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2011

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The Evolution Of Information Systems Offshoring Research: A Past, Present And Future Meta Analysis Review, Peter Haried, Hua Dai Jan 2011

The Evolution Of Information Systems Offshoring Research: A Past, Present And Future Meta Analysis Review, Peter Haried, Hua Dai

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

This research article presents a past, present and future meta analysis of information systems offshoring (ISO) research over the 2000-2010 time period. ISO has emerged as a significant sourcing strategy adopted by many organizations to manage, support and deliver their information system needs. Across the selected academic articles our findings compare research methodologies applied, client vs. vendor perspectives studied and ISO topic areas investigated. Interesting results emerge in the range and evolution of ISO research. As a result of our analysis, our findings clearly indicate areas of need for future ISO researchers to consider when conducting future ISO research.


Human Fatty Acid Transport Protein 2a/Very Long Chain Acyl-Coa Synthetase 1 (Fatp2a/Acsvl1) Has A Preference In Mediating The Channeling Of Exogenous N-3 Fatty Acids Into Phosphatidylinositol, Elaina M. Melton, Ronald Cerny, Paul A. Watkins, Concetta C. Dirusso, Paul N. Black Jan 2011

Human Fatty Acid Transport Protein 2a/Very Long Chain Acyl-Coa Synthetase 1 (Fatp2a/Acsvl1) Has A Preference In Mediating The Channeling Of Exogenous N-3 Fatty Acids Into Phosphatidylinositol, Elaina M. Melton, Ronald Cerny, Paul A. Watkins, Concetta C. Dirusso, Paul N. Black

Ronald Cerny Publications

The trafficking of fatty acids across the membrane and into downstream metabolic pathways requires their activation to CoA thioesters. Members of the fatty acid transport protein/ very long chain acyl-CoA synthetase (FATP/Acsvl) family are emerging as key players in the trafficking of exogenous fatty acids into the cell and in intracellular fatty acid homeostasis.We have expressed two naturally occurring splice variants of human FATP2 (Acsvl1) in yeast and 293T-REx cells and addressed their roles in fatty acid transport, activation, and intracellular trafficking. Although both forms (FATP2a (Mr 70,000) and FATP2b (Mr 65,000 and lacking exon3, which encodes part of the …


Overexpression Of Galnac-Transferase Galnac-T3 Promotes Pancreatic Cancer Cell Growth, Keisuke Taniuchi, Ronald Cerny, Aki Tanouchi, Kimitoshi Kohno, Norihiro Kotani, Koichi Honke, Toshiji Saibara, Michael A. Hollingsworth Jan 2011

Overexpression Of Galnac-Transferase Galnac-T3 Promotes Pancreatic Cancer Cell Growth, Keisuke Taniuchi, Ronald Cerny, Aki Tanouchi, Kimitoshi Kohno, Norihiro Kotani, Koichi Honke, Toshiji Saibara, Michael A. Hollingsworth

Ronald Cerny Publications

O-linked glycans of secreted and membrane bound proteins play an important role in the pathogenesis of pancreatic cancer by modulating immune responses, inflammation, and tumorigenesis. A critical aspect of O-glycosylation, the position at which proteins are glycosylated with N-acetyl-galactosamine on serine and threonine residues, is regulated by the substrate specificity of UDP-GalNAc: polypeptide N-acetylgalactosaminyl-transferases (GalNAc-Ts). Thus, GalNAc-Ts regulate the first committed step in O-glycosylated protein biosynthesis, determine sites of O-glycosylation on proteins, and are important for understanding normal and carcinoma-associated O-glycosylation. We have found that one of these enzymes, GalNAc-T3, is overexpressed in …


Identification And Characterization Of The Anti-Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus Wap-8294a2 Biosynthetic Gene Cluster From Lysobacter Enzymogenes Oh11, Wei Zhang, Yaoyao Li, Guoliang Qian, Yan Wang, Haotong Chen, Yue-Zhong Li, Fengquan Liu, Yuemao Shen, Liangcheng Du Jan 2011

