Digital Commons Network^™

Agricultural Crisis And Biological Well-Being In Mexico, 1730-1835, Amilcar Challú

History Faculty Publications

The article examines how adverse climatic conditions and high food prices influenced the opportunities of peasants in pre-industrial Mexico between 1730 and 1835. Particular attention is paid to data of soldier heights, global climate events, warm-season tree growth, and real food prices to determine how these factors may have affected urban and rural populations. Declines were seen in the general standard of living and average height, while the cost of food increased. It is argued that distribution and acquisition of food has an equal influence on biological well-being as the availability of food at any specific given time.

Owning What You Eat: The Discourse Of Food, David N. Cassuto

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

This essay examines the role of communication in the formation of law and social norms and the implications of that role for animal law and ethics. Part III contextualizes animal law within contemporary risk society. Part IV looks at how efficiency has transformed from an economic concept into a normative guideline and discusses how that transformation has affected animals and agriculture. It tracks the rise of industrial agriculture and ties it to this fundamental misunderstanding of the concept of efficiency. The essay concludes with some thoughts on how to reformulate contemporary notions of efficiency and ethics to account for the …

Feeding Climate Change: Federal Food Procurement And Its Effects On Global Warming, Amanda Hungerford

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

This paper examines the technical aspects and policy implications of each of four strategies to effectuate environmentally conscious policies in the federal government's food procurement procedures: a litigation strategy, a rulemaking strategy, a NEPA strategy, and a legislative strategy.

"Free Seeds, Not Free Beer": Participatory Plant Breeding, Opensource Seeds, And Acknowledging User Innovation In Agriculture, Keith Aoki

Fordham Law Review

No abstract provided.

A Wild Web: The Tangled History Of Attitudes Toward Wildlife In A Dynamic New England Culture, 1945--1985, Mary H. Hopkins

Doctoral Dissertations

Attitudes toward wildlife are considerably more complex than one might suspect. This dissertation started with a hypothesis that population growth would correlate with increasing negative attitudes toward wildlife, but historical evidence only partially supports this hypothesis. Information about the frequency and types of wildlife references appearing in newspapers between 1945 and 1985 was gathered from a systematic sampling of six New Hampshire newspapers that represented towns with differing growth trends. While analysis of quantitative data minimized any correlation between growth and negative attitudes, qualitative data from newspaper articles, archival sources, government reports, books and articles, and other sources provided evidence …

Tracking Diet And Movement Of Atlantic Bluefin Tuna (Thunnus Thynnus) Using Carbon And Nitrogen Stable Isotopes, John Logan

Doctoral Dissertations

Atlantic bluefin tuna (ABFT; Thunnus thynnus) are important top predators in pelagic ecosystems. Understanding their diet and movements is necessary for proper management, but existing methods are costly and logistically challenging. Naturally occurring stable isotopes have been used to study diet and movement in many aquatic ecosystems and offer a novel approach for studying these large pelagic fishes.

Lipids, which have lower carbon isotope values than protein, can affect isotope analyses of bulk tissue. Both chemical and mathematical corrections were used to address lipid effects on ABFT and the prey. All chemical extraction methods altered nitrogen isotope values. Mathematical corrections …

Orientation Of Vernal Pool Amphibians In An Industrial Forest Landscape, Emma Carcagno

Master's Theses and Capstones

Understanding the movement patterns of vernal pool amphibians is a critical aspect of effective conservation and land management. I used clearcutting to manipulate buffer widths at 11 vernal pools within an industrial forest landscape located in Maine. Forested buffers were either 30m or 100m wide, surrounded by 100m wide clearcut. Each pool was encircled with a drift fence and pitfall traps. I captured wood frogs (Lithobates sylvaticus ) and spotted salamanders (Ambystoma maculatum) as they entered and exited pools and documented orientation across three years. Orientation at all pools for both species was non-uniform, differed among pools, between species, and …

Sampling And Classification Of Tree Holes Within A Northeast Temperate Forest System, Colleen M. Didas

