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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences
Quantifying Impacts Of Grazing And Poor Land Management Strategies On Erosion Through A Semi-Automated Change Detection Workflow In Ka’Amola, Molokai, L. Kalai Ellis, Richard A. Gill
Quantifying Impacts Of Grazing And Poor Land Management Strategies On Erosion Through A Semi-Automated Change Detection Workflow In Ka’Amola, Molokai, L. Kalai Ellis, Richard A. Gill
Utah Space Grant Consortium
A challenge faced by those working in a system plagued by non-native vegetation invasion and disturbance from ungulates is the ability to collect landscape-level information about land cover change and the mass movement of soils associated pulsed rainfall events. Our goal was to conduct high-precision change detection of land cover and surface features during a two-year period that included several mass sediment flux events associated with tropical storms. We present here preliminary results of the development and testing of a rule set based classification algorithm used to classify imagery from 2019 and 2021 of a single watershed in Molokai to …
Biophysical Factors Control Invasive Grass Hot Spots In The Mojave Desert, Tanner C. Smith, Tara B. B. Bishop, Michael C. Duniway, Ryan R. Jensen, Richard A. Gill
Biophysical Factors Control Invasive Grass Hot Spots In The Mojave Desert, Tanner C. Smith, Tara B. B. Bishop, Michael C. Duniway, Ryan R. Jensen, Richard A. Gill
Utah Space Grant Consortium
Invasive annual grasses are a nuisance in the American Southwest through promotion of the grass-fire cycle. Annual grasses such as Bromus rubens, Bromus tectorum, Schismus barbatus, and Schismus arabicus have invaded the Mojave Desert and increased fire occurrence, thus it is important to identify and characterize the areas where persistent invasion has occurred and subsequently fire risk is increased by understanding the distribution of these invasive grasses. Here we use a remote sensing framework to map persistent and productive populations of invasive annual grass, called hot spots, in the entire Mojave Desert ecoregion over 12 years, identify …
Progress Report: Covid-19 Hotspot Detection In University Campus Settings, Garrett Duncan, William F. Christensen, Camilla Handley
Progress Report: Covid-19 Hotspot Detection In University Campus Settings, Garrett Duncan, William F. Christensen, Camilla Handley
Utah Space Grant Consortium
The COVID-19 pandemic caused a lot of disruption in the academic world. Many schools and universities shut down entirely and transitioned to online learning. As BYU made the transition back to in-person learning, the administration needed to know if there was in-class transmission happening on campus in order to regulate restrictions and keep students and faculty safe. Using demographic information about the students, we built an XGBoost model that produces an estimated probability of testing positive for each student. We incorporated engineered variables from the demographic information as well. We evaluated model fit using metrics such as AUC. Using a …
Exploration Of An Electrochemical Sensor For Continuous Monitoring Of Estradiol In Application To Fertility Tracking, Julia S. Dominesey, Shad J. Roundy
Exploration Of An Electrochemical Sensor For Continuous Monitoring Of Estradiol In Application To Fertility Tracking, Julia S. Dominesey, Shad J. Roundy
Utah Space Grant Consortium
Estradiol is one of three estrogens, the primary female sex hormone; it fluctuates diurnally, and monthly, dictating the menstrual cycle. We developed a bench-top electrochemical sensor to detect estradiol with the intention of future realization into an implantable, continuously sampling sensor to be used as an aid for fertility health. The electrochemical sensor is comprised of a three electrode system which utilizes a gold working electrode, platinum counter electrode, and Ag/AgCl reference electrode to perform cyclic voltammetry. A monolayer of estradiol aptamers and mercaptohexanethiol coat the working electrode surface. The monolayer was exposed to 10ng/mL, 100n/mL and 1,000ng/mL of estradiol. …
Life Will Find A Way: Investigating Entombed Microorganisms In Gypsum At Great Salt Lake As A Model For Studies Of Gypsum On Mars, Paulina Martinez-Koury, Bonnie K. Baxter
Life Will Find A Way: Investigating Entombed Microorganisms In Gypsum At Great Salt Lake As A Model For Studies Of Gypsum On Mars, Paulina Martinez-Koury, Bonnie K. Baxter
Utah Space Grant Consortium
Great Salt Lake (GSL) is the second saltiest lake in the world, whose hypersaline geochemistry, high UV irradiation and volatile climate coalesce into a fascinating and extreme environment. The genetic diversity of the microbial community of GSL is primarily comprised of “salt-loving” halophiles ranging from archaea, bacteria and fungi. These organisms have the ability to live in high osmolarity brines, survive the high UV radiation and high salinity. Halophiles have “superpowers” including lifestyle flexibility that allows a state of dormancy when trapped within tiny inclusions such as small pockets of fluid or clay, in gypsum or halite minerals. The entombment …
Spatial Exploration Of Microbial Biodiversity Of Great Salt Lake, Alvin Sihapanya, Paulina Martinez-Koury, Bonnie K. Baxter
Spatial Exploration Of Microbial Biodiversity Of Great Salt Lake, Alvin Sihapanya, Paulina Martinez-Koury, Bonnie K. Baxter
Utah Space Grant Consortium
Our research focused on the collection of water, microbialites, gypsum, and halite samples to analyze and compare the biodiversity found in each arm of the lake. Each was analyzed using various microscopy and cultivation techniques, and molecular methods to assess genetic diversity. This survey serves the purpose of seeking combinatorial methods to elucidate microbial diversity. Future work will further examine gaps in data, especially searching for overlooked fungi, protists, and cyanobacteria. How does the population of microorganisms vary among the distinct micro-environments at Great Salt Lake?
