Digital Commons Network^™

A Landscape Analysis Of Surface Coal Mine Permits In The Coal River Watershed Of West Virginia, Lafe Joseph Kunkel

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

In Appalachia, coal mining is a vital economic activity. Steps must be taken to ensure the future of the coal mining industry as well as the ecological sustainability of the landscape. By examining the effects of landscape disturbance on stream water quality, disturbance thresholds can be calculated from stream conductivity measurements in various segment level watersheds that contain varying levels of landscape disturbance. These thresholds can indicate how much landscape disturbance can be allowed in a segment-level watershed before water quality depreciates past certain conductivity levels or levels necessary to support macro-invertebrate life. This analysis was conducted on the Coal …

Treatment Of Class Iii Malocclusion In The Primary And Early Mixed Dentition Using The Kiebach Appliance And Protraction Facemask, Erica W. Reed

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Objectives. To evaluate the short and long-term results of using a Modified Hyrax Expander with Protraction Facemask at an early age. Methods. Twenty three patients were treated with Dr. Kiebach's Modified Hyrax Expander and Protraction Facemask at an early age. Lateral Cephalograms were taken at three time points: pre-treatment (T1), post-treatment (T2), and 2 years post-treatment (T3) and evaluated using cephalometric analysis. Results. Statistically significant results were found for all three time points: T2-T1, T3-T2, and T3-T1. The Palatal Plane, Mandibular Plane, and the Occlusal Plane were the only values to show non-significant results throughout the three time points. The …

Growing The Urban Ecosystem In Detroit, Michigan, Sean Basalyga

Social Sciences

Many views of the future are seen as bleak and devoid of the life where once stood beauty and abundance. However, the Living Cities Design Competition challenges these views and calls for a vision of the future that inspires hope, biodiversity, and a healthy interaction between human and natural systems. We chose to redesign the city of Detroit, Michigan to be a living city by the year 2035. As the earth scientist on an interdisciplinary team, I acted as an ecological consultant. By developing the urban ecosystem of Detroit, a number of social, economical, and environmental problems can be solved. …

Assessment Of Pain In The Older Adult With Dementia, Helen Laferriere

Theses and Dissertations

Pain is common in the older adult as they continue to age regardless of their cognitive ability. Whether the older adult resides in the community, in a nursing facility or is hospitalized, pain is prevalent in this population. The assessment and management of pain in the older adult with cognitive impairment is a challenge for those in healthcare. Based on the severity of the dementia, the older adult may not be able to verbalize or describe their pain. Therefore, it is vital that healthcare providers are able to identify pain in this population. Observational assessment scales, such as the Abbey …

From Bench To Bedside And Beyond: Potential Uses Of Vivo In An Academic Medical Center, John C. Kairys, Md, Facs, Jack London, Phd, Karl Steiner, Phd

Department of Surgery Faculty Papers

PowerPoint presentation:  From Bench to Bedside and Beyond:Potential Uses of VIVO in an Academic Medical Center.

Historic And Demographic Changes That Impact The Future Of The Diné And Developing Community-Based Policy, Yolynda Begay

Architecture and Planning ETDs

The history and legacy of Native American relationship with the U.S. government has been marred with policies on termination, assimilation, annihilation, and displacement of Indian communities. The Dawes Act, also known as the General Allotment Act of 1887, was the starting point of enrolling tribal members for land allotments (Spruhan, 2006-2007, p. 2). The act required a population survey of individual persons residing on allotted lands. This, in turn, required Indian agents to conduct census rolls (see glossary). The purpose of the Dawes Act was to turn Indian people into Jeffersonian farmers by breaking up communal landholdings and allotting parcels …

Home/Land: Kiowa, New Mexico- A Grassland's Story, Heather R. Yaryan

Architecture and Planning ETDs

The purpose of this thesis was to illustrate how cultural and natural histories inform place-based community planning. Utilizing both cultural and natural histories, the planner may begin to see patterns of habitancy as they correlate to ecological fluctuations. I focused my research on Kiowa, New Mexico the community my family homesteaded in the grasslands of Northeastern New Mexico and took an auto-ethnographic approach to conducting my research. The story of Kiowa is both unique and universal. The intricacies of the land and people are, indeed, woven into a specific place and times. It is the intersection of Place and of …

