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The Voice, Winter/Spring 2013: Volume 58, Issue 2, Dordt College

The Voice Archive

• Leading Off With the President: Celebrating the Faith of Those Before Us
• Editor's Notes: From Milk to Meat
• News: The Loop: Engineering Project Keeps on Giving; Bouwkamp at Lincoln Center; One Potato, Two Potato, Three Potato, Four; Campus Kudos; Seeing Life Through Sci-Fi; Taking the Lead; Book Studies for All; Creativity Takes Center Stage; Faculty Bits; New Learning Labs Teach Problem Solving; Nurturing Worship Leaders Becomes Easier; Expanding Horizons: Historical Imagination and The Hobbit: A Faculty Reflection
• Features: Trash Talk; Preparing to Live in a Global World; How Do International Students End Up at Dordt?; Doors Open for Dordt …

North American Climate In Cmip5 Experiments. Part I: Evaluation Of Historical Simulations Of Continental And Regional Climatology, Justin Sheffield, Andrew P. Barrett, Brian Colle, D. Nelun Fernando, Rong Fu, Kerrie L. Geil, Q. Steven Hu, Jim Kinter, Sanjiv Kumar, Baird Langenbrunner, Kelly Lombardo, Lindsey N. Long, Eric Maloney, Annarita Mariotti, Joyce E. Meyerson, Kingtse C. Mo, J. David Neelin, Sumant Nigam, Zaitao Pan, Tong Ren, Alfredo Ruiz-Barradas, Yolande Serra, Anji Seth, Jeanne M. Thibeault, Julienne C. Stroeve, Ze Yang, Lei Yin

Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Faculty Publications

This is the first part of a three-part paper on North American climate in phase 5 of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP5) that evaluates the historical simulations of continental and regional climatology with a focus on a core set of 17models. The authors evaluate the models for a set of basic surface climate and hydrological variables and their extremes for the continent. This is supplemented by evaluations for selected regional climate processes relevant to North American climate, including cool season western Atlantic cyclones, the North American monsoon, the U.S. Great Plains low-level jet, and Arctic sea ice. In general, …

Potential Climate Change Effects On Groundwater Recharge In The High Plains Aquifer, Usa, Russell S. Crosbie, Bridget R. Scanlon, Freddie S. Mpelasoka, Robert C. Reedy, John B. Gates, Lu Zhang

Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Faculty Publications

Considering that past climate changes have significantly impacted groundwater resources, quantitative predictions of climate change effects on groundwater recharge may be valuable for effective management of future water resources. This study used 16 global climate models (GCMs) and three global warming scenarios to investigate changes in groundwater recharge rates for a 2050 climate relative to a 1990 climate in the U.S. High Plains region. Groundwater recharge was modeled using the Soil-Vegetation-Atmosphere- Transfer model WAVES for a variety of soil and vegetation types representative of the High Plains. The median projection under a 2050 climate includes increased recharge in the Northern …

The Equator Principles: Evaluating The Exposure Of Commercial Lenders To Socio-Environmental Risk, Andrian Lozinski

Comparative Research in Law & Political Economy

This paper investigates whether the mitigation framework established under the Equator Principles (EPs) is well-suited to address the manner in which socio-environmental risks may manifest within the context of non-recourse financing. The discussion begins with an examination of how the EPs allocate risk between the project lender and sponsor before analyzing how this framework has shifted the regulatory environment in the project finance sector. An exploration of the structural constraints of non-recourse financing will follow. The paper will conclude by assessing the ability of the EPs to effectively capture and mitigate the socio-environmental risk exposure of the project lender and …

The Importance Of Information And Participation Principles In Environmental Law In Brazil, David N. Cassuto, Romulo S.R. Sampaio

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

This article explores the two different kinds of uncertainty, ‘hard’ uncertainty (unknown unknowns) and ‘soft’ uncertainty (known unknowns), in the context of environmental law decision making. First, the authors argue that these different categories should not be treated the same when facing decisions under uncertainty. To deal with these different uncertainties, a tiered risk analysis process is called for, using participatory techniques to turn hard uncertainty into (more manageable) soft uncertainty as well as to increase the legitimacy of environmental decision making, even in cases of hard uncertainty. This methodology can and should apply to all instances of domestic, transnational …

Biodegradability Of Degradable Mulching Film In A Laboratory-Controlled Composting Test, Xuemei Zhang, Yaxi Huang, Deqiang Li, Zicheng Wen, Baoxun Sui, Zhiyong Liu

