Digital Commons Network^™

A Social–Ecological Odyssey In Fisheries And Wildlife Management, Andrew K. Carlson, William W. Taylor, Melissa R. Cronin, Mitchell J. Eaton, Mark A. Kaemingk, Andrea J. Reid, Ashley Trudeau

Nebraska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit: Staff Publications

Aldo Leopold, famous ecologist and “father” of North American wildlife management, once said, “These are two things that interest me: the relation of people to each other, and the relation of people to land” (Leopold 1947). Ever prescient, Leopold recognized that natural resource management is fundamentally about humans and their relationship with nature well before conservation became an established way of thinking, much less the bedrock of entire professions. Similarly, amid the Green Revolution to increase agricultural production, in part, through widespread use of pesticides, renowned environmentalist and journalist Rachel Carson noted that we are all “a part of nature, …

The Impact Of Extreme Heat On Environmental Justice Communities In California: Assessing Equity In Climate Action Plans, Karishma S. Becha

Master's Projects and Capstones

Climate change projections suggest extreme heat events will be more frequent over the next few decades. Extreme heat has both negative environmental and social impacts as it affects energy security, public health by increasing the risk of heat-related illnesses and stresses food and crop supply through prolonged droughts. The impacts of extreme heat will also disproportionately affect communities of low economic status. Because of this, there is a need for better climate action plans that can adapt to and mitigate the impacts brought upon by extreme heat that does not disproportionately impact vulnerable communities. This research analyzed local government Climate …

Differential Responses Of Maximum Versus Median Chlorophyll-A To Air Temperature And Nutrient Loads In An Oligotrophic Lake Over 31 Years, Nicole K. Ward, Bethel G. Steele, Kathleen C. Weathers, Kathryn L. Cottingham, Holly Ewing, Paul C. Hanson, Cayelan C. Carey

All Faculty Scholarship

Globally, phytoplankton abundance is increasing in lakes as a result of climate change and land-use change. The relative importance of climate and land-use drivers has been examined primarily for mesotrophic and eutrophic lakes. However, oligotrophic lakes show different sensitivity to climate and land-use drivers than mesotrophic and eutrophic lakes, necessitating further exploration of the relative contribution of the two drivers of change to increased phytoplankton abundance. Here, we investigated how air temperature (a driver related to climate change) and nutrient load (a driver related to land-use and climate change) interact to alter water quality in oligotrophic Lake Sunapee, New Hampshire, …

Regional Population Projection Models, Andrei Rogers

Web Book of Regional Science

Public and private institutions, organizations, and firms require information on potential demographic futures. Public organizations must anticipate future population needs and thereby judge the need for efforts to alter current population processes and trends. Private firms maximize possible profits by adjusting product lines and shifting distribution networks using information obtained from regional demographic projections. This book demonstrates how researchers can analyze the evolution of multiple regional populations, each interconnected by migration flows. The author adopts a geographical perspective by considering how fertility, mortality, and migration combine to determine the growth, age composition, and spatial distribution of a national multiregional population. …

Health Risk Assessment Of Pesticide Residues In Vegetables From River Basin Area, Supawat Chaikasem, Veerapas Na Roi-Et

Applied Environmental Research

Environmental contaminations with pesticides are considered as one of the major environmental pathways of human exposure leading to a potential threat to human health, especially if there is an accumulation in the trophic levels. This study purposed to investigate the level of pesticide residues and the potential health risk associated with vegetables, surface water, and sediment obtained from the river basin area. The concentrations of 87 pesticides from four main groups namely; organophosphate, organochlorine, pyrethroid, and persistent organic pollutants (POPs) were verified by triple quadrupole GC-MS/MS. The concentration of Parathion methyl, Methidathion, Bromophos methyl, Chlorfenvinphos, Triazophos, Azinphos ethyl, and D-trans-Phenothrin …

Determining Donor Age Through Blood Analysis Using Attenuated Total Reflection Fourier Transform-Infrared (Atr Ft-Ir) Spectroscopy For Forensic Purposes, Samantha Leigh Giuliano

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Chapter 1 of this thesis is an overview of the use of attenuated total reflection Fourier transform-infrared (ATR FT-IR) spectroscopy in industry and for examination of body fluids with emphasizes on examination of blood. It covers recent developments for analysis of samples with ATR FT-IR spectroscopy for forensic purposes.