Identification And Characterization Of The Anti-Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus Wap-8294a2 Biosynthetic Gene Cluster From Lysobacter Enzymogenes Oh11, Wei Zhang, Yaoyao Li, Guoliang Qian, Yan Wang, Haotong Chen, Yue-Zhong Li, Fengquan Liu, Yuemao Shen, Liangcheng Du

Department of Chemistry: Faculty Publications

Lysobactor enzymogenes strain OH11 is an emerging biological control agent of fungal and bacterial diseases. We recently completed its genome sequence and found it contains a large number of gene clusters putatively responsible for the biosynthesis of nonribosomal peptides and polyketides, including the previously identified antifungal dihydromaltophilin (HSAF). One of the gene clusters contains two huge open reading frames, together encoding 12 modules of nonribosomal peptide synthetases (NRPS). Gene disruption of one of the NRPS led to the disappearance of a metabolite produced in the wild type and the elimination of its antibacterial activity. The metabolite and antibacterial activity were …


Characterizing Rna Dynamics At Atomic Resolution Using Solution-State Nmr Spectroscopy, Jameson R. Bothe, Evgenia N. Nikolova, Catherine D. Eichhorn, Jeetender Chugh, Alexandar L. Hansen, Hashim M. Al-Hashimi Jan 2011

Characterizing Rna Dynamics At Atomic Resolution Using Solution-State Nmr Spectroscopy, Jameson R. Bothe, Evgenia N. Nikolova, Catherine D. Eichhorn, Jeetender Chugh, Alexandar L. Hansen, Hashim M. Al-Hashimi

Department of Chemistry: Faculty Publications

Many recently discovered non-coding RNAs do not fold into a single native conformation, but rather, sample many different conformations along their free energy landscape to carry out their biological function. Unprecedented insights into the RNA dynamic structure landscape are provided by solution-state NMR techniques that measure the structural, kinetic, and thermodynamic characteristics of motions spanning picosecond to second timescales at atomic resolution. From these studies a basic description of the RNA dynamic structure landscape is emerging, bringing new insights into how RNA structures change to carry out their function as well as applications in RNA-targeted drug discovery and RNA bioengineering.


Corrosion Rate Trajectories Of Concreted Iron And Steel Shipwrecks And Structures In Seawater— The Weins Number, Donald L. Johnson, D. J. Medlin, L. E. Murphy, J. D. Carr, D. L. Conlin Jan 2011

Corrosion Rate Trajectories Of Concreted Iron And Steel Shipwrecks And Structures In Seawater— The Weins Number, Donald L. Johnson, D. J. Medlin, L. E. Murphy, J. D. Carr, D. L. Conlin

Department of Chemistry: Faculty Publications

The Weins number (Wn) concept is proposed to predict the long-term corrosion rate of wrought iron and steel in seawater for variable marine environments. Plotted as a function of reciprocal absolute temperature, Weins numbers generate a linear plot from which the corrosion rates are calculated when temperature, oxygen concentration, and concretion thickness are known. Application of the theory of absolute reaction rates is described.


Chromatographic Analysis Of Drug Interactions In The Serum Proteome, David S. Hage, Jeanethe A. Anguizola, Abby J. Jackson, Ryan Matsuda, Efthimia Papastavros, Erika Pfaunmiller, Zenghan Tong, John Vargas-Badilla, Michelle J. Yoo, Xiwei Zheng Jan 2011

Chromatographic Analysis Of Drug Interactions In The Serum Proteome, David S. Hage, Jeanethe A. Anguizola, Abby J. Jackson, Ryan Matsuda, Efthimia Papastavros, Erika Pfaunmiller, Zenghan Tong, John Vargas-Badilla, Michelle J. Yoo, Xiwei Zheng

