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Public Attention Index Of Air Pollution Exposure From Pm2.5 In Thailand, Pailin Suntigul, Sittidaj Pongkijvorasin

Applied Environmental Research

Thailand faces a persistent PM2.5 challenge, with pollution levels consistently exceeding the World Health Organization’s guidelines. In response, the Thai government has made air pollution a national priority, implementing various policies and city-level plans to reduce exposure. These policies are often temporary and do not fully address root causes, whereas the limited monitoring coverage across Thailand restricts a comprehensive assessment of PM2.5 exposure severity. This study addresses the data gap by constructing a public attention index for PM2.5, using internet search data from Google Trends, to quantify public awareness and concern regarding PM2.5 exposure. This index aims to improve the …

Assessment Of The Carbon Stock Of Trees In Selected Urban Green Spaces Of Davao City, Philippines, Daiseree Cuabo, Yves P.M. Montero, Daryl S. Salas, John P.M. Viernes

Applied Environmental Research

The combined impacts of deforestation, tree cover loss, and urbanization in urban and suburban areas significantly reduce the capacity of natural carbon sinks to sequester and store carbon. Hence, this study assessed the aboveground biomass (AGB) and carbon stock of trees in the selected green spaces of Davao City. A purposive sampling technique was employed in placing quadrats, with data collected from 27 plots categorized by size. AGB was estimated via an allometric equation, and aboveground carbon (AGC) was derived from the AGB values. A total of 358 individual trees from 25 species, 24 genera, and 13 families were documented. …

Spatial And Temporal Trends In Surface Water Quality And Pollution Sources In Ben Tre, Vietnam: A Principal Component Analysis/Factor Analysis-Based Approach, Nguyen Xuan Tong, Luu Tang Phuc Khang

Applied Environmental Research

Surface water quality is vital for maintaining ecological health and supporting sustainable development, particularly in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam, where water is heavily utilized. However, rapid urbanization and economic activities have led to water pollution. This study assessed the spatial and temporal variations in surface water quality in Ben Tre Province from January 2022 to December 2023 using 384 samples collected across dry and rainy seasons and two zones (headwater streams and cities). The water quality index (WQI) was calculated on the basis of 15 parameters, and principal component analysis/factor analysis was applied to identify pollution sources. Five key factors …

Development Of Highly Effective Sulfonic Acid–Functionalized Nr/Ms Nanocomposites For Biodiesel Production, Sakdinun Nuntang, Satit Yousatit, Toshiyuki Yokoi, Chawalit Ngamcharussrivichai

Applied Environmental Research

The acidic natural rubber/wormhole-like mesostructured silica nanocomposites (NR/WMS-SO3H) were successfully functionalized with propylsulfonic acid and arenesulfonic acid via a cocondensation method using 3-mercaptopropyl trimetho-xysilane (MPTMS) and 2-(4-chloro-sulfonylphenyl) ethyltrimethoxy silane (CSPTMS), respectively. Compared with organosulfonic acid-functionalized wormhole-like mesostructured silica (WMS-SO3H), NR/WMS-SO3H demonstrated increased hydrophobicity while maintaining mesoporosity and a large surface area. The catalytic performance of the synthesized solid acids was subsequently evaluated via batch esterification of palmitic acid with methanol to generate fatty acid methyl esters for biodiesel synthesis. Compared with WMS–SO3H, NR/WMS–SO3H demonstrated superior catalytic activity, which was attributed to the synergistic interaction between the strongly acidic functional groups …

Béryllium : Guide De Nettoyage : Entretien Ménager Et Décontamination Des Lieux De Travail, Stéphanie Viau, Chantal Dion, Mickaël Calosso

Guides

No abstract provided.

