Digital Commons Network^™

Eects Of State Of Charge On The Physical Characteristics Of V(Iv)/V(V) Electrolytes And Membrane For The All Vanadium Flow Battery, Thomas M. Arruda, Wyndom S. Chace, Sophia M. Tiano, Jamie S. Lawton

Faculty and Staff - Articles & Papers

The VO2+/VO2+ redox couple commonly employed on the positive terminal of the all-vanadium redox flow battery was investigated at various states of charge (SOC) and H2SO4 supporting electrolyte concentrations. Electron paramagnetic resonance was used to investigate the VO2+ concentration and translational and rotational diffusion coefficient (DT, DR) in both bulk solution and Nafion membranes. Values of DT and DR were relatively unaffected by SOC and on the order of 10−10 m2s−1. Cyclic voltammetry measurements revealed that no significant changes to the redox mechanism were observed as the state of charge increased; however, the mechanism does appear to be affected by …

Eps 202-102: Society Techn & Environmnt, Sweeta Chauhan

Chemistry, Environmental and Forensic Science Syllabi

No abstract provided.

The Urgency Of Indigenous Values, Philip P. Arnold

Syracuse Open

No abstract provided.

Recommendations For The Operationalization Of A Loss And Damage Fund, Caelyn Smith

CMC Senior Theses

This thesis examines the several facets of the operationalization of the abstract and broad proposal of a “Loss and Damage Fund” following the 27th Conference of the Parties under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change that took place in November of 2022. It examines the current mechanisms in place for developed nations providing climate finance to developing countries that are on the front lines of fighting a crisis heavily caused by historic reliance on and consumption of fossil fuels by wealthier, better-off nations. It delves into various criteria regarding which counties should share the burden and how much …

The Stateless Agent: A Multidisciplinary Analysis Of Transboundary Air Pollution In The El Paso-Ciudad Juárez Region Of The U.S.-Mexico Border, Elizabeth Hernandez

CMC Senior Theses

The El Paso-Ciudad Juárez (EPJ) region has a history of nonattainment for ozone and particulate matter. Given transboundary air pollution in the EPJ region is not confined to the U.S.-Mexico border, it is important to implement a transnational response that accounts for the health and safety of everyone, including marginalized communities in EPJ. This thesis assesses the state of air quality and transboundary air pollution in the EPJ region through a multidisciplinary perspective that focuses on issues of data monitoring, environmental governance, and transnational environmental justice. Analysis of the quantity and placement of ambient monitoring stations reveals EPJ residents near …

Evaluating Electric Bicycle Access In Us National Parks: Advantages And Controversy, Ben Rodman

CMC Senior Theses

Rising global temperatures are causing a higher likelihood of future climate disaster. Changes in personal behavior, that reduce the emissions driving this increase in global temperatures, contribute to the greater good. Electric bicycles (e-bikes) offer a viable option for individuals to reduce their personal contribution to this problem, while at the same time benefit from outdoor recreation. These benefits, along with affordability, are driving the current increase in popularity of this form of transportation. The COVID 19 pandemic fueled an increased interest in outdoor recreation, which in turn contributed to an increase in visitation at US National Parks. This thesis …

Renewable Portfolio Standards: Effectiveness And Carbon Implications, Alexander S. Albrecht

CMC Senior Theses

A renewable portfolio standard (RPS) policy is a popular regulatory tool implemented within the U.S. and abroad to limit energy sector emissions and incentivize renewable energy. Assessing their effectiveness and efficiency is a key component of achieving further reductions. We assess an energy market under an RPS using fixed-effects panel and 2SLS regression models to lend empirical credence to common theory-based concerns about RPS policy, namely (1) that they leave emissions unregulated once the RPS requirement is met and (2) that they do not incentivize full use of renewable energy resources. Our results show these to be valid concerns that …

Above And Below, Kristen Brown

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

My recent graduate artwork uses abstraction of form to describe the intersection between humans and the environment while relating the landscape of our skin to the ever-changing qualities of the natural landscape surrounding us. The photographic material is stressed into three dimensional shapes, producing creasing and tears as it is being contorted by human impact. At the same time that I am creating something new, I am manipulating artifactual evidence of something that already exists in everyday life. This is akin to how our bodies are distorted by outer influence, as well as our own autonomy. Above and below the …

Monument Of Faith Sustainability Plan, Loraine Koua, Sam Woody, Katherine Yu

Sustainability Exchange Projects

No abstract provided.

