deficiencies and toxicities in agricultural crops, however. I used the …

Resistant Starch And Sodium Butyrate Reduce Body Fat In Rodents, Kirk Adam Vidrine

LSU Master's Theses

Introduction: Obesity levels in the United States have significantly increased in the last forty years. Lifestyle and pharmacological treatments have been largely ineffective in treating obesity for most people. Both Resistant Starch (RS) and Dietary Sodium Butyrate (SB) are bioactivties which have shown the ability to decrease body fat levels of rodents without increasing physical activity or decreasing energy intake. Glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) and peptide YY (PYY) are gut hormones that may be involved in increased energy expenditure at a cellular level with dietary RS and SB. Objective: To discern if SB and RS both work through the increase …

Toxicity Interaction Of Fipronil And Imidacloprid Against Coptotermes Formasanus, Pan Luo

LSU Master's Theses

The Formosan subterranean termite, Coptotermes formosanus Shiraki (Isoptera: Rhinotermitidae), is considered one of the most destructive structural pests in the world, especially in warm and humid areas. Insecticide application is an effective strategy in termite control. In recent years, non-repellent insecticides have become popular for their high efficacy due to delayed toxicity and horizontal transfer. Fipronil (registered name Termidor®) and imidacloprid (registered name Premise®) have been applied to the perimeter of millions of houses in the United States. Fipronil and imidacloprid have different modes of action which may produce a synergistic effect when combined. There have been no studies on …

Accuracy Of Srs Dose Delivery Using The Tomotherapy Hi-Art System, Catherine Leigh Batte

LSU Master's Theses

Purpose: To quantify the accuracy and precision of both target positioning and dose delivery for intracranial radiosurgery delivered with the TomoTherapy Hi-Art System using a non-invasive immobilization device. Methods: Techniques developed by Vinci et al (2007) were refined for the measurement of dose distributions in each principal plane using a CIRS head phantom. Pieces of Gafchromic EBT2 film were cut and digitized using a template developed by Vinci et al (2007). A plan was created for a 2 cm diameter x 2 cm long cylindrical target in the TomoTherapy treatment planning system (TPS) version 3.2.1. Intentional misalignments of 5 mm …

Evolutionary Dynamics Of Bird Populations In Southeast Asia, Haw Chuan Lim

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

A confluence of factors determines the biological diversity we observe today. Here, I conducted three investigations of the historic, geographic and ecological factors that shaped the morphological and genetic diversity of rainforest birds in Southeast Asia. (1) In the Oriental Dwarf Kingfisher (Ceyx erithaca) complex, the birds are highly polymorphic in plumage. Quantitative analysis of this variation indicated that a large proportion of birds in Sumatra, the Malay Peninsula and Borneo have plumages intermediate between the northerly black form from mainland Asia and the southerly rufous form from Java. Phylogenetic analyses indicated that birds from continental Southeast Asia (north of …

Analysis Of Media Agenda-Setting Effect On Consumer Confidence In The Safety Of The U.S. Food System Across Consumer Segments, Abhishek Bhagwat Bharad

LSU Master's Theses

Recent food recalls and food scares in the United States have increased consumers’ risk perceptions about food borne illness and decreased their confidence in the safety of the U.S. food supply. Results from a continuous tracking of consumer confidence and media coverage of food safety events over a 67 week period between May 2008 and August 2009 are reported in the study. Factor analysis is performed on consumer characteristic statements to identify seven factors. Factor scores for these seven factors are used as inputs in a consumer segmentation procedure. A two step segmentation approach, hierarchical cluster analysis followed by partition …

A Comparison Of Forgiveness Across Two Cultures: Lebanon And The United States, Zeina Yousof

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Research suggests that the propensity to forgive expressed by societies is often influenced by the cultural orientation of the society. Collectivistic societies tend to express a higher level of willingness to forgive than individualistic societies. This study examined how two samples of different cultural orientations, Lebanese and American, define forgiveness and express their feelings, thoughts and behavior towards a specific offender who has hurt them in the past. In addition to that, the willingness to forgive of the two samples was measured. Measurement instruments for this study consisted of the Enright Forgiveness Inventory and the Willingness to Forgive scale. These …

Service Learning : A Vehicle To Reflective Thinking, Janelle Lynn Hawk

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Education reform is a topic that has been around for a long time. With the passage of No Child Left Behind in 2002, states set out to set high standards for students. While setting high standards is a worthwhile goal, the method to reach those high standards has not been mandated. This research study sought to determine if exposing students to a service-learning project would increase reflective thinking, communication, and social interaction skills.

