Digital Commons Network^™

An Invasive Species Reduces Aquatic Insect Flux To Terrestrial Food Webs, Steven S. Merkley

Theses and Dissertations

Although it is well documented how introduced species can negatively affect native species, we only poorly understand how they may alter ecosystem functions. We investigated how an invasive fish affected the flux of aquatic insects to terrestrial food webs using mesocosms in a desert spring ecosystem. We compared aquatic insect emergence between alternative community states with monocultures and polycultures of two native species of fish, least chub (Iotichthys phlegethontis) and Utah chub (Gila atraria) plus, introduced western mosquitofish (Gambusia affinis). We tested three hypotheses: (1) aquatic insect biomass will be greater than terrestrial insect …

Unintended Social And Economic Consequences Resulting From The Implementation Of New Construction Technologies In The Developing World, Andrew J. South

Theses and Dissertations

One of the key components of international development is to provide adequate shelter for citizens of developing countries. This is often accomplished by governmental, non- governmental, and private organizations that seek to lower the cost, increase the quality, and expand the availability of safe, sustainable housing through the use of innovative technologies. These new technologies can affect the social and/or economic structure within communities. This paper is a case study resulting from the construction of a seventy-one-home village, including infrastructure, near Yogyakarta, Indonesia by a foreign, aid-based non-governmental organization (NGO). The village was relocated less than two kilometers from its …

Past Perfect: Historical Fiction And Readers' Advisory Service, Sarah L. Johnson

Faculty & Staff Research & Creative Activity

Historical fiction is currently undergoing a renaissance in popularity among readers. However, many questions surround this wide-ranging yet complex genre. How do readers and librarians define historical fiction? Who reads it, why do people choose it, and what do readers expect when they read a historical novel? How can it be found within library collections, given that it's such a broad category? Answers to these questions are discussed, along with an overview of the diverse subgenres of historical fiction. Numerous examples of benchmark titles and authors are provided for each subgenre. Appeal factors for historical fiction, hot topics and themes, …

Proteomic Analysis Of Two Different States Of Naegleria Fowleri, Hong Park

Theses and Dissertations

Naegleria fowleri are free-living ameboflagellates found in soil and freshwater habitats throughout the world that cause a fatal disease in humans called Primary Amoebic Meningoencephalitis (PAM). Mechanisms of host resistance or susceptibility to infection have not been fully elucidated, and possible treatment methods are still sub optimal. The disease is diagnosed using specific laboratory tests available in only a few laboratories in the United States. Because of the rarity of infection and difficulty in initial detection, more than often PAM is misdiagnosed. Therefore, it is very important to find causative marker for early detection of an infection. The purpose of …

Course And Curricular Updates To The California Polytechnic State University 2009-2011 Catalog, Academic Affairs, California Polytechnic State University - San Luis Obispo

Course Catalogs

No abstract provided.

Comics As Criticism: Graphic Novel Adaptations As Interpretive Discourse, Esther Bendit Saltzman

Electronic Theses and Dissertations Archive

Graphic novel adaptations of classic texts are not fully recognized for their potential contributions to scholarship. This thesis argues that a graphic novel adaptation of classic literature can function as literary criticism of its source while allowing for further interpretation. Case studies include three classic texts with their corrsponding graphic novel adaptations: Shakespeare's Macbeth with Shakespeare's Macbeth: the Manga Edition, and Classical Comics' Macbeth: the Graphic Novel; Shelley's Frankenstein with Classical Comics' Frankenstein: the Graphic Novel; and Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray with adaptations by Thomas and Fiumara and by Edginton and Culbard. Findings demonstrate complex ways in which …

Walking Box Ranch Custodianship Quarterly Progress Report: Period Ending July 10, 2011, Margaret N. Rees

Walking Box Ranch

• UNLV provides stewardship of Walking Box Ranch (WBR) by providing a caretaker who oversees the property, facilitating use of the property by researchers and educators, developing a use and research policy for the property, and coordinating these activities with BLM and in accordance with TNC restrictions.
• UNLV currently addresses security issues for the property through the presence of the caretaker and two Metro Officers who reside on the property in two recreational vehicles.
• UNLV met with Senator Reid representative on June 20 to provide information about project progress and to request the Senator’s support in obtaining further funding for the …