Demographic Profiles Of San Diego And Imperial Counties, Tessa Tinkler, Eo Hanabusa, Laura Deitrick, Connelly Meschen

Nonprofit Sector Issues and Trends

The Demographic Profiles of San Diego and Imperial Counties provides a snapshot of the two counties' vulnerable populations, including low-income communities, youth, immigrants, refugees, individuals experiencing homelessness, and retirement-age adults. While these counties differ in population size by more than an order of magnitude, the backdrop of California's rising cost of living, shifting immigration policies, income and health disparities, and the projections for an increasing aging population present compounding barriers to financial stability and access to services for all ages. Comprehensive data to understand these community needs was more readily available for San Diego County than Imperial County. This report …

It’S Time To Stop Calling People "Stakeholders", Bethann Garramon Merkle, Evelyn Valdez-Ward, Priya Shukla, Skylar R. Bayer

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Although the term “stakeholder” has been widely used in science communication, recent expansion in the discourse around the negative connotations of the term necessitate that scientists and practitioners cease using the term. We discuss why this shift is necessary, how it affects our own praxis, and suggest resources for working through more respectful and just language. Looking to the science communication literature can help recalibrate terminology in positive ways.

Evaluating Lethal Coyote Management In The Chicago Metropolitan Area Using A Conflict Recurrence Metric, Jeffrey T. Schultz, Scott Beckerman, Robert Erickson, Danielle Montgomery, Stewart W. Breck

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Human–coyote (Canis latrans) conflict in urban environments is prevalent in cities throughout the United States. Urban areas commonly use nonlethal techniques to mitigate coyote-caused conflicts but will also incorporate selective removal of individual coyotes when conflicts persist. However, little research has evaluated these management strategies. This study analyzed coyote removal efforts conducted in the Chicago Metropolitan Area from 2010 to 2020. To evaluate the management actions, we used “time without incidence”—the time elapsing from an initial conflict until either a subsequent conflict occurred in the same area, or when the data collection period ended—as an index of effectiveness. …

Monograph Available: Urban Coyotes As A Source Of Conflict With Humans: An Evaluation Of Common Management Practices

Human–Wildlife Interactions

This is an announcement about the published monograph titled "Urban Coyotes as a Source of Conflict with Humans: An Evaluation of Common Management Practices." This publication, part of the HWI Monograph Series, is online and open access.

Proceedings Of The Sixteenth Annual Meeting Of The Georgia Association Of Mathematics Teacher Educators Front Matter

Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the Georgia Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators

Contents of 16th Annual GAMTE Proceedings Front Matter:

• Officers of GAMTE
• Reviewers
• Copyright & Licensing Terms
• Purposes and Goals of GAMTE
• Conference Schedule
• Table of Contents

The Violin Through Centuries And Nations Scholarly Program Notes For A Graduate Violin Recital, Iasmim Bonfim De Carvalho

Research Papers

No abstract provided.

Analysis Of Guitar Works And Important Materials Used For Informed Performance, Joao Vitor David

Research Papers

This paper provides a short analysis and important historical background on the works performed by the author in his Master's Recital on May 4, 2023. The following pieces were chosen to exemplify the program's different technical and musical complexity levels. The five works covered are John Dowland's Lachrimae Pavan, Johann Sebastian Bach's Prelude and Allemande from BWV 996, Mauro Giuliani's Rossiniana n1, Miguel Llobet's Canciones Populares Catalanas, and Sergio Assad's Aquarelle. Dowland's section aims to show general information about his life, the lute, and materials to support an informed performance for guitarists. Bach's prelude and Allemande from the suite BWV …

U.S. Bison Industry: An Analysis Of Production, Health, And Market Dynamics, Morgan A. Young

Research Papers

The bison market has been becoming increasingly popular within recent years. However, this market is challenging for producers due to disease concerns, aggressive bison behaviors, nutritional and facility requirements and market risks for bison operations. Since most bison data began in 2020, forecasting bison meat prices remains difficult. This raises an important question: can bison meat cut prices be effectively hedged by using live cattle futures prices? This paper examines USDA bison meat cut price data and live cattle futures prices to determine potential correlations. A regression analysis, along with a dummy variable approach is utilized to evaluate the relationship. …