David Hage Publications

The binding of drugs with serum proteins and binding agents such as human serum albumin, a1-acid glycoprotein, and lipoproteins is an important process in determining the activity and fate of many pharmaceuticals in the body. A variety of techniques have been used to study drug interactions with serum proteins, but there is still a need for faster or better methods for such work. High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) is one tool that has been utilized in many formats for these types of measurements. Advantages of using HPLC for this application include its speed and precision, its ability to be automated, its …


Extremal Problems For Independent Set Enumeration, Jonathan Cutler, A. J. Radcliffe Jan 2011

Extremal Problems For Independent Set Enumeration, Jonathan Cutler, A. J. Radcliffe

Department of Mathematics: Faculty Publications

The study of the number of independent sets in a graph has a rich history. Recently, Kahn proved that disjoint unions of Kr,r’s have the maximum number of independent sets amongst r-regular bipartite graphs. Zhao extended this to all r-regular graphs. If we instead restrict the class of graphs to those on a fixed number of vertices and edges, then the Kruskal-Katona theorem implies that the graph with the maximum number of independent sets is the lex graph, where edges form an initial segment of the lexicographic ordering. In this paper, we study three related questions. Firstly, we …


An Entropy Proof Of The Kahn-Lovasz Theorem, Jonathan Cutler, A. J. Radcliffe Jan 2011

An Entropy Proof Of The Kahn-Lovasz Theorem, Jonathan Cutler, A. J. Radcliffe

Department of Mathematics: Faculty Publications

Bregman [2], gave a best possible upper bound for the number of perfect matchings in a balanced bipartite graph in terms of its degree sequence. Recently Kahn and Lovasz [8] extended Bregman’s theorem to general graphs. In this paper, we use entropy methods to give a new proof of the Kahn-Lovasz theorem. Our methods build on Radhakrishnan’s [9] use of entropy to prove Bregman’s theorem.


Production Of Excited Atomic Hydrogen And Deuterium From H2, Hd And D2 Photodissociation, J R. Machacek, V M. Andrianarijaona, J. E. Furst, A L D Kilcoyne, A L Landers, E T Litaker, K W Mclaughlin, Timothy J. Gay Jan 2011

Production Of Excited Atomic Hydrogen And Deuterium From H2, Hd And D2 Photodissociation, J R. Machacek, V M. Andrianarijaona, J. E. Furst, A L D Kilcoyne, A L Landers, E T Litaker, K W Mclaughlin, Timothy J. Gay

Timothy J. Gay Publications

We have measured the production of Lyman α and Balmer α fluorescence from atomic H and D for the photodissociation of H2, HD and D2 by linearly-polarized photons with energies between 22 and 64 eV. We discuss systematic uncertainties associated with our data, and compare our results with previous experimental results and ab initio calculations of the dissociation process. We comment on the discrepancies.


Background-Free, Quasi-Monoenergetic Electron Beams From A Self-Injected Laser Wakefield Accelerator, Sudeep Banerjee, Serguei Y. Kalmykov, Nathan D. Powers, Viswanathan Ramanathan, Nathan A. Chandler-Smith, Kevin J. Brown, Shuo Chen, A. Moorthi, I. Ghebregziabher, C. Maharjan, Bradley Allan Shadwick, Donald Umstadter, A. Beck, E. Lefebvre, A. Cowan, D. Bruhwiler Jan 2011

Background-Free, Quasi-Monoenergetic Electron Beams From A Self-Injected Laser Wakefield Accelerator, Sudeep Banerjee, Serguei Y. Kalmykov, Nathan D. Powers, Viswanathan Ramanathan, Nathan A. Chandler-Smith, Kevin J. Brown, Shuo Chen, A. Moorthi, I. Ghebregziabher, C. Maharjan, Bradley Allan Shadwick, Donald Umstadter, A. Beck, E. Lefebvre, A. Cowan, D. Bruhwiler

Donald Umstadter Publications

Stable 200–400-MeV quasi-monoenergetic electron bunches (ΔE/Eno dark-currentare produced when a self-injected laser plasma accelerator is optimized. PIC simulations demonstrate these beams are produced near the threshold for selfinjection.


