Digital Commons Network^™

The Complexities Of Wolf Spider Communication: Exploring Courtship Signal Function In Rabidosa Rabida, Dustin J. Wilgers

School of Biological Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Evidence of signal complexity is seemingly pervasive across animal communication systems. Exploring signal function may provide insight into how these displays evolved and are maintained. This dissertation examines the courtship signal function in a grassland wolf spider. Rabidosa rabida lives in an extremely complex environment, and males use complex displays incorporating both visual and seismic modalities. Using several approaches I provide insight into the content and efficacy of the various signal components, as well as how variation in these displays influence female mating decisions in isolation and combined.

First, I manipulated male and female body condition using diet quantity manipulations …

The Effect Of Mood On Attention To Global And Local Characteristics Of Music, Jennifer Pope

The Plymouth Student Scientist

The effect of mood on global and local processing was studied in 60 undergraduate psychology students, half of which were randomly assigned to a positive condition and the other half to a negative condition. Each participant carried out same-different judgements on pairs of melodies that were either the same, or altered globally or locally. Key findings included significant differences in performance for all melodies; however despite a trend for enhanced local processing in a negative mood compared to a positive mood, the effect of mood on global and local processing failed to reach statistical significance. These findings suggest that mood …

Vocabulary Acquisition In Bilingual Children: Are They More Delayed In English Than Their Monolingual Peers? Does This Depend On Input Of Language?, Naomi Kilgore

The Plymouth Student Scientist

The current study investigated the effect of exposure to English on bilingual language acquisition. 18 monolingual and 6 bilingual children, aged between 29 -32 months, took part in standardised language tests measuring productive and comprehensive vocabulary. Although previous research has investigated this, not all variables known to affect vocabulary development have been controlled for. This study controlled for socio-economic status, birth order and different levels of exposure to English and compared these to test scores. Results suggest exposure is a significant predictor of productive (p = .01) and comprehensive (p < .01) language development. A greater difference was found between groups for production (p < .01) supporting previous research suggesting production may be more problematic than comprehension for bilingual children.

Investigating The Nature Of Body Representations And Their Use In Pair Matching And Mental Rotation Tasks, Abigail Clifton

The Plymouth Student Scientist

Two computer based stimulus-response experiments were conducted with the aim of finding whether Body Representations aid pair matching and mental rotations of 'same‘ or 'different‘ Bodies in comparison to Bicycles. Also to find whether 'disconnecting‘ Body Stimuli would disrupt the BSD and increase RTs. Sixteen different University of Plymouth students took part in each experiment, 32 overall. No significant effects were found for pair matching alone. Body Stimuli were rotated significantly more quickly than Bicycle Stimuli in Experiment 2. This effect was attributed to participants utilising their Body Representations to perform the rotations in a more holistic way. No effect …

In Vitro Micropropagation Of Medicinal Plants By Tissue Culture, Yaadwinder Sidhu

The Plymouth Student Scientist

Tissue culturing of medicinal plants is widely used to produce active compounds for herbal and pharmaceutical industries. Conservation of genetic material of many threatened medicinal plants also involves culturing techniques. This work reviews in vitro micropropagation techniques and gives examples of various commercially important medicinal plants. The effect of media formulations and culturing techniques on the growth and multiplication of medicinal plants; and on the production of secondary metabolites is also reviewed. Another method of obtaining secondary metabolites is biotransformation; some famous pharmaceuticals obtained by this method are discussed briefly.

Contrast, Heidi Stachulak

All Student Theses and Dissertations

This thesis will discuss the importance of contrast within a piece of artwork as well as a history and explanation of the other elements and principles of art. It is important for artists to understand the elements and principles to have a good base in creating artwork. This thesis will explore the history of the elements and principles, review other artists using these principles within their artwork as well as the significance of these elements and principles within my own artwork. Through this exploration an artist will be able to understand as well as utilize these elements and principles within …

Prairie Restoration And Species Diversity: A Comparison Of Propagation Success Between Seeded And Planted Forbs, Julie A. Widinski

All Student Theses and Dissertations

Prairie ecosystems used to dominate Illinois’ landscapes, providing some of the most organically rich soils in the world, supplying homes to hundreds of native species, and conserving soil and water. The deep rooted forbs prevent water runoff and soil erosion. Economically the prairies have provided medicines, commercial forbs, and aesthetically pleasing landscapes for humans. Society is dependent on the rich soils these prairies have provided for agriculture and for prevention of erosion and water runoff. With less than one tenth of one percent of Illinois prairies still remaining, successful prairie restoration is of the utmost importance. In order to achieve …