Master's Theses and Capstones

Tree holes are water filled depressions on trees and harbor macroinvertebrate communities; they often serve as microcosms in studies of population dynamics, competition, and fungal decay of leaf litter. Quantification of tree hole prevalence and incidence in forest stands is lacking in the current literature. This study examined factors influencing tree hole occurrence and the types and formations of tree holes in northeastern forest stands. Modeling was used to correct for non-detection and estimate the abundance of tree holes on a per-hectare basis. Mixed-effects logistic regression was used to predict tree hole occurrence. Tree species, stand basal area, and diameter …

Disruption Of Cytokeratin 18-Containing Intermediate Filaments In Bovine Luteal Cells: Effects On Fas Expression, Progesterone Secretion, And Fasl-Induced Apoptosis, Alice Duncan

Master's Theses and Capstones

In the current study, the possibility that cytokeratin 18 (CK18)---containing intermediate filaments (IFs) protect bovine luteal cells from FasL-induced apoptosis was explored. Bovine corpora lutea (CL) from early and late stages of the luteal phase were collected and prepared for cell culture. The cultures were exposed to culture medium without (control) or with 5mM acrylamide for 4 hr to disrupt CK18 IFs. Subsequently, the cultures were exposed to fresh medium without (control) or with FasL (50ng/mL) for 24 hr to induce apoptosis. Acrylamide disrupted CK18 IFs without affecting microtubules, progesterone secretion (P>0.05), or cell viability (P>0.05). Surface expression …

Geoarchaeology Of The Danilo Bitinj And Pokrovnik Sites, Dalmatia, Croatia, Cynthia Fadem

All Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

This dissertation examines the paleoecology of earliest European agriculture via geological and geochemical analysis of two Neolithic settlements in central Dalmatia, Croatia. The Early Farming in Dalmatia Project, of which this geoarchaeological study is a part, is a case study in the adoption and environmental impact of agricultural technology. Dalmatia served to transmit agriculture from the domestication centers of the Middle East to mainland Europe. The record of neolithization in this region is incomplete - biased toward caves, upland storage locales. The landscape setting of the foraging-to-farming behavioral evolution is missing, even as Neolithic transition research turns to more complex …

Effects Of Forested Buffers And Wetland Characteristics On Vernal Pool Macroinvertebrate Assemblages, Joanne Evelyn Theriault

Master's Theses and Capstones

From 2005-2007, I sampled macroinvertebrates at 10 vernal pools to determine the effects of forested buffer treatments (30-m or 100-m). I grouped taxa into three subgroups: taxa enumerated and identified to genus (Trichopterans, Anisopterans, Coleopterans, and Hemipterans); taxa identified to family and documented as present or absent; and predatory taxa (enumerated and identified to genus). I measured hydroperiod, surface area, pH, conductivity, substrate cover, canopy cover, and annual and seasonal variability and used Non-Metric Multidimensional Scaling (NMS) to examine effects on composition. Finally, I analyzed NMS scores using Linear Mixed Models. Buffer treatments explained a significant amount of variation in …

The Effect Of Diet And Polybrominated Diphenyl Ether (Pbde) Exposure On Adipocyte And Whole Body Metabolism In Male Wistar Rats, Erin L. Allgood

Master's Theses and Capstones

PBDEs, lipophilic flame-retardant chemicals, are considered to be endocrine-disrupting compounds and potential obesogens. This study investigated PBDE exposure plus a high-fat/high-sugar diet in rats. Twenty-eight male Wistar rats were fed either a control or high-fat/high-sugar diet and gavaged with either 18 mg/kg PBDEs or corn oil daily for 4 weeks. Body weight and food intake were measured 3x/week. At 3 weeks, 24-hr whole-body metabolism was measured. At 4 weeks, blood was sampled for T4 and insulin, epididymal adipose tissue was removed and adipocyte lipolytic response to varying concentrations of isoproterenol was measured. PBDE administration significantly increased weight gain, decreased T4 …

An Assessment Of Stress In Acer Saccharum As A Possible Response To Climate Change, Martha Carlson

Master's Theses and Capstones

Climate change is projected to extirpate Acer saccharum throughout its range in the United States. The current investigation evaluates the potential of spectral indices of foliar reflectance, measures of leaf area and bud quality, and historic trends in sap sugar and wood increments for detecting stress in sugar maple.