Red White And Blue – And Also Green: How Energy Policy Can Protect Both National Security And The Environment, David M. Schizer

Faculty Scholarship

Too often, energy policy protects the environment while neglecting national security, or vice versa. Since each goal is critical, this Article shows how to advance both at the same time.

For national security, the key is to avoid depending on the wrong suppliers. If they are vulnerable to attack (like some Middle Eastern producers), they need to be defended. Or, if they are themselves geopolitical threats (like Russia and Iran), their energy exports fund harmful conduct. This Article breaks new ground in showing why suppliers tend to be insecure or menacing: authoritarian regimes — which are more likely to pose …

Letter From The Dean, Jean-Francois Meullenet

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

No abstract provided.

Discovery: The Student Journal Of Dale Bumpers College Of Agricultural, Food And Life Sciences - Volume 24 2023, Several Authors

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

No abstract provided.

Letter From The Faculty Editor, Beth Kegley

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

No abstract provided.

Effects Of Time-Restricted Feeding And Whey Protein Isolate Supplementation On Dietary Intake, Mood, And Sleep In A 12-Week Randomized Controlled Trial, Sydney E. Boudrey, Aubree L. Hawley

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

Obesity affects adults in the United States, leading to chronic diseases and reduced well-being. Time-Restricted Feeding (TRF) is a type of dietary intervention lacking current data regarding the effectiveness on facets of well-being. This study’s objective was to determine the effect of time-restricted feeding supplemented with whey protein isolate on food intake, sleep, and mood in overweight or obese adults. Nineteen participants were randomly assigned to the control or experimental group: 1) control, TRF, and 2) experimental, TRF with whey protein supplementation. Participants followed the assigned dietary intervention for 12 weeks. Every 4 weeks (baseline, week 4, week 8, and …

Rice Biomass Response To Various Phosphorus Fertilizers In A Phosphorus-Deficient Soil Under Simulated Furrow-Irrigation, Jonathan B. Brye, Kristofor R. Brye, Diego Della Lunga

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

Wastewater-recovered phosphorus (P), in the form of the mineral struvite (MgNH4PO4∙6H2O), may provide a sustainable alternative to decreasing rock-phosphate reserves. Struvite can be generated via precipitation methods, potentially reducing the amount of P runoff to aquatic ecosystems. The objective of this greenhouse tub study was to evaluate the effects of chemically and electrochemically precipitated struvite (CPST and ECST, respectively) on aboveground plant response in a hybrid rice cultivar grown using furrow-irrigation compared to other common fertilizer-P sources [i.e., triple super phosphate (TSP) and diammonium phosphate (DAP)] using three replications of fertilizer treatment in a P-deficient silt loam (Typic Glossaqualfs). Aboveground …

Fostering Infant And Toddler Music Competence At The Jean Tyson Child Development Study Center, Ellen Mathews, Laura Herold, Shelley Mcnally, Donia Timby

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

This paper presents a creative research project that introduced musical instruments in an outdoor setting to infants and toddlers ages 0-to-3 years old. It was grounded in research suggesting that music plays a vital component in expanding development in the early childhood years, helping to promote learning across many domains. This project began with a survey distributed to 7 infant and toddler classroom educators, after which responses were analyzed for themes regarding perceived infant interests. Subsequent observations were conducted to evaluate the best fit for the implementation of an outdoor experiential music space. Based on the findings, a developmentally appropriate …

Effects Of Cyclic Heat Stress On The Acute Inflammatory Response In Broilers, Alessandro J. Rocchi, Chrysta N. Beck, Jossie M. Santamaria, Gisela F. Erf

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

Heat stress (HS) is a growing concern in broiler production. Little is known regarding the effect of HS on immune function. To examine the effects of HS on innate immunity, the local- and systemic-inflammatory responses to lipopolysaccharide (LPS) were examined in Cobb 500 male broiler chicks reared under thermoneutral (TN) or cyclic HS conditions. Beginning at four days of age, HS birds were subjected to 35 °C from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. and TN temperatures from 10:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m. At 37 days of age, four groups of broilers were formed: LPS-TN (8 broilers), phosphate-buffered saline (PBS)-TN (4 …

An Inclusive Playground For Infant And Toddler Development, Amanda M. Swartz, Jacquelyn D. Wiersma-Mosley, Donia Timby, Shelley Mcnally, Caitlyn Daniel