Examining Terrain Effects On Upstate New York Tornado Events Utilizing High-Resolution Model Simulations, Luke Lebel

Atmospheric & Environmental Sciences

The region at the intersection of the Mohawk and Hudson valleys of New York is characterized by complex terrain. It has been hypothesized that this complex terrain may have an impact on the development and evolution of severe convection in the region. Specifically, previous research has hypothesized that terrain-channeled flow in the Hudson and Mohawk valleys contributed to increased low-level wind shear and instability in the valleys during past severe weather outbreaks. However, a lack of observations in the region prevented this hypothesis from being robustly tested.

The goal of this study is to further examine this hypothesis and complement …

Changes In Land Use Land Cover (Lulc), Surface Water Quality And Modelling Surface Discharge In Beaver Creek Watershed, Northeast Tennessee And Southwest Virginia, Tosin James

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Beaver Creek is an impaired streams that is not supporting its designated use for recreation due to Escherichia coli (E.coli), and sediment. To address this problem, this thesis was divided into two studies.

The first study explored changes in Land Use Land Cover (LULC), and its impact on surface water quality. Changes in E.coli load between 1997-2001 and 2014-2018 were analyzed. Also, Landsat data of 2001, and 2018 were examined in Terrset 18.31. Mann-Whitney test only showed a significant reduction in E.coli for one site. Negative correlation was established between E.coli load, and Developed LULC, Forest LULC, and …

Consumer Response To Green Brands Vs. Traditional Brands On Digital Platforms: An Analysis Through A Series Of Case Studies, Madison Busick

Honors Scholar Theses

In the age of environmental crisis, consumers are increasingly aware of the environmental impact of their decisions. Accordingly, many companies seek to provide more eco-friendly and sustainable products while building their brand around these values. Consumers also are increasingly using and engaging on social media and other digital platforms. But just how well do these "green" brands do in the digital space? This study aims to compare differences between brands that embody environmentalist values and traditional brands with a variety of case studies across several consumer goods segments including clothing, cosmetics, and technology. The data is collected from a variety …

Ink (2020)

Ink, 2008-

The student-run features magazine covering the fashion, art, music and culture worlds at VCU and in Richmond. Published annually in print and updated regularly online.

Student Honors And Awards Program 2020, Communications And Marketing

UMM Honors and Awards Ceremony

In recognition of students who demonstrate academic excellence and enrich campus life.

Delay And Geographic Discounting Exert Multiple Control Over Climate Change Policy Preference, Celeste Noelle Unnerstall

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

The procedures were informed by a pilot investigation conducted by this research team that is described below. In the primary study, students attending Missouri State University chose between a policy with no restrictions or taxation on their carbon emissions versus a restriction on the amount of mileage driven per month and taxation related to the mileage. The main study also included an added variable of the influence a redistribution taxation policy into different geographic distances would have on policy preference. Results were interpreted in terms of a multilevel hyperbolic discounting model using the “R” program. The results suggest that there …

Governing A Continent Of Trash: The Global Politics Of Oceanic Pollution, Anne Longo

Honors Scholar Theses

There is a new continent growing in the North Pacific Ocean known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. The Patch is composed of a vast array of marine pollution, discarded single-use items, and mostly microplastics. This thesis explores how and why governments and other entities do or do not deal with the growing problem of ocean pollution. Sovereignty roadblocks and balance of power prove to be obstacles for such efforts. This thesis then attempts to create the ideal model of governance for ocean plastics using the policy-making process. The policy analysis reviews bilateral, multilateral, and non-governmental solutions for the removal …

Nutrient Dynamics Of The San Francisco Estuary, Kirsten Wong, Rhea Quezon

Creative Activity and Research Day - CARD

Over the last few decades, the San Francisco Estuary has experienced a decline in primary productivity that has resulted in the scarcity of food at higher trophic levels. Previous literature has attributed this decline in primary productivity to the increased grazing of the invasive clam, Potamocorbula amurensis. However, there have been occasions of phytoplankton blooms during times of high P. amurensis abundance. This conundrum has been deemed the “clam paradox.” Through a literature review, we have investigated that increased clam grazing is not solely responsible for the decline of primary productivity. Rather, the NH4 excreted from P. amurensis combined with …

Diatom Morphology In Light Of A Changing Climate: A Focus On Aulacoseira Crenulata, Brighid Welchans

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

Fossilized diatoms are arguably the most vital proxy record utilized in paleolimnology. Diatoms are unicellular microalgae that are the basis of countless food webs, are invaluable bioindicators, and generate nearly a quarter of global net primary productivity. Diatoms are affected by a variety of environmental factors but there is relatively little research on how environmental conditions impact diatom valve morphology, and in particular whether there is a correlation between incoming light and diatom pore morphology. This report focuses on the Amazon lowland lake Garzacocha, and analyzes the relationship between light levels and the corresponding size of Aulacoseira crenulata pores. We …