Current Behavior Analytic Research On Assent And Assent Withdrawal Of Students With Disabilities, Zailey K. Greeno

Research Papers

The field of behavior analysis is ever-evolving, just as the seven dimensions of applied behavior analysis have instructed it to (Baer et al., 1968). Over time, certain procedures, such as electric shock, spanking, and restriction of movement (Leaf et al., 2021), have become unethical, which has resulted in modifications to the Ethics Code for Behavior Analysts (Behavior Analyst Certification Board, 2020), as well as everyday practice to ensure these unethical interventions are no longer utilized. Despite these advances, there are still areas that are lacking in the field. Therefore, the current paper will review the literature in behavior analysis that …

Predicting School Proficiency In Illinois: A Fixed Effects Analysis Of Demographics, Funding, And Mobility, Lauren Johnson

Research Papers

Using Illinois State Board of Education data from 2017-2024, this paper analyzes the effects of black and low income enrollment, spending per pupil, chronic absenteeism, mobility rates, principal turnover and teacher retention rates on student proficiency at the school level. The data includes demographic information, test scores, mobility rates, attendance rates, teacher retention rates, principal turnover, and state and federal spending per school per pupil. Using fixed effects ordinary least squares regressions, it is found that the enrollment percentages of black and low income students are negatively correlated with students’ proficiency. Mobility rates, principal turnover, and chronic absenteeism are also …

Applying Machine Learning And Optimization Algorithms To Perform Feature Selection, Shizhao Yu

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The objective of feature selection in the realms of machine learning and data mining is integral, serving as an efficient mechanism to eradicate redundant or irrelevant features, and subsequently augmenting the performance of predictive models. In the contemporary landscape of big data, with the escalating dimensionality of datasets, the efficacy of traditional feature selection methodologies is compromised, due to their computational complexity and ineptitude in addressing the curse of dimensionality. This thesis posits a pioneering feature selection framework that amalgamates machine learning with advanced optimization algorithms. The methodology employs a Support Vector Machine (SVM), in conjunction with a cutting-edge metaheuristic …

The Design And Synthesis Of New Materials Using Nucleophilic Aromatic Substitution Reactions, Lavneet Kaur, Kenneth E. Maly

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Abstract The overall objective of this research was to synthesize and study the structure-property relationships of novel polycyclic aromatic compounds capable of producing open crystalline networks based on π-stacking interactions in solid state. In this work, we describe a method of producing polycyclic aromatic compounds bearing electron-rich and electron-poor rings in order to promote cofacial π-stacking in the solid state. These compounds were synthesized from easily accessible molecules using nucleophilic aromatic substitution and copper-catalyzed aryl amination. The scope of phenoxazines bearing N-aryl substituents was explored for the synthesis of various polycyclic aromatic compounds. Interesting characteristics such as luminescence and predictable …

Automatic Reaction - What Happens To Workers At Firms That Automate?, James Bessen, Maarten Goos, Anna Salomons, Wiljan Van Den Berge

Faculty Scholarship

We provide the first estimate of the impacts of automation on individual workers by combining Dutch micro-data with a direct measure of automation expenditures covering firms in all private non-financial industries over 2000-2016. Using an event study differences-indifferences design, we find that automation at the firm increases the probability of workers separating from their employers and decreases days worked, leading to a 5-year cumulative wage income loss of about 8% of one year’s earnings for incumbent workers. We find little change in wage rates. Further, lost wage earnings are only partially offset by various benefits systems and are disproportionately borne …

“People [Are] Not Dying Because Officers Aren't Following Their Training. ‘It's Because They Are.”: The Construction Of Police De-Escalation Of Individuals In Mental Health Crises In Canadian Media, Renée Haddock

