Digital Commons Network^™

The Role Of G-Protein Signaling In Pathogenesis In Cercospora Zeae-Maydis, Brant Smith

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Gray leaf spot, caused by Cercospora zeae-maydis, is one of the most destructive foliar diseases of maize worldwide. C. zeae-maydis orients hyphal growth towards stomata (stomatal tropism) and forms infectious structures (appressoria) that are necessary for successful infection. Although some genes involved in pathogenesis in C. zeae-maydis have been identified, the molecular mechanisms are not well understood. In fungi, heterotrimeric G-proteins consist of three subunits (α, β, and γ) and mediate responses to environmental stimuli. They regulate diverse functions, including nutrient detection, virulence, fungal development, conidiation, secondary metabolism, and pathogenesis in many plant pathogenic fungi. This research explored the role …

Resting Orientations Of Dinosaur Scapulae And Forelimbs: A Numerical Analysis, With Implications For Reconstructions And Museum Mounts, Phil Senter, James H. Robins

College of Health, Science, and Technology

The inclination of the scapular blade and the resting pose of the forelimb in dinosaurs differ among reconstructions and among skeletal mounts. For most dinosaurian taxa, no attempt has previously been made to quantify the correct resting positions of these elements. Here, we used data from skeletons preserved in articulation to quantify the resting orientations of the scapula and forelimb in dinosaurs. Specimens were included in the study only if they were preserved lying on their sides; for each specimen the angle between forelimb bones at a given joint was included in the analysis only if the joint was preserved …

Clemson Commencement Program, December 2015, Clemson University

Clemson Commencement Programs

No abstract provided.

The Illusive "Reasonable Person": Can Neuroscience Help The Mentally Disabled?, Ian J. Cosgrove

Notre Dame Law Review

This Note argues that the distinction between what constitutes a physical versus a mental disability can no longer rationally be sustained. Specifically, its purpose is to show that providing an exception to the “reasonable person” standard in negligence actions for the physically disabled while withholding it for those with mental infirmities is increasingly indefensible. Part I briefly tracks the origins of the current rule in tort law that holds the mentally and physically disabled to separate standards. This discussion is purposely left short because of the breadth of scholarship tracing the standard. Part II seeks to justify, through neuroscientific brain …

Field Abundance And Performance Of Hoverflies (Diptera: Syrphidae) On Soybean Aphid, James O. Eckberg, Julie A. Peterson, Colin P. Borsh, Joe M. Kaser, Gregg A. Johnson, John C. Luhman, Donald L. Wyse, George E. Heimpel

West Central Research and Extension Center, North Platte

The management of the soybean aphid Aphis glycines Matsumara is a major challenge to soybean production in the north-central United States. The identification and characterization of the insect predator community has informed integrated pest management strategies by providing insight on predators that can suppress soybean aphid populations. Hoverflies (Diptera: Syrphidae) are known predators of A. glycines, but more information is needed on their diversity, abundance, and performance to evaluate their importance as biological control agents of A. glycines. In this study, syrphid abundance was evaluated across two growing seasons in four soybean fields in east-central Minnesota. Six methods …

Glucose-Fructose Likely Improves Gastrointestinal Comfort And Endurance Running Performance Relative To Glucose-Only, P. B. Wilson, S. J, Ingraham

Athletic Performance Research

This study aimed to determine whether glucose-fructose (GF) ingestion, relative to glucose-only, would alter performance, metabolism, gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms, and psychological affect during prolonged running. On two occasions, 20 runners (14 men) completed a 120-min submaximal run followed by a 4-mile time trial (TT). Participants consumed glucose-only (G) or GF (1.2:1 ratio) beverages, which supplied ~1.3 g/min of carbohydrate. Substrate use, blood lactate, psychological affect [Feeling Scale (FS)], and GI distress were measured. Differences between conditions were assessed using magnitude-based inferential statistics. Participants completed the TT 1.9% (−1.9; −4.2, 0.4) faster with GF, representing a likely benefit. FS ratings were …