A Perspective On Thirty Years Of The Webb, Pearman And Leuning Density Corrections, Xuhui Lee, William J. Massman Jan 2011

A Perspective On Thirty Years Of The Webb, Pearman And Leuning Density Corrections, Xuhui Lee, William J. Massman

United States Department of Agriculture, Forest Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

The density correction theory of Webb et al. (1980, Q J Roy Meteorol Soc 106: 85–100, hereafter WPL) is a principle underpinning the experimental investigation of surface fluxes of energy and masses in the atmospheric boundary layer. It has a long-lasting influence in boundary-layer meteorology and micrometeorology, and the year 2010 marks the 30th anniversary of the publication of the WPL theory. We provide here a critique of the theory and review the research it has spurred over the last 30 years. In the authors’ opinion, the assumption of zero air source at the surface is a fundamental novelty that …


Testing The Terrain Hypothesis: Canada Geese See Their World Laterally And Obliquely, Esteban Fernández-Juricic, Bret A. Moore, Megan Doppler, Joseph Freeman, Bradley F. Blackwelll, Steven L. Lima, Travis L. Devault Jan 2011

Testing The Terrain Hypothesis: Canada Geese See Their World Laterally And Obliquely, Esteban Fernández-Juricic, Bret A. Moore, Megan Doppler, Joseph Freeman, Bradley F. Blackwelll, Steven L. Lima, Travis L. Devault

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

The distribution of ganglion cells in the retina determines the specific regions of the visual field with high visual acuity, and thus reflects the perception of a species’ visual environment. The terrain hypothesis proposes that animals living in open areas should have a horizontal visual streak across the retina with high ganglion cell density to increase visual acuity along the horizon. We tested this hypothesis in Canada geese (Branta canadensis) by assessing retinal topography, visual field configuration, and scanning behavior. We found that geese have an oblique rather than a horizontal visual streak across the retina: from a …


Comment On ‘‘An Unconfined Groundwater Model Of The Death Valley Regional Flow System And A Comparison To Its Confined Predecessor’’ By R.W.H. Carroll, G.M. Pohll And R.L. Hershey [Journal Of Hydrology 373/3–4, Pp. 316–328], Claudia C. Faunt, Alden M. Provost, Mary C. Hill, Wayne R. Belcher Jan 2011

Comment On ‘‘An Unconfined Groundwater Model Of The Death Valley Regional Flow System And A Comparison To Its Confined Predecessor’’ By R.W.H. Carroll, G.M. Pohll And R.L. Hershey [Journal Of Hydrology 373/3–4, Pp. 316–328], Claudia C. Faunt, Alden M. Provost, Mary C. Hill, Wayne R. Belcher

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Carroll et al. (2009) state that the United States Geological Survey (USGS) Death Valley Regional Flow System (DVRFS) model, which is based on MODFLOW, is ‘‘conceptually inaccurate in that it models an unconfined aquifer as a confined system and does not simulate unconfined drawdown in transient pumping simulations.’’ Carroll et al. (2009) claim that ‘‘more realistic estimates of water availability’’ can be produced by a SURFACT-based model of the DVRFS that simulates unconfined groundwater flow and limits withdrawals from wells to avoid excessive drawdown. Differences in results from the original MODFLOW- based model and the SURFACT-based model stem primarily from …


Regulated Commercial Harvest To Manage Overabundant White-Tailed Deer: An Idea To Consider?, Kurt C. Vercauteren, Charles W. Anderson, Timothy R. Van Deelen, David Drake, W. David Walter, Stephen Vantassel, Scott E. Hygnstrom Jan 2011