Thirty trees were examined in 10 plots on 5 sugar bushes in or near the Bearcamp Valley, New Hampshire, over the course of the 2008 growing season. The study found water stress in 100% of trees; reduced chlorophyll content in 60%; early abscission of leaves in 80%; reduced growing season in …

Extrapolating Hyperspectral Anthocyanin Indices To Multispectral Satellite Sensors---Applications To Fall Foliage In New England, Erica Lindgren

Master's Theses and Capstones

Anthocyanin, thought to be a universal indicator of plant stress, is a red pigment found in many plant species and can seen in New England autumns. Detecting its presence is useful for ecosystem analysis and monitoring changes during autumn senescence. Currently fall foliage is subjectively measured; creation of a satellite-based anthocyanin index will provide an objective measurement and enhance understanding of the distribution of plant stress and senescence over large areas. Anthocyanin indices were tested hyperspectrally in a laboratory setting, then indices were simulated for Hyperion, MERIS, MODIS, and Landsat TM/ETM+ to see which most accurately represents changes in anthocyanin …

Laver (Porphyra Spp) And Soy Protein Concentrate As Alternative Proteins In Diets For Juvenile Atlantic Cod, Gadus Morhua, Abigail B. Walker

Master's Theses and Capstones

Fishmeal is the main ingredient in formulated fish feeds, and the cost of this commodity is the largest and most volatile recurrent expenditure by the finfish aquaculture industry. Additionally, the reliance on wild-harvested forage species raises concerns about the industry's ecological impacts. Marine macroalgae and soy-derived feed ingredients both have merits as alternative proteins for piscivorous marine fish. Atlantic cod, in particular, have a highly adaptable digestive system and perform well with alternative protein diets.

Atlantic cod, Gadus morhua, juveniles (initial body weights: 15.6 g, 87.9 g, and 15.92 g) were fed iso-nitrogenous, iso-caloric diets to evaluate two alternative proteins. …

Insect Responses To Invasive Shrubs In Early-Successional Habitats, Johanna L. Fickenscher

Master's Theses and Capstones

Early-successional habitats are valuable to wildlife species and susceptible to invasive shrubs, possibly negatively affecting biodiversity of whole communities. Insects provide energy links between plants and wildlife, thus, change in insect communities due to invasive shrubs may have detrimental impacts on wildlife---especially nesting songbirds. I gauged how invasive shrubs affect insect abundance, richness, and phenology using flight-intercept trapping and beat/sweeping methods. Lepidopteran larvae were provided a choice to consume native or invasive shrub foliage. Invasive shrubs negatively affected communities with reduced insect abundance and richness on individual shrubs as well as the entire habitat. Lepidopteran larvae preferred native shrub foliage …

Evaluation Of In Vitro Methods To Determine The Digestibility Of Amino Acids In Rumen Undegraded Corn Silage, Shane Michael Fredin

Master's Theses and Capstones

Intestinal and total tract digestibility of crude protein (CP) and amino acids in rumen undegraded protein (RUP-AA) in 5 corn silage hybrids were measured using the mobile bag technique (MBT). Two in vitro methods, the modified three-step procedure (TSP) and an in vitro procedure (IVP) developed by Sapienza Analytica, LLC (Slater, IA), were further evaluated to determine digestibility of RUP-AA in corn silage. Intestinal digestibility of RUP-AA in corn silage varied from 24 to 59%, indicating differences in intestinal digestibility among AA. The TSP and IVP tended to under predict RUP-AA digestibility compared with the MBT. Consequently relationships between the …

The Agricultural Industry As Percieved By Members Of The General Public Of Louisiana, Julie Baker Richard