Emergent Themes Surrounding The Implementation Of The Common Core State Standards For Mathematics For Students With Learning Disabilities In Mathematics, Andrew R. Mills

All NMU Master's Theses

As the nation transitions into a new national curriculum, the Common Core State Standards for Mathematics (CCSSM), educators face the challenge of meeting the needs of a diverse student population coupled with a change in standards. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to understand educators’ perceptions surrounding the implementation of these standards specific to students with learning disabilities in mathematics. Five rural, middle school educators were interviewed using a series of questions that investigated their experiences related to implementation of the CCSSM. Interviews were recorded and transcribed. Coding was used to identify emergent themes surrounding the phenomenon. Six emergent …

Finite Element Analysis Of The Effect Of Acoustic Wavelength To Hierarchical Side Length And Facet Area For Elastic Scattering From Polygonal Rings And Geodesic Spheres, Ankit Kumar

All Theses

In this work, the frequency response from two-dimensional polygon and three-dimensional geodesic spheres is numerically simulated using a coupled structural acoustic finite element model. The model is composed of a submerged thin-walled elastic shell structure surrounded by an infinite acoustic air domain. Infinite elements are used to simulate the far-field acoustic radiation condition. Results for the faceted polygon and geodesic sphere are compared to their canonical counterpart viz. a circle/ring and a spherical shell. A unique feature of this study is to compare results as the number of facets in the polygon or geodesic is increased, such that the surface …

Changing Course: Revisiting Instream Flow Rulemaking In Washington State Following Swinomish V. Ecology, Haylee J. Hurst

Washington Law Review

Since the adoption of Washington’s Water Resources Act in 1971, legal recognition of instream water uses to preserve fish, wildlife, and other environmental values have become firmly entrenched in Washington water law. By establishing “instream flow rules,” rules that require a certain amount of water to be left in streams before water may be withdrawn for any new uses, the Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology) must protect the environment while also managing water to achieve “maximum net benefits” for the people of Washington State. Ecology may only allow new withdrawals of water that will impair established instream flows if …

Demography And Disease Of The Rare Shrub Buckleya Distichophylla (Santalaceae) In Northeastern Tennessee, William Seth Ratliff

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Piratebush (Buckleya distichophylla (Nutt.) Torr.) is a rare, hemiparasitic shrub with the only extant populations in western North Carolina, northeastern Tennessee, and southwestern Virginia. The preferred natural hosts of piratebush, Carolina and eastern hemlocks, have seen sharp declines over the last decade due to the invasive hemlock woolly adelgid. Virginia pine, another important host of piratebush, is also susceptible to disease, specifically Cronartium appalachianum, a rust fungus for which piratebush is the secondary host. This study described and analyzed current demographic parameters of three Tennessee piratebush populations. Additionally, spatial patterns of disease and demographic characters were analyzed. These …

Mens Life History, Testosterone, And Health, Louis Calistro Alvarado

Anthropology ETDs

Testosterone is hypothesized to mediate life history trade-offs between reproduction and survival in men, promoting mating effort over other forms of investment, which entails energetic and mortality costs. Sexually dimorphic musculature represents one form of somatic investment in mating. Favorable energy availability is posited to promote preferential investment in mating effort through upregulated testosterone production and augmented musculature, whereas nutritional constraint is predicted to downregulate testosterone to facilitate a diminished, thriftier phenotype. Furthermore, life history trajectories influencing mens testosterone levels have important health implications for androgen-sensitive disease. Here, I examine broad features of men's life history and health, and their …

Magnetic-Plasmonic Multilayered Nanorods, Orathai Thumthan

Material Science and Engineering Dissertations - Archive

Multilayered nanorods which consist of alternating magnetic layers separated by Au layers combine two distinctive properties, magnetic properties and surface plasmonic resonance (SPR) properties into one nano-entity. Their magnetic properties are tunable by changing the layer thickness, varying from single domain to superparamagnetic state. Superparamagnetic is a key requirement for magnetic nanoparticles for bioapplications. Superparamagnetic nanoparticles exhibit high magnetic moments at low applied magnetic field while retain no magnetic moments when magnetic field is removed preventing them from aggregation due to magnetic attraction. Au layers in the nanorods provide anchorage sites for functional group attachment. Also, Au nanodisks exhibit SPR …

