Digital Commons Network^™

Evaluating The Effects Of Education On Student Knowledge, Attitudes, And Behavior Regarding Food Waste, Rebecca Busse

Open Access Theses

Food waste is a growing global environmental, economic, and social issue. One proposed method for reducing food waste is to increase awareness through education. This study is the first to evaluate the effects of environmentally focused lesson plans on student knowledge, attitudes, and behavior regarding food waste. The study was conducted with second and fifth grade classrooms in two Indiana elementary schools. Student responses were assessed using pre/post surveys and interviews, and by measuring student plate waste. Teacher interviews were also conducted to determine existing perceptions and uses of food waste education in the classroom, and to assess reactions to …

Bird Hazard Mitigation Training For General Aviation Pilots - A Prospective Research Study, Flavio A. C. Mendonca, Thomas Q. Carney

Publications

• General aviation industry
• 446,000 aircraft worldwide
• 211,000 in the U.S.
• Supports $219 billion in total economic output and 1.1 million jobs in the U.S
• Flies approximately 25 million flight hours (U.S.)
• Flies to more than 5,000 public airports
• Primary training ground for most commercial airline pilots

Tools And Methods In Participatory Modeling: Selecting The Right Tool For The Job, Alexey Voinov, Karen Jenni, Steven Gray, Nagesh Kolagani, Pierre D. Glynn, Pierre Bommel, Christina Prell, Moira Zellner, Michael Paolisso, Rebecca Jordan, Eleanor J. Sterling, Laura Schmitt Olabisi, Philippe J. Giabbanelli, Zhanli Sun, Christophe Le Page, Sondoss Elsawah, Todd K. Bendor, Klaus Hubacek, Bethany Laursen, Antoine J. Jetter, Laura Basco-Carrera, Alison Singer, Laura Young, Jessica Brunacini, Alex Smajgl

Engineering and Technology Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

Various tools and methods are used in participatory modelling, at different stages of the process and for different purposes. The diversity of tools and methods can create challenges for stakeholders and modelers when selecting the ones most appropriate for their projects. We offer a systematic overview, assessment, and categorization of methods to assist modelers and stakeholders with their choices and decisions. Most available literature provides little justification or information on the reasons for the use of particular methods or tools in a given study. In most of the cases, it seems that the prior experience and skills of the modelers …

Feasibility Of Aerial Tramway At Boise State University, Majed Alsaqyani

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

The use of aerial tramways is becoming common in cities as a way to provide reliable, safe, sustainable, and cost-effective mass transportation. The aerial tramway is especially effective in the most congested areas of major cities. The growth of Boise State University (BSU) and downtown Boise makes this location especially attractive for a tramway. Moreover, based on data collected for this analysis, it is clear that the BSU community is open to using the tramway instead of more traditional modes of transportation.

The viability of the tramway is further enhanced because the computer science department has moved to City Center …

Environmental Framing And Its Limits: Campaigns In Palestine And Israel, Emily Mckee

Faculty Articles, Papers, and Other Scholarship

As activists frame campaigns, their region's broader cultural and political context intercedes. In Israel and Palestine attempts to work across national lines and undertake activism that links ecological, economic, and social issues have long been stymied. This article examines how the fraught historical and contemporary relationships of Israelis and Palestinians with land bestow both flexibility and limitations on their framing of campaigns. In particular, it ethnographically analyzes the framing of two projects-the building of an eco-mosque and a Jordan River restoration effort-to examine how activists grapple with frame flexibility and its limits. It finds that an Israeli tendency to deterritorialize …

Special Issue On Climate Change And Land Conservation And Restoration: Advances In Economics Methods And Policies For Adaptation And Mitigation, Sarah Cline, Sahan T.M. Dissanayake

Economics Faculty Publications and Presentations

Climate change will likely impact the ecosystem services and biodiversity generated from conserved land. Land conservation can also play a significant role in achieving cost-effective mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions. In this special issue we feature seven papers from the 2017 NAREA Workshop, “Climate Change and Land Conservation and Restoration: Advances in Economics Methods and Policies for Adaptation and Mitigation.” The articles include papers furthering the methodological frontier; portfolio optimization, dynamic rangeland stocking, and global timber harvest models, and those highlighting innovative applications; climate smart agricultural practices in Nigeria and Vietnam, welfare impacts on birding, and carbon and albedo pricing.