Hyperspectral Imaging For The Detection Of Microbial Spoilage Of Mushrooms, Edurne Gaston, Jesus Maria Frias, Patrick Cullen, Colm O’Donnell, Aoife Gowen

Conference papers

Brown blotch, caused by pathogenic Pseudomonas tolaasii, is the most problematic bacterial disease in Agaricus bisporus mushrooms; it reduces their consumer appeal in the market place, thus generating important economical losses worldwide. The mushroom industry is in need of fast and accurate evaluation methodologies to ensure that only high quality produce reaches the market. Hyperspectral imaging (HSI) is a non-destructive technique that combines imaging and spectroscopy to obtain spatial and spectral information from an object. The aim of this study was to investigate the potential of Vis-NIR HSI to identify microbiological damage in mushrooms and to discriminate it from …

Replacement Alternatives For Beef Cow Herds: An Analysis Of Retaining Non-Pregnant Cows, Trenton T. Bohling

Department of Agricultural Economics: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

A non-pregnant cow is a liability to a producer. Over the last four years, cow-calf producers have had an increased number of non-pregnant cows due to factors like environmental conditions and diseases like trichomoniasis. While most research has indicated that culling a non-pregnant female and replacing the cow with retained heifers, purchased heifers, or purchased cows are the only economic alternatives, recent trends in the cattle market have suggested that keeping a non-pregnant cow may also be an alternative.

Annual beef cow budgets were created based on typical Nebraska Sandhills conditions. Revenues and costs in these budgets vary according to …

Analysis Of Site-Specific Adjustment Applied To On-The-Go Soil Sensing Data For Agronomic Use, Allison K. Jonjak

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Successful variable-rate applications of agricultural inputs such as lime rely on the quality of input data. Systematic grid soil sampling is the most common method used for creating variable rate prescription maps. The insufficient number of point measurements usually obtained using this method has been primarily responsible for the typical inaccuracies seen in lime prescription maps. To increase sampling density, on-the-go sensing technology was developed for the mapping of soil pH and other relevant attributes. In this study, five fields in eastern Nebraska were mapped using both on-thego sensing technology and systematic grid sampling. Ten calibration points per field were …

Investigation Of Bovine Herpesvirus 1 (Bhv-1) Encoded Infected Cell Protein 0 (Bicp0), Natasha N. Gaudreault

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

Bovine herpesvirus 1 (BHV-1) is a significant pathogen of cattle.  Following acute infection, BHV-1 establishes a latent infection that persists for the life of the infected host.  Stress induced factors cause the virus to reactivate from latency, resulting in virus transmission and transient immune suppression.  BHV-1 encoded bICP0 is expressed early and constitutively throughout productive infection.  bICP0 is critical for efficient viral replication, virulence, and reactivation in cattle because it stimulates viral transcription and interferes with innate immune responses.  bICP0 potentially interacts with a variety of proteins to activate viral gene expression and inhibit innate antiviral defenses.  bICP0 localizes to …

Analysis Of Rice Blast Resistance Genes In The National Small Grains Collection (Nsgc), Moytri Roychowdhury

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Identification of blast resistance genes in rice germplasm is one of the most important activities of rice breeding programs in worldwide. The objective of this research was to characterize two major blast resistance genes, Pi-z and Pi-b, in selected rice germplasm. A simple sequence repeat DNA marker, AP5659-1 linked to the Pi-z gene, and a Pib dominant marker derived from the Pi-b gene were first used to screen a rice core collection consisting of 1700 accessions estimated to represent 70% of the genetic diversity of rice in the US National Small Grains Collection. There were 131 rice germplasm accessions with …

Temperature-Induced Activation Of Freshwater Cyanophage As-1 Prophage, Tin-Chun Chu, Sean R. Murray, Shi-Fang Hsu, Quinn Vega, Lee H. Lee