Farmwork-Related Injury Among Farmers 50 Years Of Age And Older In Kentucky And South Carolina: A Cohort Study, 2002-2005, Jennifer L. Marcum, Steven R. Browning, Deborah B. Reed, Richard Charnigo

Epidemiology and Environmental Health Faculty Publications

Farmers in the U.S. are becoming more diverse; the average age of the farmer is increasing, as is the number of women and minority farm operators. There is limited research on injury risk factors in these special populations of farmers. It is especially important to study the risk factors for injury in these growing and at-risk groups. A longitudinal survey was conducted of farmers (n = 1,394) age 50 and older who resided in Kentucky and South Carolina. The questionnaire was administered by telephone and mail surveys four times between 2002 and 2005 to the fixed cohort of farmers, obtained …

Bonobos Fall Within The Genomic Variation Of Chimpanzees, Anne Fischer, Kay Prüfer, Jeffrey M. Good, Michel Halbwax, Victor Wiebe, Claudine André, Rebeca Atencia, Lawrence Mugisha, Susan E. Ptak, Svante Pääbo

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

To gain insight into the patterns of genetic variation and evolutionary relationships within and between bonobos and chimpanzees, we sequenced 150,000 base pairs of nuclear DNA divided among 15 autosomal regions as well as the complete mitochondrial genomes from 20 bonobos and 58 chimpanzees. Except for western chimpanzees, we found poor genetic separation of chimpanzees based on sample locality. In contrast, bonobos consistently cluster together but fall as a group within the variation of chimpanzees for many of the regions. Thus, while chimpanzees retain genomic variation that predates bonobo-chimpanzee speciation, extensive lineage sorting has occurred within bonobos such that much …

Valuing Ecological Systems And Services, Robert Costanza, Ida Kubiszewski, David E. Ervin, Randall Bluffstone, Darrell Brown, Heejun Chang, Veronica Dujon, Elise F. Granek, Stephen Polasky, Vivek Shandas, J. Alan Yeakley, James Boyd

Institute for Sustainable Solutions Publications and Presentations

Making trade-offs between ecological services and other contributors to human well-being is a difficult but critical process that requires valuation. This allows both better recognition of the ecological, social, and economic trade-offs and also allows us to bill those who use up or destroy ecological services and reward those that produce or enhance them. It also aids improved ecosystems policy. In this paper we clarify some of the controversies in defining the contributions to human well-being from functioning ecosystems, many of which people are not even aware of.We go on to describe the applicability of the various valuation methods that …

Separation Of Lycopene/Solvent Mixture By Chitosan Membranes, P Yodjun, K Soontarapa, C Eamchotchawalit

Journal of Metals, Materials and Minerals

Acetone in view of lower toxicity could be used as extracting solvent of lycopene in tomato paste instead of hexane. The studied chitosan membranes were uncrosslinked and crosslinked types. It was found that the membrane morphology could be changed from porous to dense structure by increasing evaporation temperature or time or by crosslinking. They showed hydrophilicity but not preferred to both acetone and lycopene. The lycopene/acetone mixture could be separated by using water swollen chitosan membrane in pervaporation process. It was found that all studied membranes; i.e., both uncrosslinked and ionically crosslinked membranes prepared at 40 to 60C for 2 …

Aku-Nama : Summer 2011, Volume 4, Issue 1, Aga Khan University Alumni Association

The Aga Khan University Newsletter and Magazine for Alumni (AKU-NAMA)

No abstract provided.

Early Childhood Bilingualism Leads To Advances In Executive Attention: Dissociating Culture And Language, Sujin Yang, Hwajin Yang, Barbara Lust

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

This study investigated whether early especially efficient utilization of executive functioning in young bilinguals would transcend potential cultural benefits. To dissociate potential cultural effects from bilingualism, four-year-old U.S. Korean-English bilingual children were compared to three monolingual groups – English and Korean monolinguals in the U.S.A. and another Korean monolingual group, in Korea. Overall, bilinguals were most accurate and fastest among all groups. The bilingual advantage was stronger than that of culture in the speed of attention processing, inverse processing efficiency independent of possible speed-accuracy trade-offs, and the network of executive control for conflict resolution. A culture advantage favoring Korean monolinguals …

Cucurbits, Late Summer 2011, Horticulture Center

Cucurbits

Newsletter of the Illinois State University Horticulture Center.