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Police are often assumed to be the "de facto" response to people in mental health crises. Contact between police and Canadians with mental illness and in crisis is routine and on the rise (Livingston, 2016). Police responses to these incidences have been criticized after several, highly publicized and tragic encounters between police and people in mental health crisis and the overrepresentation of people of colour in these instances. Media outlets determine which stories are prioritized, how they are framed, and which information to include or omit (Fawzi, 2018). Notably, public knowledge of police activities greatly impacts community perceptions of police …

Constructions Of Serial Killers And Victims: Analysis Of True Crime Docuseries, Mira Dhaliwal

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Stories of crime have consistently captured the attention of the public, with stories of heists, kidnappings and murder. The true crime genre receives enormous attention and serves for many as the primary source of crime knowledge, including who commits crime, how they commit crime and how law enforcement responds. Books and podcasts have been interrogated by researchers to understand the nature of the content but missing are the true crime documentaries and docuseries that have dominated streaming platforms in North America. The present study examined three true crime series about serial killers using social constructionism and social problems theory, and …

Investigating The Thermal Stratification Patterns Of A Shallow Polymictic Boreal Shield Lake And The Effectiveness Of Models In Predicting Shallow Lake Thermal Profiles, Matthew Roberts

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Thermal stratification is a core process of lakes which plays a critical role in shaping the ecological dynamics of lakes, influencing major processes like nutrient cycling and oxygen availability. For shallow polymictic lakes, thermal stratification patterns present some unique differences due to the complex and variable nature of these lakes. In this thesis, I examined thermal stratification in a shallow polymictic lake in northwestern Ontario during the ice-free season of 2019 to investigate the frequency, duration, and driving factors of thermal stratification. The lake underwent 146 separate stratification events, with a median duration of 2 hours per event, with a …

Lactate's Role In Appetite Suppression, Seth Mccarthy

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Once considered metabolic waste produced during exercise, lactate is now known to have diverse roles in biology. Muscle-derived lactate can travel through the bloodstream and be taken up by other tissues and i) oxidized, ii) converted to glucose via gluconeogenesis, or iii) bind to its receptor to trigger molecular signaling cascades. Lactate has been described as a “myokine” capable of inter-organ crosstalk and compelling evidence demonstrates lactate’s role as a signalling molecule in pathways related to the regulation of appetite. The purpose of this dissertation was to further elucidate lactate’s role in appetite regulation using series of studies aimed at …

Capital Structure Models And Contingent Convertible Securities, Di Meng

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The 2007-09 financial crisis showed financial institutions are vulnerable during distressed times. As an alternative resolution to a government bail-out, contingent convertible securities (contingent capital or CoCos) were proposed by various researchers. CoCo is a hybrid capital security that converts from a bond to common equity when a pre-determined event occurs. The loss absorption mechanism of CoCo is essential to the financial health of a bank during a crisis as it provides an instant capital infusion when public capital is difficult to access.

In this thesis, we first implement a methodology to calibrate capital structure models for large Canadian banks. …

“It Is Tiny And It Is Everything”: Exploring The Effects Of Arts-Integrated Gardening On Experiences Of Ecological Grief Through Autoethnographic Research, Christina Kingsbury

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This study explores how arts-integrated gardening affects experiences of ecological grief through autoethnography and draws on my personal experiences as a survivor of environmentally linked cancer and artist working with gardens through social practice. My research builds on two areas of emergent scholarship—investigations of ecological grief and gardens as sites for social work practice—to explore how social work may address ecological grief through arts-integrated gardening. I use a quilting autoethnography as a method of inquiry to foreground my subjective knowledge and analyze it through intersectional feminist, disability and decolonizing theories. By incorporating narrative analysis and arts-based inquiry—writing in place, poetic …

Exploring Mating Patterns: The Interplay Of Genes, Environment, And Their Evolutionary Outcomes, Sanduni Talagala