Department of Mathematics Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Synechococcus sp. IU 625 is one of the freshwater cyanobacteria responsible for harmful algal blooms (HAB). Cyanophages can serve as natural control agents and may be responsible for algal bloom prevention and disappearance. Cyanophage AS-1, which infects Synechococcus sp. IU 625 (Anacystis nidulans) and Synechococcus cedrorum, plays an important role in the environment, significantly altering the numbers of its hosts. Since seasonal (temperature-dependent) lytic induction of cyanobacterial prophage has been proposed to affect seawater algal blooms, we investigated if the AS-1 lytic cycle could be induced by a shift to high temperature. Our hypothesis was confirmed, as more phages were …

Continuous, Passive Liquid-Liquid Extraction And Emulsion Separation Within Microfluidic And Millifluidic Devices, Janet Tesfai

Master’s Theses

Liquid-liquid extraction (LLE) is a method used to separate compounds based on their relative activity in two immiscible phases. By significantly reducing the scale of liquid-liquid extraction to the micro- and milli-fluidic levels, this separation process can bemade suitable for low volume, high value materials.

Out Of The Mouths Of Babes: Vocal Production In Infant Siblings Of Children With Asd, Rhea Paul, Yael Fuerst, Gordon Ramsay, Kasia Chawarska, Ami Klin

Communication Disorders Faculty Publications

Background: Younger siblings of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are at higher risk for acquiring these disorders than the general population. Language development is usually delayed in children with ASD. The present study examines the development of pre-speech vocal behavior in infants at risk for ASD due to the presence of an older sibling with the disorder. Methods: Infants at high risk (HR) for ASD and those at low risk, without a diagnosed sibling (LR), were seen at 6, 9, and 12 months as part of a larger prospective study of risk for ASD in infant siblings. Standard clinical …

Analysis Of The Threat Of Genetically Modified Organisms For Biological Warfare, Jerry B. Warner, Alan J. Ramsbotham Jr., Ewelina Tunia, James J. Valdes

Defense and Technology Papers

This study seeks to better understand the evaluation of the potential threats posed by advances in biotechnology, especially genetically modified organisms and synthetic biology. It narrows the scope of consideration into two parts: defining a catastrophic biological attack focused on bioterrorism and that this attack would be restricted to the United States.

Relationship Among Teachers' Personality, Leadership Style, And Efficacy Of Classroom Management, Michael Clyde Burkett

Dissertations

In this study, research examined a possible relationship between a teacher’s leadership style, personality, experience, certification, and efficacy of classroom management. Six hundred high school teachers were given questionnaires to complete to report their leadership, personality, and classroom management preferences. These teachers were chosen by a random online search for schools in southern Mississippi. Of the questionnaires sent to the teachers, 151 (25%) were returned and analyzed.

Three main instruments were used to conduct this study. For leadership, a teacher’s leadership style was measured using the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire. While the instrument measures transformational, transactional, and laissez-faire leadership styles, only …

Fostering Positive Classroom Environments: The Relationship Between Teacher Qualifications, Facility Management, And Perceptions Of Leadership On Student Outcomes, Bryan Allan Marshall

Dissertations

This study attempted to determine the effectiveness of schools that have highly qualified teachers, along with a well managed facility, and the administration’s perception of the leadership role as an instructional specialist on the outcomes that students displayed. Also, the relationship between two instruments used to determine the quality of school facilities was measured. The findings of this study indicated that all three factors used to determine teacher quality had significant relationship at the .05 alpha level to QDI or Quality Distribution Index. The three categories were teacher advanced degree, teacher national board certification, and teacher highly qualified status. For …

Population Structure Based On Age-Class Distribution Of Tapirus Polkensis From The Gray Fossil Site Tennessee., Matthew L. Gibson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Individuals of Tapirus polkensis from the Gray Fossil Site exhibit an excellent level of preservation. Intact skulls collected from the site were arranged in a rough age class system separated into 7 categories based on the teeth present and amount of dental wear. Such an eruption series is useful for general comparisons amongst the individual tapirs; however, the classes do not represent an age in years due to a lack of data on living tapirs. Consequently, it is possible that some age classes may contain several years of a tapirs life, or comparatively only a few months. In this study …