Improvement Of Soil Structure Through Organic Crop Management, Conservation Tillage And Grass-Clover Ley, Viviana Loaiza Puerta, Engil Isadora Pujol Pereira, Raphaël Wittwer, Marcel G. A. Van Der Heijden, Johan Six

School of Earth, Environmental, & Marine Sciences Faculty Publications

Highlights

• Organic crop management combined with reduced tillage improved soil structure.
• The ley period improved soil structure for conventional intensive tillage.
• The ley period increased total carbon in organic crop management at 0–6 cm soil depth.

Abstract

Conventional intensive tillage is a widespread soil management practice that controls weeds and promotes nutrient mineralization at the expense of a degraded soil structure and soil carbon (C) loss. Alternative soil management practices such as no tillage, reduced tillage and temporary leys, however, can minimize the negative effects of intensive tillage on soil structure. To improve understanding of these management practices on …

Envh 7235– Field Methods In Environmental Health, Marina E. Eremeeva

College of Public Health: Faculty Syllabi (2014-2021)

This course introduces students to an overview of current and accepted field methods for environmental sampling and occupational exposure monitoring.

Humans As Sensors: The Influence Of Extreme Heat Vulnerability Factors On Risk Perceptions Across The Contiguous United States, Forrest Scott Schoessow

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Extreme heat events are the deadliest natural hazard in the United States and will continue to get worse in the coming years due to the effects of climate change. As a result, more people will experience deadly heat conditions. This highlights the need for decision-makers to develop better strategies for preventing future losses. How badly individuals are affected by extreme heat depends on many circumstances, such as how high temperatures actually are, weather conditions, and location. For example, a dry 90 °F day in Phoenix is probably more tolerable than a humid 90 °F day in New Orleans for most …

Identifying The Molecular Functions Of The C-Terminal Region Of The Human Proteins, Surbhi Sharma

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The Carboxyl (C-) terminus of proteins is usually disordered and flexible allowing proteins to engage in an induced-fit type of interactions with other molecules. Often, these interactions are mediated through the C- terminal minimotifs, which are peptide sequences of 2-15 contiguous residues found in a protein with a known molecular function. These functions include protein binding, trafficking, and post-translational modifications. In this dissertation, we investigated how many human proteins contain the C-terminal minimotifs. We cataloged 3,593 previously verified C-terminal minimotifs representing 17% of the human proteome. Based on these observations, we asked: Does the remaining 83% of the human proteome …

Evaluation Of Airline Efficiency And Environmental Impacts Using Data Envelopment Analysis, Arun Paul Saini

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

Airline efficiency has been a focus of research since the birth of the airline industry. Data envelopment analysis has become a highly accepted methodology for performing efficiency analysis and assessing relative differences between comparable business entities; over the last decade, airline efficiency research has proliferated into this linear programming domain. While early airline efficiency research focused primarily on revenue generation and profitability, growing commercial social responsibility is driving greater investment into understanding and improving the environmental impact of airline operations. This study is intended to partially fill a gap in exigent literature. While limited data envelopment analysis including environmental impacts …

Projected Trends In Climate Extremes In The Passaic River Basin Based On Bias-Corrected And Spatially Downscaled Global Climate Model Simulations, Archana Prasad

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Global Climate Models (GCMs) are increasingly becoming useful tools for predicting future climatic changes. These GCMs typically employ large spatial scales while municipalities may experience varied impacts at the local level. By downscaling and bias-correcting GCM outputs, more accurate predictions concerning specific regions can be made. The Multivariate Adaptive Constructed Analogs (MACA) models provide daily precipitation and temperature information for point localities by modifying coarse resolution data from GCMs to a higher spatial resolution. In this study, trends in climate extremes over the Passaic River Basin (PRB) between 1981-2005 are estimated based on three MACA models (bcc-csm1-1m, CCSM4, and MRI-CGCM3). …

Molecular Ecology And Management Of Nuisance And Invasive Marine Species : Chrysaora Chesapeakei, Moerisia Sp., And Gonionemus Vertens, Dena J. Restaino