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

The purpose of this project was to help children reach more developmental goals and to make outdoor play at the Jean Tyson Child Development Study Center more inclusive for all children. Children gain many developmental goals from playing outside and being exposed to other environments as compared to just being inside the classroom. Outdoor play should be as inclusive as indoor play and offer many different activities and outlets, just as the indoor classroom does. The implementation of this service-learning creative project was to add more versatility to the outdoor area at the University of Arkansas Jean Tyson Child Development …

Validation Of A Diagnostic Marker For Primocane-Fruiting In Blackberry, Isabella Vaughn, Alexander Silva, Carmen Johns, Lacy Nelson, Margaret Worthington

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

Typical blackberries (Rubus subgenus Rubus) have perennial crowns and roots and biennial canes. The first-year canes (primocanes) are usually vegetative, while second-year canes (floricanes) produce fruit. Primocane-fruiting blackberries produce fruit on first-year canes and are desirable to growers because they potentially allow for a longer harvest season in temperate regions and enable production in tropical areas where no natural chill hours are accumulated. The development of molecular markers for desirable traits can potentially increase efficiency in blackberry breeding. However, to date, there are no diagnostic molecular markers for economically important traits in blackberries. Primocane-fruiting is recessively inherited, and tetraploid blackberries …

Climate, Physiology, And Distributions: The Role Of Thermal Physiology In Biological Invasions, Sean D. Powers

Theses and Dissertations

Climate is a primary factor influencing species range dynamics, particularly for ectotherms whose body temperature is closely tied to the surrounding conditions. While range shifts of ectotherms are attributed to climate warming, the mechanism driving these shifts are not well understood. Studies in macrophysiology demonstrate that the interaction of climate with thermal physiology plays a key role in determining large-scale spatial and temporal patterns for many temperature-sensitive physiological traits. This work has revealed a clear relationship between thermal tolerance breadth and range size. However, more recent analyses of this relationship demonstrate that thermal tolerance breadth only provides a partial explanation …

Investigating The Fish Community Of The Neosho River System, Ethan John Rasset

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Barrier presence in river systems has been documented to impact fishes. Low head dams specifically are frequently occurring barriers in riverine environments. Well supported impacts of these structures on fishes include diminished movement, reproduction, and habitat availability. Longitudinal patterns in riverine fish communities have long been researched to ascertain dynamics and display interactions. The need for research becomes more critical when factoring in impacts of barriers and detrimental invasive species. Knowledge of fish communities can inform fisheries biologists and aid in improved management practices for recreational and ecologically important species, as well as invasive species. The Neosho River-Grand Lake system …

Impacts Of Viral Infection By Ma-Lmm01 On Microcystin Production By Microcystis Aeruginosa, Amber Elizabeth Haley

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

Increasing global temperatures and nutrient availability from anthropogenic sources have contributed to climate change and pollution in waterways. Environmental changes have promoted annual harmful algal blooms (HABs), which have the potential to lead to conditions that negatively affect aquatic ecosystems and organisms that depend on them. HABs can impact water quality through the release of soluble toxins (e.g., microcystin), produced by cyanobacteria that can bypass standard drinking water processing protocols. It has been suggested that viral infections of cyanobacteria may contribute to increased production and release of microcystins. In this project, two hypotheses were assessed: 1) virus-mediated lysis releases toxins …

Implications For Defense Strategy Stemming From Geopolitical Transformation Fueled By Climate Change, Steven R. Burrows

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Climate change has quickly become one of the most globally significant geopolitical issues facing all of humanity. Left unfettered, climate change is poised to impact nearly every facet of our environment ranging from increasingly dangerous and damaging storms, rising sea levels, increasingly extensive droughts to glacial melting, loss of arctic sea ice and a myriad of other catastrophic events. While still evolving, the current identified environmental threats will initiate long standing impacts not only to the environment, but to the global geopolitical and security climate of nearly every nation on the Earth. This project will not provide a synthesis of …

Mycorrhizal Feedbacks Influence Global Forest Structure And Diversity, Camille S. Delavaux, Joseph A. Lamanna, Jonathan A. Myers, Richard P. Phillips