"Christians Aren’T Perfect Just Forgiven": A Second Look To Christ’S Ministry In The Heavenly Sanctuary, Felix H. Cortez

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Effects Of Training And Testosterone On Muscle-Fiber Types And Locomotor Performance In Male Six-Lined Racerunners (Aspidoscelis Sexlineata), Jennifer L. O'Conner, Lance D. Mcbrayer, Timothy E. Higham, Jerry F. Husak, Ignacio T. Moore, David C. Rostal

Biology: Faculty Publications

Testosterone (T) is thought to affect a variety of traits important for fitness, including coloration, the size of sexual ornaments, aggression, and locomotor performance. Here, we investigated the effects of experimentally elevated T and locomotor training on muscle physiology and running performance in a nonterritorial male lizard species (Aspidoscelis sexlineata). Additionally, several morphological attributes were quantified to examine other characters that are likely affected by T and/or a training regimen. Neither training alone nor training with T supplementation resulted in increased locomotor performance. Instead, we found that T and training resulted in a decrease in each of three …

Images Of Experience: Decolonizing Medicine, Colleen Hill Patton

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

The experiences of illness and trauma are vivid examples of a discontinuity that separates us from those that surround us. In seeking treatment, we enter a very foreign culture, regardless of how long or of how serious our injury or illness. We are disconnected from our personal and private lives and are placed within a cultural group bearing a separate set of beliefs and practices. Practitioners of medicine make up a distinct culture. This culture is formed as a site of discontinuity in a large part through the experiences of medical education from that of the experiences of the one …

House Fly (Musca Domestica L.) Temporal And Spatial Immune Response To Streptococcus Pyogenes And Salmonella Typhimurium: Role Of Pathogen Density In Bacterial Fate, Persistence And Transmission, Rabecca Chifanzwa

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

House flies (Musca domestica L), feed and breed in decomposing organic waste and therefore are constantly in contact with different species of microorganisms. Because house flies live in close proximity to human and animal habitats, they pose a danger of transmitting pathogenic microorganisms from diseased sources to new environments. To elucidate pathogen vector potential of house flies, this study investigated dose-dependent survivability of GFPexpressing Streptococcus pyogenes and Salmonella typhimurium SR11 within the fly alimentary canal both spatially via epifluorescence microscopy and quantitatively via culture-recovery. Adult house flies were fed known amounts of bacteria (high or low dose), and were dissected …

Effects Of Sediment On Growth And Survival Of Various Juvenile Morphologies Of The Scleractinian Cora, Oculina Arbuscula (Verrill), Lauren Mallory Divine

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Sedimentation can play an important role in shaping tropical and temperate benthic marine communities. Here, I quantified sedimentation rates on a hard-bottom reef in the South Atlantic Bight (SAB) off the coast of Georgia, USA and assessed its effects on a conspicuous member of the benthic community: the scleractinian coral, Oculina arbuscula. I addressed the predictions that: 1) inorganic and organic sedimentation rates vary in relation to wind speed and wave height in the SAB, 2) the ability of juvenile O. arbuscula to shed sediment depends on skeletal morphology, and 3) inorganic sedimentation reduces growth and survival of encrusting O. …

Quantifying Environmental Maternal Effects In The Invasive Plant, Silene Latifolia, Juliette T. Jordan

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

One of the over-arching goals of biology is to determine the relative importance of nature versus nurture. Nature versus nurture reflects the relative contribution of an individual's genetic makeup and environment to its growth and reproduction. In addition, the environment experienced by an individual's mother can also indirectly affect the performance of her offspring - these are environmental maternal effects (EME). For example, if a mother experiences a high quality environment, her offspring may respond with enhanced growth. We expect natural variation in habitat quality to lead to high levels of EME since mothers will vary in the environment they …

The Ontogeny Of Escape Responses And Locomotor Performance In Sceloporus Woodi, Reed B. Stiller

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Predator prey interactions have the potential to shape patterns of natural selection. For prey, avoiding detection by predators is of primary importance; however prey species risk detection by movement. Other than crypsis, prey species also use secondary defenses when detected by a predator. The most common secondary defense is flight. Flight initiation distance describes the distance between a prey item and a predator where the benefits of fleeing outweigh the benefits of remaining stationary. There are many factors that influence flight initiation distance including ontogenetic stage, ability to escape, and the degree of crypsis. Of these, the ontogenetic effects on …

Molecular And Immunohistochemical Identification Of A Sodium Hydrogen Exchanger-2c (Nhe2c) Paralog In The Gills Of Marine Longhorn Sculpin (Myoxocephalus Octodecemspinosus), Demi Brett Rabeneck

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Sodium hydrogen exchanger proteins (NHEs) are members of the cation proton antiporter superfamily (CPA) and are thought to function in fish for maintaining physiological ion concentrations and acid-base balances by excreting excess H+ ions from the body in exchange for Na+ ions. There are many more types of these proteins in teleost fish than in mammals due to putative genome duplication. This study describes a new form of NHE2 in the gills of marine longhorn sculpin, Myoxocephalus octodecemspinosus, designated NHE2c. Sequencing revealed that the NHE2c nucleotide-coding region transcribes a peptide 795 amino acids in length with an estimated molecular weight …