Optimal Foraging In Leafcutter Ants (Atta Cephalotes) Selection Of Leaves Based On Proximity To The Nest, May 2011, Robert O. Snowden

Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation

The foraging tendencies of Atta cephalotes, a leaf-cutting ant, have been widely studied. Optimal foraging theory dictates that ants should maximize rate of energy intake while minimizing costs by harvesting from suitable food sources closer to the nest. However, actual foraging patterns are more disparate and do not always reflect optimal strategies. Here I measure harvesting rates and recruitment speeds at different distances from the nest of A. cephalotes colonies by offering six leaf disk samples every 15 minutes at 5, 10, and 15 meters from the nest entrance. Harvesting rate was significantly higher closer to the nest, with 54% …

Food Resource Density And Territorial Behavior Of Monteverde Cloud Forest Hummingbirds, May 2011, Sarah Sawtelle

Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation

The determinants of territorial behavior patterns in aggressive organisms are not well understood. Hummingbirds provide an ideal model for studying territoriality as they exhibit obvious territorial behaviors that are likely to change in response to food resource manipulations. I studied trends in territorial behaviors of hummingbirds in response to varied food density. Observations were made on three different arrangements of hummingbird feeders: small: with twelve feeders in a 1m squared square, medium: with twelve feeders in a 25m squared square, and large: with six feeders in a 50m squared, 5x10m rectangle. There was no significant difference in the number of …

Effects Of Passiflora Cyanide, Toughness And Leaf Age On Heliconius Oviposition, May 2011, Lauren Barlow

Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation

Passifloraceae and Heliconiine butterflies have coevolved around a cyanide defense against herbivory. This study focuses on the oviposition preference of Heliconius charithonia and Heliconius hecale on Passiflora biflora and Passiflora vitifolia. Changes in cyanide content and leaf toughness were studied as a function of leaf age of P. vitifolia and P. biflora in the Ranario Butterfly Garden in Monteverde, Costa Rica. In addition, P. biflora plants were compared with vines outside of the garden. For P. vitifolia, leaf toughness significantly increased with age while cyanide content significantly decreased. P. biflora sampled inside and outside did not show a significant relationship …

Mist Frequency And Butterfly Emergence From The Chrysalis: Implications For Tropical Cloud Forest Climate Change, May 2011, Lindsay Davies

Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation

The cloud bank in Monteverde, Costa Rica is rising due to global warming. This is causing fewer misty days and is impacting the habitats of local organisms. Butterflies have been shown to be negatively impacted by moisture in terms of livelihood. Heliconius charithonia, a butterfly species occurring from 0-1200 meters, and Heliconius hecale zuleika, occurring from 0-1700 meters, were exposed to intermittent (five minutes mist, five minutes dry over the course of the day) and intense mist conditions (10 hours of constant mist a day) to measure the effect of mist on survivorship, days to eclosion, and development (in terms …

Foliage Dwelling Insect Composition In Three Stages Of Forest Regeneration, May 2011, Isa Betancourt

Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation

The International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO 2002) estimated that secondary forest make up 60% of all tropical forests. By definition, that means that a majority of tropical forests have gone through succession in the recent past. In the present study I looked at differences between foliage dwelling insects at different stages of succession. A total of eight sweep samples were taken from a regenerating field (RF), a new growth forest (NGF), and an old growth forest (OGF) in San Luis, Puntaranes, Costa Rica to assess the diversity and evenness during the dry season and at an altitude of around 1200 …

Nectarivorous Bat (Anoura Geoffroyi, Glossophaga Soricina And Hylonycteris Underwoodi) Preference For Nectar Quality, May 2011, Madeleine Parsell

Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation

In pollination mutualisms, plants offer rewards for pollen delivery. In the case of nectarivorous bats, the reward is food, and in order to maximize net energy gain, bats need to forage optimally. Presumably, nectar offering a more balanced diet would allow the bat more time to forage at flowers. To see if bats prefer nectars of higher quality, 24 individuals comprising three species of nectarivorous bats were presented with a variety of solutions of variable sugar type and amount, with and without additional nutrients, like proteins and amino acids. Preference was determined by number of visits to each solution type …

Associative Learning In Relation To Foraging Of Neotropical Stingless Bee Trigona, May 2011, Rebecca Johnson

Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation

Organisms, if capable, will invest in learning when it results in the improvement of overall fitness. Learning ability may allow organisms to outperform competitors or better survive in a variable environment. Order Hymenoptera exhibits a broad spectrum of learning abilities, including landmark navigation, time-place learning, and associative learning. These abilities are fairly well studied in North American genera such as Apis, but remain relatively unexplored in Neotropical species such as those in the genus Trigona, an essential stingless bee pollinator of rainforest ecosystems. In this study, I test whether Trigona bees in Monteverde, Costa Rica possess the capacity to associatively …

Effect Of Resource Manipulation On Aggression In The Steely-Vented Hummingbird (Amazilia Saucerrottei), May 2011, Hannah G. Crane

Monteverde Institute: Tropical Ecology and Conservation

Amount of resource available for individuals within a species strongly influences levels of intraspecific competition. Aggression is a direct result of this competition. Aggressive behavior was studied in the Steely-vented Hummingbird (SVH, Amazilia saucerrottei) in normal and reduced resource treatments. The purpose of this study was to determine if reduction in resource availability affects amount of aggression in SVHs. Half of a resource (field of flowers) was covered with bug nets for an experimental condition. Number of chases between two or more hummingbirds was observed to quantify aggression. SVHs were significantly more aggressive with a limited resource, with anywhere from …

Assessing The Invasiveness Of The Non-Native Kelp Undaria Pinnatifida In Monterey Harbor And Implications For Its Management, Sarah Jeffries

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

The annual subtidal alga Undaria pinnatifida has been federally declared an invasive species and has spread rapidly across the globe from its native range in northern Asia. The ability of this alga to complete its life cycle determines its success in a particular location, and several abiotic factors have been found to be important in determining reproductive success in kelps. Laboratory zoospore culture experiments were conducted monthly to test the effects of temperature and nitrate concentrations on microscopic stage production throughout a year. Cultures were grown under two temperatures (12, 18º C) monthly and three nitrate concentrations (1,5,10 μmol) three …

Comparison Of Whole-Genome Amplifications For Microsatellite Genotyping Of Rotylenchulus Reniformis, R. S. Arias, Salliana R. Stetina, Brian E. Scheffler

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Currently, a large number of microsatellites are available for Rotylenchulus reniformis (reniform nematode); however, two barriers exist for genotyping samples from different geographical areas. The limited amount of nucleic acids obtained from single nematodes which would require their multiplication to obtain enough DNA for testing; and the strictly regulated transport of live samples and multiplication in greenhouse for being a plant pathogen. Whole-genome amplification (WGA) of samples consisting of one and five dead gravid females with their associated egg masses was successfully performed on disrupted tissue using three commercial kits. DNA yield after WGA ranged from 0.5 to 8 μg …

Hydrolysis Of Concentrated Dilute Base Pretreated Biomass Slurries., Gregory A. Brockmann 1987-

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Enzymatic hydrolysis is an important, but time limiting step in the process of converting biomass into ethanol. High solids concentrations are desired in order to minimize reactor size and achieve a higher concentration of glucose in the end product stream. However, higher solids concentrations lead to higher viscosities and hence, mixing and mass transfer becomes more difficult. In this study, a mixer designed to overcome the mass transfer limitations was used to conduct enzymatic hydrolysis of dilute-base pretreated corn stover, wheat, and miscanthus at high solids concentrations. This was done to determine if overcoming the mass transfer limitations would improve …