Regulated Commercial Harvest To Manage Overabundant White-Tailed Deer: An Idea To Consider?, Kurt C. Vercauteren, Charles W. Anderson, Timothy R. Van Deelen, David Drake, W. David Walter, Stephen Vantassel, Scott E. Hygnstrom

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Declines in hunter recruitment coupled with dramatic growth in numbers of white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) have challenged our ability to manage deer populations through regulated hunting. We review the efficacy of current regulated hunting methods and explain how they are unable to reduce deer numbers sufficiently in some environments. Regulated commercial harvest would provide an additional tool to help state wildlife agencies manage overabundant populations of white-tailed deer. We outline potential means to govern regulated commercial deer harvest and explain how it is compatible with the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation. We identified several benefits, including reduced …


Airborne Electromagnetic Surveys For 3d Geological Mapping, Jared D. Abraham, James C. Cannia Jan 2011

Airborne Electromagnetic Surveys For 3d Geological Mapping, Jared D. Abraham, James C. Cannia

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

The U.S. Geological Survey and its partners have collaborated to create 3D geologic maps for areas of the North and South Platte River valleys, including Lodgepole Creek, in western Nebraska using airborne electromagnetic surveys. The objective of the surveys is to map the 3D configuration of aquifers and bedrock topography created by the paleochannels of the ancestral Platte River. The ultimate goal is to gain a new understanding of groundwater–surface-water relationships to improve water management decisions through the use of groundwater management models. This goal was not achievable using traditional mapping methodologies, including surface geologic maps and borehole drilling logs. …


Surface Complexation Modeling For Predicting Solid Phase Arsenic Concentrations In The Sediments Of The Mississippi River Valley Alluvial Aquifer, Arkansas, Usa, Md. Salah U. Sharif, Ralph K. Davis, Kenneth F. Steele, Burmshik Kim, Phillip D. Hays, Tim M. Kresse, John A. Fazio Jan 2011

Surface Complexation Modeling For Predicting Solid Phase Arsenic Concentrations In The Sediments Of The Mississippi River Valley Alluvial Aquifer, Arkansas, Usa, Md. Salah U. Sharif, Ralph K. Davis, Kenneth F. Steele, Burmshik Kim, Phillip D. Hays, Tim M. Kresse, John A. Fazio

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

The potential health impact of As in drinking water supply systems in the Mississippi River Valley alluvial aquifer in the state of Arkansas, USA is significant. In this context it is important to understand the occurrence, distribution and mobilization of As in the Mississippi River Valley alluvial aquifer. Application of surface complexation models (SCMs) to predict the sorption behavior of As and hydrous Fe oxides (HFO) in the laboratory has increased in the last decade. However, the application of SCMs to predict the sorption of As in natural sediments has not often been reported, and such applications are greatly constrained …


Agricultural Herbicide Transport In A First‐Order Intermittent Stream, Nebraska, Usa, Jason Vogel, Joshua Linard Jan 2011

Agricultural Herbicide Transport In A First‐Order Intermittent Stream, Nebraska, Usa, Jason Vogel, Joshua Linard

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

The behavior of herbicides in surface waters is a function of many variables, including scale of the watershed, physical and chemical properties of the herbicide, physical and chemical properties of the soil, rainfall intensity, and time of year. In this study, the transport of 6 herbicides and 12 herbicide degradates was examined during the 2004 growing season in an intermediate‐scale agricultural watershed (146 ha) that is drained by a first‐order intermittent stream, and the mass load for each herbicide in the stream was estimated. The herbicide load during the first week of storm events after application ranged from 17% of …


Incorporating Parametric Uncertainty Into Population Viability Analysis Models, Conor P. Mcgowan, Michael C. Runge, Michael A. Larson Jan 2011

Incorporating Parametric Uncertainty Into Population Viability Analysis Models, Conor P. Mcgowan, Michael C. Runge, Michael A. Larson