The questions that guided this study were:

1. Does engagement in a service-learning project impact the individual's development of reflective thinking? If so, what is that impact? …

Identifying Potential Carbon Flux Responses To Shifting Hydroecological And Climactic Regimes In The Peace-Athabasca Delta, Caleb W. Light

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The CO2 flux response of organic carbon stored in lake sediments and littoral peat contained in sensitive, northern wetlands may contribute to accelerating atmospheric CO2 concentrations. Temperature and moisture conditions are important variables that affect the rate and quantity of CO2 released to the atmosphere from organic matter stored in lake sediments and peat. Antecedent hydroecological conditions also influence the direction and magnitude of CO2 fluxes to the atmosphere in a changing environment. To better understand and characterize the role of antecedent conditions on CO2 fluxes, this study combines paleolimnological reconstructions with laboratory incubations of littoral peat and lake sediment …

The Role Of Choice And Control In Women’S Childbirth Experiences, Katie M. Cook

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The current study seeks to understand the role of choice and control in both planning and giving birth. This study explores three research questions: 1) What are the key influences on women’s birth plan decisions? 2) How do changes to a woman’s initial birth plan impact her overall birth experience? 3) What is the role of choice and control in women’s childbirth experiences? Narrative, semi-structured interviews were conducted with a convenience sample of 16 women who had given birth in Waterloo Region within the two years preceding data collection. The findings of this study cover five categories. The first category …

Molecular Studies Of 5-Azacytidine-Induced Early-Flowering Lines Of Flax, Megan A. House

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Several early-flowering flax (Linum usitatissimum L.) lines were derived from treatment of germinating seeds with 5-azacytidine in 1990. These lines are also shorter, have fewer leaves, and their DNA is hypomethylated, relative to their corresponding controls. The work presented in this thesis used early-flowering and control lines of the Royal (R) flax genotype, and the Large (L) flax genotroph. Firstly, levels of cytosine methylation were measured over a 24-hour period in the early-flowering line RE2 and its control (RC), using an HPLC method. Secondly, to determine the response of the flax lines to short-day conditions, control and early-flowering …

Plant Isotopes As Indicators Of N Cycling Processes In Agricultural Fields, Eric Thuss

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

When nitrogen (N) availability exceeds biological demand, excess N, especially nitrate (NO₃), may subsequently pollute ground and surface water. Agricultural practices in Southern Ontario typically supplement soils with organic and inorganic nutrients to aid in crop development, and employ various management techniques to limit nutrient loss. Excess N has several potential fates, which are controlled by the net effects of numerous N cycling reactions in the soil that are often difficult to measure directly. N cycling in soils is controlled in large part by soil moisture, as it affects microbial activity and soil redox conditions. Stable isotope geochemistry …

Understanding Academic Success For Onkwehonwe (Indigenous) Students Through The Use Of An Onkwehonwe'neha (Indigenous Methodology), Ashley Victoria Dorothy Johnson

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

School-retention rates for Indigenous (Onkwehonwe) students are disproportionately lower than the non-Indigenous population in Canada (Mendelson, 2006). Currently, few studies on Native education acquire the perspectives and knowledge from successful OS. Many nonpersistence factors for OS have been uncovered, but few studies have offered solutions. Additionally, there is minimal (re)search using an Indigenous methodology (Onkwehonwe’neha) in the exploration Onkwehonwe education. This search (study) focused on the perspectives and experiences of six successful OS (i.e., five graduate students and one entering a graduate program). Two of the six participants were Aboriginal student-services coordinators at accredited universities within Ontario, Canada. Through the …

Physiological And Toxicological Effects Of Pb Plus Cd Mixtures On Rainbow Trout (Oncorhynchus Mykiss) In Soft Acidic Water, Yvonne Kara

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The ability of a metal to cause toxicity in aquatic environments is highly dependant upon the water chemistry, which can influence metal bioavailability. Metal bioavailability is affected by the concentration of the metal, complexation of the metal by organic and inorganic ligands, and by the speciation of the metal. Predictive models of metal toxicity, such as the biotic ligand model (BLM) have mainly focused upon predicting the toxicity of individual metals rather than the toxicity of metals in mixtures, which are more commonly found in contaminated waters. Two metals that are commonly found together are Pb and Cd which can …

A Qualitative Exploration Of The Needs Of (Pre)Parenting: Women Parenting With Women In Southern Ontario, Krystal Lee Kellington

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Over the years research has examined various aspects of Women Parenting with Women (WPW) and their families. The focus of the research on these families has to an extent, been influenced by the social and political debates throughout the years that saw these families struggle through one challenge to the next. Through these challenges, research has examined the claims and accusations for and against these families, generating information on the mental health and suitability of same-sex parents, the well-being of their children, and how these families function without a nuclear family structure. As the social and political climate continues to …