General Concepts Of Biological Control, Diane G. Alston

All Current Publications

“Balance of Nature.” Virtually all pest populations are affected by natural enemies to some extent. In many cases, natural enemies are the primary regulating force of the pest populations. Natural controls include effects of natural enemies (predators, parasites, pathogens), other biotic (living) factors such as food availability and competition, and abiotic (non-living) factors such as weather and soil

Rhubarb In The Garden, Taun Beddes

All Current Publications

Rhubarb (Rheum rhabarbarum L.) has been cultivated for thousands of years and was introduced to North America in the seventeenth century. Rhubarb is an easy to grow, nutritious vegetable that can live in the garden for 10 to 15 years, and deserves more attention.

Inventory Of Environmental Impact Monitoring Activities At Wave & Tidal Energy Sites In Europe, D Conley, R Leeney, D Greaves, B Holmes, Am O’Hagan, B Godley, C Mcclellan, M Witt, H Mouslim, J Sundberg

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

No abstract provided.

Comprehending The Evolving Leadership Role Of The Consultant Designer In The New Product Development Process In Mature Product Categories, Fiona Maciver

Doctoral

Seismic shifts in 21st century market conditions – globalisation, immediate digital communications, rapidly developing technologies, an ever more sophisticated, knowledgeable consumer – create a new landscape for organisations seeking to create products of greater value, which better meet evolving needs and desires. While the marketing-led approach, dominant in the past half-century, focused on persuasion, design, with its specialised tools, is suggested to be more adept and flexible than marketing at understanding and providing relevant value for today’s consumer. A literature review argues that, in history, design has endured periods of particular strength followed by decline. This thesis examines the proposition …

In Tune With History, Celeste Huttes

Illinois Wesleyan University Magazine, 2002-2017

As the nation commemorates the 150th anniversary of the Civil War, IWU alumni help bring the era’s music to life.

Differential Responses Of Targeted Lung Redox Enzymes To Rat Exposure To 60 Or 85% Oxygen, Zhuohui Gan, David L. Roerig, Anne V. Clough, Said H. Audi

Biomedical Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Rat exposure to 60% O₂ (hyper-60) or 85% O₂ (hyper-85) for 7 days confers susceptibility or tolerance, respectively, of the otherwise lethal effects of exposure to 100% O₂. The objective of this study was to determine whether activities of the antioxidant cytosolic enzyme NAD(P)H:quinone oxidoreductase 1 (NQO1) and mitochondrial complex III are differentially altered in hyper-60 and hyper-85 lungs. Duroquinone (DQ), an NQO1 substrate, or its hydroquinone (DQH₂), a complex III substrate, was infused into the arterial inflow of isolated, perfused lungs, and the venous efflux rates of DQH₂ and DQ were measured. …

Comparative Characterization Of Four Mouse Parthenogenetic Embryonic Stem (Pes) Cell Lines, Sasitorn Rungarunlert, Ruttachuk Rungsiwiwut, Sirilada Suphankong, Sasithorn Panasophonkul, Kamthorn Pruksananonda, Pramuan Virutamasen, Melinda K. Pirity, Andras Dinnyes, Theerawat Tharasanit, Mongkol Techakumphu

The Thai Journal of Veterinary Medicine

Derivation of embryonic stem (ES) cells from parthenogenetic embryos represents a possible alternativeapproach to create histocompatible cells for regenerative medicine. The objectives of this study were to establishmouse parthenogenetic ES (pES) cell lines from parthenogenetically-derived blastocysts as a model system for humanand animal research and to examine pluripotency differences among the pES cell lines. We are able to report thesuccessful establishment of four pluripotent pES cell lines from blastocysts of parthenogenetic origin (22% efficiencyof pES cell line establishment). Four pES cell lines (pES#1-4) exhibited a typical ES cell morphology and expression ofkey pluripotency markers (ALP, Oct4, Nanog and SSEA-1). Three …

Examining The Relationships Among Injury Outcomes, Velocity And Grip Strength During Dynamic Platform Perturbation, Braden Cripe

Master's Theses (2009 -)

Studies examining the relationship between inputs and outputs for simulated models of dynamically perturbed horizontal platforms are scarce. Most of these scenarios include a standing operator with upper extremity grip, oftentimes subjected to lateral impulses, which may lead to occupant injury. While the detailed study of these collision scenarios is sparse, the prevalence of their application is great.

This thesis aims to identify how two input parameters, velocity change (ÄV) and grip strength, affect injury assessment reference values (IARVs). This is accomplished by using Mathematical Dynamic Modeling (MADYMO) software to simulate the scenarios defined by those inputs. In the simulation, …