Thermoregulation In Deer, Elk, And Pronghorn Antelope: The Structure Of Hollow Hair And How It Helps In Winter Conditions, Taylor Millett, Wendy Schatzberg, Samuel Tobler
Thermoregulation In Deer, Elk, And Pronghorn Antelope: The Structure Of Hollow Hair And How It Helps In Winter Conditions, Taylor Millett, Wendy Schatzberg, Samuel Tobler
Utah Space Grant Consortium
Thermoregulation in animals is an adaptation made to live through hot summers and cold winters. Big game animals such as: deer, elk, and pronghorn antelope have the adaptation more commonly known as a summer coat and a winter coat. We measured and compared an animal's winter coat and summer coat using a scanning electron microscope to show why an animal can survive outdoor temperatures. We used a scanning electron microscope to identify the different topography of the individual hair and focused on the thermodynamics of each individual hair.
Microbial Diversity At Rozel Point Tar Seeps, Great Salt Lake, Utah, Cayla Martin, Jaimi Butler, Bonnie K. Baxter
Microbial Diversity At Rozel Point Tar Seeps, Great Salt Lake, Utah, Cayla Martin, Jaimi Butler, Bonnie K. Baxter
Utah Space Grant Consortium
Naturally occurring tar seeps, located at Rozel Point at the north arm of Great Salt Lake, provide an opportunity to study a petroleum-rich environment adjacent to this unique hypersaline ecosystem. These seeps result from high molecular weight hydrocarbons migrating through cracks and fissures along fault lines. During high lake levels, the seeping petroleum directly enters the salty brine, but during low lake levels, it spreads along the surface of the dry lakebed forming tar seeps that are numerous and vary in size. Bacteria have been cultured previously from oil reservoirs, yet little is known about microorganisms that live in natural …
Characterization Of Halophyte Rhizosphere Microbiomes At Great Salt Lake, Utah, Haley K. Nate
Characterization Of Halophyte Rhizosphere Microbiomes At Great Salt Lake, Utah, Haley K. Nate
Utah Space Grant Consortium
The saline soils comprising the shoreline of Great Salt Lake, Utah (GSL) provide a unique habitat for both halophytes (salt-tolerant plants) and the microorganisms that inhabit their rhizosphere. While plant diversity has been well documented at GSL, little is known about the microbial diversity in the rhizosphere. Here we present preliminary data characterizing the halophyte rhizosphere microbiome at two GSL locations; the more saline North Arm near the artwork, Robert Smithson's Spiral Jetty (SJ), and the less saline South Arm on Antelope Island (Al). The rhizosphere of several plants along the shoreline at both SJ and Al locations was sampled. …
Identification Of Haloarchaea In Gypsum From Great Salt Lake, Zhantao Du
Identification Of Haloarchaea In Gypsum From Great Salt Lake, Zhantao Du
Utah Space Grant Consortium
Gypsum (CaSO4·2H2O) is a common precipitate at Great Salt Lake (GSL). On Earth, gypsum is formed in hypersaline environments, in minerals left behind when water evaporates. In the Autumn, as the water cools, mineral precipitation is favored since solubility is lowered. In this process, newly formed gypsum will trap microorganisms in fluid and clay inclusions. This study is to cultivate haloarchaea preserved in gypsum, and identify the species using PCR technique.
Designing An Optimal Lighting Fixture For Extraterrestrial Crop Growth: Integrating Efficacy And Photobiology, Paul Kusuma
Designing An Optimal Lighting Fixture For Extraterrestrial Crop Growth: Integrating Efficacy And Photobiology, Paul Kusuma
Utah Space Grant Consortium
Extraterrestrial crop growth will require the development of technologies that provide photons to drive photosynthesis. Light-emitting diode (LED) technology is the likely technology of choice due to 1) its inherent flexibility, and 2) its high efficiency. Here we describe two important considerations for the optimization of this system: photon efficacy (μmol of photons produced per joule of input electrical energy) and spectral effects on plant growth and development. With these two considerations, we suggest the design of an LED fixture for extraterrestrial crop growth that contains a 5:10:55:30 ratio of blue, green, red, and far-red photons (respectively). This would be …
Connecting Land Cover To Benthic Cover Within The Watershed: Quantifying Impacts Of Terrigenous Sediment On Coral Reef Health And Morphology Using Remote Sensing And Machine Learning, L. Kalai Ellis
Utah Space Grant Consortium
Erosion, with associated sedimentation of reefs and loss of habitat for marine and coastal species, is one of the most pressing environmental challenges in Hawaii. Identifying hotspots of soil erosion guides management on land, but limited work has been done connecting land cover to coral reef health and morphology. Current reef survey methods overgeneralize the spatial variation of benthic cover and this has been reflected in incorrect Geographic Information System (GIS) layers of the reef. We propose a novel and more holistic approach to improve accuracy by connecting sedimentation from source to sink using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), Unmanned Surface …
Predicting Propofol-Induced Burst Suppression Using An Individualized Model-Based Approach Over Repeated Treatments, Jason C. Huang
Predicting Propofol-Induced Burst Suppression Using An Individualized Model-Based Approach Over Repeated Treatments, Jason C. Huang
Utah Space Grant Consortium
Our group is investigating the antidepressant effects of high-dose propofol, but dosing propofol to induce standardized changes in EEG activity (“burst suppression”) is challenging due to limited knowledge of each subject’s pharmacokinetics (PK) and pharmacodynamics (PD). In this paper, we approximated PK-PD models for propofol-induced burst suppression (PIBS), based on multiple subjects over repeated treatments. We then applied these models to predict BSR in each subject’s repeated treatment, then evaluate their predictive performances. We hypothesized that predicting BSR from a greater number of previous treatments would improve performance, but our current results are not conclusive enough to validate the hypothesis. …