Carbon And Nitrogen Dynamics In Fluvial Systems Across Biomes, Bianca Rodriguez-Cardona

Doctoral Dissertations

Carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) cycles are tightly coupled in ecosystems as many N transformations rely on carbon as the energy source. In aquatic ecosystems this coupling between C and N has been studied via assessment of dissolve organic carbon (DOC) and inorganic-N concentration or whole stream manipulations of C and/or N to determine the influence of C on N processing. However, the majority of these studies have been performed in temperate systems and whether these relationships hold across other biomes, like artic and tropics, is unclear. In addition, how the more N-rich organic matter or dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) …

From The Horse's Mouth: Voices Of The Nonhuman In Classic Children's Literature, Kathleen A. Gekiere

Environmental Studies Honors Theses

Children’s literature often features anthropomorphized talking animal characters with individual lives and voices. This thesis clarifies the types of animal voices heard in children’s literature, utilizing a tripartite spectrum of expressions of animal emotions and perspectives, moralizing speech, and world building or plot progressing speech. This framework facilitates the exploration of the animal-human relationships and events of communication which shine through human-filtered animal voices. Using this framework, this thesis analyzes Anna Sewell’s Black Beauty, Hugh Lofting’s The Story of Doctor Dolittle and The Voyage of Doctor Dolittle, and C. S. Lewis’s The Magician’s Nephew, The Lion, the …

Shifting Sands: The Art Of Ecological Place-Based Education, Emily Christine Bretl

Dissertations

Ecological place-based education is defined by the inextricable overlap of the places where society, politics, culture, and the environment meet in intricate and interdependent ways. It encompasses the development of the skills, knowledge, understanding, and characteristics that we need to live well on this earth and with one another. This research observed and evaluated the experiences, expectations, and practices of three traditionally minded teachers and the participant-researcher as they encountered and implemented ecological place-based education for the first time, in a new school. I used the methodology of educational criticism and connoisseurship, and I applied an ecological aesthetic framework to …

Discovering Synergies Among Sustainable Rating Systems In Green Roof Analysis, Kanaan Hardaway

Biological and Agricultural Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

As awareness has grown of the impacts the built environment has on the natural environment and the human psyche, methods to create more sustainable living environment have been developed. Green infrastructure is well-known for its environmental benefits. Emerging literature suggests green infrastructure have aesthetic qualities conducive to mental restoration, as well. To analyze the multi-benefits of green infrastructure, a green roof is studied for its aesthetic qualities and its impact on LEED, SITES, and WELL certification. A questionnaire was administered to individuals on the University of Arkansas campus to quantify human perceptions and attitudes toward a green roof on a …

Observing Waste Production And Bringing Sustainable Options To The Houses In Fraternity Circle, Lindsay Travers

Senior Honors Projects

In our ever-changing world, focusing on sustainability has become important due to human-caused climate change. As a result of our world changing and advancing, the majority of the population now moves at a fast pace. In some cases, this speed of living requires the easiest route possible when it comes to using resources or disposing of items. However, there have been many advancements that have given our world options to be more sustainable. In the 1970’s, recycling was introduced and groups ranging from large corporations to individual households began recycling items and reducing their overall waste production. This was a …

East Of Adams, Autumn Walter

Senior Honors Projects

East of Adams is a photography project that explores the conservationist messaging ofAnsel Adams’s historical work and translates this work into shooting the Acadia National Park in Maine. Adams is well known for his documentation of our national parks in the western United States during the 1930s and 1940s. Armed with his large format camera he created his images in order to speak to the importance of conserving the natural beauty ofAmerica’s unique wild lands. Inspired by Adams’s drive to use photography in order tomotivate conservation, East of Adams will focus on similar goals within the Eastern United States at …

Teaching Economic Risk Management Through A Video Game Concept, Samantha Montella

Senior Honors Projects

Many video games imply economic behavior: making decisions within a game highlights the fundamentals of human action. The basic idea is that virtual worlds, like the real world, present us with a series of choices. Games impose digital scarcity, obliging players to weigh the benefits of different courses of action, make tradeoffs, and incur costs.

Good examples are found in the role-playing game (RPG) genre, where players face tough choices between different specializations and skill trees. Obliging players to make difficult decisions highlights the opportunity costs of choice, not the money cost. Games also encourage players to think entrepreneurially: to …

University Of Montana Commencement List, Spring 2020, University Of Montana--Missoula. Office Of The Registrar

University of Montana Commencement Programs, 1898-2020

Due to COVID-19, the Registrar did not publish an official Spring 2020 commencement program (physically or digitally). Library staff copied the list of graduates from the commencement web site and saved the list for online access in this repository.