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

There is great variation in the reproductive tactics exhibited both between and within different species, which is reflected in how individuals engage in mate assessment, mate choice and offspring production. It is therefore important to understand general mating patterns of populations, the factors that influence these mating patterns, and the consequences they carry, in order to get a more holistic understanding of mating systems. This doctoral research represents a multi-pronged investigation of the factors shaping mating patterns and their consequences, how environmental factors influence mating patterns, and how both genotypes and the environment interact to influence mate choice decisions and …

Creativity, Fame And Power: A Critical Political Economy Of Social Media Comedy Skit In Nigeria, Idowu Badmus

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This study explores social media comedy skits in Nigeria as a novel type of creativity that is both an economic and cultural activity with political and social implications within the context of the rapidly expanding global ecosystem of online content creation. Academic interest in social media comedy skits has grown as a result of their emergence as a popular culture within Nigeria's entertainment landscape. However, most research has focused on understanding this form of humour through its positive societal correlates. Hence, within the notion of industrialization of culture, which suggests that various methods of financing and arranging communication resources have …

Evaluation Of The Dnazyme Gr5 For The Determination Of Lead Speciation In Natural Waters, Gaganprit Gill

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This thesis explores the development and application of a DNAzyme-based biosensor designed to detect labile metal species in environmental samples. Real time and on-site monitoring of labile metal fractions would make a valuable contribution to environmental management, as these fractions are the most bioavailable and pose significant toxicity risks to aquatic organisms. Conventional methods for detecting labile metals, while effective, are often burdened by high costs, complexity, and lengthy processing times, making them less ideal for rapid and widespread environmental assessments.

The first manuscript of this thesis (chapter 2) establishes the fundamental capabilities of the Pb²⁺-specific DNAzyme GR5 …

Npr1 As A Temperature-Sensitive Regulator Of Pipecolic Acid-Mediated Plant Systemic Immunity, Spencer Tout

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Healthy plant development requires balancing both abiotic (e.g. climate) and biotic (e.g. pathogen) challenges, which intercept important signaling pathways in plants. For example, climate change-associated elevated temperature can negatively modulate various aspects of plant immunity, including the production of central immune signals salicylic acid (SA) and N-hydroxypipecolic acid (NHP). Since SA and NHP signaling both require the master immune co-activator protein NON-EXPRESSOR OF PATHOGENESIS-RELATED GENES 1 (NPR1), it is important to investigate NPR1 as a potentially temperature-regulated molecular hub. Although the NPR1 gene is not transcriptionally downregulated at elevated temperatures (28° C vs. 23° C), little is known about …

Grief On The Margins: The Death Of A Family Member To Substance Use, Adair Shaw

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Despite Canada's high death rates from substance use, there is limited research on the sociopsychological impact on families, who often face stigma and disenfranchised grief. This study explores how family members make meaning of a substance-related death. Through qualitative inquiry, eleven family members were interviewed on their experience of grief from substance death. The imprint of losing a family member to mental illness and substance use is fraught with intergenerational grief, ambiguity, prolonged mental-emotional distress, and relationship challenges. Substance death was also associated with stigma, social withdrawal, and shame for many participants. However, grievers reconstructed the socially prescribed negative perceptions …

Impact Of Membrane Lipid Composition On The Structure And Function Of Uncoupling Proteins 1 And 2 From Arabidopsis Thaliana (Atucp1 And Atucp2), Elizabeth Silva

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

A proton gradient across the inner mitochondrial membrane (IMM) is required for the synthesis of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) via ATP synthase. In other words, generation of the proton gradient is coupled to the synthesis of ATP. Interestingly, uncoupling proteins (UCPs), also located in the IMM, dissipate the proton gradient, meaning that the gradient is not efficiently used for the production of ATP.¹ The mechanism of proton transport activity of UCPs has been hypothesized and widely debated for the past 20 years to also reduce oxidative stress by reducing the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS).² The majority of …