Reactions Of The Transgender Community Regarding Media Representation, Chani Wellborn

Communication Theses - Archive

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) issues have increasingly been focused on in society and also in communication media research. However, academic studies focusing on transgender reactions to recent representation developments of their community in the media world have not been done. The researcher conducted one-on-one interviews with those identifying as male to female (MtF) transgender in order to study their reactions to media coverage of the transgender community. Cultural studies and communication theories, as well as transgender and trans-identity theories provided a theoretical structure and basis for developing the study and interview questions. Qualitative methodology using an inductive grounded …

Lung Cancer Subtype Classification From Whole Slide Histopathological Images, Dheeraj Ganti

Computer Science and Engineering Theses - Archive

Lung Cancer is one of the most serious diseases causing death for human be- ings. The progression of the disease and response to treatment di ers widely among patients. Thus it is very important to classify the type of tumor and also able to predict the clinical outcomes of patients. Majority of lung cancers is Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC) which constitutes of 84 % of all the type of lung cancers. The two major subtypes of NSCLC are Adenocarcinoma (ADC) and Squamous Cell Car- cinoma (SCC). Accurate classi cation of the lung cancer as NSCLC and its subtype classi …

Material Changes Of Bone Following Ishcemia Of The Immature Femoral Head, Olumide O. Aruwajoye

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Dissertations - Archive

Legg-Calvé-Perthes disease (LCPD) is a childhood hip disorder resulting from the loss of blood flow to the femoral head. In severe cases of the disease, the femoral head can develop a flattening deformity; additionally, if the disease is diagnosed at a later stage, it leaves most patients to develop early osteoarthritis of the hip. Due to a lack of pathological specimen from patients, an experimental piglet model of femoral head ischemia was developed. The model closely follows the radiographic changes seen in LCPD patients, where there is subchondral fracture, resorption, and a flattening deformity of the femoral head. After ischemia, …

Fabrication And Characterization Of Low-Density Polymeric Materials With 3d Microstructures, Hakan Arslan

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Theses - Archive

Low-density polymeric materials with octet-truss and quad-truss 3D microstructures were studied. The materials with 3D microstructures were created using digital light processing technology with polyethylene glycol (PEG). The mechanical properties of the materials with different relative densities were characterized in air and water. The experimental results were also compared and analyzed with the results from simulation studies. This work reveals that the material with octet-truss microstructures stand at least three times higher deformation than the materials with quad-truss microstructures. The polymeric material with internal 3D microstructures also shows a higher water absorption rate than the same material without internal microstructures.

Tbi Induced Rate Dependent Viscoelastic Response Of Axon: Predictions From A Mathematical Model, Manikanta Jonnalagadda

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Theses - Archive

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) accounts to almost one fifth of total fatal injuries. Even though there are various mechanisms hypothesized for the causes leading to TBI, diffuse axonal injury (DAI) is found to be the most observed criterion. The reason for axonal failure in DAI has been studied extensively using experimental and computational models. It was found that axons behave like viscoelastic materials, thus exhibiting rate dependent behavior under loading. This viscoelastic behavior of axons is believed to drive the failure of axons and its substructures. It was observed that axon failure is caused by failures and distortions in axonal …

Progesterone And Prostaglandin F2Α Induce Species-Typical Female Preferences For Male Sexual Displays In Cope's Gray Treefrog (Hyla Chrysoscelis), J. L. Ward, E. K. Love, Alexander T. Baugh, N. M. Gordon, J. C. Tanner, M. A. Bee