Turkish Journal of Chemistry

A series of degradable films was prepared, and 2 formulas of polyethylene (PE) films with the highest degradable performance were experimentally determined. These films contained 3.43% and 0.44% stearate, and were denoted as PE-3 and PE-4, respectively. Their biodegradability was studied in a laboratory-controlled composting test using ordinary PE film (OPEF) as a control. Contrast composting experiments indicated that the biodegradability of untreated samples was very low, and that the biodegradation rates of PE films after natural aging were significantly higher. FT-IR analysis showed that OPEF changed little after the composting experiment, and that PE-3 and PE-4 showed a carbonyl …

Garden As Symbol: Nature/City, Curtis Carter

Philosophy Faculty Research and Publications

My approach .to environmental aesthetics here begins with reflections on previous encounters with the subject, focusing initially on aesthetics of the city. Then follows a brief look at current theories of environmental aesthetics as they relate to nature aesthetics. The final section will consider garden as a symbolic link of nature/city. Nelson Goodman 's theory of exemplification will serve as an account of garden as a symbol linking nature and city .

Hydrofracking: State Preemption, Local Power, And Cooperative Governance, John R. Nolon

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

Advocates for the gas drilling technology known as hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, argue that it will bring significant economic benefits to the private and public sectors. Its opponents dispute these claims and point to significant environmental and public health risks associated with fracking—risks that must be considered in adopting government regulations needed to protect the public interest. One of the many issues raised by fracking is which level of government should regulate which aspects of the practice. This debate is complicated by the fact that the risks associated with fracking raise concerns of federal, state, and local importance and fit …

Applying Sustainable Land Use Development Studies To Sustainable Agriculture: Are The Conditions Ripe For A Successful Movement Toward Sustainable Agriculture?, Jullee Kim

Brooklyn Law Review

No abstract provided.

Envisioning Resilient Electrical Infrastructure: A Policy Framework For Incorporating Future Climate Change Into Electricity Sector Planning, Sam C.A. Nierop

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

Climate change needs to be incorporated in future designs of the electricity sector. This paper argues for a policy framework in which utilities take the lead by performing an electrical climate change impact assessment that evaluates to what extent utilities’ electrical assets are vulnerable to future climate change. Based on this assessment, electrical climate change adaptation plans should be formulated by the utility in cooperation with utility regulators, municipalities and supralocal governments. A collaborative process is essential, because adaptation measures need to be tailored to the regional circumstances and many types of adaptation measures require governmental approval. In order for …

In-Service Teachers’ Understanding And Teaching Of Humane Education Before And After A Standards-Based Intervention, Stephanie Itle-Clark

Education Collection

The purpose of this study was to examine the ways in which credentialed educators conceptualized, understood, and perceived humane education, as well as their intent to include humane education in personal practice and their knowledge of strategies for integrating humane education concepts into their classroom work. The group of 25 educators participated in an online eight-week professional development course and completed pre- and post-surveys. The participants consisted of educators from the United States, British Columbia, and Vietnam. Participants were 11 secondary educators, 10 primary educators, 2 substitute teachers, 1 administrator, and 1 librarian. Results indicate that after an eight-week professional …

Oil Pollution In Water Bodies Of Restricted Circulation, Michael A. Kruge

Department of Earth and Environmental Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Coastal lagoons and embayments near urban centers around the world share many common characteristics and problems. Physical impediments to free water circulation (spits, barrier islands, internal islands, tombolos, submerged sills) often lead to water stagnation and, in the presence of excess nutrients, eutrophication. Urban and industrial activities provoke (usually accidental) spills of hazardous materials into these confined water bodies, such as crude petroleum and refined petroleum products, leading to difficulties for resident biota and potential hazards for human health. The sluggish turnover of these water bodies (or low-energy zones within them) may retard the natural attenuation of the spilled contaminants. …

The Effects Of Biotic And Abiotic Factors On Byssogenesis, Growth And Movement Patterns Of The Blue Mussel, Mytilus Edulis, Yvette Louise Garner

Doctoral Dissertations

Blue mussels create extensive aggregations on intertidal and low subtidal shores in the Gulf of Maine, in which they modify habitat, trap sediments and create microclimates for many organisms. Mussels are an important aquaculture species worldwide, and play a major part of the economy of New England. Blue mussels produce collagenous byssal threads to anchor themselves to the substrate on wave swept shores. Byssogenesis, growth and movement abilities of mussels are influenced by a host of biotic and abiotic factors. In this dissertation I quantified byssogenesis and growth of the blue mussel, Mytilus edulis, affected by wave exposure, temperature, and …