Walking Box Ranch Planning And Design Quarterly Progress Report: Period Ending July 10, 2010, Margaret N. Rees

Walking Box Ranch

• UNLV participated in several meetings with BLM regarding updating the current Task Order, obtaining a two-year no-cost extension for the two Assistance Agreements, and to develop the future WBR operating agreement between BLM and UNLV
• UNLV met with Sara Moffatt, one of Senator Reid’s staff, to provide an update on project progress. UNLV also requested the Senator’s support in obtaining additional funding for the project for construction, and also for UNLV to bridge the transition from construction through the first two years of operation.
• UNLV held several internal meetings to advance planning for a July VA meeting with BLM to …

July 9, 2011 (Pages 3709-3800), Pennsylvania Legislative Reference Bureau

Volume 41 (2011)

No abstract provided.

Service Learning And Student Leadership Through Environmentally Immersive Writing, Seth Cohen

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the impact of environmentally immersive service learning on a focused cluster of the NJASK, self-perception of leadership, attitude toward the environment, and student ability to define and articulate the benefits of service learning. The study compared the 2008-2009 New Jersey Assessment of Skills and Knowledge 7 (NJASK 7) and the 2009-2010 New Jersey Assessment of Skills and Knowledge 8 (NJASK 8) cluster area score of the explanatory task. The difference in the mean score on the explanatory task was analyzed by comparing the state, the Allamuchy Township School District, and the district factor group, representing other communities …

Public Hearing Transcripts - Western - Bungoma - Rtjrc09.07 (Tourist Hotel, Bungoma) (Women's Hearing), Truth, Justice, And Reconciliation Commission

I. Core TJRC Related Documents

No abstract provided.

Time For Reassessment: A Review Of Beta-Blockers In The Setting Of Cocaine Associated Chest Pain And Acute Coronary Syndrome, Jonathan Finkel Md, Gregary Marhefka, Md

The Medicine Forum

Introduction

Cocaine is the second most commonly used illicit drug in the United States, 1 and is the most frequent illicit substance to precipitate an emergency room visit, responsible for over 550,000 visits in 2007 alone. 2 The majority of patients present with a chief complaint of chest pain3, and approximately 6% are diagnosed with cocaine associated myocardial infarction.4For decades it has been thought that beta-blockade in the setting of cocaine use would precipitate coronary vasospasm and worsen cardiovascular outcomes due to unopposed alpha receptor stimulation. In 1999 this thinking was incorporated into the ACC/AHA guidelines, which currently recommend beta-blockers …

Coronary Heart Disease And Fish Oil, Talya Spivack, Md

The Medicine Forum

Introduction

The benefits of fish consumption on cardiovascular disease has been suggested since the early 1980s in studies that demonstrated Greenland Eskimo’s low rates of death from coronary heart disease.1 This was followed by another observational study that demonstrated the same findings in Japan.2 The proposed linkage between these two groups of people is their propensity to consume fish. Since then many studies have examined the relationship between fish consumption and coronary heartdisease (CHD) mortality rates. Current thinking suggests that the primary benefit of consuming fish is secondary to the omega-3 fatty acids found in fish oil.

A Case Of Babesiosis Complicated By Hepatic And Renal Failure, Steven Krawitz Ms Iv, Nilay Kavathia Md, Pratik Choksy Mbbs

The Medicine Forum

Case Report

A 67-year-old male with a past medical history of chronic kidneyinsufficiency, splenectomy, and recurrent babesiosis infectionwas transferred to with jaundice and abdominal pain.The patient initially presented to an outside hospital (OSH) withgeneralized weakness, chills, and gastrointestinal symptoms andwas found to have Babesia on peripheral blood smears. The patient received seven days of azithromycin and atovaquone,followed by three days of clindamycin and quinine sulfate.The patient was discharged home with improved symptomsand a negative peripheral blood smear. Less than 24 hourslater he returned to the OSH with worsening myalgias andabdominal pain. Physical exam was significant for jaundiceand hepatomegaly. Laboratory data …