Biology Faculty Works

Endocrine systems play critical roles in facilitating sexual behavior in seasonally breeding vertebrates. Much of the research exploring this topic has focused on the endocrine correlates of signaling behavior in males and sexual proceptivity in females. What is less understood is how hormones promote the expression of the often complex and highly selective set of stimulus–response behaviors that are observed in naturally breeding animals. In female frogs, phonotaxis is a robust and sensitive bioassay of mate choice and is exhibited by gravid females during the breeding season. In stark contrast, females exhibit low phonotactic responsiveness outside the breeding season, but …

Characterization And Comparison Of Fresh And Landfilled Solid Waste, Kavya Koganti

Civil Engineering Theses - Archive

The understanding of the characteristics of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) is very important in planning, designing and operating and/or upgrading the landfill operation system. It is well anticipated that the fresh MSW will be different from the landfilled MSW due to degradation. However, there is no systematic study on the comparison of physical properties of fresh and landfilled waste from bioreactor and/or enhanced leachate recirculated (ELR) landfills. The most important MSW properties to be considered while planning a landfill system are physical composition, moisture content, unit weight and volatile solids content. These properties are of particular interest especially when an …

The Role Of Platelets In The Successful Closure Of The Ductus Arteriosus In Premature Infants After Indomethacin Treatment, Joan Heilskov

Nursing Dissertations - Archive

Premature birth (birth before 37 weeks gestation) remain a global problem with negative consequences profundly affecting the infants, their families, and society. Persistent patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) is a significant complication seen in preterm infants. Premature infants with persistent PDAs are at increased risk for morbidity and mortality. Indomethacin is reported to successfully close the PDA in only 20-40 percent of infants whose birth weights are less than 1,000g. Common side effects of Indomethacin include renal dysfunction, gastric perforations, and decreased cerebral blood flow and perfusion. Several studies have shown thrombocytopenia is associated with persistent PDA in premature infants who …

Characterization Of The Constituent Mineral Components Of North African Surface Dust Samples Utilizing Computer Controlled Scanning Electron Microscopy (Ccsem), Zakariah Edward Sabatka

Earth & Environmental Sciences Theses - Archive

Analysis of the constituent mineral components of surface dusts/soils from Chad-Niger region, North Africa, was undertaken by computer controlled scanning electron microscopy (CCSEM) to determine if differences in composition could be used for source attribution to distinguish windblown material from different contributing source areas. A total of 11 surficial samples were selected for analysis by computer controlled scanning electron microscopy (CCSEM). These samples were from two different geographic locations in the Chad-Niger region. CCSEM analysis generates data on individual dust particles that includes: particle size, shape, and chemical composition. This type of particle characterization used a Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) …

Is Low Civic Literacy A Wicked Problem?, Sheila S. Kennedy

eJournal of Public Affairs

In 1973, Horst W. J. Rittel and Melvin M. Webber published an influential article on the nature of social problems. Titled “Dilemmas in a General Theory of Planning,” the article focused upon the difficulty of solving what the authors called “wicked problems,” and it triggered an ongoing scholarly discussion about the nature of such problems and the differences between efforts to craft social policies and the “tamer,” more linear approaches appropriate to the solution of scientific problems. Given the robust literature documenting U.S. citizens’ persistent deficit of civic knowledge, it is reasonable to ask whether low civic literacy should be …

Digital Peacekeepers, Drone Surveillance And Information Fusion: A Philosophical Analysis Of New Peacekeeping, Lisa Portmess, Bassam Romaya

Philosophy Faculty Publications

In June 2014 an Expert Panel on Technology and Innovation in UN Peacekeeping was commissioned to examine how technology and innovation could strengthen peacekeeping missions. The panel's report argues for wider deployment of advanced technologies, including greater use of ground and airborne sensors and other technical sources of data, advanced data analytics and information fusion to assist in data integration. This article explores the emerging intelligence-led, informationist conception of UN peacekeeping against the backdrop of increasingly complex peacekeeping mandates and precarious security conditions. New peacekeeping with its heightened commitment to information as a political resource and the endorsement of offensive …

The Banner - V. 150, No. 11 - (December 2015), Christian Reformed Church In North America

The Banner

No abstract provided.