Extreme Value Theory: Applications To Estimation Of Stochastic Traffic Capacity And Statistical Downscaling Of Precipitation Extremes, Eric Matthew Laflamme

Doctoral Dissertations

This work explores two applications of extreme value analysis. First, we apply EV techniques to traffic stream data to develop an accurate distribution of capacity. Data were collected by the NHDOT along Interstate I93, and two adjacent locations in Salem, NH were examined. Daily flow maxima were used to estimate capacity, and data not associated with daily breakdown were deemed censored values. Under this definition, capacity values are approximated by the generalized extreme value (GEV) distribution for block maxima. To address small sample sizes and the presence of censoring, a Bayesian framework using semi-informative priors was implemented. A simple cross …

Bacterial Biodegradation Of Soluble Crude Oil Hydrocarbons And The Influence Of Protists In Simulated Arctic Seawater And Sea Ice, Heather Ballestero

Doctoral Dissertations

With expected increases in vessel traffic, drilling, and exploration for petroleum and natural gas, the potential for an Arctic oil spill is heightened, yet knowledge of contaminant fate and behavior is limited in this environment. With challenging conditions in the Arctic and limited equipment caches, response will be extremely difficult. In freezing conditions, oil may become encapsulated in ice. Understanding biodegradation potential in this environment can dictate response options for spills that occur in Arctic marine waters. The influence of protists on bacterial biodegradation of water accommodated fractions (WAF) of petroleum hydrocarbons is unknown, yet important because it could enhance …

Ham-Tmc Library Strategic Plan - Fy 2013-16, Houston Academy Of Medicine-Texas Medical Center Library

Strategic Plans

No abstract provided.

“In Landlessness Alone Resides The Highest Truth”; Or, At Sea With Honors, Don Dingledine

Honors in Practice Online Archive

The recent explosion on an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico was a grim reminder of the BP disaster in 2010, from which Gulf Coast residents and workers are still trying to recover. We all must have responded to that disaster with a similar sense of outrage as we watched the live underwater video feed of millions of gallons of oil spewing into the ocean and saw images of oil-soaked wildlife, coastlines, and marshlands. Shared memories of Hurricane Katrina heighten our collective sympathy for the people whose livelihoods this disaster still threatens. At the same time, our individual responses …

There's A Pattern Here: The Case To Integrate Environmental Security Into Homeland Security Strategy, James D. Ramsay, Terrence M. O'Sullivan

Security Studies & International Affairs - Daytona Beach

The time is long overdue to acknowledge that global climate and resource stresses, encompassed by the concept of environmental security (ES), are an increasingly important part of "homeland" security (HS) study and practice, by even the most restricted definitions of HS. Environmental security issues will affect global economic and political stability, US national interests, and the risk of war and terrorism. Just as homeland security encompasses many complex issues and interconnected subfields, environmental security (ES) is interdisciplinary by nature. In essence, ES is an emergent discipline borrowing from a combination of environmental studies — which decades ago integrated environmental science …

Website: 2013 Colby College Undergraduate Research Symposium, Colby College

Undergraduate Research Symposium (UGRS)

Colby College Undergraduate Research Symposium 2013 Website

Contents:

Keynote Speaker

Schedule - Wednesday

Schedule - Thursday

Schedule - Friday

Poster Program

Associated Sessions

Abstracts

Honors Program

Participating Departments/Programs

Chemical Partitioning And Mobility Of Trace Elements In Dry Disposed Weathered Ash Conditioned With High-Saline Effluents, S.A. Akinyemi, A. Akinlua, W.M. Gitari, R.O. Akinyeye, L.F. Petrik

Coal Combustion and Gasification Products Journal Archive

Weinvestigated the mobility of inorganic elements in the ash dump due to chemical interaction of weathered dry disposed ash conditioned with high-saline effluents and ingressed CO2 from atmosphere and percolating rainwater. Drilled ash core samples collected from dry disposed ash dump at a South African coal-burning power station were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analyses. A modified sequential extraction procedure was selected to determine the mineralogical association of the investigated elements in the 1-year-old drilled ash cores. Major mineral phases are quartz and mullite and other minor phases included hematite, lime, calcite, anorthite, mica, and enstatite. …

Integrated Magnets, Institute On Metropolitan Opportunity

Studies

Best Practices.