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Uncertainty in parameter estimates from sampling variation or expert judgment can introduce substantial uncertainty into ecological predictions based on those estimates. However, in standard population viability analyses, one of the most widely used tools for managing plant, fish and wildlife populations, parametric uncertainty is often ignored in or discarded from model projections. We present a method for explicitly incorporating this source of uncertainty into population models to fully account for risk in management and decision contexts. Our method involves a two-step simulation process where parametric uncertainty is incorporated into the replication loop of the model and temporal variance is incorporated …


Evaluating Spawning Migration Patterns And Predicting Spawning Success Of Shovelnose Sturgeon In The Lower Missouri River, M. L. Wildhaber, S. H. Holan, G. M. Davis, D. W. Gladish, A. J. Delonay, Diana M. Papoulias, D. K. Sommerhauser Jan 2011

Evaluating Spawning Migration Patterns And Predicting Spawning Success Of Shovelnose Sturgeon In The Lower Missouri River, M. L. Wildhaber, S. H. Holan, G. M. Davis, D. W. Gladish, A. J. Delonay, Diana M. Papoulias, D. K. Sommerhauser

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Approaches using telemetry, precise reproductive assessments, and surgically implanted data storage tags (DSTs) were used in combination with novel applications of analytical techniques for fish movement studies to describe patterns in migratory behavior and predict spawning success of gravid shovelnose sturgeon. From 2004 to 2007, over 300 gravid female shovelnose sturgeon (Scaphirhynchus platorynchus) from the Lower Missouri River, that were expected to spawn in the year they were collected, were surgically implanted with transmitters and archival DSTs. Functional cluster modeling of telemetry data from the spawning season suggested two common migration patterns of gravid female shovelnose sturgeon. Fish …


Land Change Variability And Human–Environment Dynamics In The United States Great Plains, Mark A, Drummond, Roger F. Auch, Krista A. Karstensen, Kristi L. Sayler, Janis L. Taylor, Thomas Loveland Jan 2011

Land Change Variability And Human–Environment Dynamics In The United States Great Plains, Mark A, Drummond, Roger F. Auch, Krista A. Karstensen, Kristi L. Sayler, Janis L. Taylor, Thomas Loveland

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Land use and land cover changes have complex linkages to climate variability and change, biophysical resources, and socioeconomic driving forces. To assess these land change dynamics and their causes in the Great Plains, we compare and contrast contemporary changes across 16 ecoregions using Landsat satellite data and statistical analysis. Large-area change analysis of agricultural regions is often hampered by change detection error and the tendency for land conversions to occur at the local-scale. To facilitate a regional-scale analysis, a statistical sampling design of randomly selected 10 km × 10 km blocks is used to efficiently identify the types and rates …


Introduction To “Environmental Contaminants In Biota, 2nd Edition”, W. Nelson Beyer, James P. Meador Jan 2011

Introduction To “Environmental Contaminants In Biota, 2nd Edition”, W. Nelson Beyer, James P. Meador

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Ecotoxicology is the study of the movement of environmental contaminants through ecosystems and their effects on plants and animals. Examining tissue residues of these contaminants in biota is basic to ecotoxicology, both for understanding the movement of contaminants within organisms and through food chains, and for understanding and quantifying injuries to organisms and their communities. This book provides guidance on interpreting tissue concentrations of environmental contaminants.

Tissue concentrations have long been used both to identify the cause of toxicity in animals and as a measure of the severity of toxicity. More recently, they have been incorporated into environmental models, tying …


Lead In Birds, J. Christian Franson, Deborah J. Pain Jan 2011

Lead In Birds, J. Christian Franson, Deborah J. Pain

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Lead is a highly toxic heavy metal that acts as a nonspecific poison affecting all body systems and has no known biological requirement. Absorption of low concentrations may result in a wide range of sublethal effects in animals, and higher concentrations may result in mortality (Demayo et al. 1982).