Uis Bulletin, Volume 57, No. 2, December 2015, Efraín Mercado

KIP Articles

Contents: Editorial: UIS 50th Anniversary: A Time to Celebrate -- Celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the UIS in Postojna, Slovenia -- Launch of the book "Fifty years of the UIS: 1965-2015" -- UIS Proposes to Organize a UNESCO International Year of Caves in 2021 -- France Habe Prize 2015 -- Report of Commission on Cave Rescue -- Report of Commission on History of Speleology -- The Oldest Cave Map in the World -- Asian Transkarst 2015 / Born the Asian Speleological Union -- 33rd Brazilian Congress of Speleology -- Brazilian Speleological Community Supports the Initiative to the UNESCO International …

An Examination Of Microbial Community Composition At Tba-Degrading Versus Non-Degrading Sites, Courtney Thompson

All Theses

Understanding how fuel oxygenates interact with microorganisms in the subsurface is important for the remediation of contaminated sites and designing and optimizing remedial strategies. The current understanding of methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) and tertiary butyl alcohol (TBA) degradation in the environment has been developed primarily through gas chromatography GC analysis and culture-based laboratory studies. Microbial communities can be very diverse, and while microcosm studies provide valuable data, few metagenomic studies have been performed. To elucidate the significant microorganisms and pathways involved in the breakdown of MTBE and TBA, the compositions of entire indigenous microbial populations must be investigated and …

Spatial Analysis Of Distributions And Habitat Conditions Of Fallopia Japonica (Japanese Knotweed) Invasive Species Applying Unmanned Helicopter Remote Sensing, Jiazhen Zhang

Great Lakes Center Masters Theses

Abstract:

Fallopia japonica (Japanese knotweed) is a perennial herbaceous plant that is native to East Asia. It is considered as one of the worst invasive species worldwide because of its serious impact on biological diversity and human activities (Lowe et al., 2001). Once established, Japanese knotweed forms dense stands that shade and crowd out native plant species. The objectives of this research were to verify and confirm the distribution of Japanese knotweed as published online by the New York Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) – iMap and to identify the geographic areas of spreading and the local habitat conditions. In …

Degradation Of Organic Pollutants And Microorganisms From Wastewater Using Different Dielectric Barrier Discharge Configurations—A Critical Review, Emile S.Massima Mouele, Jimoh O. Tijani, Ojo O. Fatoba, Leslie F. Petrik

Mining Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The growing global drinking water crisis requires the development of novel advanced, sustainable, and cost-effective water treatment technologies to supplement the existing conventional methods. One such technology is advanced oxidation based on dielectric barrier discharge (DBD). DBD such as single and double planar and single and double cylindrical dielectric barrier configurations have been utilized for efficient degradation of recalcitrant organic pollutants. The overall performance of the different DBD system varies and depends on several factors. Therefore, this review was compiled to give an overview of different DBD configurations vis-a-viz their applications and the in-situ mechanism of generation of free reactive …

When Is It Mental?, Stuart Glennan

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

Most philosophical debate over mental causation has been concerned with reconciling commonsense intuitions that there are causal interactions between the mental and the physical with philosophical theories of the nature of the mental that seem to suggest otherwise. My concern is with a different and more practical problem. We often confront some cognitive, affective, or bodily phenomenon, and wonder about its source – its etiology or its underlying causal basis. For instance, you might wonder whether your queasiness due to something you ate, or whether it is just nervousness, or whether your aunt’s memory loss is a neurological problem or …

T&C Magazine Issue 10 - Winter 2015, T&C Media

T&C Magazine

Articles Include: Alumni with Cool Careers // In Transition // Not your Mother's Classroom // Living with the Unpredictable // The Secret Life of Bayley Banks // More than Black & White // Accepting Love // Excuses! Excuses! // Campus Shooting // Where in the World are you from