Management Of An Unresponsive Patient With Severe Acidosis, Nnaemeka Anyadike, Md, Christie Crawford, Md

The Medicine Forum

Case Report

Congestive heart failure (CHF) is a chronic medical condition whoseincidence is rising. The prevalence of CHF is approximately 1% to3% in Western countries.1 Despite innovations in medical therapy,CHF is associated with high morbidity and mortality rates.2

CHF patients commonly experience muscle weakness andfatigue as two major symptoms. An altered intracellularhandling of ionized calcium has been suggested to play a vitalrole in impaired myocardial contraction.3 In isolated myocytesfrom patients with end stage heart failure, systolic ionizedcalcium levels were markedly decreased, while diastolic levelswere elevated as compared to healthy controls.4 In addition,digitalis and beta-blocker medical therapy is frequently usedin CHF …

Amyloid-Beta Transporter Expression At The Blood-Csf Barrier Is Age-Dependent, Crissey L. Pascale, Miles C. Miller, Catherine Chiu, Matthew Boylan, Ilias N. Caralopoulos, M. Liliana Gonzalez, Conrad E. Johanson, Gerald D. Silverberg

Computer Science and Statistics Faculty Publications

Background:

Age is the major risk factor for many neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's disease (AD). There is an accumulation of amyloid-beta peptides (Aβ) in both the AD brain and the normal aging brain. Clearance of Aβ from the brain occurs via active transport at the blood-brain barrier (BBB) and blood-cerebrospinal fluid barrier (BCSFB). With increasing age, the expression of the Aβ efflux transporters is decreased and the Aβ influx transporter expression is increased at the BBB, adding to the amyloid burden in the brain. Expression of the Aβ transporters at the choroid plexus (CP) epithelium as a function of aging …

How Well Do U.S. Forest Service Terrestrial Ecosystem Surveys Correspond With Measured Vegetation Properties?, Scott R. Abella

Life Sciences Faculty Research

No abstract provided.

Bolivian President Evo Morales Reverses Stance On Transgenic Seeds, Andrã©S Gaudã­N

NotiSur

No abstract provided.

Changes In Life History Within An Individual's Lifetime, Eric J. Billman

Theses and Dissertations

A central goal of life history theory is to understand the selective factors that generate the diversity of reproductive patterns observed in nature. Within lifetime changes in reproductive investment will determine an organism's fitness; however, this area of life history theory has received less attention than comparisons among population that characterize life history traits as a single population mean. Reproductive allocation can be affected by multiple cues; the integration of these cues across an organism's lifetime generates the diversity in life history strategies observed in nature. Life history studies should examine the interacting effects of multiple cues on life history …

The Non-Infectious Disease Implications Of Bed Bug Infestations, Christopher T. Balster

Master of Public Health Program Student Publications

The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of bed bug infestations throughout Ohio, whether the non-infectious disease implications of infestations are public health concerns, and also determine the perceived ability of public health departments to respond to outbreaks within their jurisdiction. A descriptive study was performed using survey data obtained from 79 local public health departments throughout Ohio. Overall, 79.05% of individuals surveyed agreed that bed bug outbreaks are a public health concern. The mode of responses regarding whether or not the non-infectious disease concerns of infestations are a public health concern was 4 on a scale …

Florida Sentinel Bulletin, July 8, 2011, Gwen Hayes

Florida Sentinel Bulletin Collection

The July 8, 2011, issue of the Florida Sentinel Bulletin.