Biological Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

One mechanism proposed to explain high species diversity in tropical systems is strong negative conspecific density dependence (CDD), which reduces recruitment of juveniles in proximity to conspecific adult plants. Although evidence shows that plant-specific soil pathogens can drive negative CDD, trees also form key mutualisms with mycorrhizal fungi, which may counteract these effects. Across 43 large-scale forest plots worldwide, we tested whether ectomycorrhizal tree species exhibit weaker negative CDD than arbuscular mycorrhizal tree species. We further tested for conmycorrhizal density dependence (CMDD) to test for benefit from shared mutualists. We found that the strength of CDD varies systematically with mycorrhizal …

Distributed Spatial Data Sharing: A New Era In Sharing Spatial Data, Majid Hojati

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The advancements in information and communications technology, including the widespread adoption of GPS-based sensors, improvements in computational data processing, and satellite imagery, have resulted in new data sources, stakeholders, and methods of producing, using, and sharing spatial data. Daily, vast amounts of data are produced by individuals interacting with digital content and through automated and semi-automated sensors deployed across the environment. A growing portion of this information contains geographic information directly or indirectly embedded within it. The widespread use of automated smart sensors and an increased variety of georeferenced media resulted in new individual data collectors. This raises a new …

Exploring The Effectiveness Of Ecological Momentary Assessment And Video At Eliciting The Impact Of Park Features On Human Health And Well-Being In A Protected Area Context, Katelyn O'Bright

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

It is increasingly recognized that contact with nature in parks and other forms of protected areas provides benefits to visitors’ physical, mental, social, spiritual, and intellectual health and well-being. However, the methods used to assess these outcomes, including the influence of different environmental features that lead to these benefits, is under-researched. To address this gap, this study used a mixed methods design to explore the effectiveness of using Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) and video to assess the impact of various park features on the self-perceived (subjective) health and well-being of visitors. Participants were prompted by a mobile application on their …

“Bright Spots” And Effectively Communicating The Ecological And Social Outcomes Of Protected And Conserved Areas In Canada, Jen Hoesen

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Healthy and resilient protected and conserved areas are the foundation of biodiversity conservation, improve livelihoods, and drive sustainable development. Protected lands and seascapes radiate life sustaining ecosystem services and provide important places for nature connection, rejuvenation, and inspiration. Although escalating human pressures and climate change-related risks continue to place many protected and conserved areas under increasing threat, “conservation bright spots” have emerged as a key communications strategy to illustrate where and how biodiversity and the social benefits it provides is performing relatively well. Given the crucial need to educate the public about biodiversity-related issues and amplify solution-centric approaches to support …

A Machine Learning Approach To Classify Open Water And Ice Cover On Slave River Delta, Ida Moalemi

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Seasonal temperature trend and ice phenology in Great Slave lake (GSL), are strongly influenced by warmer inflow from Slave river. The Slave river flows to GSL through Slave river delta (SRD), bringing a rise in temperature that triggers the ice break-up process of the lake. Slave river discharge is subject to multiple stressors including climate warming and upstream water activities, which in turn, directly affects the GSL break-up process. Consequently, monitoring the break-up process at SRD, where the river connects to the lake, serves as an indicator to better understand the cascading effects on GSL ice break-up. This research aims …

Water Stories: An Exploration Of Human-Water Connectedness In Ontario And The Implications For Water Sustainability, Tracey Ehl

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Abstract

Water is the great connector. Water connects people, health, wellness, culture, spirituality, nature, and the economy. Clean, safe water (potable water) and sanitation were recognized over a decade ago by the United Nations General Assembly (UN) as a basic human right, and more recently the UN has also identified water sustainability and management as one of 17 sustainable development goals for all people in all countries. Water is inextricably connected to humans. Yet, in Ontario, Canada, a place with access to some of the largest freshwater reserves in the world, robust regulatory frameworks, involvement, some investment by all levels …

Contrasting Seasonal Cycling Of Arsenic In A Series Of Subarctic Shield Lakes With Different Morphometric Properties, Jeremy Harbinson

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The subarctic shield near Yellowknife, Northwest Territories (NWT), is populated with thousands of small lakes (<1.5 km²) and several large lakes. Historic mining activities in the region have left a legacy of environmental impacts and widespread arsenic (As) contamination in both aquatic and terrestrial environments. In particular, several small subarctic lakes near Yellowknife have been previously documented to be contaminated with high levels of As. Subarctic lakes are characterized by seasonal ice-cover that can persist for more than half of the year, yet little is known about the under-ice spatial and seasonal dynamics of As cycling. The objective of …