Lead has been mined and smelted by humans for centuries, but the use of lead-based products increased greatly following the Industrial Revolution. Consequently, lead today is ubiquitous in air, water, and soil, in both urban and rural environments (Eisler 2000). Vertebrates are exposed to lead mainly via inhalation and ingestion. A …


Spatial Patch Occupancy Patterns Of The Lower Keys Marsh Rabbit, Mitchell J. Eaton, Phillip T. Hughes, James D. Nichols, Anne Morkill, Chad Anderson Jan 2011

Spatial Patch Occupancy Patterns Of The Lower Keys Marsh Rabbit, Mitchell J. Eaton, Phillip T. Hughes, James D. Nichols, Anne Morkill, Chad Anderson

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Reliable estimates of presence or absence of a species can provide substantial information on management questions related to distribution and habitat use but should incorporate the probability of detection to reduce bias. We surveyed for the endangered Lower Keys marsh rabbit (Sylvilagus palustris hefneri) in habitat patches on 5 Florida Key islands, USA, to estimate occupancy and detection probabilities. We derived detection probabilities using spatial replication of plots and evaluated hypotheses that patch location (coastal or interior) and patch size influence occupancy and detection. Results demonstrate that detection probability, given rabbits were present, was <0.5 and suggest that naı¨ve estimates (i.e., estimates without consideration of imperfect detection) of patch occupancy are negatively biased. We found that patch size and location influenced probability of occupancy but not detection. Our findings will be used by Refuge managers to evaluate population trends of Lower Keys marsh rabbits from historical data and to guide management decisions for species recovery. The sampling and analytical methods we used may be useful for researchers and managers of other endangered lagomorphs and cryptic or fossorial animals occupying diverse habitats.


Estimating Age From Recapture Data: Integrating Incremental Growth Measures With Ancillary Data To Infer Age-At-Length, Mitchell J. Eaton, William A. Link Jan 2011

Estimating Age From Recapture Data: Integrating Incremental Growth Measures With Ancillary Data To Infer Age-At-Length, Mitchell J. Eaton, William A. Link

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Estimating the age of individuals in wild populations can be of fundamental importance for answering ecological questions, modeling population demographics, and managing exploited or threatened species. Significant effort has been devoted to determining age through the use of growth annuli, secondary physical characteristics related to age, and growth models. Many species, however, either do not exhibit physical characteristics useful for independent age validation or are too rare to justify sacrificing a large number of individuals to establish the relationship between size and age. Length-at-age models are well represented in the fisheries and other wildlife management literature. Many of these models …


Spatial Patch Occupancy Patterns Of The Lower Keys Marsh Rabbit, Mitchell J. Eaton, Phillip T. Hughes, James D. Nichols, Anne Morkill, Chad Anderson Jan 2011

Spatial Patch Occupancy Patterns Of The Lower Keys Marsh Rabbit, Mitchell J. Eaton, Phillip T. Hughes, James D. Nichols, Anne Morkill, Chad Anderson

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Reliable estimates of presence or absence of a species can provide substantial information on management questions related to distribution and habitat use but should incorporate the probability of detection to reduce bias. We surveyed for the endangered Lower Keys marsh rabbit (Sylvilagus palustris hefneri) in habitat patches on 5 Florida Key islands, USA, to estimate occupancy and detection probabilities. We derived detection probabilities using spatial replication of plots and evaluated hypotheses that patch location (coastal or interior) and patch size influence occupancy and detection. Results demonstrate that detection probability, given rabbits were present, was <0.5 and suggest that naı¨ve estimates (i.e., estimates without consideration of imperfect detection) of patch occupancy are negatively biased. We found that patch size and location influenced probability of occupancy but not detection. Our findings will be used by Refuge managers to evaluate population trends of Lower Keys marsh rabbits from historical data and to guide management decisions for species recovery. The sampling and analytical methods we used may be useful for researchers and managers of other endangered lagomorphs and cryptic or fossorial animals occupying diverse habitats.