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Ecological communities are under constant pressure from anthropogenic disturbances. Marine and estuarine systems are affected by human use and development of both coastal land and the surrounding water. One consequence of this use is the deterioration of water quality, which can lead to changes in community structure and a loss of species richness. Another effect of increased usage of marine water ways in the introduction of invasive species. These non-natives also have the ability to change community structure and reduce ecosystem services. In particular cnidarians are able to thrive in degraded systems in part owing to their ability to tolerate …

Benthic Invertebrate Communities Of Barnegat Bay New Jersey : Effects Of Hard-Clam (Mercenaria Mercenaria L.) Aquaculture Grow-Outs On Benthic Communities, Rebecca Shell

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Plots of three treatment types (industry-standard screens with clams, screens without clams, and control) were installed at Sedge Island, Barnegat Bay, in 2012. 177 species from eight phyla were collected. Hard-clam plots had lower Shannon-Weiner Index values and higher sedimentary sorting coefficients as compared to both control treatments. ANOSIM identified benthic communities inside hard clam plots as statistically distinct from the two control treatments. There was no significant effect of treatment on functional groups assigned by burrowing depth. Seasonal peaks in May are clear for Polydora cornuta and Tritia obsoleta, as well as for suspension feeders and omnivores. All burrowing-depth …

Water Treatment Residual Coated Wood Mulch For Mitigation Of Toxic Metals And Phosphate From Polluted Urban Stormwater Runoff, Hanieh Soleimanifar

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Polluted urban runoff as a primary non-point pollution source poses a serious threat to urban human and ecological health. Various urban runoff pollutants challenge the exiting stormwater treatment systems. To support the development of a sound and sustainable urban stormwater management, this dissertation targets at transforming a common landscaping practice, i.e. mulching, into a new stormwater treatment technology through coating aluminum water treatment residual (Al-WTR) on the surface of wood mulch chips. WTR is an industrial waste produced from drinking water treatment plants and primarily comprises amorphous aluminum (hydr)oxides. The Al-WTR coating on the modified wood mulch enables the adsorption …

Life Cycle Analysis Of Sugarcane Bagasse And Switchgrass Under Dilute Phosphoric Acid Pretreatment And Simultaneous Saccharification And Cofermentation, Michael C. Fowler

Theses, Dissertations and Culminating Projects

Under provisions of the Energy Independence and Security Act and the Renewable Fuel Standard, production of cellulosic ethanol is mandated to increase. Corn dominates the first generation ethanol industry in the United States. Already a high-demand crop, when subject to agricultural intensification, the carbon-neutrality potential associated with biofuels, and other environmental implications, fall into question. Sugarcane bagasse, a lignocellulosic byproduct of sugarcane manufacturing with limited economic value, and switchgrass (Panicum virgatum), a native, perennial, high-yield crop, are alternative resources that might used to produce ethanol. Life cycle assessment of second generation feedstocks has focused exhaustively on global warming potential with …

University Of Nebraska-Lincoln Digitalcommons: Statistical Report, August 2018, Deeann Allison, Paul Royster, Sue Ann Gardner, Margaret Mering, Linnea Fredrickson

Copyright, Fair Use, Scholarly Communication, etc.

To: Deeann Allison, Director, Media & Repository Services, UNL Libraries

I am pleased to transmit the following statistics report on the UNL DigitalCommons, http://digitalcommons.unl.edu

The DigitalCommons is the “institutional repository” for UNL. It’s function is to gather the intellectual output of the university for online public access. It was established in 2005, and now holds 99,000 papers, making it the 3rd largest in the United States, trailing only the University of California system (190,000) and the University of Michigan (120,000). It recently surpassed 50 million downloads, and is the nation’s current leader in that category. Alexa.com reports that the repository …

Towards Sustainable Aquafeeds: Evaluating Substitution Of Fishmeal With Lipid-Extracted Microalgal Co-Product (Nannochloropsis Oculata) In Diets Of Juvenile Nile Tilapia (Oreochromis Niloticus), Pallab K. Sarker, Anne R. Kapuscinski, Ashley Y. Bae, Emily Donaldson, Devin S. Fitzgerald, Oliver F. Edelson