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine the knowledge and perceptions of the animal, plant, environmental, and food sciences by the adult residents of Louisiana. This study was conducted using a survey research design. This survey utilized random telephone dialing techniques in order to survey 547 residents of Louisiana. The survey instrument consisted of fifty-five questions divided into three sections: demographic characteristics, agriculture knowledge, and perception of agriculture. The overall mean agriculture knowledge score of adult residents of Louisiana for the twenty items included in the survey instrument equaled 13.60 (SD = 2.743) or 68%. Perceptions of agriculture results …

Evaluation Of The Time Tension Line Cutter (Ttlc) As A Whale-Safe Fishing Gear Option, Timothy S. Pickett

Master's Theses and Capstones

The Time Tension Line Cutter (TTLC) is a device designed to limit the severity of entanglement of whales, the critically endangered North Atlantic Right Whale (NARW) in particular, in passive fishing gear. In this study, an evaluation of the performance of the TTLC was conducted using a series of lobster trawl tows, as well as a pilot study to test the durability and fishability of the TTLC in real fishing situations.

The trawl tow test data were collected for 5, 10, and 20 trap trawls, consisting of end line loading and trap elevation measurements. The time to cut (TTC) was …

Genetic Over-Expression Of Cytokeratin 18 In Bovine Luteal Cells: Effects On Intermediate Filament Formation And Fas Ligand-Induced Apoptosis, Jennifer J. Forcina

Master's Theses and Capstones

The receptor Fas and its ligand, FasL, are implicated in apoptosis of luteal cells during regression of the corpus luteum (CL). In some cell types, cytokeratin (CK) 8/18 filaments impair FasL-induced apoptosis. Here, we determined if genetic over-expression of CK18 filaments in luteal cells similarly prevents FasL-induced apoptosis. Luteal cell cultures were prepared from early and late stage bovine CL (day 5 and days 16-18 post-ovulation, respectively). The cells were transduced with media, mock vector containing GFP, or a CK18-containing vector, and then exposed to a cytokine cocktail containing FasL for 24 hours. Transduction of luteal cells with CK18 vector …

Historical Review Of Elk-Agriculture Conflicts In And Around Riding Mountain National Park, Manitoba, Canada, Ryan K. Brook

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Conflicts between elk (Cervus elaphus) and farmers have been occurring since the 1880s when agriculture began around what is now Riding Mountain National Park (RMNP). Initially, the conflicts were related to low elk numbers caused primarily by unregulated harvest of elk. The creation of RMNP in 1930 and the associated ban on hunting allowed elk numbers to reach critically high levels. Since farming began, elk have been associated with considerable damage to fences and crops around RMNP, with annual damage often >$240,000. Hunting on agricultural lands has been the most common approach to mitigating elk impacts, despite its …

Effects Of Sedimentation And Periphyton Communities On Embryonic Rainbow Smelt, Osmerus Mordax, Lauren Helena Wyatt

Master's Theses and Capstones

The decline of anadromous rainbow smelt (Osmerus mordax) populations has been suspected to be linked to anthropogenic causes. Increased runoff from agriculture and urbanization has led to additional sediment inputs and eutrophying compounds in rivers. The aim of this study was to assess the survival of embryonic rainbow smelt from fertilization through hatching under varying levels of sedimentation (0.00, 0.25, 1.00, and 6.00 g per 45.6 cm 2) and with periphyton communities of different biomass and algal composition. Additionally, embryo survival was assessed when cultured on periphyton in combination with sterilized sediment or eutrophying compounds (nitrates and phosphates). Oxygen consumption …

Five Decades Of Agricultural Policies In Nigeria: What Roles Has Statistics Played?, Akinboyo O. I

Bullion

All over the country and internationally, the publications of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) such as the Annual Report and Statement of Accounts, the Statistical Bulletin, Economic and Financial Review, the Bullion and Nigeria: Major Economic and Banking Indicators and those of the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) have become a veritable source of data and reference materials on Nigeria. Without basic i n f o r m a t i o n o n e c o n o m i c developments, it would be very difficult for policy makers to assess economic performances. The f o …

Treatment Of Saltcedar (Tamarix Spp.): Economics And Feasibility, Christopher L. Thompson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The invasive species Saltcedar is affecting water and land resources throughout the western states of America. Because of great water use capabilities and other ecosystem detriments, Saltcedar has been targeted for treatment.