Rapid Wetland Expansion During European Settlement And Its Implication For Marsh Survival Under Modern Sediment Delivery Rates, Matthew L. Kirwan, A. Brad Murray, Jeffrey P. Donnelly, D. Reide Corbett Jan 2011

Rapid Wetland Expansion During European Settlement And Its Implication For Marsh Survival Under Modern Sediment Delivery Rates, Matthew L. Kirwan, A. Brad Murray, Jeffrey P. Donnelly, D. Reide Corbett

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Fluctuations in sea-level rise rates are thought to dominate the formation and evolution of coastal wetlands. Here we demonstrate a contrasting scenario in which land-use–related changes in sediment delivery rates drive the formation of expansive marshland, and vegetation feedbacks maintain their morphology despite recent sediment supply reduction. Stratigraphic analysis and radiocarbon dating in the Plum Island Estuary (Massachusetts, United States) suggest that salt marshes expanded rapidly during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries due to increased rates of sediment delivery following deforestation associated with European settlement. Numerical modeling coupled with the stratigraphic observations suggests that existing marshland could survive, but not …


Adaptive Resource Management And The Value Of Information, Byron K. Williams, Mitchell J. Eaton, David R. Breininger Jan 2011

Adaptive Resource Management And The Value Of Information, Byron K. Williams, Mitchell J. Eaton, David R. Breininger

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

The value of information is a general and broadly applicable concept that has been used for several decades to aid in making decisions in the face of uncertainty. Yet there are relatively few examples of its use in ecology and natural resources management, and almost none that are framed in terms of the future impacts of management decisions. In this paper we discuss the value of information in a context of adaptive management, in which actions are taken sequentially over a timeframe and both future resource conditions and residual uncertainties about resource responses are taken into account. Our objective is …


A Loess–Paleosol Record Of Climate And Glacial History Over The Past Two Glacial–Interglacial Cycles (~150 Ka), Southern Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Kenneth L. Pierce, Daniel R. Muhs, Maynard A. Fosberg, Shannon A. Mahan, Joseph G. Rosenbaum, Joseph M. Licciardi, Milan J. Pavich Jan 2011

A Loess–Paleosol Record Of Climate And Glacial History Over The Past Two Glacial–Interglacial Cycles (~150 Ka), Southern Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Kenneth L. Pierce, Daniel R. Muhs, Maynard A. Fosberg, Shannon A. Mahan, Joseph G. Rosenbaum, Joseph M. Licciardi, Milan J. Pavich

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Loess accumulated on a Bull Lake outwash terrace of Marine Oxygen Isotope Stage 6 (MIS 6) age in southern Jackson Hole, Wyoming. The 9 m section displays eight intervals of loess deposition (Loess 1 to Loess 8, oldest), each followed by soil development. Our age-depth model is constrained by thermoluminescence, meteoric 10Be accumulation in soils, and cosmogenic 10Be surface exposure ages. We use particle size, geochemical, mineral-magnetic, and clay mineralogical data to interpret loess sources and pedogenesis. Deposition of MIS 6 loess was followed by a tripartite soil/thin loess complex (Soils 8, 7, and 6) apparently re!ecting the …


A Sufficient Condition For The Tops-Only Property Of Strategy-Proof Social Choice Functions In The Case Of Two Voters, Huaxia Zeng Jan 2011

A Sufficient Condition For The Tops-Only Property Of Strategy-Proof Social Choice Functions In The Case Of Two Voters, Huaxia Zeng

Dissertations and Theses Collection (Open Access)

In this thesis, we consider the standard voting model with a finite set of alternatives A and 2 voters, and address the following question: besides Domains D satisfying the

Property T (Chatterji & Sen (2011) ), what are other characteristics of domains that induce every strategy-proof and unanimous social choice function f : Dn → A to satisfy the tops-only property? We impose a minimal richness condition which ensures that for every alternative a ∈ A, there exists a preference ordering where a is maximal. We identify a more general condition on domains that is sufficient for strategy-proofness …