Dartmouth Scholarship

Microalgae companies increasingly seek markets for defatted biomass that is left over after extracting omega-3 rich oil for human nutraceuticals and crude oil for fuels. Such a protein-rich co-product is a promising alternative to unsustainably sourced fishmeal in aquaculture diets. We report the first evaluation of co-product of the marine microalga Nannochloropsis oculata(N. oculata co-product) for replacing fishmeal in diets of Nile tilapia, a globally important aquaculture species. We conducted a nutrient digestibility experiment with N. oculata dried whole cells and N. oculata co-product, followed by an 84-day nutritional feeding experiment with N. oculata co-product. N. oculata co-product, more nutrient-dense …

Economic Identity, Price And Policy: Willingness To Pay For Fracking Regulation In Colorado, Adam Mayer

Journal of Rural Social Sciences

This article considers public support for increased regulation of unconventional oil and gas development in Colorado. We examine the role of community economic identity and investigate the possibility of “colliding treadmills” in local political economies as drivers of policy preferences. We find that many place-based variables do little to predict regulatory support, but the cost associated with regulation (increased taxes) and political identity are especially important. Further, this study is one of a handful of sociological analyses to employ the contingent valuation method for environmental valuation, and in doing so it provides a first step toward establishing an empirically rigorous …

The Impact Of World War One On The Forests And Soils Of Europe, Drew Heiderscheidt

Ursidae: The Undergraduate Research Journal at the University of Northern Colorado

The First World War was one of the deadliest conflicts in human history thus far. With the human toll being over eight million deaths, and millions more wounded, and as such it has taken hold in peoples imaginations for over a hundred years. However, one overlooked impact of the war is the environmental impact it had. The forests of Europe were significantly changed, going from being diverse ecosystems pre-war to monocultures after the war, dominated by single species of trees. The soil was also affected, more heavily in some places, becoming contaminated with heavy metals, as well as becoming entirely …

Parenting Advice And Regrets Of Empty-Nesters, Ashton Chapman, David G. Schramm

Human Development and Family Studies Faculty Publications

Objective: To identify the advice and regrets empty-nest parents have when reflecting on their experiences as parents, and to investigate the utility of the parenting pyramid framework for parent education on the basis of that advice and those regrets.

Background: The parenting pyramid specifies that the parent–child relationship, teaching, and corection are key components of parenting, and that they should be emphasized in that order or priority. However, the extent to which this model is reflective of what parents actually think or do, or wish they would have done, remains unclear.

Method: Empty-nesters were recruited through social media, professional e-mail …

Analysis Of Surface Soil Lead Contamination In Urban Neighborhoods Of Davenport, Iowa, Joseph Teresi

Celebration of Learning

Davenport, IA, is a typical Midwestern city with a population of ~102,600 residents and is characterized by aging infrastructure and housing stock. Consequently, alarmingly high rates of child lead poisoning—as a result of deteriorating lead paint—constitute a major public health concern in some urban neighborhoods. A research team conducted free home lead screenings in vulnerable Davenport neighborhoods to better understand the severity of the problem. Via appointment, 27 homes were tested for lead in their paint, dust, soil, and water. Many of the highest-risk homes were found in low-income neighborhoods. The purpose of this study was to assess the extent …

Residential Zoning And Near-Roadway Air Pollution: An Analysis Of Los Angeles, C. J. Gabbe

Environmental Studies and Sciences

Air pollution from motor vehicles harms the health of those who live near freeways and other high-traffic roads. Land use regulations may permit, prohibit, or impose special conditions on housing near major roadways. This paper answers two questions: First, how is residential development near major roadways regulated? Second, how common are zoning changes near major roadways, and what factors explain these changes? This paper compares the zoning designations of near-roadway parcels with others in the city, and uses two sets of logistic regression models to analyze near-roadway zoning. The results show that residential development is permitted on most near-roadway parcels, …

The Global Food-Energy-Water Nexus, Paolo D’Odorico, Kyle Frankel Davis, Lorenzo Rosa, Joel A. Carr, Davide Chiarelli, Jampel Dell’Angelo, Jessica Gephart, Graham K. Macdonald, David A. Seekell, Samir Suweis, Maria Cristina Rulli

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Abstract Water availability is a major factor constraining humanity’s ability to meet the future food and energy needs of a growing and increasingly affluent human population. Water plays an important role in the production of energy, including renewable energy sources and the extraction of unconventional fossil fuels that are expected to become important players in future energy security. The emergent competition for water between the food and energy systems is increasingly recognized in the concept of the “food-energy-water nexus.” The nexus between food and water is made even more complex by the globalization of agriculture and rapid growth in food …

The World Of Women: Resources, Kellian Clink

Library Services Publications

Women are absent from most standard encyclopedias in academic libraries such as the Europa World Year Book or the States’ Man Yearbook. To provide excellent service to our Gender and Women’s Studies scholars, librarians need to provide alternative sources of country information. Below are directories, country studies, and a listing of some significant websites with authoritative, timely, and substantial information about women around the world.