Insights Into Genome Functional Organisation Through The Analysis Of Interaction Networks, Andre Masella

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Using computational techniques to identify orthology and operon structure, it is possible to find functional interactions between genes, which, together, define the genetic interactome. These large networks contain information about the relationships between phenotypes in organisms as genes responsible for related abilities are often co-regulated and reasserting of these genes can be detected in the operon structure. However, these networks are too large to analyse by hand In order to practically analyse the networks, a computational tool, gisql, was developed and, using this tool, the connectivity patterns in the genetic interactome can be analysed to understand high-level organisation of …

The Warrior Women Of Transnational Cinema: Gender And Race In Hollywood And Hong Kong Action Movies, Lisa Funnell

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

In The Warrior Women of Transnational Cinema, I consider the significance of transnational Asian action women in the post-1997 Hong Kong cinema; more specifically, I explore how Pan-Asian (e.g. Michelle Yeoh, Pei Pei Cheng, Ziyi Zhang), Asian American (Lucy Liu, Maggie Q, Marsha Yuen), and Asian Canadian (e.g. Francoise Yip, Charlene Choi, Kristy Yang) warrior women function as a source of transnational female identity for local, Pan-Asian (i.e. East and Southeast Asian), and diasporic Asian audiences. I argue that the post-1997 Hong Kong cinema—and not Hollywood—has offered space for the development of Pan-Asian and Asian North American screen identities …

Littoral Cells, Longshore Transport And Wave Climate: An Examination Of Littoral Transport Along The Western Shore Of Prince Edward County, Ontario, Jayson A. Childs

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This study discusses the wave climate and potential littoral transport along the western shore of Prince Edward County approximately two hours east of Toronto along the northern shoreline of Lake Ontario. The limestone headlands and barrier bars of the western coast are exposed toward a southwesterly fetch of approximately 200 km that can produce large offshore wave heights of 2–5 m. The wave model STWAVE was used to transform a standard set of wave conditions developed from recent hindcast data to examine fair weather, storm and extreme conditions for five directions between south and west-northwest along the shore. The resulting …

Trace Metal Biogeochemistry In The Western North Pacific, Peter Lynn Morton

OES Theses and Dissertations

Dissolved and suspended particulate samples collected during the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission 2002 Contaminant Baseline Survey were analyzed to determine the surface and vertical distributions of Cd, Co, Cu, Mn, Ni Zn and Pb across the western and central North Pacific.

Dissolved trace metal concentrations were measured using a novel isotope dilution-ICP-MS method after extraction over an 8-hydroxyquinoline resin column and validated through the use of the SAFe consensus reference materials. Filtered suspended particulate matter was digested using an HCl/HNO3/HF mixture and analyzed by HR-ICP-MS to obtain total particulate concentrations for the trace metals and other tracer elements such as Al, …

Hereditary 1,25-Dihydroxyvitamin D-Resistant Rickets With Alopecia Resulting From A Novel Missense Mutation In The Dna-Binding Domain Of The Vitamin D Receptor., Peter J. Malloy, Jining Wang, Tarak Srivastava, David Feldman

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

The rare genetic recessive disease, hereditary vitamin D resistant rickets (HVDRR), is caused by mutations in the vitamin D receptor (VDR) that result in resistance to the active hormone 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D(3) (1,25(OH)(2)D(3) or calcitriol). In this study, we examined the VDR from a young boy with clinical features of HVDRR including severe rickets, hypocalcemia, hypophosphatemia and partial alopecia. The pattern of alopecia was very unusual with areas of total baldness, adjacent to normal hair and regions of scant hair. The child failed to improve on oral calcium and vitamin D therapy but his abnormal chemistries and his bone X-rays normalized …

Inhibitors Of Pyruvate Carboxylase, Tonya N. Zeczycki, Martin St. Maurice, Paul V. Attwood

Biological Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

This review aims to discuss the varied types of inhibitors of biotin-dependent carboxylases, with an emphasis on the inhibitors of pyruvate carboxylase. Some of these inhibitors are physiologically relevant, in that they provide ways of regulating the cellular activities of the enzymes e.g. aspartate and prohibitin inhibition of pyruvate carboxylase. Most of the inhibitors that will be discussed have been used to probe various aspects of the structure and function of these enzymes. They target particular parts of the structure e.g. avidin – biotin, FTP – ATP binding site, oxamate – pyruvate binding site, phosphonoacetate – binding site of the …