Analysis Of The Soil Lead Contamination Issue Of South Chattanooga, Tesros Cherian

Honors Theses

Childhood lead poisoning is an ongoing health threat despite actions taken by governmental bodies to remove lead from gasoline, paint, and other various household objects in which lead is found. In South Chattanooga specifically, lead has been found in the soil at such a level it is considered a public health threat, especially to children under the age of six. This situation has caused the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to name the South Chattanooga area as a Superfund site known as the Southside Chattanooga Lead Superfund site. This designation has resulted in multiple community meetings between EPA officials and Chattanooga …

The Wild Diamond Diaries: Healing Alongside America's Wild Horses, Megan Emily

All NMU Master's Theses

To some, America’s free-roaming Mustangs and burros symbolize liberty and beauty. To others, these equines are feral at best, invasive at worst. They have a reputation for being useless, destructive, and untrainable. Yet my childhood horse—gifted to my family when I was three—was a gentled Mustang, W.D. Through W.D., I first encountered these horses’ kind dispositions, composure, and hardiness. After my younger sister died in a riding accident with another horse, my parents rehomed W.D. The devastating loss of both my sister and horse sparked my lifelong interest in Mustangs’ lives in the wild and journey into domestication, especially via …

Climate From The Mcmurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica, 1986–2017: Surface Air Temperature Trends And Redefined Summer Season, Maciej K. Obryk, Peter T. Doran, Andrew G. Fountain, M. Myers, Christopher P. Mckay

Geology Faculty Publications and Presentations

The weather of the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica, the largest ice‐free region of the Antarctica, has been continuously monitored since 1985 with currently 14 operational meteorological stations distributed throughout the valleys. Because climate is based on a 30‐year record of weather, this is the first study to truly define the contemporary climate of the McMurdo Dry Valleys. Mean air temperature and solar radiation based on all stations were −20°C and 102 Wm⁻², respectively. Depending on the site location, the mean annual air temperatures on the valleys floors ranged between −15°C and −30°C, and mean annual solar radiation varied …

How Water Level And Irrigation Practices Affect Waterbird Community, Nesting, And Foraging Habitat Use On The Duck Valley Indian Reservation, Jamie L. Burke

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Loss of habitat continues to threaten all bird populations. Despite efforts for conservation of wetlands, waterbirds continue to face habitat threats especially in western North America where water resources are limited across the landscape. The White-faced Ibis (Plegadis chihi) is a colonial nesting waterbird of conservation concern that builds nests in emergent vegetation of freshwater wetlands throughout the western United States. An ibis breeding colony site located at the Blue Creek Wetland complex on Duck Valley Indian Reservation may face habitat threats in the future due to plans intended to increase irrigation water use efficiency. Plans include manipulation …

Experiences, Concerns, & Needs Of Foster Parents To Promote Child Resiliency, Emma Friemel

Human Development and Family Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Children in foster care are highly likely to have experienced some form of abuse or neglect, along with a host of other negative or harmful experiences. These experiences can leave them vulnerable when faced with difficult situations in the future. This research examines the various factors that may affect a foster child’s ability to be resilient in future adverse situations. There are several studies that examine the resiliency of children in foster care, but few examine resiliency from the perspective of the child’s foster parents. Three hundred and sixteen prospective, current, and future foster parents in the state of Oklahoma …

How Oil-Reliant, Autocratic Regimes Transition To Renewable Energy, Brady Harman

Honors Scholar Theses

Climate change is here, yet even as states transition to green energy, oil remains supreme at both the international and national levels. Many nations around the world have based their economies on the production of fossil fuels, leaving these countries entrapped in the “resource curse,” often contributing to the development of autocratic regimes. As the world economy moves away from fossil fuels, these countries will be left with the question of how to transition to green energy sources. In this paper I examine how the approach to green energy implementation differs between autocracies and democracies. More specifically, I demonstrate the …

Dissolution Of Neptunium Dioxide And Transport Of Aqueous And Colloidal Neptunium In The Vadose Zone, Kathryn Margaret Peruski

All Dissertations

Management of legacy nuclear waste, along with proposed geologic disposal of commercial spent nuclear fuel, necessitates prediction of environmental fate and transport of actinide solid phases, which comprise a majority of long-lived waste products. Actinide dioxides are key for performance assessment due to their ubiquity throughout the nuclear fuel cycle. Neptunium-237, produced in burn-up of commercial nuclear fuel and various other nuclear processes, is often found as an oxide (NpO2(s)) and has the potential to become highly mobile in near-surface geochemical conditions due to oxidation processes. In this dissertation, the oxidation and dissolution of NpO2(s) was studied through both field …