Some of the resources scoured to find these included the LibGuide: https://guides.library.oregonstate.edu/wgss280, the University of Wisconsin’s Women’s Knowledge Digital Library. In addition, intentional searching for websites and 30 years’ experience helping GWS scholars contributed to …

Environmental Injustice/Racism In Flint, Michigan: An Analysis Of The Bodily Integrity Claim In Mays V. Snyder As Compared To Other Environmental Justice Cases, Joshua V. Berliner

Pace Environmental Law Review

This Note examines the merits of the “bodily integrity” claim that the Flint residents have alleged in Mays (but does not discuss any claims asserted in Earley, the case Mays was consolidated with on appeal), and asserts that they should be successful on this claim on remand, assuming that the facts alleged in the Flint residents’ complaint are true. This Note outlines the alleged facts and then discusses the existing case law on bodily integrity claims generally, both in the non-environmental justice and environmental justice fields. Following is an explanation of the specific bodily integrity claim the Flint residents have …

Conflict Sensitivity And Conservation: Evaluating Design, Implementation & Practice, Amanda S. Woomer

Doctor of International Conflict Management Dissertations

This dissertation investigates the use of a conflict sensitivity framework in supporting environmental conservation work. Employing an action research methodology, it consists of a multi-phase evaluation of the design and implementation of Conservation International’s (CI) Environmental Peacebuilding Training Manual. Through needs assessment, formative evaluation, and outcome evaluation phases, the dissertation explores questions related to what conflicts conservation practitioners face; what form a relevant, accessible, and effective conflict sensitivity framework might take; and what effect such a framework might have on the knowledge, attitudes, capacities, and actions of conservation practitioners. The findings indicate that conservation practitioners face a variety of conflicts …

Evaluating The Utility Of Object-Based Image Analysis For Ecological Monitoring Of Pinon-Juniper Mortality, Zachary C. Taraschi

Geography ETDs

Forested ecosystems in the American Southwest are experiencing change at an unprecedented rate, largely due to mortality events triggered by increased temperatures, drought, and insect infestations. Large-scale changes in the distributions of these ecosystems can potentially alter regional-scale carbon, water and energy dynamics. One biome in particular that has experienced increased mortality and altered forest composition over the past 30 years are Piñon-Juniper woodlands (Pinus edulis, Juniperus spp.) in the American Southwest. New fields of study, in particular, Remote Sensing, are applying and adapting traditional methods for ecological monitoring of these woodlands. Remote sensing offers the potential to synoptically …

Soil Properties Explain Changes In Soil Microbial Enzyme Activity With Depth In A Piñon-Juniper Woodland, Amanda B. Sacks

Biology ETDs

Semi-arid ecosystems play a major role in the global carbon cycle. These ecosystems, including piñon-juniper (PJ) woodlands, are experiencing extreme drought. As such, it is vital to characterize both above and below-ground processes in these systems in order to understand their vulnerability to future drought and other changes in climate.

Soils microbial communities play a critical role in nutrient cycles, as well as carbon storage, within PJ woodlands. More specifically, microbes aid the decomposition and mineralization of key nutrients, including carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus, through the use of extracellular enzymes. Measuring microbial enzyme activity, therefore, can provide insight into how …

Huron-To-Erie Water Quality Data Platform, Lanyu Xu, Carol J. Miller, James Olson, Michael Beaulac

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research Publications

To address the challenges of environmental degradation, creation of a sustainable urban environment, and increased public engagement and awareness, a mass-oriented, user-friendly and cloud-based data platform has been developed and deployed to provide integrative water quality data in one of the most critical urban corridors of the Laurentian Great Lakes system. In this paper, we describe the data platform developed for the watershed and connecting channels between Lake Huron and Lake Erie, including the St. Clair River, Lake St. Chair, and the Detroit River. This data platform greatly facilitates the access of data across data providers and agencies. Several example …