For successful management of Saltcedar, individual landowners need to be aware of the costs and benefits of treating Saltcedar. Eleven of the most commonly reported treatment methods were evaluated for firm level economic feasibility. Evaluated on the basis of treatment cost, treatment effectiveness, Saltcedar water-use, and re-vegetation water-use, a production plan of ten years was created for each treatment method. Some treatment methods required re-treatment and were evaluated …

Evaluation Of Arrayed-Field Concentration Measurements And U. S. Epa-Regulatory Models For The Determination Of Mixed-Source Particulate Matter Emissions, Derek Jones

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

With the continued population growth and the blurring of the urban and rural interface, air quality impacts associated with agricultural particle-producing processes are becoming increasingly important. There is a lack of emission rate data from these source types and no prescribed measurement technique available to the agricultural and regulatory communities. One technique that has shown promise is combining field measurements with inverse modeling. This approach was used herein to examine particulate emissions from an almond harvesting operation, a cotton ginning facility, and comparative emissions from conservation versus conventional tillage practices. EPAapproved models ISCST3 and AERMOD were used with AirMetrics samplers. …

Self-Medicative Behavior Of Sheep Experiencing Gastrointestinal Nematode Infections And The Postingestive Effects Of Tannin, Larry D. Lisonbee

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Diet selection and self-medication are fundamental to the survival of all species. The abilities to choose healthy foods in response to past consequences are basic elements of evolution. This study explores self-medication regarding tannins both as a medication and as a dietary challenge. In the first study, sheep with natural parasite infections were offered a low quality supplement containing a dose of tannins considered to be therapeutic (medicine), while the control infected lambs received the same supplement without tannins (placebo). This study included a group of parasite-free lambs. The parasitized lambs ate more of the tannin containing supplement than non-parasitized …

Influence Of Supplemental Legumes That Contain Tannins And Saponins On Intake And Diet Digestibility In Sheep Fed Grasses That Contain Alkaloids, Jacob Michael Owens

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

My objectives were to determine if nutritional benefits occur when animals are offered foods with compounds -- alkaloids, saponins, and tannins - that are potentially complementary. I hypothesized that food intake and digestibility increase when lambs consume plants such as alfalfa ALF that contain saponins or birdsfoot trefoil (BFT) that contain tannins when the basal diet is endophyte-infected tall fescue (TF) or reed canarygrass (RCG) both of which contain alkaloids. I predicted that the nutritional status of lambs would be enhanced if basal diets of alkaloid-containing grasses were supplemented with ALF or BFT.

Lambs fed a basal diet of either …

Enhancing The Proportions Of Healthy Fatty Acids In Milk From Dairy Cows, Korie A.S. Nelson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Twenty cows were used in a repeated measures, block design experiment for 9 wk to determine the effects of feeding partially ruminally inert calcium salts (Ca-salts) of fish oil (FO) and a general fatty acid (FA) supplement (EnerGII) at varying levels. The effects on cow health, milk components, composition of milk FA, and sensory evaluation of milk were evaluated. Cows in the 4 treatments were fed either a control diet of 57% forage and 43% concentrate mix with EnerGII fat supplement at 1.65% of diet DM (CTL) or EnerGII in basal diet was partially replaced with (a) 0.21% …

A Conceptual Framework For Understanding Effects Of Wildlife Water Developments In The Western United States, Randy T. Larsen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Free water can be a limiting factor to wildlife in arid regions of the world. In the western United States, management agencies have installed numerous, expensive wildlife water developments (e.g. catchments, guzzlers, wells) to: 1) increase the distribution or density of target species, 2) influence animal movements, and 3) mitigate for the loss of available free water. Despite over 50 years as an active management practice, water developments have become controversial for several species. We lack an integrated understanding of the ways free water influences animal populations. In particular, we have not meshed understanding of evolutionary adaptations that reduce the …

Tennessee Agriculture 2008 Department Report & Statistical Summary, Tennessee. Department Of Agriculture.

Annual Report

No abstract provided.