Assembly Of Lamina-Specific Neuronal Connections By Slit Bound To Type Iv Collagen, Tong Xiao, Wendy Staub, Estuardo Robles, Nathan J. Gosse, Gregory J. Cole, Herwig Baier

Neuroscience: Faculty Publications

The mechanisms that generate specific neuronal connections in the brain are under intense investigation. In zebrafish, retinal ganglion cells project their axons into at least six layers within the neuropil of the midbrain tectum. Each axon elaborates a single, planar arbor in one of the target layers and forms synapses onto the dendrites of tectal neurons. We show that the laminar specificity of retinotectal connections does not depend on self-sorting interactions among RGC axons. Rather, tectum-derived Slit1, signaling through axonal Robo2, guides neurites to their target layer. Genetic and biochemical studies indicate that Slit binds to Dragnet (Col4a5), a type …

Interview With Martha Gies (Audio), Heather Oriana Petrocelli

Center for the Moving Image Oral Histories

Heather Petrocelli interviewed Martha Gies at her home in Portland, Oregon on her involvement with the Center for the Moving Image.

Martha Gies is an author and educator.

Photoemission By Large Electron Wave Packets Emitted Out The Side Of A Relativistic Laser Focus, Eric Flint Cunningham

Theses and Dissertations

There are at least two common models for calculating the photoemission of accelerated electrons. The 'extended-charge-distribution' method uses the quantum probability current (multiplied by the electron charge) as a source current for Maxwell's equations. The 'point-like-emitter' method treats the electron like a point particle instead of like a diffuse body of charge. Our goal is to differentiate between these two viewpoints empirically. To do this, we consider a large electron wave packet in a high-intensity laser field, in which case the two viewpoints predict measurable photoemission rates that differ by orders of magnitude. Under the treatment of the 'extended-charge-distribution' model, …

Download Entire Issue-The Medicine Forum, Volume 10, 2008

The Medicine Forum

Download entire issue-The Medicine Forum, Volume 10, 2008.

Man With Swollen Eye, Blurred Vision, And Fevers In The Setting Of Newly Diagnosed Mds, Rory Bowers, Md

The Medicine Forum

Case Presentation

An 82 year-old male with a past medical history of prostatecancer, atrial fibrillation, gout, and recently diagnosed myelodysplasticsyndrome presented with a chief complaint of left eyepain. The patient also reported peri-orbital numbness, swelling,and clear discharge as well as episodic blurry vision of his lefteye. Over the previous two months he had been admitted to thehospital multiple times complaining of cough and high feversand was subsequently treated with several courses of antibioticsfor presumed pneumonia. During the initial admission forpneumonia he was noted to have a relative pancytopenia. Abone marrow biopsy was eventually undertaken revealing adiagnosis of myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS).

Case Reports A 31 Year-Old Man With Chest Pain, Rash, And Ekg Changes, Neerav Sheth, Md,, Rahul Anand, Md, Matthew Stopper, Md

The Medicine Forum

Case Presentation

A 31 year-old Caucasian male with no significant past medicalhistory presents with increasing dizziness, chest pain, andshortness of breath of one day duration. On returning from acamping trip to Northern Pennsylvania three weeks prior toadmission, he noted high fevers, “joint pains all over,” and a pinkblotchy rash all over his chest and back. He did not recall anyinsect, tick or animal bites. His primary physician, who clinicallysuspected Lyme disease, ordered Lyme serologies and offered aprescription for doxycycline which the patient declined. Twoweeks later, the patient presented to the emergency departmentafter the onset of chest pain that he described …

Prometheus Radio Project V. Fcc

2011 Decisions

Agency

Daily Eastern News: July 07, 2011, Eastern Illinois University

July

No abstract provided.

Modeling Techniques For The High-Resolution Interpretation Of Cryo-Electron Microscopy Reconstructions, Mirabela Rusu

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Essential biological processes are governed by organized, dynamic interactions between multiple biomolecular systems. Complexes are thus formed to enable the biological function and get dissembled as the process is completed. Examples of such processes include the translation of the messenger RNA into protein by the ribosome, the folding of proteins by chaperonins or the entry of viruses in host cells. Understanding these fundamental processes by characterizing the molecular mechanisms that enable then, would allow the (better) design of therapies and drugs. Such molecular mechanisms may be revealed trough the structural elucidation of the biomolecular assemblies at the core of these …