Critical Research Needs For Successful Food Systems Adaptation To Climate Change, Michelle Miller, Molly Anderson, Charles A. Francis, Chad Kruger, Carol Barford, Jacob Park, Brent H. Mccown

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

There is a growing sense of the fragility of agricultural production in the Global North and South and of increasing risks to food security, as scientific observations confirm significant changes in the Gulf Stream, polar ice, atmospheric CO₂, methane release, and other measures of climate change. This sense is heightened as each of us experiences extreme weather, such as the increasing frequency of droughts, floods, unseasonal temperatures, and erratic seasonality. The central research challenge before us is how global, national, regional, and local food systems may adapt to accelerating climate change stresses and uncertainties to ensure the availability, …

Barking Abbey: A Gis Map Of A Medieval Nunnery, Donna Alfano Bussell, Joseph M. Mcnamara

Peregrinations: Journal of Medieval Art and Architecture

No abstract provided.

Block And Bridle Annual 2013

Block and Bridle Annual (1933–2021)

Dear Members, Supporters, Family, and Friends, Over the past school year, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Block and Bridle Club had tremendous goal breaking accomplishments, and hosted several successful events. It is my great pleasure to recognize and thank all of the officers and members that contributed a considerable amount of time to make it a fabulous year. I would also like to thank the Animal Science Department faculty and staff for all of their support, time, and guidance throughout the year. Our advisors are a key component of our club and were crucial to the club’s success this year. They …

Stewardship Of The Biosphere In The Urban Era, Michail Fragkias

Economics Faculty Publications and Presentations

We are entering a new urban era in which the ecology of the planet as a whole is increasingly influenced by human activities (Ellis 2011; Steffen et al. 2011a, b; Folke et al. 2011). Cities have become a central nexus of the relationship between people and nature, both as crucial centres of demand of ecosystem services, and as sources of environmental impacts. Approximately 60 % of the urban land present in 2030 is forecast to be built in the period 2000–2030 (Chap. 21). Urbanization therefore presents challenges but also opportunities. In the next two to three decades, we have unprecedented …

A Synthesis Of Global Urbanization Projections, Michail Fragkias, Burak Güneralp, Karen C. Seto, Julie Goodness

Economics Faculty Publications and Presentations

This chapter reviews recent literature on global projections of future urbanization, covering the population, economic and physical extent perspectives. We report on several recent findings based on studies and reports on global patterns of urbanization. Specifically, we review new literature that makes projections about the spatial pattern, rate, and magnitude of urbanization change in the next 30–50 years. While projections should be viewed and utilized with caution, the chapter synthesis reports on several major findings that will have significant socioeconomic and environmental impacts including the following:

• By 2030, world urban population is expected to increase from the current 3.4 billion …

Defying The Law: Northern Plains Resource Council, Inc. V. Surface Transportation Board And The State Of Nepa Jurisprudence, Rachel Shelton

Kentucky Journal of Equine, Agriculture, & Natural Resources Law

No abstract provided.

Effect Of Cover On Small Mammal Abundance And Movement Through Wildlife Underpasses, Hayley R. Connolly-Newman

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Crossing structures enable wildlife to safely cross highways by physically separating wildlife and vehicles. Most wildlife underpasses and overpasses are designed to accommodate a wide variety of species. Their suitability for individual species, however, varies by location (surrounding habitat), structure type (e.g. underpass or overpass), and dimensions (height, width, length). For some taxa, the habitat immediately adjacent to and inside an underpass or on top of an overpass is critical. For instance, small mammals, reptiles, amphibians and many invertebrates may avoid open areas because they require cover (e.g., live vegetation, tree stumps, branches, or rocks) to reduce predation risk and …

Evaluating And Role Of Standards And Guidelines In National Forest Planning, Emily E. Schembra

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

There is longstanding conflict related to planning standards and guidelines (S & Gs) used by the U.S. Forest Service to guide and constrain National Forest System land management. The role these prescriptions have played in the past in forest management, and the role they ought to play in the future, is often disputed. However, the National Forest Management Act (NFMA) and the new 2012 NFMA planning regulations require S & Gs, so they must be included in forest plans in the future. The goal of this research was to provide a common understanding of how planning S & Gs were …

Responses To Climate Change In National Park Service Wilderness: What Is Happening In The Field?, Katherine E. Nelson

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

As scholars debate whether climate change warrants more or less active management in wilderness, this baseline study identifies what is happening on the ground. This study focuses attention on National Park Service units that administer designated wilderness. Representatives who had been identified by the superintendents from each of these units responded to an online survey (with a 94% response rate). Respondents reported on their concerns, monitoring, and management projects driven by climate change happening in their wilderness. Respondents also discussed whether and how these activities affected wilderness character. This is the first study to characterize the response to climate change …